It hardly seems possible, but January 2017 marks ten years since our first show here at the Good Shepherd Center Chapel, thus initiating the Wayward Music Series. Since then there have been roughly 1200 concerts here, presented by local producers and independent artists specializing in an astonishing range of adventurous music and sound art.
Our goals remain primarily artist-driven: to provide a hospitable well-equipped home for musics that are outside of the mainstream and lacking other venues. As Seattle becomes less and less affordable and increasingly hostile to non-commercial artists, alternative venues that aren’t about making money are endangered. The current real estate crisis only makes our mission more vital. Every time an artist moves away or can’t find a place to present their work because of prohibitively high rents, the cultural life of our city suffers.
These artists, who take risks making creative, challenging music, who typically play for small audiences and are rarely covered in the local press or heard on local radio, are who we strive to support and serve. They literally make the Wayward Series happen; without this creative community, Wayward would have no reason to exist. So if you appreciate that this project continues, thank the artists and continue to support them by coming to shows.
We are always open to new artists who have never played a Wayward show, so if you think what you do fits with what we do – contemporary classical, free improvisation, out jazz, abstract electronic and electro-acoustic music, sound art, invented instruments, etc. – please read this and drop us a note. Onward into the future!