Mixtape Concerts - 2023 Edition(s)

Over the last couple weeks we’ve performed our Fall “Mixtape” concert at the Northeast Reintegration Center (NERC), the Grafton Correctional Institution (GCI), and the Mansfield Correctional Institution - both the main campus facility and the ‘camp’ side of the facility.

Often when we perform in correctional facilities the residents ask us if we know how to play this or that piece of music that they love to hear. Eventually we started writing down and specifically soliciting their requests in order to curate an entire concert based on them. This was the third year that we curated our fall concert around requests we received, which are often quite eclectic. The broad range of genres inspired us to call these Mixtape concerts. They are always an adventure to prepare for! And the concerts we created this fall were no exception. (We say “concerts” plural, because each performance is unique, since each group puts different things on their request lists.)

Trust us when we say these concerts spanned a wide variety of genres. We took on a little bit of everything, from Eminem to Beethoven to The Charlie Daniels Band! It’s such a blast to share this eclectic combination of music and watch people’s reactions when they hear that their request is about to be played. We also love hearing from people about why they requested a certain song, which we always give people an opportunity to do before we perform each selection.

Per usual, it’s difficult to get photos from every facility, but we hope you enjoy these photos from NERC and MANCI.