Growing up, I only used my first and last name. Middle names were a secret revealed only to close friends or during school graduation ceremonies. But now, several years into my adulthood, I have embraced my entire name. Since 2016, I have gone by all three of my names: Eric Ian Farmer. It felt like a way to start a new chapter of life as a professional performing artist. So, please call me Eric, or Eric Ian, or Eric Ian Farmer :)
I am honored to be a Bronze winner (3rd place) in the Best of State College category of Best Local Band/Musician!! I share this recognition with my creative network of collaborators, for whom I am grateful! This music life works only because of tremendous support. And so much of that support is right here at home. Thank you, State College!!!
Earrrlly yesterday morning in Allentown, Pennsylvania with Pepe Barcellos (acoustic guitar). For those who haven’t met him, Pepe is a guitarist/songwriter/singer/educator from Brazil and is now teaching in Penn State’s School of Music. We were standing behind my car getting ready for Music Monday on WFMZ-TV 69’s News at Sunrise, a television program that invited us on to promote our August 5 Musikfest performance in Bethlehem, PA (on Yuengling Lagerplatz stage for thirty minutes at 4pm). The executive producer greeted us in the parking lot and invited us into the studio. We wanted to rehearse a bit more before going in. Pepe caught “Brother to Brother” on his phone camera.
In this Teacher/Educator Appreciation Week, I want to shine on my middle school student council adviser from back in North Carolina. Through Mrs. Henry – who is pointed out using a blue arrow in the above photo of student council advisers across NC – I learned about the wide world of student council, which became a major part of my teenage years. We drove together and sometimes flew to many student council conferences and workshops in North Carolina and beyond. I took my first airplane ride – to Chicago – with Mrs. Henry and a bunch of other folks for the National Student Council Conference in 1989. Oh, how I loved meeting young folks from all over the country! We sang songs, listened to keynote speakers, played games, and participated in small group sessions on team building, goal setting, and student involvement.
On van trips through North Carolina and plane rides elsewhere as well as in her leadership class at my middle school, Mrs. Henry helped to shape my understanding of leadership and build my confidence as she exposed me to a world of eye-opening experiences. I love Mrs. Anne Henry and am grateful for her helping me to become the person I am today. She is a big part of the reason I became a teacher :)