Musicians pool talents to raise funds for the YMCA

Hardyston - Last Friday evening the Sussex County YMCA in Hardyston throbbed with drumbeats and surges of melody from local musicians who came together to help raise money. The YMCA will use the funds to send children to camp, and to give memberships to seniors on fixed incomes and needy families. The YMCA’s first benefit concert also was another first, the debut performance of jazz/rock fusion band “Perfect Angle,” led by composer and keyboard soloist Joe Steinwand, who also serves as sound engineer, guitarist and singer. “The name ‘perfect angle’ embodies the idea that there’s no more perfect angle than our coming together to make music we love to perform,” Steinwand explained. Some might wonder what the angle of their inspiration is. “A couple of old-timers who played accordions on the street corners in Queens, N. Y., where I grew up stirred my early musical soul,” said the keyboard player, who described how he used to play polkas and waltzes from ear. Steinwand noted that he also counts the Beatles as a major influence, and credits electric violinist Jean-Luc Ponti with setting his soul on fire. “The sounds I get out of my keyboard form stories in my head, and I compose most of my songs directly on the guitar or keyboard,” Steinwand remarked, after wowing the audience with Yanni-like cascades of melody. Steinwand isn’t the only composer in the group, though. The band also includes Lou Slamer, owner of Lou’s Music in Newton. “Lou composes for the guitar, and set the mood and phrasing, drawing you into the song,” Steinwand explained. “He plays the right notes at the right time.” Steinwand also praised “Perfect Angle’s” singer and lyricist Ryan Schutz’s “mind-blowing lyrical ability, ” and percussionist Leo LaBarge’s excellent grasp of rhythm. LaBarge, who in his other life teaches English at a private school in West Milford, lauded the audience for being one of the most sympathetic he’d had in a long time. “One of the best things about not having to play music for a living is that I can do what I love, because the audience is there because they want to be,” LaBarge said. “Music is a conversation between the musicians and the audience and the nameless energy that goes back and forth. Music is about communication, and if they are wiling to listen I am willing to play. Making living teaching frees me to practice my art.” Among the other acts that appeared were Denny Tilton and Friends, with selections from his three albums, “Real Life Stories,” “Generations” and “Shoulda Seen the Dream.” Nina Peterson, a singer and songwriter from the Pocono Mountains who now lives in Byram Township, also performed. Peterson’s latest recording, “New York Daydream” features original tunes that she said relate to experiences with family, love and loss. Steinwand summed up the reason all had come out. “We’re so happy to be able to help the YMCA Scholarship Fund and present our music to an audience in Sussex County,” he said.