Musical artists and organizers of Tall Grass Guitar Class made a big announcement at a small gathering Thursday, June 13, during Southwestern Mental Health Center’s Chamber open house.
Scott Johnson, CEO of SWMHC, introduced an Oct. 18, 19 and 20 event that will bring three “world class” guitar players to Luverne for three days of guitar study and a culminating performance at the Palace Theatre.
Johnson shared information with fellow Chamber members about Southwestern Mental Health Center’s 60th Anniversary of providing mental health services to the region, and he spoke about challenges in accessing resources to address increasing demand for services (See the related story.)
Along those lines, he announced SWMHC as a sponsor of the Tall Grass Guitar Class and an Oct. 20 benefit concert open to the public as a way to raise awareness and funding for mental health services, particularly children’s services.
At Thursday’s Chamber gathering, Johnson introduced Sioux Falls singer and songwriter Dan Mahar who is tapping his national and international connections to bring three big-name guitar players to Luverne.
“Our goal is to bring a quality, musical educational opportunity and the experience of studying under great guitar players,” Mahar said Thursday.
Recording artists Lee Roy Parnell, Pat Donohue and Verlon Thompson will offer guitar lessons and jam sessions to class registrants, followed by the Sunday evening, Oct. 20, public benefit concert in the Palace Theatre.
“I’m still kind of pinching myself,” Johnson said about the musicians coming to Luverne. “I’m just astonished.”
He also introduced his friend and colleague, child psychiatrist Dr. Dave Ermler, who is also helping with the October event.
The three men, all from Sioux Falls, have guitar appreciation in common, and both Johnson and Ermler — and Ermler’s daughter — studied guitar under Mahar, who offers lessons in Sioux Falls.
Ermler pointed out the potential economic impact for Luverne.
“These big deal artists are coming in, and they’re going to talk to their big-artist friends,” he said. “There are going to be a lot of people in town.”
Chamber Director Jane Wildung Lanphere said Luverne will be ready. “We’re honored they chose Luverne for this, and we look forward to hosting it as a community.”
Mahar said he and Johnson and Ermler have been discussing the potential guitar event for several years and they also considered where to debut it.
“We thought about the Black Hills, Sioux Falls and other places, but Luverne is the perfect place to do this,” he said, referring to facilities available and the attraction of the historic Palace Theatre.
“I chose to live here in the Upper Midwest because of the people — everyone around here is helpful and they’re happy you’re here. … It became patently clear that this is the place to do this. It’s a gut instinct, but I think this will give the musicians a good experience as well as the students who come to learn from them.”
Ermler said the first year will be an important base for future annual versions of the event.
“The dream is that this will be really big,” he said. “There’s something about coming to a small community and getting away from the rat race of a big city.”
South African filmmaker Etienne Nesser, also Mahar’s friend, will record the three-day event for a professional video that will help promote the next year’s Tall Grass Guitar Class in Luverne.
Planners likened Tall Grass Guitar classes to a baseball fantasy camp in which athletes spend time with professional players during the day and then watch a game at night.
“It’s like a guitar players’ fantasy camp,” Mahar said. “You get to play with them for awhile and then watch a game.”
He said the musical stars are friends of his and they have fans nationwide, some of which have already registered for the limited number of guitar lessons in Luverne.
“There are a lot of people who aspire to perform,” Mahar said. “We want them to have a chance to learn from the masters.”
The three guitar artists will each offer two-hour classes limited to 20 students per class — up to 60 students total — in the morning and in the afternoon.
Mahar said anyone can register for the sessions, but at $1,400 per person, the concept will appeal to hard-core fans of the artists and to those dedicated to learning unique approaches to guitar training.
Included in the registration is a Friday night reception, as well as three two-hour guitar sessions with each of the three artists, a Saturday night performance by Mahar, meals and lodging for all three days, observation access to the Sunday afternoon sound checks for the Sunday concert, and admission into the Sunday evening concert.
Sunday’s Oct. 20 performance for the public to benefit SWMHC cost $30 per ticket, available at the Palace Box Office and online.
Concert proceeds will benefit SWMHC children’s mental health services.
“We look at this event as a way to say ‘thank you’ to Luverne and southwest Minnesota for 60 years of partnership and support,” Johnson said.
“We have great partnerships and support from our county commissioner boards and Family Service agencies, our communities, Avera, Sanford, law enforcement, landlords and other organizations, and this will be a way to call attention to them.”
See swmhc.org and tallgrassguitarclass.com for details.