COLUMBIA: Metter than ever
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| From left, Olivia Carrico, Debbie Scarlet and Kayla Boylan monitor the children enjoying the Bounce House during a recent Music at Metter festival. |
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Music at Metter, that's what.
The annual outdoor music festival has become a rite of summer, welcoming in the hot weather with a variety of musical styles.Waltzes and polkas-along with classic country music-has already stormed through town thanks to the likes of Larry Hallar's Two Star Final and the San An Tones.
The next three shows will throw in some jazz, bluegrass, contemporary rock and blues to round out the schedule. These upcoming shows will take place today (Sunday), July 20 and Aug. 3.
Jackie Hausmann-an administrative assistant with the city-has coordinated the event the last two years and said she thinks it is only gaining in popularity.
"The last show was the best crowd we have had since I've been here," Hausmann said. "People were even getting up and dancing."
As only the second of five shows, predicting how the next ones will pan out is difficult, but Hausmann has been trying to make sure she doesn't get too many of the same acts.
"We want to make sure we get as diverse an audience as possible," Hausmann said. "We generally have an older crowd because it's that type of music, but we are trying to branch out this year."
This effort will be tested for the finale, when middle school band Moreland Drive takes the stage. They performed at the Columbia Middle School talent show in May, playing early 1990's music like Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and some old tunes such as the Ventures' "Wipe Out."
"We weren't sure about how this would effect our audience so we scheduled them for early in the night," Hausmann said. "But hopefully their fans will stick around for the next band and see how fun Music at Metter is."
Like a lot of other bands, Moreland Drive showed interest in Music at Metter.
"It's not really hard to book these groups," Hausmann said. "We get a lot of people sending tapes and it's harder to pare down the listing than to get them to play."
With free admission, one might wonder how the bands get paid, which is a big part of them agreeing to come. Well, the local business community can be thanked for that.
Harrisonville Telephone Company and 1st National Bank of Waterloo sponsored the June 22 show, with different companies lined up for the rest.
"It hasn't been 100 percent paid for, but we are close," Hausmann said.
Local civic organizations also help out, whether it be St. Paul United Church of Christ selling popcorn or the Monroe County YMCA-HTC Center providing a Bounce House for children.
All in all, Music at Metter is truly a community wide effort, with music lovers reaping the benefits.
