Two ASU alumni want to connect aspiring Valley musicians to all the resources they need to learn instruments, write music and record themselves.
Jivemind, the brainchild of alumni Jeffrey Rose and Dustin Chaffin, will open in six weeks.
The site of the cooperative, in what used to be The Bead Museum in historic downtown Glendale, is unfinished. However, the two plan to turn the former display rooms into practice rooms, recording studios, spaces to hang out and spots for performances and workshops.
An integral part of the business is the instrument library, Rose said.
A large room in the middle of the building will contain different instruments that patrons can use.
“It’s like a gym,” Rose said. “You pay up front, and then you get to come in and use the equipment.”
The two said they met in the summer of 2009. Chaffin was pursuing a master’s degree in theater and interdisciplinary digital media at ASU, and Rose was a “frustrated musician” ready to quit his office job.
Both have played instruments since childhood: Rose plays the guitar, drums, bass and banjo, and Chaffin plays the guitar, tuba, bass trombone and dabbles with keyboards and bass.
They discovered musicians do not have enough freedom to explore their passions or cultivate new musical interests.
“If your goal is to try a new instrument, you have options if you’re in school, but you lose (them) as you get older,” Rose said. “If you want to pick up a banjo or something, there’s no good way to learn without having to buy it.”
He said musicians he knew would go to stores like Guitar Center to play with instruments until they were inevitably asked to leave.
Jivemind will also offer a place for music instructors, who often work out of their homes or sublease spaces in instrument stores, to give lessons.
They have set up different monthly plans that range from $10 to $110 for people who want to use the space to teach, record or practice.
Chaffin will work primarily with people in the recording studios. He said one of their goals is to help match artists with production companies around the Valley that need music for commercials or other videos.
“If we can find a group here that matches their needs, we can help both the artists and the companies,” he said.
They are also working on collaborations with the Phoenix Conservatory of Music and the City of Glendale.
The Phoenix Conservatory of Music and Jivemind’s owners will work together to help students from elementary schools to college to develop their music.
The City of Glendale views Jivemind as a valuable way to bring more life to the arts district, city spokeswoman Jennifer Stein said.
Downtown Glendale is known for its small antiques shops and as the annual host of Glendale Glitters, a winter festival.
“It’s a wonderful partnership we see to bring music to (the) Centerline arts district,” she said. “It really matches what we’re trying to do.”
Rose said they were grateful for the help from Glendale, which includes opportunities for their customers to perform at city events.
He said Jivemind is more based on community than producing the next big thing.
“Everyone has a fantasy of becoming a professional musician, and that’s awesome,” Rose said. “But I just want to play with people and have a good time.”
Rose and Chaffin said most people feel a passion for music and would enjoy making it, but don’t always have the opportunity.
“You can’t turn your sense of hearing off,” Chaffin said. “You can plug your ears, but the music will always reach you, so I don’t believe it when people tell me they don’t have a musical bone in their body.”
Reach the reporter at julia.shumway@asu.edu or follow @JMShumway on Twitter.
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