DJC x UMAW IIP: Update 5
DJC Volunteer Coordinator Ted here with another dispatch from the Instruments Into Prisons (IIP) effort!
As you’ll see, we’ve had some nice momentum in 2022 so far…but we can always use more gas! Spread the word to your people and point them in towards our donation intake page and/or our monetary fund donation page to help keep this thing moving!
Before we jump into the next update, we’d like to acknowledge that this update marks over one year of the IIP effort. We are immensely grateful for all the work from donors, volunteers and collaborators both inside and outside of prison that have helped this initiative persist for over a year! Check out some of our achievements below.
NOW HERE IS THE LATEST!
PRISON UPDATES
See below for a general list of all of the gear shipped so far, organized by facility with a market value estimate total of the items sent in.
STERLING CORRECTIONAL PILOT PROGRAM
Since our last update, we’ve continued our donation efforts to jumpstart the music programming at Sterling Correctional Facility which is, in part, led by DJC artist and Sterling resident, Michael Tenneson (whose songs you can hear on our latest release from Territorial - see “V,” “‘8788,” “Holy Rain”). Over many weeks of phone calls and conversations, Tenneson helped us fine-tune a list of particularly useful resources, which we have steadily donated inside over the last several months.
Tenneson’s music theory lesson plans that he uses to guide his classes.
We consider this effort to be a “pilot program” of what can happen when a facility and staffing is cooperative enough to support a resident-led music program. As of now, it is still a burgeoning project. So far, Tenneson has been able to employ the four donated Casio digital keyboards in his music theory class that he conducts regularly with a group of residents. The class is also supplemented with donated educational resources/curriculum such as Will Barrow’s Learn and Master Piano CD/DVD course and Gibson’s Learn and Master Guitar CD/DVD course.
DJC also donated a Tascam 2488 multi-track recording unit, SM58 microphone, cables and headphones, which Michael has been able to use in an in-cell studio. Tenneson opened this studio to the collaboration of other musicians in his pod and has been composing and recording demos that he is very excited about.
Photographer, journalist and videographer Ann Seymour Vergara (@anntheword) recently paid Tenneson a visit inside of Sterling CF to document his efforts in the burgeoning music program.
You can view her short video doc HERE for a look inside the facility and to hear Tenneson himself explain the theoretical and emotional basis for his commitment to music inside of prison.
When asked for a statement regarding her experience at Sterling visiting Tenneson, Ann shared the following:
“There is a weight to prisons that is hard to fathom until it is experienced. The walls, the doors, the furniture, the sound of footsteps, everything is so much heavier, designed to withstand and repel. The anticipation of abuse is omnipresent. Visiting Michael inside of Sterling allowed me to see and document how he operates inside of that environment, how he uses music to help transcend his surroundings, and how he aims to extend this opportunity to his fellow residents.”
Be sure to follow what Ann is up to via her Instagram account: @anntheword.
WOODBOURNE DRUM SET DELIVERY
On Jan. 25, DJC volunteer Cole C. drove from Manhattan to Woodbourne, NY, to personally deliver IIP’s first full drum set donation to Woodbourne Correctional Facility.
With the help of Jessie Kilguss at Musicambia, we learned of a talented drummer at this facility named Shedrick Blackwell (a former student of the Musicambia Sing Sing program) who expressed a need for a proper drum kit in their facility music program. The previous drum set was in a significant state of disrepair. With coordination assistance from Jessie, Father Ndulaka (of the Woodbourne CF music program) and Cole, we were able to make this in-person delivery happen!
We hope to continue to support the musicians inside of Woodbourne with further donations in the future!
After the successful donation, drummer Shedrick was able to pass this message along to us in the audio clip below:
“This is Shedrick Blackwell, drummer extraordinaire, Musicambia Carnegie Hall alumnus, just thanking you so much for your generous donation of a drum set. I can’t even speak highly enough of the importance of having good equipment for younger musicians who are trying to find their way to music…not just the drums but music in general. Thank you very much. I thank Jessie for knowing you and having the connection and getting together…I’m sure this program that we have here that’s not big, but it’s growing, will benefit greatly from having this drum set. So again I thank you very, very much…”
NEWPORT FESTIVAL GRANT & LUCY DACUS
On April 13, 2022, DJC was approached by Dan Swain of the Newport Festivals Foundation (NFF) a nonprofit organization that produces the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals respectively, and supports music education programs around the country. Swain informed us that we had been chosen to receive a grant to support our IIP effort!
As part of the Newport Folk Festival’s “Artist Gives” program, musicians on the festival lineup choose organizations to which NFF donates a $500 grant. Artist Lucy Dacus chose DJC and the Instruments Into Prisons effort to receive this very generous grant. We were able to quickly initiate a new donation stream to Territorial Correctional Facility in Cañon City, CO, (home of DJC Records’ Territorial music collective and the groundbreaking Tlaxihuiqui album). With the guidance of representatives from Territorial CF’s music program, we assessed their needs and decided on the donation of a brand new Mackie ProFXv3 bundle that comes with a 16-channel mixer, carrying case and XLR cable.
We are infinitely grateful to Lucy Dacus for thinking of us for this grant and were excited to be able to give back and further support musicians at Territorial CF who have contributed their talents and energies to DJC Records in the past. We plan to continue this donation stream into Territorial Correctional moving forward.
THAT’S ALL, FOLKS
As always, we are looking to keep up the IIP as long as it remains feasible to do so. That being said, the majority of our success is dependent on the willingness and generosity of volunteers and donors. If you or anyone you know is interested in redistributing some gear or contributing to our monetary fund, we continue to accept both.
And to those who have supported this effort along the way, by donation of money, gear or simply by spreading the word, we are endlessly grateful for your time, energy and resources. Thank you.
And finally, I wish to close this blog with a message of respect and solidarity to all those individuals (musicians, artists and otherwise) who remain locked inside of the American carceral crisis.
Onward!
Ted Jamison
DJC Records
Volunteer Coordinator
