BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Libraries are typically sacrosanct sites of silence.
But four years ago, Bethlehem Area Public Library Executive Director Josh Berk, who's also a musician, got the idea to hold a concert to raise money for the free public recording studio in the library's basement.
And he said he couldn't help but think of a scene from the beloved 1984 comedy mockumentary film "This Is Spinal Tap."
- The fourth annual 11Fest, a day-long presentation of musical acts to raise money for Bethlehem Area Library's Studio 11, will be 5:11-11:11 p.m. Friday in the studio
- Thirteen musical acts will perform, starting with the quietest and building to the loudest to close the night
- Admission is a suggested $11 donation at the door; proceeds go to support the free public studio
In the movie, the band is able to play louder than anyone else because of custom amplifiers that can turn the volume to 11 instead of the normal 10.
That was the birth of 11Fest, a night of 11 local acts who play increasingly louder sets through a night of music in the library's Studio 11.
The fourth version of the fund-raising festival is scheduled for 5:11-11:11 p.m. Friday, Nov. 11. Admission is a suggested donation of $11.
But continuing in the spirit of "Spinal Tap," this year's event will turn up the knob even more. It will offer at least 12 acts.
"I thought, ‘What’s more 'eleven' than 12?’" Berk said with a laugh in a recent interview. "In that spirit of '11,' the spirit of going to excess, 11Fest should have 12 bands.”
Expected performers include LVNDR,Lunar Calendar, Service Dog,We're from Antarctica,Trickery!, Time Being,Carrousel,Fictional Name,RA!D,Rogue Target,MacVill,Keith Adams and Zel.
The show again has its host Lehigh Valley Girls Rock, an organization that mentors young women who are in bands.
Studio success leads to the fest
Berk said the original idea for 11Fest was sparked by the studio's success.
“We had been having some success with our recording studio," he said. "And we had some needs for some equipment to purchase, some upgrades and stuff. And since we had so many bands who were working with us in the studio, we thought we’d do a benefit concert and sell tickets and raise money for the studio.
“And so I started asking some of the bands who had recorded in the studio, along with some other people I got to know through the music scene, and we ended up with so many people who said that they were interested, that it was hard to choose."
The fact that the studio already was named for the library's address of 11 W. Church St. played into the "Spinal Tap" theme, Berk said.
“I love that movie, and I loved the idea of turning it up to 11," he said. "And I thought, ‘Maybe we’ll just aim for 11 bands and have everyone just do a short set.' And I thought, too, that everyone sort of brings their own crowd and you get a good mix of people and number of tickets sold.
“Then we realized we wanted to do it on Nov. 11, because it’s 11/11, and at that point, we were deeply committed to a theme,” he said with a laugh.
Organizers also realized the library would be open until 8 p.m., "And we didn’t want to be busting the eardrums out of the people who would be there to use the library."
So they developed a plan to have quieter bands play earlier in the night, "and then, we thought, ‘Let’s have each band get a little louder.’ And the last band, after the library’s closed, it can be their job to turn it up to 11 and we can get the loudest band we know to play."
Continued success
The first 11Fest "was really well attended—it was a novelty," Berk said.
For the second year, the coronavirus pandemic forced the fest to go virtual—doing it as a remote livestream, with some performances pre-recorded and a live chat. It still was "pretty successful," collecting more than $1,000, Birk said.
"People were pretty giving,” he said.
In 2021, 11Fest returned to a live festival and "was kind of in that pocket of when COVID restrictions were lifted. People were super excited, I think, to be anywhere. We had a really good turnout last year," Berk said.
“It sort of really has grown each year.”
People have been very generous throughout the fest's history, Berk said.
"Some people give much more than $11," he said. "Some people give $11.11. Some people give $11 for everyone in their family."
"We thought, ‘Let’s have each band get a little louder.’ And the last band, after the library’s closed, it can be their job to turn it up to 11 and we can get the loudest band we know to play."Bethlehem Area Public Library Executive Director Josh Berk
Performers happy to play
It's not only the audience who enjoys 11Fest.
“It’s really fun to see all the performers,” said Tom Janis, guitarist with the band Fictional Name. Janis has played at every 11Fest and expects to again this year.
“11Fest is always a good experience with a good mix of performers and guests who all radiate positive energy,” he said.
Janis said he was introduced to the festival by Berk, with whom he started playing in a band "basically since the studio started. That’s what brought all these folks to the library."
“11Fest was a way to raise money for the studio, which doesn’t use any of the library budgets; it’s all run on donations. So it’s just a cool concept."
Janis pointed out that the festival's quiet-to-loud concept also is "a really cool way to be really inclusive—lots of different musical styles.
“Being a part of it is just cool—to see all the styles of music," he said. "But also, the community aspect of it is really nice—just lots of different people working together. Josh and I also are really into bands—so that’s always good, to see the bands."
This year's festival also includes rap artists.
Berk said Studio 11 gets used by a lot of rappers, in addition to other musicians.
“It’s used every day, multiple times a day—probably 50 to 100 times a month," he said. "It’s definitely in use all the time.”
After the studio was started, "a lot of people started donating equipment, so then people started asking if they could use it as a rehearsal space," Berk said. "And we said, ‘Why not?’ We’re happy for people to be using it."
He said a Lehigh University student recently contacted him saying he wanted to start a band and wanted "to feel each other out in a neutral space. One guy uses it a lot to mix recordings he’s done. He just needs a quiet space to do mixing.”
But when it comes to 11Fest, Berk said, much of the intrigue comes from being able to play loudly inside a library
“Some people get competitive about who’s going to be the 11,” he said.
