Jim Summers takes his guitar out of its case, eagerly awaiting the arrival of his classmates at the Old Town School of Folk Music. Summers has taken guitar classes at the school since his young son died a year and a half ago.
“I had gone through a tragedy, and music was helpful for me,” he says. “There’s nothing better for you than strumming a guitar.”
Summers is taking the school’s Wilco class – a group composed of a pianist, a bassist, a drummer and about a dozen guitarists that covers Wilco songs as a means of teaching musicians to play in a group. When the teacher signals for class to begin, the ensemble breaks out into a song off Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Summers strums twice as fast and twice as loud as the other guitarists.
Old Town School of Folk Music is an evening and weekend commune for musicians and dancers, offering inexpensive classes in nearly every style of music from around the world. Located across from a Starbucks and several upscale restaurants in Lincoln Square, the school appears to be a yuppiefied version of the school from Fame. Inside, modern dancers stretch in the hallway before class. Banjo players and fiddlers tune their instruments on the staircase, and the spicy sound of a flamenco guitar floats through the building.
The majority of students are middle-aged professionals. After their day jobs as lawyers, teachers or college students, they escape to this creative and social outlet.
“Here it’s more about a community of musicians. It’s more social than competitive,” says Bill Brickey, a guitar instructor at Old Town School for the last 15 years.
“The typical student is here for the fun of it,” says Bob Medich, the school’s media director. “They’re either already musicians who want to hone their skills, or they’re coming here to do what they’ve always wanted: pick up a guitar or learn to dance an English jig.”
Despite the name, Old Town School isn’t just about bluegrass and old-timey music. Founded in 1957, the school originally focused on American folk music, but in the ’80s it expanded its offerings to include world music and dance. The school’s mission statement is “to teach and celebrate music and other cultural expressions rooted in the traditions of diverse American and global communities.”
About 6,000 people currently attend a wide range of weekly classes, including Hawaiian ukulele, yoga, Irish dancing, African drums and a Grateful Dead cover ensemble. The school also offers classes for children at several locations in the city. All classes are taught by experienced, professional artists from all backgrounds.
“Chicago is so ethnically diverse that we’re able to utilize the folks that live here to teach our programs,” says Kerry Sheehan, the school’s education director. “We don’t have to rely on bringing people in from other cities or other countries, because it’s all right here at our fingertips.”
Lauren Moore, Weinberg ’02, performs in the Grateful Dead class. She says several of her friends take classes at the school, and they convinced her to try it out. “I have no musical talent, so I learned the bongos,” Moore continues. She says she has a great time at the school, with no regrets about the $100 class fee.
Although the school’s main emphasis is on its classes, Old Town School also presents regular concerts. The school brings in internationally renowned musicians in addition to performances by its faculty and students on nearly a weekly basis in its 400-seat concert hall.
“We’ve pioneered a lot of people who are now at the top of their game,” says Medich, noting that Ani Difranco, Allison Kraus and many others have had their Chicago premieres at Old Town School. The school hosts several free, weekly concert series such as Afrofolk Live and La Pe
