by Lorie Lewis Ham
With all of the great concert venues in the Valley now people no longer have to travel to Los Angeles and San Francisco to hear great music. One group that has been instrumental in bringing music to the Valley over the past eight years is Sound N Vision in Visalia. Sound N Vision is the brain child of local musician and teacher Aaron Gomes.
Aaron spent many years traveling as a touring musician and teacher. When his family began to grow he stopped touring but found he missed live music–that’s when Sound N Vision was formed. “I decided to bring all of the exciting concerts that were happening in Los Angeles and San Francisco to the Valley for us all to enjoy. Performers from all over the world now stop in Visalia on their way to Los Angeles or San Francisco.” SNV is now a non-profit organization that creates, promotes, and executes music and art events and classes for Tulare County youth and adults.
The teaching side of SNV came to be when the teacher side of Aaron wanted to find a way to share music and art with kids. “With the help of many Tulare County teachers we began offering free music and art classes for the kids. We’ve been doing so for three years. We do lessons independently, as well as with contracts through the county.”
SNV kids performing at the 2011 Festival of Hope in Tulare
Presently they have a contract with Tulare County Youth Services to teach art and music classes to foster care children. They also do summer guitar, drum, and ceramic classes that are open to the general public for free during June and July at Visalia’s Boys & Girls Club. Students are even allowed to check out instruments to take home and practice.
“I got involved with SNV a few years back,” shared local musician and SNV drum teacher Carlos Rodriguez. “I wanted to support live music in the central Valley. Gomes and his crew were doing a great job of that so I weaseled my way in. We started out doing shows together and had a blast doing that, but when SNV started focusing more on teaching art and music to kids, I got more involved. Teaching percussion through SNV has been a blessing, I have met so many wonderful young aspiring musicians. The summer programs are definitely highlights of the year for me. The students inspire each other to perform and express themselves through the conga drum. It’s very moving.”
SNV Summer Jam At The Boy’s and Girl’s Club:
Most of SNV’s efforts are spent hosting music and art shows from around the world. They use Cellar Door, Fox Theatre, College of Sequoias Theater, Garden Street Plaza, the Rawhide Ballpark, and many other local areas as venues for these events. “We also partner with many other local non-profits,” said Aaron.
“Doing a show with SNV is always an enjoyable experience,” said Carlos. “I have worked with many promoters and after working with Gomes and the gang at SNV, I decided that I only wanted to work with them. Why? Because they treated us like family, always accommodating our needs and their primary focus was putting on a fantastic show.”
“We book, promote, and execute all of our events,” continued Aaron. They are also hired to build events for other organizations. “We are ready to build an event for community organizations with a good cause and idea.”
“I have seen and heard art and music that would have never entered my consciousness if it wasn’t for their efforts,” stated Carlos. “I’m grateful for that.”
Anyone who would like to be a part of what SNV does, or learn more about their concerts and classes, can check out their website. Through the website you can contact Aaron and sign up for their email newsletter. “Our classes fill up fast, and many events sell out, so this newsletter will give you the heads up first.”
You can also check out SNV events in KRL’s event pages.
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