Elderweek Concert
Delaware County Community College, Media PA

Wednesday, 24 March 2010
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This concert was an unusual pleasure for the Ken Lelen Combo because few people knew about the event and our audience was a noisy, moving target.

         Our sponsor was Elderweek, an adult education series hosted by Delaware County Community College in Media PA. Several hundred people attended the event, which offered classes on senior health, finances and lifestyles. Of these, about 100 people visited the roped-off area of the lobby in the STEM Center for a brown-bag lunch and our Vintage Music Concert.

         Nevertheless, our 45-minute program went well enough for us, though it felt like it was over as soon as it began. I played four vintage guitars, sang 11 great old songs and told Tin Pan Alley anecdotes to amuse the audience.
         To my dismay, the concert was broken up by people coming and going, people talking on cell phones, and people sitting down, standing up or chatting as they passed into and through the lobby.

         Alas, 125 feet from where we stood was the STEM lecture hall, a large auditorium. It would have served nicely for a concert for Elderweek attendees. For unknown reasons, however, it was not considered appropriate by the event's sponsors.

         What’s more, publicity for the concert was limited. We saw it listed in the Elder Week program guide, but saw nothing about the concert at the college’s website. In addition, there were no posters, radio PSAs or press releases in the media.
         Still, our modest-sized audience was deemed a success, so showing up and doing a good job is reward enough after all.

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© 2010 by Kenneth Lelen — All Rights Reserved