The Healing Blues Project is a collaborative effort between Greensboro College Assistant Professor of Art Ted Efremoff; Professor of Music David Fox; a couple of art students; and the blues community in Greensboro, North Carolina. Efremoff came up with the idea to pair blues artists with homeless people in the community to form a musical bond to be shared with others. After the project was accepted by the Open Art Society, a CD was developed. Titled The Healing Blues, it features storytellers and songwriters creating songs in the style of the blues. All proceeds of the CD and concerts help fund the Interactive Resource Center (IRC), a Greensboro day center for homeless people.
The Healing Blues group later came together and formed Healing Blues Café sessions at Greensboro’s Elsewhere Living Museum. Café sessions mixed musicians with storytellers to serve as a catalyst for future Healing Blues projects.
The idea started out small, but has grown into something big that has left a significant mark on Greensboro’s community. Because of the outpouring of positive support from fans, Greensboro College is considering using similar techniques to branch out into areas of education, arts, and social justice. This year will be busy for the Healing Blues team. “Myself and my partner, Dave Fox, who produced The Healing Blues CD, are working on another album to be recorded in the summer of 2016 and we are looking at reproducing the Healing Blues model and working with more social welfare nonprofits, with different genres of music, and new musicians,” Efremoff says.
Thank you for the cool write up! I think you mistyped the date, though.