Bloomingtone embraces variety of musical styles

On Friday and Saturday, Bloomington venues will come together for Bloomingtone, a music festival that celebrates and introduces Hoosiers to a variety of music styles.

The festival, run by IU’s Business Careers in Entertainment Club, benefits the Artful Learning program at the local Fairview Elementary School.

Tickets can be purchased at the door of each venue for $5, or wristbands can be purchased for one or both nights for $10 and $15, respectively, at Landlocked Music on North Walnut Street.

Festival Director and BCEC Vice President Stefan Scherer-Emunds said the focus of Bloomingtone is to give students and residents a chance to experience musical genres they might not be familiar with.

“The festival is based off of the idea that a lot of people have eclectic music tastes, but usually programming is centered around one genre,” Scherer-Emunds said. “So, what we want to do is give people the chance to express their varied music taste.”

Evan Chapman, a member of the classical percussion quartet Square Peg Round Hole, will perform at the festival.

Chapman said the benefits for Fairview’s Artful Learning program make the festival special.

“Any fundraiser for the arts is something that’s worth hosting and participating in,” Chapman said.

BCEC previously organized a festival called Rock for Kids’ Sake, a one-day festival dedicated to showcasing rock music and benefiting the Artful Learning program.

While the festival’s name has changed and its offerings have broadened, Fairview Elementary’s program remained the beneficiary, he said.

“Obviously, music is the main focus,” Scherer-Emunds said. “But the other focus is the localness of it, and that program satisfies both of the focuses.”

Bloomingtone features eight musical genres, including jazz, indie rock and classical, in nine different venues around Bloomington.

Scherer-Emunds said he finds it exciting that the event could expose his band to a whole new group of people.

“Bloomingtone will be a good opportunity for the public to see a group they might not normally see,” he said. “The group is very excited to be a part of something as big and diverse as Bloomingtone, and we are looking forward to playing for people that might not be a part of the percussion circle.”

Scherer-Emunds said the most important reason to go to Bloomingtone is to support the Artful Learning program.

“It’s something that people in the club and the artists involved can all unite around and feel passionate about, giving younger kids the opportunity to get into art the same way that we are,” he said.