By Jennifer Ersalesi
On Friday, September 11th, Maple Street residents pulled out their lawn chairs, put on their masks, and socially distanced at an outdoor, front porch concert performed by Rosemary Loar and some of her talented friends. Rutherford resident Loar is a professional actress, Broadway veteran, and singer who decided that performing outdoor concerts for her neighbors and her community gave her a way to show her appreciation for the great people in the town where she lives. This was Loar’s third front porch concert. Her neighbor, Jaimie Winters, has allowed Loar to use her porch for these special evenings. During the concerts, Loar has expressed her gratitude for the first responders, essential workers, and her neighbors who look out for one another.
During this concert, Loar was joined by her ten-year-old voice student, Nina Travani. Travani performed "Wherever We Go" from the musical "Gypsy". Loar performed songs from The Great American Songbook, including classics from Bing Crosby and Duke Ellington. She also performed some selections by Sting. Her songs were selected to "celebrate life".
Musicians Scott Reeves (trombone and alto flugelhorn), Joseph Frame (guitar), John DiPinto (piano and accordion), and Tom Hubbard (acoustic bass) volunteered their time to perform on the front porch stage with their friend Loar.
Loar told This is Rutherford, “In the challenge that we all are experiencing in this pandemic I find music is healing. The fact that we can perform outside (on my wonderful neighbor Jaimie Winter's porch), makes it possible for the audience to safely social distance. These concerts give us a sense of community that I think we all are hungry for and miss. As musicians, we miss performing so it’s a win-win experience”
To learn more about Rosemary Loar, click here.
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