Chris Burgoyne rents the Side Door in Radford every six weeks or so and
books a band to perform.
By
381-1674
Jeff Wynn and Doug Conner
play together before their respective performances at the Side Door in Radford.
"That's the great thing, it's just local musicians getting together,"
organizer Chris Burgoyne says. "I don't think those two even knew each
other before tonight."
RADFORD -- Through an inconspicuous door on
the side of a building, up the stairs and following an arrow and a sign that
says "Meetings held here since 1900," New River Valley
music lovers gather for an informal concert.
The Side Door in Radford is an old union
meeting room that is now rental space for parties and meetings. Last year,
music lover Chris Burgoyne decided the space could be that and more. He said
Radford needed another music venue -- even if it wasn't full time.
Burgoyne said he had been mulling over the
idea of a music club where members could pay about $10 to attend performances
or play each month or so.
"There's not a lot of places around to
hear live music," he said. "I'd heard about this place, and I thought
it was a place people could come to enjoy themselves."
The Side Door concerts were born in October
2007. Every six weeks or so, Burgoyne rents the Side Door and books three or
four local, mostly nonprofessional musicians to play. There is no cover charge,
but a $5 donation is appreciated, he said.
"It's a wonderful place to play because
for years I played in bands in beer joints, and they were always smoke-filled
and people weren't listening," said Doug Conner of Christiansburg, who was
one of four performers Sept. 20.
Conner first performed at the Side Door in
February.
There is an unspoken rule that once the music
starts, most of the talking stops, so musicians have the audience's full
attention. Most of the music is bluegrass or folk.
"It's just a really nice environment and
people come to have fun," Conner said. "You get 30 minutes to do
whatever you want. Now, the crowd may not like you and you won't get asked
back, but you get that time to perform."
The idea isn't to make it the biggest event
in Radford, but to have a good time listening to music, Burgoyne said.
"We get advice on how to make it bigger,
but that's not what I'm looking for," he said. "I'm just putting
together acts because I saw a need in Radford."
