At our last open mic at Hava Java Mesa a guitar player came up to me after her set. “I wanted to thank you for hosting these open mics, it really gives me a safe music community to perform with,” expressed Dawn Parker. Dawn and her husband Keith are regulars at the coffee shop.
I guess I never really thought about it like that, never thought of it as a music community. I mean Barb and I both love these open mic nights, but a music community? Are we really doing something for the music community? Of course, Hava Java Mesa is just the venue, Brenda Martin and Jack Wolf from Milano Music in Downtown Mesa are really the driving force behind the open mic.
They host it, organize it, and make it fun for everyone. Actually, many of their students of all ages come up to perform.
For our part, we try to make this a great place to come and listen to and play music. I do have just one rule for our open mics; everyone that signs up gets to play! We don’t cut it off at our normal closing time. We close when everyone has had their chance to play.
I was told a story by the mom of two sisters (16 and 17 years old approximately) who play at almost all our open mics. She tells me that they played at another open mic in town this time with a friend. The owner of the establishment came out after their set and berated the three of them, told them not to come back to her open mic again as they have higher standards! Higher standards?
Open mics are about learning to play in front of other people. Getting out of your comfort zone. It takes a lot of courage for these beginning artists to get up and play. Many for the very first time in front of strangers. To berate these teenagers is appalling to me. With all the pressures put on our youth today, you say that they are not good enough for your establishment. This person needs to be reminded what an open mic really is.
This is where Brenda and Jack come in. We have worked together for almost two years to create a warm comfortable place to hone your music skills, at all levels.
So, when Dawn came up to me on the last open mic and told me how nice it was that we do this, I guess I felt a little proud and I wanted to find out a little bit about her music journey.
Dawn and her husband Keith are regular customers during the week, so I asked her to tell me a little about her music and the open mics.
Dawn was a 30-year junior high school music teacher and played the oboe. I could tell from our short interview that she really cherished her career. She holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from ASU. She played guitar a little in high school but like many got sidetracked. For her teaching career she landed on band instruments. I can’t imagine how many young lives she changed in those 30 years.
She retired six years ago and started taking up guitar again and going to some open mics. They found our open mic four months ago and now she is a regular. In the last four months she has really progressed and is much more at ease now with her guitar. Since retiring, Dawn has become a certified repair tech for band instruments.
This goes along with my own story, and I want to say; we are just getting started Dawn! There is no age limit on trying something new and living out your dreams. Dawn Parker is just one example of the artists who play on the fourth Thursday of every month starting at 5 p.m. until all have played.
Hava Java Mesa is located at the northeast corner of Power and McDowell roads in The Village at Las Sendas, 2849 N. Power Road, Suite 103, in Mesa.