Local music to your ears

By Janelle Fisher
City Pages Editor

Since its launch in 2018, FlipSide, a music streaming service hosted by the Appleton Public Library, has been bringing local music to the community’s ears.
“FlipSide is run through the Appleton Public Library and it’s the Fox Cities’ local music streaming platform,” said Peter Kotarba, adult services and engagement librarian at the Appleton Public Library. “People can access local artists on their desktop or on their mobile device through a browser… The service that it provides has two sides of the coin. On one side is the patron access. Anyone who goes to flipside.apl.org can listen to the music. It’s great music and it’s local music, which is amazing. And then on the other side of that is the support it gives to artists. It’s all local musicians and artists, so it provides an additional platform for them.”

More than 54 artists are currently represented across 61 albums on the platform, and that number is expected to grow as FlipSide is currently accepting submissions through March 31 for new work to be added for streaming.

“We ask that artists that are seeking to submit their work are connected to the Fox Cities,” Kotarba said. “We define the Fox Cities as Appleton, Kaukauna, Little Chute, Menasha, Kimberly and Neeah, and it’s just a connection to them. So that could be you were from here, you went to school here, you played gigs here or you’ve recorded an album here. The second requirement is that artists have produced an EP or album of original work and it’s important that they have the rights to that work. For the submission process, artists upload two tracks, a short bio and contact information and then we ask to know about recent performances and their connection to the Fox Cities. For all of the submissions we receive in each round, we have a team of curators who listen to all of them and work with library staff to add to the collection.”

Curators for the current submission window include Amelia Ford, Nashville recording artist and 12-time WAMI finalist; Sonja Downing, ethnomusicologist and member of the musicology department at Lawrence University; and local music enthusiasts Jessica Haessly, Scott Peeples and Jennifer Arndt.

But offering a platform for streaming isn’t the only way the Appleton Public Library is providing local musicians with a way to connect with the community.

“We’re expanding our reach with FlipSide,” Kotarba said. “We have a new series coming up in the Appleton Public Library that’s going to be called the FlipSide Concert and Story series. We’re going to have artists from FlipSide come into the library for about 90 minutes and share their music with us. They’ll give a live performance and also share their story and why it’s important to them. One of the cool things about local music is the connection that it makes, whether that’s someone listening or someone who has had the opportunity to see them live or chat with them after a show. So this FlipSide Concert and Story series is designed to give community members an invitation to ask a question or to hear more about the lives of our community members and local musicians.”

And with the Appleton Public Library’s new building complete, Kotarba said local musicians will now be able to utilize library resources to aid in the production of their music.

“In the new building, we have two special study rooms called the Microsoft Digital Creation Studios,” he said. “Patrons will have the opportunity to engage with different hardware and software that we have in those study spaces. If someone is wanting to produce an original album, they could come in and use our equipment. They could mix or master some recordings that they have. We have a midi controller so they could add some fine tuning to those products and a microphone to add some vocal tracks. If they wanted to create an album cover, we’ve got Photoshop, Illustrator and the Adobe Suite for them to use. We’re really trying to support artists and not just provide a platform for people to listen to their music, but also to have a space for them to work.”

To learn more about FlipSide, explore and stream local music or to submit an album, visit flipside.apl.org.

Keywords

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