{"id":64698,"date":"2019-10-16T16:39:53","date_gmt":"2019-10-16T16:39:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/eco-bluegrass-comes-to-absolute-bakery\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T15:18:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T15:18:43","slug":"eco-bluegrass-comes-to-absolute-bakery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/eco-bluegrass-comes-to-absolute-bakery\/","title":{"rendered":"Eco-bluegrass comes to Absolute Bakery"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"The
The San Juan String Band performs at a celebration of Smokey Bear\u2019s 75th birthday. From left are Carol Calkin on the fiddle, Joni Vanderbilt on mandolin and Laurie Swisher on guitar. Jonti Fox played the bass with the band for this celebration.<\/span>Courtesy of the San Juan String Band<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The U.S. Forest Service\u2019s own bluegrass band is joining in on the Mancos Public Library\u2019s celebration of the land this month, and is set to perform at the Absolute Bakery & Cafe in a week.<\/p>\n

The San Juan String Band is a small group of Forest Service employees and volunteers who perform songs about the environment and public lands. Their upcoming Mancos performance is part of the Four Corners One Book Initiative<\/a>, a collaboration between six local libraries.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a labor of love,\u201d said mandolin player Joni Vanderbilt about the band. Vanderbilt is a hydrologist with the Forest Service. \u201cWe put a lot of volunteer hours into it, put a lot of work into thinking about good songs and how that relates to things we want to talk about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vanderbilt and her guitarist forester friend Laurie Swisher came up with the idea for the band about 12 years ago. They took it to the Forest Service leadership, who laid out the parameters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe all have a big passion for connecting with the community through music,\u201d Vanderbilt said. \u201cAnd also just talking about what we do at the Forest Service and public lands appreciation.\u201d Oftentimes, they find that people don\u2019t know what their work entails, and music offers a mechanism to make that conversation happen.<\/p>\n

Volunteer Carol Calkin joined them later as a fiddler.<\/p>\n

Since their inception, they\u2019ve been able to perform for a wide range of children\u2019s events and programs. They\u2019ve joined with the Durango-based Bluegrass in the Schools program and take their tunes to students in Mancos, Dolores and Dove Creek.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so gratifying,\u201d Vanderbilt said. \u201cThe kids will come up to us later and they know our songs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bluegrass is conducive to their mission of connecting people to the land and making the Forest Service more approachable, Vanderbilt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the songs aren\u2019t about murdering or alcohol, they\u2019re all about the outdoors, so it\u2019s perfect,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re able to weave in things about the wildlife or the streams and what we do in our role in protecting those resources.\u201d<\/p>\n

They are particularly proud of their harmonies, she said.<\/p>\n

Previously, volunteer Joan Green was a songwriter and bassist with the band, writing a variety of eco-related songs for them to perform, with topics ranging from dirt to humidity. Green died last year, but by playing the songs she wrote, they can honor and commemorate her, Vanderbilt said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe miss her, but we celebrate her still, we play her songs and keep them alive,\u201d Vanderbilt said.<\/p>\n

Their Mancos performance is set for 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Absolute Bakery & Cafe. Cookies and refreshments will be served.<\/p>\n

This is the second of three events<\/a> that make up the Four Corners One Book initiative. The first was on Oct. 3 with a discussion on land and resource conservation, and the final installment is Nov. 7, when author Chuck Greaves will talk about his book \u201cChurch of the Graveyard Saints,\u201d which is set in Southwest Colorado.<\/p>\n

ealvero@the-journal.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

This story was updated Oct. 24 to correct the date of the performance.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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