There is so much to love about about the Minnesota Original Music Festival as a potential attendee or participant. A great opportunity to share your music with folks outside of the Twin Cities, a great opportunity to see music in a different setting and a reason to get out of town. Big thanks to Eli Hoehn for telling us all about it. Note for artists: Applications for the 2025 Songwriters Stage are open Feb 1-28, 2025.
Please tell us about the Minnesota Original Music Festival:
The MN Original Music Festival (MOMF) is a nonprofit headquartered in Saint Peter, Minnesota. Our mission is to create programming to benefit and inspire Minnesota musicians that perform original music through events that foster community, peer learning, networking, education and performance. This year is our most ambitious season to date, as we transition from an organization that puts on an annual festival, to one with year-around programming. In 2025 our programming includes, Songwriters in the Round (a conversation/performance program with Minnesota songwriters), the 48 Hour Band Challenge (a fun challenge featuring musicians of all styles and experience levels), a Composers Showcase (featuring Minnesota composers and their music), a Music Exchange Series (a series of Summer events intended to benefit practitioners of particular music genres, this year, Hip Hop, Jazz, Roots, and Indigenous Music), our Main Stage Concert Series (with performances of original music by Minnesota artists in a variety of musical genres), Triple Falls Interactive Stage (hosting events intended for public participation, including events for children), and our workshop series that has provided sessions on songwriting, music business, booking, grant writing, recording and improvisation. You can check our programming out in more detail at https://mnomf.org/, and follow our activities on social media at, https://www.facebook.com/mnoriginalmusicfest. By the way, all of our programming is free and open to the public.
How did the festival get started? And how did you get involved?
I’m a musician/composer that started a music career late in life. I discovered that playing an instrument and writing music didn’t get me performing jobs and that being a performer is really hard. You have to write the music, play the music, teach the music to bandmates, record the music, create a presence so people know who you are (websites, social media, online recordings, band pictures, band logos, band art), you have to reach out to bookers, look for opportunities (and when you don’t find opportunities, make your own), network with other musicians and bands, get people to listen to your music, promote your shows, find people that will interview you, do interviews, write grants, and not quit). For those that don’t have networks connected to the music scene, it’s a bit overwhelming. I was a teacher for a long time, and it occurred to me that the music community needs some opportunities for musicians at different points in their journeys to learn from one another, to learn business skills relevant to the music industry, to have opportunities to perform on a stage run by a professional sound production team in front of an audience that came to listen to your original songs, and in general, connect your music to listeners. So, I started the MN Original Music Festival with a hand full of other local musicians in an effort to accomplish that. We’re in our fourth year, now. We’ve established ourselves as a Minnesota nonprofit with 501(c)(3) status, with an amazing board of directors, and are fortunate to have great support from our community.
Rumor has it, you’re looking for applications for the Songwriters Stage. What does that mean? And what are you looking for?
The Songwriters Stage is a brand new venture for MOMF. We are providing stipends for Minnesota songwriters and composers to create new music and perform it with an amazing band put together just for the event. Everyone in the band has long performance resumes and can also assist songwriters and composers as needed. For the purpose of the program we’re defining a “songwriter” as a person that creates music that can be played by a self-accompanied musician. We’re offering two $500 songwriter stipends to create 4 songs, about 10-12 minutes. A composer is a person creating music for multi-instrument ensembles. We’re offering two $1000 composer stipends to create about 15 minutes of music. The stipends require the artist come to Saint Peter for two rehearsals in July, and perform their music with the band during our Main Stage Concert Series, which will be live-streamed and recorded. Applications for the program open February 1. Artists can apply through our website at mnomf.org/.
We are looking for artful, interesting, creative music, created especially for the Songwriters Stage, by diverse performers with depth and promise, even if no one has ever heard of them before.
Will you be doing another 48 Hour Band Challenge? Can you tell us more about it?
Absolutely. The 48 Hour Band Challenge has become one our most successful events. We will have a signup for the event on our website probably starting in May sometime. On Wednesday, July 16, we will have our annual 48 Hour Band Challenge Draft event, where contestants are drafted into ad hoc bands, choose band names, receive rules which typically includes performing 3 songs, an original song the band puts together, and two covers. The event is managed by one of our board members, “Punk Rock” Tom Heffernan and Tom is great at devising creative caveats for the contestants. Tom usually requires a special word or phrase to be included in the original song, I remember one year bands had to compose a song that included the word “fire-hydrant” somewhere in the lyrics. As for cover songs Tom has a list of songs that contestants choose from for one, the second requires bands to modify a song in some way. Last year Tom had a bingo game and each band received two randomly assigned bingo balls with the names of well-known bands. Bands were asked to play a song by the first artist, in the style of the second artist, which turned out to be amazingly fun. If you can imagine playing a Dolly Parton song in the style of Peal Jam you get the drift. The 48 Hour Band Challenge is great fun, musicians traveling great distances to participate. Beyond that, it’s an opportunity for musicians to teach and learn, to network with other musicians, to watch how others approach learning, performing, composing, and arranging. Multiple bands have come out of the challenge and numerous musicians have found bands to perform with. My own band, The Quantum Mechanics, has two bandmates discovered through the band challenge. We’re very happy with the way the event has evolved.
What has the reaction been from visitors and the local community?
Each year our audiences get larger. People that come to our events return, many donate to our organization because they know that even though our events are free to the public, they are not free to produce. The local community has provided overwhelming support, allowing us to use facilities, provide funding to help put on events, they come to our events, and promote us. Saint Peter is a great place to live and work, a small town full of music and art,(we even have a resident magician that puts on regular magic and comedy shows).
I want to mention again that all of our events and programs are free to the public. I recommend coming to town on Wednesday, July 16 for our 48 Hour Band Challenge Draft (venue TBD), followed by our, Live Music Wednesday event at Patrick’s on Third (there is an amazing BNB that overlooks Patrick’s patio), and stay through the weekend for the Friday evening 48 Hour Band Challenge contest and our weekend concert and interactive events in Minnesota Square Park. The Saint Peter community has a great food co-op, two breweries, and an amazing coffee shop that features wonderful breads they bake at their own bakery, and great eating establishments. On Friday, July 18, you can check out the band challenge held at Patrick’s on Third, which usually starts around 6:00 (come early). Our Concert series starts Saturday in Minnesota Square Park and runs through Sunday (free to the public, bring your own beverages as long as they’re not in glass bottles). There will be two days of music, artisans and activities.
Currently Planned MOMF Activities for 2025:
- May 8: MOMF Songwriters in the Round (this year’s program features composers that play the bass, if you’re one of those, you want to catch this)
Host: Shelley Pierce (Shelley is a long time co-host of the KMSU radio show, Shuffle Function, the curator of KMSU’s Minnesota Music Channel-an online radio station that plays only Minnesota original music, and a talented bass player).
Guests: Liz Draper, Eric Zimmerman, Craig Matarrese, Mark Krogmann
Venue: Arts Center of Saint Peter - June 28: MOMF Hip Hop Music Exchange (if you’re a Hip Hop artist or interested in the genre, this event is being created for YOU)
Hosts: !ntell!gent Des!gn & Grum
Venue: Patrick’s on Third - July 13: MOMF Kick-off at Patrick’s on Third (TBA)
- July 16: MOMF 48 Hour Band Challenge Draft
Hosts: Tom Heffernan & Cara Lucille
Venue: TBD.
Followed by,
Live Music Wednesday, at Patrick’s on Third - July 18: MOMF 48 Hour Band Challenge Contest
Hosts: Tom Heffernan & Cara Lucille with production by Triple Falls Productions
Venue: Patrick’s on Third - July 19-20: MOMF Main Stage Music Series & Triple Falls Interactive Stage
Venue: MN Square Park
Also, Songwriters Stage Performances will be on the “KMSU” Main Stage - July 31: MOMF Composers Showcase (an event that showcases performances of original music by Minnesota composers)
Featuring, Adrian Barnett
Venue: Arts Center of Saint Peter - August 23: MOMF Roots Music Exchange
Host: Josh Reinitz
Venue: Patrick’s on Third - September 27: MOMF Indigenous Music Exchange
Host: Tom Heffernan
Venue: MN Square Park, Saint Peter, MN
Mostly Minnesota 