Dr. Kerry Hart, former Music Professor at Adams State University, presents The Alamosa Ragtime Band with Don Richmond and the SLV Community Band for a musical event, "Dancin' in the Cottonwoods: A Centenary Celebration of the Musical Heritage of Alamosa, Colorado (1901-1930).
Tickets are $10 and available online at www.societyhall.org and at the Green Spot, 711 State Ave. Doors open at 6:00 pm and the show begins at 7:00pm.
Two dance halls and an opera house
On October 29, 2022, at 7:00 p.m., Society Hall will feature the SLV Community Band and the Alamosa Ragtime Band with Don Richmond in a musical event titled, Dancin’ in the Cottonwoods: A Centenary Celebration of the Musical Heritage of Alamosa, Colorado (1901-1930).
The connotation in the title of the concert comes from “Cottonwood” being the English translation of the Spanish word, Alamosa. But more importantly, the centenary celebration of the musical heritage of Alamosa reveals a best kept secret of the early days in Alamosa. Here’s a little background to provide a context for the concert.
It’s common knowledge that when Alamosa was established as a town in 1878, the town quickly became a hub for transportation, commerce, and agriculture. But the information about Alamosa that is not as well-known and remembered is that Alamosa was also a “hoppin” place for its musical and social life in the early 1900s. Indeed, Alamosa had a robust music culture that, from the town’s very earliest days, provided the citizens of Alamosa and the surrounding communities in the San Luis Valley with band concerts in both the park and at indoor venues in the colder months, dances, and a variety of music and dramatic events featuring both local and guest performers. So robust was the musical life of Alamosa that Alexander Oliver built the Oliver Opera House in 1901 (on State and Fifth Avenue – now Main St.) to house the numerous musical activities of the community.
Unlike the big cities of the early 1900s that would make significant financial investments to import professional orchestras, the music of Alamosa was primarily home-grown – utilizing local musicians volunteering their time and talent to serve community constituents. The Alamosa Courier (predecessor to the current Valley Courier) reported in April of 1901 that the Woodman Band (later called the Alamosa Band) would be presenting a concert followed by a cake walk and dance. On June 29, 1901, an article in the Courier indicated the band would provide a concert followed by a dance in Ruby Hall. The popularity and commensurate support for Alamosa’s first community band is described in the February 23, 1901 edition of the Courier as the band playing for a “packed, sympathetic, and appreciative audience.”
Over the course of the first two decades of the twentieth-century in Alamosa, the band went through a few name changes: Woodman Band, Alamosa Band, and Alamosa Municipal Band. Originally, the band would perform a concert and follow it with a dance in which the admission price would help fund the uniforms, music, and equipment for the band.
Community support for a band was strong. In the summer of 1911, a (portable) band shell was erected on Main and State (all through donations of material and labor), as the band had been giving concerts on this corner. According to the July 29, 1911 edition of the Courier, the erection of a band shell was “in keeping with the dignity and ability of the band.”
The current SLV Community Band is a continuation of the tradition of excellence established by the early Alamosa Band. On Saturday, October 29, 2022, at 7:00 p.m., Society Hall will provide the venue for an opportunity to experience a replica of the musical experience the citizens of Alamosa experienced 100 years ago. The SLV Community Band will perform a “brief but spectacular” concert followed by the Alamosa Ragtime Band with Don Richmond, performing original “Roaring 20’s” dance music that undoubtedly permeated the dance halls in Alamosa 100 years ago – i.e., reminiscent of the early band concerts followed by a dance.
As part of Dancin’ in the Cottonwoods: A Centenary Celebration of the Musical Heritage of Alamosa, Colorado (1901-1930), the SLV Community Band will be paying a musical tribute to the Hispanic heritage in Alamosa and the San Luis Valley. Among the selections, the band will be performing Amparito Roca, A Spanish March in tribute to the original Spanish Province that had a presence in the San Luis Valley prior to 1848; and the Mass from La Fiesta Mexicana by H. Owen Reed, as a tribute to the sacredness of the Hispanic Heritage in the San Luis Valley represented by Our Lady of Guadalupe Church just outside of Antonito in Conejos County – the oldest church in Colorado.
The Alamosa Ragtime Band, a group formed especially for this occasion, is comprised of members of the SLV Community Band and other community members – including Don Richmond. Musical selections performed by the Alamosa Ragtime Band are the ‘real deal” – i.e., authentic arrangements of the music that permeated the “Speakeasy” dance halls of the 1920s. Some of these selections include songs like, Here Comes My Ball and Chain, Five Foot Two, Eyes of Blue, In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town, and Toot Toot Tootsie.
The Dancin’ in the Cottonwoods concert would not be possible without the support from the following businesses and individuals: Alamosa State Bank, San Luis Valley Federal Bank, Rio Grande Bank, Poole Chemical, O and V Printing, Inc., Tita Louise Martinez, Kristin Cichocki, and Rita Hart (in memoriam). Deepest appreciation goes to those business and individuals that are supporting this event.
While we no longer have two dance halls and an opera house, Alamosa (and the San Luis Valley) still has a strong musical tradition that will be on display October 29. Ticket prices for this event are $10.00 and all proceeds go to Society Hall. Tickets may be purchased at the door, online at societyhall.org or at the Green Spot (711 State Ave.). For more information about the concert, please call 719-580-7838.
Contact: Kerry Hart
P.O. Box 1562
Alamosa, CO 81101
Phone: 719-587-3342
Email: hartline@gojade.org
