Jim Ward Finds the Right SOUUNDS

By Christina Clark

Jim Ward happened across familiar sounds inviting him into Chicory Café in South Bend one night, years ago. The sounds were saturated in talent that he hadn’t recognized in the area before. Inside, local music group Lalo Cura were performing covers of songs from The Beatles. Jim ended up staying, finding himself blown away by their skill and the fact that they were local performers. He met the band members and began considering how South Bend might not be so bad after all. Today, he contributes his own efforts to bringing musical performances to a wider audience in the area, as the leader at the helm of Souunds South Bend.

“I didn’t intend to stay in the area very long,” said Jim of South Bend. He had previously lived in Pittsburgh, and before that—New York City. “After being transferred here, I didn’t expect that I would like it very much. I wanted to get out pretty quickly.”

Jim arrived in South Bend eight years ago, the result of a reluctant journey inland driven by his employer. A chemical engineer who spent 25 years in New York City, before being transferred to Pittsburgh, and finally, South Bend, Jim was looking for a community that he didn’t see in his new city.

There were things that eventually drew Jim’s affection for the area. Without having the experience of seeing South Bend as “a dying city,” but being impressed with figures like Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Jim explored and began getting involved with the arts and music scene.

“I felt that the music scene was much better than I felt it had a right to be, for a city this size. I went to Merriman’s [Playhouse] and just fell in love with not only the music, but just them as people and their mission of bringing jazz to the area. I was so inspired by that,” he said.

Around the same time, the church Jim attends, the First Unitarian Church of South Bend, was relocating to its current building on Washington Street. With the new space, they decided that it shouldn’t sit empty on days when gatherings weren’t occurring.

“The availability of that as a location kind of fit into how I was feeling going to different music scenes, if it wasn’t jazz and it wasn’t classical, I felt like I’m always the oldest guy in the room. I thought, maybe there’s a way to make this music more accessible,” he said.

With the Unitarian Church’s community minded approach about the interconnectedness of people, Jim approached his forming of Souunds South Bend  (https://www.facebook.com/soUUnds.SB/) in much the same way. The two U’s in Souunds connect the music with the original venue with the church, representing Unitarian Universalism.

His mission, that he developed with the local church, was to develop a music program that is in a comfortable space, that respects the musicians, and that is also welcoming to both adults and children (depending on the artists), and create the shows with an earlier start time in mind. He also wanted the option to provide childcare and have offerings for beer and wine for the adults, who otherwise couldn’t make it to shows held in the traditional theater or bar settings.

With that, he had Lalo Cura themselves as one of Souunds South Bend’s first performers. (https://www.facebook.com/soUUnds.SB/videos/720993961660485/ Lalo Cura at Sound Stage)

Lalo Cura is a well-known band to the South Bend and surrounding areas, with their Latino rock and jazz sound. Jim recalls that one of the members expressed being nervous to perform at Souunds, because of the intentionally attentive audience.

“For the first time, for a lot of these performers, they have an audience t hat’s sitting and listening to them. Having come across these performers in other venues, I see that having a space [like this] that brings out something special in the performance. That’s a mark of success,” he said.

For that show with Lalo Cura, Jim knows it was a bit more formal than their usual venues, but that “they brought down the house, which is a typical experience.”

Jim has worked with local partners in the area to help expose musicians and audiences who usually wouldn’t intersect in more traditional settings.

After meeting Stephen and Mary Merriman, the minds behind Merriman’s Playhouse, Jim realized that they were as passionate about music as he was. He also came across South Bend Green Drinks, a monthly gathering to listen and chat with others concerned with environmental and sustainability practices. The Birdsell Project, which set out to use abandoned spaces as venues for artists and art installations, especially in the Birdsell Mansion on Sample Street, also helped put Jim in connection with artists, musicians, and other travelers who were working to cultivate the community in South Bend.

“I think I can stay; I think I can find a place,” Jim remembers thinking.

These days, Jim is working on shows both at Souunds South Bend at the First Unitarian Church of South Bend, but also in other spaces in the city. He has worked with he South Bend Civic Theatre, Vegetable Buddies, and house show runners to set up shows and bring all sorts of audiences to local and traveling musicians alike. He can be found at more intimate musical performances, like house shows, where the music begins well before 10 p.m.

Jim has worked to bring together hip hop shows, featuring artists like Heyzeus and LeTarius Prince, (https://www.facebook.com/soUUnds.SB/videos/158534895576390/ see LeTarius Prince performance) and homegrown (but transplanted elsewhere) indie-folk artists Frances Luke Accord and “head-nod-jazz” After Hours to perform on The Wilson Stage at the South Bend Civic Theatre.

“Ultimately, I’m doing this because I love live music. I really do think there is something to it in doing these kinds of shows where a band is on stage,” he said. “Offering a respectful space for them to come and really play and know the audience is listening, I think that creates something new and unique. That’s what gives me the most pleasure when I see that,” said Jim.

Through these connections Jim has made with the audience members and the musicians, he continues to bring in exciting new artists to the area.

Souunds South Bend’s next show is slated for May 9, 2020. Japanese guitarist and vocalist Hiroya Tsukamoto will be headlining.  He grew up listening to American folk and brings a unique fusion of Americana influence to his playing.

“It’s instinctive and he brings definite world music flavor, and unique vocalizations. It’s haunting and beautiful and uplifting. It’s going to be an off the hook show. Opening is going to be an interesting collaboration with Eli Kahn, amazing jazzy guitarist, along with Jordan Hamilton, a young musician from Michigan, bring a different flavor into looping and electronics,” Jim describes.

Note from the editor. I encourage you to attend these shows. Jim Ward’s presentation of the bands is professional and well executed. The performances are intimate and comfortable. The sound quality is excellent. You will not find better local performances in the area.

One of our favorite local bands from Sound Stage James Neary and The Bevy Blues https://www.facebook.com/soUUnds.SB/videos/2640251786260089/

See more local artists performing at https://www.facebook.com/soUUnds.SB/ also visit https://www.facebook.com/SoundStage-South-Bend-431981360667746/

Photo: Musician Sam Que, saxophonist and vocalist for Lalo Cura, Jim Ward, and Rafael Chávez y Moreno, guitarist and vocalist for Lalo Cura, at Sam and Rafael’s joint performance at Myles Robertson’s home.