Bitter Jester Original Song Competition, 2020

- Preliminary Week Four -

June 22 - June 26, 2020

Every week in June, fourteen songs will be posted to Bitter Jester Music Fest social media. Judges will select one Finalist and you, the audience, will pick a “Fan Favorite” each week to advance to the Final Round!

Visit us on Instagram or Facebook to listen to this week’s music and CAST YOUR VOTE for “Fan Favorite” by liking the songs you think should move on.

Winners will be announced on Saturday, July 4!

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This Week’s Song Lineup:

All For You by Joey Wilbur

Burning Sage in My Mother's House by Isabel Osorio

Gentleman by Quick and Painless

Ire by Rue

Keep Two-Stepping by Pretoria

Lonely Nights in My Room by Jack Straughan

Never Wanna Die by Sam Poll

One For The Road by Sugar Weather

safe by Sadie Evelyn

Second Chances by Kyra Cain

Separated by a Screen by Riley Levine

Skeptic by True Vamp

Your Anything by Double Identity

Your Love for the End of the World by The Cuz

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This week’s Judge’s Bios:

(On mobile? Click the photo!)

Morgan Buckley

Morgan Buckley is a senior graduating from Northwestern University studying English and Music Composition.

In high school she was a frequent flyer as a Bitter Jester Music Fest participant and she's thrilled to be back in the action as a judge this year… and even more excited to be judging with fellow bandmates Spencer Kasper and Patrick Myers!

At Northwestern, Morgan opened for Hippo Campus at Dillo Day with her band Fizz, was selected as a 2019 Mee-ow Singer, and was a part of the writing team for the 89th annual Waa Mu show. She also serves as the President of her beloved a cappella group on campus.

Morgan is very passionate about songwriting and is in the process of developing her first album. Lately she's been spending her time having solo dance parties, Zooming with pals, and musically psychoanalyzing her crazy vivid quarantine dreams.

“Participating in Bitter Jester helped me start taking myself more seriously as a young musician.

It’s an incredible way to network with other people who share similar passions and a great platform that encourages people to share their gifts.”

— Morgan Buckley

Greg Diethrich

Greg is a Highland Park, IL-based percussionist, music educator, and nonprofit leader. He is currently the Associate Director at Midwest Young Artists Conservatory. His areas of responsibility include working with leadership and staff, facilitating strategic planning, working in fundraising, and providing community relations and outreach. He also works on marketing/recruitment, program development, and operations.

He holds a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology and has studied music and culture from many parts of the world, including long-term fieldwork in India and in Trinidad. Greg is equally passionate about rock/funk, jazz, world music, and art music. He has been a visiting professor at a number of colleges and universities, and currently serves on the percussion faculty of the Music Institute of Chicago.

Greg has been a Bitter Jester judge since its inception in 2006 and enjoys coming back almost every single year to see the growth and originality of all the young musicians!

Lynette Foss

Lynette is the singing partner of north shore recording artist (and fellow Bitter Jester Judge) Derrick “Suede” Stout, the lead singer and keyboard player for the 70s cover band See Alice, vocalist and keyboard player for Stax records cover band The Soul Igniters, and a singer for entertainment franchise Soundtracks of a Generation.

She has composed original material for numerous special events and is currently working on composing the theme song for a documentary film.

Lynette is the founder of Lyric & Lecture, a Chicagoland talent agency for musicians and public speakers. She has served as a judge for the Bitter Jester Music Festival since 2016, an exclusive weeks-long event that culminates in incredible prizes and performance and recording opportunities for winners.

Lynette is a biology professor by day, teaching classes in Biology and Public Health at Lake Forest College.

Vlad Halai

Vlad is a former competitor in the Bitter Jester Music Fest with his band The Ska-Lers (with whom he still performs and sings). The Ska-lers were in competition four times, even having the "Ska-lers Honorable Mention Award" created for (and named after) them! Two of his fellow bandmates, Michael Tseitlin and Aaron Rabishaw, are also Bitter Jester volunteers and Judges!

In more recent years Vlad has volunteered his time as a Band Liaison for Bitter Jester, working as a mentor and helping to facilitate conversations and networking between bands in competition. He also generally assists the festival in any way he can. Vlad is honored to return to Bitter Jester as a judge, knowing this event so well and having witnessed its evolution over the years.

Vlad also plays hockey as a goalie and writes and records music as a hobby. He received his Bachelors Degree in Biological Sciences and is currently working towards a Masters in Health Administration.

Daniel Jonak

2014 & 2016 Bitter Jester Grand Champion

Daniel is a multi-instrumental studio musician and a former participant in the 2014-2016 Bitter Jester Music Festival.

He is a lifelong lover of music and currently studies at JamLab University in Vienna, Austria.

Spencer Kasper

Spencer is a drummer living in Chicago. long with fellow judges Patrick Myers and Morgan Buckley, Spencer played the Bitter Jester Music Festival many times while in high school with his former band Elise and the Police.

Elise and the Police was a Bitter Jester Wild Card pick, a Friday Night Concert Winner, and closed our their run with Bitter Jester as the 2017 Honorable Mention Band (3rd Place out of 24)!

Spencer has played in many notable venues and shows across Chicago including the Bottom Lounge, House of Blues, and Dillo Day at Northwestern. In his free time, he is a software developer and volunteers as the IT whiz behind the online portal Bitter Jester uses to judge its virtual Original Song competitions.

As a former multi-year Bitter Jester competitor, Spencer also enjoys returning as a “Band Liaison” for the Festival. In that capacity he helps answer questions, start inter-band conversations, and connect performers who participate in BJMF with one another.

Steve Mandel

Steve is a Retired Sound and Lighting Professional IATSE Stagehand (IATSE Local #2 Chicago) for renowned institutions including Ravinia Festival, Uptown Theater, the Lyric Opera, and many other Chicago theaters & venues. (1969-2006).

Additionally, Steve is a past Mayor Pro Tem and Councilman for the City of Highland Park, IL (1993-2012). He was a Lake County Board Member (2012-2016), and Lake County Forest Preserve Commissioner (2012-2016).

He has been a judge for the Bitter Jester Music Festival since its inception in 2006.

Patrick Myers

Patrick is a skilled guitar player who participated in the Bitter Jester Music Festival with his former band, Elise and the Police, along with fellow judges Morgan Buckley and Spencer Kasper.

A two-time Finalist group, Elise & The Police were the 2015 BJMF July 4 Showcase Band and, in 2017, came in third place (out of 24), being named Honorable Mention that year. They even received a wonderful little plaque commemorating their accomplishment!

Currently, Patrick is the guitar player for “F I Z Z,” which was the 2019 Northwestern University Dillo Day Opener Band. As a former multi-year competitor, he also enjoys returning as a volunteer each summer in the role of “Band Liaison” for the Bitter Jester Music Festival. In the capacity he helps answer questions start inter-band conversations, and connect performers who participate in BJMF.

Patrick is a graduate of Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI with a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science. He is a software developer in Chicago and enjoys playing and listening to music whenever he can.

“The Bitter Jester Music Festival absolutely helped our band grow as musicians. We really pushed ourselves to perform better and better every year.

Not only did it provide us with amazing opportunities such as recording time and performances at Navy Pier and on TV, but meeting all these great musicians was a fantastic experience.”

— Patrick Myers

Brandon Pope

Brandon Pope is a journalist who is passionate about covering the issues Chicagoans care most about. A former Anchor and Multimedia Journalist at ABC 57 in South Bend, Indiana, Brandon is currently a Reporter and Anchor for WCIU-TV in Chicago. He is the host of “Couch Concerts” on TheJamTVShow Instagram Live, spotlighting local artists.

He is also Vice President for the Chicago chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, where he focuses on shepherding in the next generation of TV reporters. His work has taken him all around the country and beyond the USA.

Brandon covered the 2012 and 2016 Presidential Elections, the 2012 London Summer Olympics, the Indy 500, college football, the PGA tour, and the NFL and NBA playoffs. Outside his career, Brandon appears on podcasts and radio programs to discuss topics ranging from superhero films to 'The Bachelor.'' A true music aficionado, Brandon was raised in the home of an opera singer.

Kelsi Richter

Kelsi has been playing music for twenty years, starting with the violin and growing to include drums and piano. Her favorite musical project was with The Fleeting Suns (along with fellow Bitter Jester Music Fest judge Andy Burrows), a folk rock band based in Chicago.

Along with creating music, Kelsi has worked as an artist for musicians creating album covers, posters, and merchandise. After moving to Seattle, Kelsi focused her talents on the business side of music and started to manage the Indie-Rock group Lofts (also check out their Facebook page here).

When not creating art or managing her gang of musical goofballs, she can be found reading novels about existential crises and playing with her rowdy dogs.

“The Bitter Jester Music Fest has been such a wonderful experience for me! Every year I’m blown away by the talent of the musicians and am so happy to be working with an organization that really cares about the future of music and the arts.

Giving young people the chance to actually perform is something I wish I had growing up and am really happy to aid in passing on that opportunity.”

— Kelsi Richter

Stef Roti

Stef Roti is a drummer, booker, and promoter based in Chicago, IL. She is a former competitor at the Bitter Jester Fest with her indie-folk/pop group, The New Originals in 2012. The following year she went on to accomplish a measure of success in musical endeavors, securing a record and publishing deal with her next band, Yoko and the Oh No’s. Their song Movin' On was placed in the first episode of USA's TV show "Shooter" - now on Netflix.

Other notable achievements with the band include playing SXSW and Wicker Park Fest, recording a cover with Smash Mouth, and touring with The Growlers. Stef has a little career behind the scenes in the music industry as well. She has booked and promoted shows and festivals in Chicago for the past 9 years, working with Kickstand Productions, Notion Presents, CIMM Presents, Lincoln Hall, and more.

Today, she plays drums for Sick Day, who released debut singles in the summer of 2019. She is thrilled to return to Bitter Jester as a part of the panel of judges!

Stef is a graduate of DePaul University with degrees in Business Management and Entrepreneurship. She is a fierce advocate for up-and-coming bands.

Sean Seno

Sean (along with several other Bitter Jester judges and its current Music Director) played saxophone for 12 years in the band The Ska-lers, along with being a vocalist and songwriter for the group.

He is a north suburban-based musician and full time firefighter and paramedic having paid his way through the firefighting academy while working construction. On construction sites, he said, "they fire nail guns at you. The worst they can do [in the fire service] is yell at you."

Musically however, he is most well known for his work in The Ska-lers, which – according to him – is the world's greatest ska band. His musical influences are Reel Big Fish, Streetlight Manifesto, Motley Crue, Rancid, and Kiss.

“Bitter Jester is a wonderful company. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the experiences this festival gave me.

They showed me the life of a rock star and I wouldn’t trade that for the world.”

— Sean Seno

Matt Solomon

Matt Solomon has been making music for more than twenty years as a trombonist, bass guitar player, drummer, and music production engineer. Matt graduated from Tulane University in 2018 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and French along with four years of band experience.

He was a three-year member and one-year section leader of the Tulane University Marching Band, marching in nearly thirty football games and more than a dozen Mardi Gras parades. Matt also played in the Green Wave Brass Band, a prominent New Orleans-style bras ensemble for all four years he attended Tulane. Matt has played with artists such as New Kids on the Block, the Soul Rebels, Trombone Shorty, and Rebirth Brass Band.

After moving back to Chicago, Matt has played trombone in a local band called The Limbos for over a year. The Limbos are a seven-piece band that play all over the Chicago’s northern neighborhoods. They have released two EPs and one single to Spotify since Matt joined the band.

Glenn Williams

It should be said right off the bat that Glenn Williams was Bitter Jester Music Fest Founder Nicolas DeGrazia's high school band director and, as such, is partly to blame for this entire enterprise. Beyond that...

Glenn is Fine Arts Department Chairman at South High School in Downers Grove, Illinois. Besides instructional leadership duties with visual art and music at South High School, he also teaches Jazz Lab Band and Wind Symphony. Mr. Williams has held similar positions in Grand Rapids, Michigan and Highland Park, Illinois. In addition to Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, Mr. Williams spends time in the summer on the brass/jazz faculty of the Indiana University Summer Music Clinic. In the summer of 2014 and again in 2017 Mr. Williams tours Europe with the BLFAC International Jazz Ensemble.

As a professional performer, Glenn has performed with numerous entertainment and jazz luminaries, including The Four Tops, Martha Reeves, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Michael Brecker, Kenny Wheeler, and the Blue Lake Faculty Jazz Sextet. He has also performed with numerous community ensembles including the North Shore Concert Band directed by John Paynter. Henow is a member of the music ministry at Four Corners Community Church in Downers Grove, where he serves as an elder in the church community.

Glenn is in demand as a clinician/adjudicator in throughout the Midwest, having recently judged regional and state festivals in Illinois, Michigan and Indiana. Mr. Williams has presented clinics at multiple state and national conventions, including conducting the Illinois All-State Jazz Band in January of 2014. He is a recipient of the 2017 Mary Hoffman Award of Teaching Excellence in Music Education from the Illinois Music Education Association.

A native of Aurora, Colorado, Glenn holds music education degrees from Indiana University, Northwestern University and a degree in Instructional Leadership from Concordia University-Chicago. MHehas also completed coursework towards a DMA in Wind Conducting at Michigan State University. He became a National Board Certified Teacher in November 2009. Glenn resides in Downers Grove with his wife, Terri.

Prize money generously provided by First Bank of Highland Park