It Happened One Night in Stone City

You've been commissioned.

Early in my performance career, I appeared multiple times at the Stone City General Store in Stone City, Iowa. At that time, the Stone City General Store was a vibrant music hub, attracting musicians from around the country to perform on its stage. It was at the Stone City Music Festival that I met the legendary folk musician Tom Paxton. Tom encouraged me with his kind words and has remained a friend over the years.

Stone City was also made famous by Iowa artist Grant Wood, who, along with other artists and writers, formed an art colony there in 1932.

Aside from meeting Tom Paxton and other famous musicians in Stone City, one night in particular stands out. It was the night I met Kennet and Annette Oberly. I was standing on stage, about to start the show, when I saw them enter the room. The moment they walked in, I knew there was something special about them. They were trim and athletic-looking, moving gracefully across the room with perfect posture as they found their table.

Kennet Oberly

After the show, Kennet and Annette asked to speak with me. They had driven all the way from Des Moines to see my performance. I learned that Kennet was the Artistic Director of the Des Moines Ballet, and Annette was their principal ballerina. Kennet was searching for an Iowa singer-songwriter to create a new ballet—a ballet about the farm crisis. Because I love all types of dance, I was thrilled at the opportunity to collaborate with Kennet and the company.

The Des Moines Ballet company that performed “Swallows Return in the Spring”.

It has been said that the farm crisis was worse than the Great Depression—for farmers. Unlike the Great Depression, when the entire country suffered together, farmers bore the brunt of the farm crisis alone. Many were losing their farms due to 'failed policies, mountains of debt, and land and commodity price booms and busts,' according to Iowa PBS. In an effort to raise funds to support farm families, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Mellencamp organized the first Farm Aid concert.

Kennet had a vision—to create a ballet depicting a farm family enduring the devastation of losing their farm and way of life due to the crisis. I was invited to Des Moines to meet the company and further discuss the concept with Kennet. I must say, I was blown away by the dancers—they were incredibly talented beyond my expectations. My job was to write the music for the ballet and perform it live with the company. Wow! I was both nervous and excited for the challenge ahead.

Being commissioned to write music was a new experience for me. For the first time, I had to create music based on someone else’s vision. The challenge was to set aside my own ideas and recognize that the music had a critical role—to ensure that each dancer in the company had a story of their own to tell.

The dancers portrayed a family consisting of a grandfather, a father, a mother, a teenager, and two younger children. The backdrop of the ballet was an auction, where household items, farm equipment, and even the family’s home were to be sold to the highest bidder.

For example, I was tasked with writing a song about a rocking chair being auctioned. Initially, I envisioned a mother rocking her baby, reflecting on her life as a farm wife and mother. However, Kennet had a very different idea. The 'Rocking Chair' song was to be about the teenage daughter and her secret romance with a young man who eventually abandons her for someone else. Heartbroken, she turns to her mother for comfort. Whoa—wrap your head around that.

In the end, the ballet consisted of five songs and was titled Swallows Return in the Spring. I traveled with the company, performing at various venues in Iowa and Minnesota. I hope to perform live with a ballet company again someday and will be forever thankful to Kennet Oberly for giving me the opportunity to work alongside him and for reaching out to me that night in Stone City.

The only recording I have of Swallows Return in the Spring is on cassette tape. Nonetheless, despite the sound quality, I have included the Rocking Chair song.

Below is a link to more information about Kennet Oberly:
https://amballet.org/about-us/guest-choreographers/kennet-oberly/