TeenTix Blog Music

Welcome to the seventh episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the local music scene through access to education and critical discussion. This month’s episode is on local youth artists, featuring interviews with Chloe Bilstad, Jack Frost, and Knight. Listen as they discuss what songs they're most proud of, how their music connects to their identity, and which other artists inspire their work!

Funding for TAP provided by 4Culture

Welcome to the sixth episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the music scene through access to education and critical discussion.

In this episode, Josh and Triona discuss how music production has shifted in our new, digital age and how it has allowed artists to pursue music non-traditionally. We highlight why DIY production methods are so important to the ever-changing music scene and give our own insight on how this impacts the broader music industry. Listen in for a fascinating discussion on one of music’s most evolving topics!

Welcome to the fifth episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the music scene through access to education and critical discussion.

In this episode, Olivia and Xandra discuss the musical aspects of film and television. We define the difference between a soundtrack and a score, explore the impact audio has on stories told through a primarily visual medium, and share a few of our own favorite musical backdrops from movies and TV. Tune in for some nerdy insight into the ways music can shape our experience of stories!

The month of May is the last month of spring—enjoy it before the hot waves of summer hit us with our exclusive curation of art to experience this month!

If you’re in the business of unfiltered, unscripted stories, then The Moth Mainstage is the May event you’re looking for! Watch five storytellers develop and shape their stories with the Moth’s directors.

For Seattle music lovers, Bumbershoot is highly anticipated. This Labor Day Weekend, Bumbershoot returns for its 50th anniversary with a slew of exciting acts. Sleater-Kinny, the Washington State band famously named after a highway exit, headlines the festival, highlighting one of Washington’s biggest bands and the alternative music scene that Seattle is so famous for. I love Sleater-Kinny as a Seattle local and a lover of riot-grrrl music, which brings feminism, punk, and politics together. Sleater-Kinny is sure to deliver a great set full of hits and make everyone feel like a “Modern Girl”. For fans of Sleater-Kinny and the riot-grrrl movement like myself, Bumbershoot offers more than one exciting set.

Destroy Boys are sure to bring a high-energy performance full of angst and power, keeping the audience excited. Thunder Pussy, another Seattle group, does rock and roll on their own terms and is deeply authentic about it. Electronic meets riot grrl in Pussy Riot, the group known for its activism and danceable hits. These artists merge their art with their politics and send important messages to those in the crowds. Bumbershoot’s lineup doesn’t stick to just one genre though, it offers something for everyone. I look forward to indie rock bands such as Morgan and the Organ Donors, Shannon and the Clams, and Temples, who will bring good vibes to this year's performances. ZHU is another exciting act who will get the Bumbershoot crowds dancing with his upbeat techno and electronic sound.

A final personal favorite is Puddles Pity Party, the famous singing clown who offers his own twist on various hits from across decades. Bumbershoot is sure to be a great event for all music and art lovers, full of exciting and diverse acts that everyone can enjoy!

Check out the full artist line-up here: https://bumbershoot.com/music-...

Cordelia Janow (she/her) is a rising sophomore at The University of Southern California. She is a double major, studying Theatre and American Popular Culture. Cordelia grew up on Bainbridge Island, and was heavily involved with the theatre scene both on the island and in Seattle. She has been a TeenTix member for years and is so excited to be writing for them this summer! In her free time, she loves to listen to music, play guitar, read, and go for bike rides.

Even though we’re on the tail ends of the UW cherry blossoms, the spirit of reinvigoration, renewal, and reinvention remains in the air in the Seattle arts scene. In April we traveled from Jet City Improv to the Henry Art Gallery quintessential spring atmospheres. We hope you’ve been taking advantage of the nice weather and visiting all of our amazing arts partners!

We first see this theme of reinvention at the Henry with Thick as Mud, an exhibit that explores how mud represents the relationship between humanity and geography. The multimedia showing explores the violence inflicted against the environment as well as the potential for preservation and reinvigoration. Similarly, Ikat at the Seattle Art Museum uses an immersive experience to remind us of the importance of the tangible in terms of fashion. SAM describes this as “A radical departure from today’s factory-made cloth, Ikat serves as a reminder of the power of slow fashion and the sacredness of clothing as art”.

Welcome to the fourth episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! In this episode, Olivia and Josh begin to unpack the importance of music education with a focus on school and private orchestras. We talk with former local school orchestra conductor Kai Hedin about how they've worked to serve their students and why their job are so necessary. We also discuss the impact music education has had on our own lives. Tune in to hear about all the ways orchestral music can be transformative for youth!

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Welcome to the third episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the music scene through access to education and critical discussion.

In this episode, Xandra and Triona explore the semi-recent Grammy Awards. We discuss the Grammys' relevance to young people today, ask musician and Pacific Northwest Grammy Board member Victoria Contreras about her work with the organization, and share our own thoughts on this year's program. Listen to find out what the Grammys do outside of the one big night!Listen now on your favorite platform:YouTubeSpotifySoundcloudCheck out our March playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7DP...TAP Intro/Outro Music:"Periwinkle" (Instrumental) by Aleyanna Grae IG: @grae.dreamer

Welcome to the second episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the local music scene through access to education and critical discussion.

In this episode, Triona & Olivia dive deep into the different platforms and ways that teens discover music, and how youth artists get their music discovered. We discuss statistics from a survey conducted by the TAP team. We interview up and coming R&B artist Ivy7 to learn about her challenges and goals as a youth artist and the advice she has for new folks coming into the music industry. We also interview Sharlese, the programming manager from KEXP and the Afternoon Show producer to find out the opportunities the organization has to offer for the youth. Tune in to learn about the different ways music can be found, advice for new artists, and the opportunities that you can be a part of.

This month on the TeenTix blog, we’re featuring events that force viewers to reject surface level understanding of life. These arts events venture underground, focusing on stories that have previously been untold, underrepresented, or underappreciated.

SIFF starts off on March 1st with the 2002 film Whale Rider, the story of a Mayori girl battling against stereotypes with the hopes to one day become chief. Similarly, Seattle Public Theater delves into stereotypes and their harm through the musical 110 in the Shade. The source material of the show was written in the 1950s and centers the theme of uncovering, as the main character Lizzie uncovers her own personal truths.

Welcome to the first episode of the TeenTix Arts Podcast (TAP)! Here at TAP, we aim to uplift youth voices and artists in the local music scene through access to education and critical discussion. This month’s episode is on all-ages venues and the impact it has on building community for teens. We explore the history and significance of the Vera Project and the Old Redmond Firehouse, two all-ages venues that are dedicated to supporting youth-driven involvement in the arts. Also featured in the episode are interviews with Maya DeAvilla, the Vera Project’s Community Engagement Coordinator, and Whitney Ballen, a former program leader at the Old Redmond Firehouse, that you won’t want to miss!

Check out our January playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playl...

It’s love season and we at TeenTix have many partners we adore (partner venues, that is). We love seeing our partners invest in new works, so we are thrilled to have three world premieres from TeenTix venues this February. Dacha Theatre, a new addition to the TeenTix Pass Program, is debuting the electro-synth musical An Incomplete List of All the Things I’m Going to Miss When the World is No Longer.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, ACT Theatre Core Company member Reginald André Jackson pursued an extensive research project about forgotten Black theatre artists, which has culminated in the production History of Theatre: About, By, For, and Near. The play explores whether the history of the oppressed can properly be shared without expressing oppression.

Sitting in the pews of Town Hall Seattle, it felt as if I could physically breathe in the sound of the jazz quintet, Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto. The venue’s dim lighting and warm atmosphere complemented the quintet’s style well, and the open seating encouraged a sense of community within the audience, a vital aspect of the personal nature of the quintet’s music. The pieces Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto composes and performs are their own language; combining jazz and traditional Brazilian music, each instrument is simultaneously percussion and melody. By the end of the set, the audience felt comfortable in the space the quintet created, creating a distinctive musical atmosphere and reminding us of the joys of human connection.

With Mark Ivester on drums, Ben Thomas on vibraphone and bandoneon, Freddy Fuego on trombone and flute, Alex Dyring on bass, and Jovino Santos Neto on piano, the quintet’s music is tight without losing its laidback and personal feel. The style plays with 7/4 time signatures and beautifully syncopated rhythms, and each note is packed with emotion. The bouncy syncopation of Brazilian folk music, blended with the soothing groove of jazz, makes for a unique and captivating experience. However, beyond the technical complexity, the nature of the Quineto’s music is such that for it to be fully understood, the musicians must pour their entire soul into the song. While beautiful when interpreted as notes on a page, the real music comes from the performers.

Patti Lee Smith is recognized as a legend in the music community. She made her musical debut in the mid-1970s in New York City with her first album Horses. Smith’s first major recognition came when she was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone. She came to Town Hall Seattle on December 2 as part of her book tour for A Book of Days, which came out on November 15. She gave a captivating performance as she alternated between different media. In her presentation, she told entertaining anecdotes alongside a slideshow, answered prepared questions from notecards, and performed a few songs with her guitarist. Smith’s innate sense of humor just added to the evening’s entertainment.

Her slideshow displayed pinnacle moments of her life through photographs that are featured in her recently released book. She told stories about meeting other recognized artists, traveling the world, and of her cherished relationships throughout her career. For example, the necklace exchanged between herself and Robert Mapplethorpe, which she mentioned in a previous memoir, Just Kids, was a fun inclusion. It was sweet to see her reminisce about their time together and put an image to the fabled artifact of her life. Another significant image was of Alice Augusta Ball, a Black woman who produced the original cure for leprosy. Ball sadly passed away at the young age of 24 in a laboratory accident, and it was only a matter of time until her work was stolen by a man. Smith paid tribute to her story and ended with “Hail Alice Augusta Ball.” Though that wording landed weirdly, it is always a good thing for another woman of color’s story to be shared. Smith never explicitly responded to the controversy around her use of the N-word, in her song Rock N Roll N*****, released in 1978. The song was silently retired off streaming services sometime in 2022. She may be using her platform to promote marginalized people to demonstrate remorse. However, without first taking accountability for performing the N-word up until 2019, her use of Ball in her presentation felt performative. Nevertheless, Smith recognizes she is a public figure who is privileged to have a platform and uses it to advocate for and give voice to underappreciated people. Patti Smith's book cover for A Book of Days

As we enter the depths of winter and the holiday season, art in Seattle is picking up a familiar festive theme—with a twist, of course. Tradition connects us to our heritage and identity, but it can also feel limiting. The ability to evolve traditions and create something new and interesting for the present is and has always been integral to art. Rest assured, there will be plenty of opportunities to revisit and reconstruct our favorite holiday classics this December.

Seattle Public Theater is bringing a Christmas classic to the mix with a revival of their A Very Die Hard Christmas, running from December 3 — 30. Similarly, A Very Drunken Christmas Carol is coming back to the Seattle Opera after a sold-out run in the 2021 season.

Epic, exciting, and innovative, Tan Dun’s 2018 masterpiece Buddha Passion refuses to be categorized. It’s an oratorio—a huge musical work for orchestra and voices, typically religious and without costumes, sets, and staging—but it’s almost an opera as well. It’s Western classical music, but it’s also Eastern religious music. It’s sung in Chinese and Sanskrit by both white and Asian musicians in America. It’s ancient and avant-garde, simple and opulent, lyrical and percussive. The massive work, which calls for a full adult choir, children’s choir, symphony, five singers, and a dancer, is a patchwork of inspirations working in harmony to preach love, forgiveness, sacrifice, and salvation.

It’s little wonder that Buddha Passion is a fusion of many styles as the composer is a man of many labels. The Seattle Symphony describes the Chinese-born, American-based Tan Dun as a “shaman and showman,” and he’s also a prolific composer and conductor.

On a random Wednesday night in the middle of October, the last thing most people would expect to do is to see a four-band punk show. Nonetheless, the Vera Project hosted just that, with bands from Seattle and across the country. The lineup included 3 Washington bands—Miss Prince, Sailing Camp, and Shudder—and the New Jersey trio, Shred Flintstone. Though the crowd was small, each band brought their A-game, powering through high-energy (and high-volume) sets that had everyone in the room bobbing their heads, cheering loudly, and eventually, moshing.

The night began with Miss Prince, a five-piece band that came straight out of the 90s grunge scene. With long hair blocking their faces, Miss Prince delivered a set of punk-infused hard rock tunes with solid melodies and organ solos, bringing a psychedelic vibe to the performance. Though the crowd left an awkward amount of empty space around the stage, the band wasn’t fazed, jumping around with happy faces and an undeniable aura of pure confidence. Miss Prince’s performance certainly made an impression on me; after their set finished, I kept an eye on Instagram to find out when they’ll play next.

Radio III / ᎦᏬᏂᏍᎩ ᏦᎢ is most easily described as “beautifully uncomfortable,” though this barely brushes the surface of what the performance really is.

Radio III is a contemporary dance and music performance created by Elisa Harkins, Zoë Oluch, and Hanako Hoshimi-Caines. The piece explores themes of colonialism, and the cycle of life in the past, present, and future through an Indigenous lens. The dances and score portray an Indigenous reaction to the way colonialism affects the way we think about life, death, and the limits put on our perspective. The show’s venue, On the Boards, was an excellent fit for the nature of the performance; the stage is minimalistic in a way that directly complements the performance. Walking into the theater, an open-white space and a foggy haze in the air greets the audience, welcoming us into a dream-like state.

The play opens to a lively set, filled with bright colors. Music pulses through the floorboards. The separation between the audience and the actors shrinks, and we are brought into the powerful, resonant story of four brave sisters. Directed by Ana María Campoy, the play In the Time of the Butterflies showcases the story of Las Mariposas and their rebellion against the Dominican Republic’s dictator Rafael Trujillo. Las Mariposas were four Dominican sisters—Dede (Beth Pollack), Minerva (Jasmine Lomax), Patria (Aviona Rodriguez Brown), and María Teresa Mirabal (Sofía Raquel Sánchez)—living during the tyrannical reign of President Trujillo. They helped lead the rebellion against his dictatorship, and three of them were eventually killed for it—their legacy, however, still played a role in Trujillo’s downfall. Based on the novel by Julia Alvarez and adapted for stage by Caridad Svich, the production by Book-It Repertory Theatre effectively conveys the events of Las Mariposa’s rebellion, but falters in operating as a theatrical piece.

One blatant issue with the piece is that as the sisters mature, the play’s events seem to have minimal effects on them. The sisters experience imprisonment, harassment, and horrors beyond imagination, but quickly after these events transpire, the characters return to their original disposition as though they had not encountered these evils at all. This flagrant lack of character growth is most noticeable in María Teresa. As a child, she was spunky and cheerful, always wanting new dresses and shoes. Her immature attitude surrounding clothing continues throughout the story, right up until her death—while Las Mariposas are driving before they are stopped and killed, María Teresa remarks on wanting a new bag. In some ways, this can be interpreted as a demonstration of how the sisters’ core values still hold true throughout all circumstances. However, in this scene, María’s materialism came off as shallow and fit the atmosphere poorly. Her childishness contrasts sharply with the mature and solemn María Teresa we see when she is actively participating in the rebellion. This inconsistency rendered attempts at understanding her emotional growth from child to adult near impossible. Her inconsistent nature could have been used thoughtfully to show the effects of Trujillo’s tyranny, but instead it makes it difficult to understand her character because she acts like two entirely separate people. Sofía Raquel Sánchez in In the Time of Butterflies at Book-It Repertory Theatre, Photo by Anthony Floyd

A rush of autumnal spirit thrums in the air. The transition from September to October is jarring—all of a sudden, the wind picks up, carrying the aroma of fall spices, and Halloween seems just around the corner. Throughout the local art scene, creative minds are preparing for this transition, setting up spooky productions of well-known favorites and spine-tingling selections of film and art that are sure to offer you a new vision into what the human mind is capable of creating. This October, seek out some new frights and thrills to get your blood pumping and rejuvenate your spirit, curated by the Teen Editorial Staff here at TeenTix.

If you’re eager to experience how the classic monster-laden iconography of Halloween manifests in the mind of Shakespeare, visit Center Theatre for Seattle Shakespeare Company’s taste of cackling witches and cold-blooded murder in their production of the world-renowned play Macbeth. If you’re riding on that wave of spooky theater but are looking for something a bit more lighthearted and punchy, drop by at Village Theatre to watch Little Shop of Horrors, based on the cult classic 1960s film of the same name. The show is jam packed with comedy, rock, romance, and carnivorous, borderline predatory plants.