Guitarists Receive Lessons at Union Square During Make Music NY Festival

Students of all ages with the NYC Guitar School participated in some impromptu lessons at Union Square on Friday, June 21, as part of the annual Make Music NY festival. Held on the summer solstice–the longest day of the year–the musical celebration is held at various pop-up events citywide, and is named after its parent nonprofit organization.

In other words, “Mass Appeal: Guitar” was only one facet of a musical earthquake that struck Manhattan that day. At around 4:30 p.m., students began bunching together on the steps facing the intersection of 14th St. and Broadway. Despite the brutal late afternoon heat, they appeared entirely absorbed by each other’s company and the various chords they were solidifying.

Shannon Mulraney, an organizer of the Union Square event, told Straus News that it was the 11th time that the NYC Guitar School had participated in the festival.

“‘Mass Appeal: Guitar’ is an open invite to anybody with a guitar to come together and play songs together in one giant group. We’ve got 160 RSPVs for this year. For any beginners, or for people that aren’t comfortable on guitar, we teach free lessons before the jams. Then we have some rock bands play after, so that new students can get an idea of what they can look forward to if they sign up and keep practicing,” Mulraney said.

“We had to take a break for the COVID-19 pandemic,” she added. “Last year’s ‘Mass Appeal’ was our first year back, and we’re hoping to top it. We believe that sharing music live with other people is the most impactful way to play music.”

As far as beating the heat went, Mulraney initially joked that “we’re not.” Water was on site, however, and participants were reminded to bring sunscreen. As long as the skies stayed clear, she concluded, “we’re gonna beat the heat and we’re gonna rock it.”

Jit, a NYC Guitar School student that was prepping for a lesson, was visiting from Singapore. He would be leaving within the week, after being in town for two months. “I wanted to play the guitar for over 30 years now,” he said. “It was one of the things on my bucket list. I’m glad I found these classes, because they’ve been amazing.”

Jit was visibly joyous as he reflected on what the lessons had meant to him: “In terms of what I’ve wanted to achieve, I’ve achieved it! I’m playing the guitar, and even if it’s at a super-beginner level, at least I’m playing it.”

The heat wasn’t bothering him either, he said, before clarifying that such scorching weather was more commonplace in Singapore.

Andy, who was sitting on the stone steps amongst his fellow students, noted that he been playing guitar on-and-off for 10 to 15 years. He’d been with the NYC Guitar School for two years. “I’ve switched between acoustic and electric, and have really been enjoying it. My big thing is learning how to improvise and how to play with other people, as supposed to just playing written music,” he said.

“Learning how to do something like this an as adult is kind of intimidating, but being around other adults...has meant learning together and being on a journey. It’s been fun,” Andy concluded. Then he got up off the blazingly hot stones for a minute, because he wanted to cool off before mastering Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” with his peers.