Newton Natives, Berklee Students To Play At Bourbon & Beyond Festival

NEWTON, MA — Newton natives and Berklee College of Music students Jonah Cuddy and Jason Garb will play Bourbon & Beyond music festival in Louisville, Kentucky on Sept. 17 as part of the Berklee Popular Music Institute (BPMI), a class that brings students and Berklee-affiliated acts to major North American music festivals.

Cuddy and Garb will perform as part of the band for the artist Matilda Marigolds on lead guitar and keyboard, respectively. They are scheduled to appear on day three of the four-day music festival and will share the stage with acts including Brandy Carlile, Chris Stapleton, The Doobie Brothers, Kings Of Leon, and many more.

"It’s going to be super fun experience,” Garb said. “It’s going to be a super amazing experience to play at the festival, but also to just be there at at the festival. Playing with an artist like Matilda is what I want to do after Berklee, traveling the world and playing music.”

Cuddy and Garb, who were both at Newton high schools, knew each other and Marigolds before their time at Berklee, though this is their first time performing together. They are looking forward to this opportunity to learn more about playing in a new setting and in front of a large crowd.

"I am looking forward to more experience playing at festivals and learning how festivals work,” Garb said. “Also the experience of playing in front of a big audience helps you feel more relaxed and comfortable.”

“One thing [I want to get from this] is to break the seal on playing for people who are expecting a professional level of performing,” said Cuddy, who aspires to be an independent producer and singer/songwriter. "It’s scary and exciting taking the dive. The selfish me also wants to meet some of my idols like Marcus King and Robert Randolph, but it’s all about how much experience I can get from the festival."

The BPMI program at Berklee guides students through every step of going from the classroom to the stage. While most Berklee classes take place over the course of one semester, BPMI runs on a three-semester, full-year cycle.

In the fall semester, the class selects the artists and splits up into management teams. In the spring, students work on artist development, marketing, digital presence, budgets, merchandise, sponsorships, and advancing their assigned festival.

For the final semester, teams rehearse with the artists to prepare them for the festival stage and accompany them to each festival to handle on-site promotion, production, and tour management.