Scarsdale Rocks at Music Festival

Lee Miller of the ModtonesHundreds of music lovers enjoyed a halcyon day in Scarsdale Village, grooving to excellent local rock bands. Originally dubbed Scarchella, the Scarsdale Business Alliance first hosted its first music festival in September 2019. That day was a big success and undoubtedly would have become an annual event if not for the COVID crisis.

Now, more than two years later, on Saturday June 4, 2022, the SBA hosted their second music festival and it could not have been better. Under sparkling skies the streets of the Village were closed to traffic, a big stage was erected and a full day of music was played for an appreciative audience. We saw grandparents dancing with toddlers, middle aged rockers reliving their concert-going days and a wide swath of the community reveling at the transformation of the Village to outdoor concert venue.

Music

The musical line-up began with Hot Lunch at noon, followed by Lee Miller and the Modtones at 1 pm. When we arrived they were singing, “Don’t let go – you’ve got in the music in you,” by the New Radicals, and everyone surrounding the stage was clearly feeling the vibe. They followed it with Elvis Costello’s, “What’s So Funny About Peace Love and Understanding,” and it struck a note in these difficult times.

Randi Culang, lead singer for “Louise in Trouble,” took center stage with her brand of country music, stopping everyone in their tracks with a performance of Creedance Clearwater Revivals, “Have you ever seen the rain?” Fortunately there was not a cloud in sight.

They were followed by a well-known band, the Del Bocas with Erika Radin opening the set with “You’re No Good.” Ironically they were good…. Really good!

We were not able to stay to hear Where is Phi, which includes Robert Schire who chaired the musical portion of the day, along with Meerkat and Someday Radio. We heard they were all great and a testament to the talent of local residents. Scarsdale’s enthusiastic Mayor, Jane Veron also took the stage to marvel at the vitality of the Village and the community.Randi Culang of Louise in Trouble

Food and Fun

Surrounding the stage were food trucks and vendors offering burgers, tacos, lobster rolls, pizza, spicy tuna with crispy rice, crepes, cupcakes, gourmet cheese and more. Zachys built a grand wine tasting tent, stocked with distributors and suppliers serving reds, whites and roses from the US, Europe and beyond. The Scarsdale PBA was behind the grill and the younger set enjoyed a fun zone with face painting, a balloon artist, tatoos and crafts.

Sustainability

The Scarsdale Conservation Advisory Council (CAC) worked with the SBA to make the festival a zero-waste event. Meals and snacks from food vendors were served on compostable (made from plants) or recyclable serveware and the CAC provided recycling and compost bins to keep any waste out of the trash. Sign up to join Scarsdale’s award winning food scrap recycling program by emailing composting@scarsdale.com.

About the Festival

The event was chaired by Marcy Berman Goldstein, co-president of the Scarsdale Business Alliance who attracted a wide range of community sponsors and worked with many Village organizations to make this impressive event a reality. Commenting after the day, Berman-Goldestein said, "We were so thrilled to bring back the long awaited Second Annual Scarsdale Music Festival (SMF) and look forward to making the SMF a “must attend” event for years to come. The streets were flooded with people all day long, dancing, eating, drinking and soaking up the amazing sounds coming from our main stage. The stores and restaurants were packed throughout the day and the sense of community was palpable. We are so grateful to our sponsors for their generosity allowing us to continue to infuse our Village center with liveliness and vibrancy.

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