When junior Deborah Neigher first walked into the basement of the newly constructed Granoff Music Center, she was amazed at the number of faces she didn't recognize.
As a music major very involved in the program, Neigher thought that she knew everyone in the Tufts music scene. When she realized that there were many musicians on campus that she had never met, she decided to make a change. With the help of a few friends, Neigher started The Musicians Collective at Tufts, a group that she hopes will unite Tufts students interested in music.
"There was a real lack of communication and community among musicians on campus, especially between music majors and other musicians," Neigher said. "A music collective really seemed to make sense."
Neigher said she has gotten a good response from the student body, citing feedback from her personal friends and a positive turnout at the Collective's interest meeting last week.
"There were over 20 people that I didn't know, and a good number of freshmen and sophomores, which is important for continuity," Neigher said.
While the Collective is a purely musical community, Neigher says that it will be very open and non-exclusive. She hopes to include musicians of all genres, from singer/songwriters to people involved in musical theater.
One of Collective's first projects will be the creation of a Tufts music website. Neigher said that the website will encourage communication between musicians through an online forum where students can post questions and answers relating to music. The website will also include wanted ads, list performances on- and off-campus, and may eventually have music podcasts by Tufts students.
In addition to the website, Neigher hopes to create a weekly e-newsletter highlighting recent developments in the Tufts music scene. She thinks that organizing musicians at Tufts in this way will make it easier for them to collaborate with other groups on campus and contribute to events like Music for Social Change.
The Collective is also planning on working toward a large, outdoor performance for all Tufts musicians. The performance would be similar to Spring Fling, but would include as many student groups as wanted to participate. An open mike night at Oxfam Cafe and organized jam sessions are also in the works.
The Musicians Collective hopes to be active off-campus as well as on-campus. Neigher has spoken with business owners in Inman Square about the possibility of a "Tufts Night" and she hopes students in the Collective will share their knowledge about advertising and booking performances off-campus.
Ideally, the Musicians' Collective will conduct all of its business online through its Web site.
"Eventually we're not going to need to have physical meetings. There are going to be a lot of people involved, and this isn't really a unified organization," Neigher said. "The good thing I see about the creation of the website is an established method that will sustain itself and be something that people can check whenever they want to."
Students seem enthusiastic about The Musicians Collective and feel it will have positive effect on the music community. Sophomore Dan Brady is a chemical engineering major who plays folk and blues music and recently joined The Musicians Collective. He said he thinks the group will "have an effect in the very near future."
"It seems like it can be pretty hard for a musician to bring his or her music to the masses," Brady said. "I think it will make it easier for me to play with other musicians if I want to, and that it will be an open and supportive forum for discussion. It's about time something like this happened."
