SOCORRO, N.M.  – The popular summer Socorro Sessions featuring local bands playing on New Mexico Tech’s Macey Center stage, returns this fall in a different time slot. Offered by NMT’s Performing Art Series (PAS), the concerts will be live-streamed through Facebook, YouTube and Twitch.

The next concert will be at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, featuring the Last Minute Trio. The occasional concerts are planned between regular PAS season events. Begun this summer, the concerts give bands a chance to play in a professional setting to an audience eager for diversion during the pandemic.

“We had such a great response this summer I decided I would make the effort to get as many Socorro bands to Macey Center as possible,” said PAS director Ronna Kalish.

The sessions were moved from Sunday afternoons to Thursdays to bring a “happy hour” effect to the music while social gatherings are still quite limited.

Bands and the schedule are still being finalized with some special, added events including a drive-in festival in October. Checking the website for details.

The Last Minute Trio features musicians Francie Deters, Jim Ruff and Roger Adams.

“We used to be Last Minute Bluegrass and the band was a lot bigger,” said Francie. A full contingent of players, the band won the Santa Fe Bluegrass Band contest one year and appeared in numerous festivals and venues.

“We play more than bluegrass.,” said Francie. “That’s why we’re the Last Minute Trio.” Expect some country swing and folk rock along with bluegrass tunes, she said.

“We’re just really good friends,” she said. The band formed some 17 years ago when Francie’s daughter was just learning violin/fiddle at the age of 11 or 12, she said.

Jim Ruff is a familiar face on the Socorro music scene, playing in numerous bands before the pandemic. Current limits on gatherings may have slowed some people, but Jim found a way to circumvent that by hosting weekly “open mic” Zoom meetings on Wednesdays. He also hosts the website socorromusic.com with an active list of musical happenings. For the Last Minute Trio, Jim plays mandolin and bass. Roger Adams rounds out the trio. One of the frequent participants on Jim’s Zoom Wednesday, Roger plays banjo and guitar.

Other bands to be featured on Socorro Sessions include Blue Monday, the Flat Note Society, Rhythm Prophets, 67 Seconds, Wredempshun, Mine Country Drifters, Celtic Fringe, Why Knot, Roon and Tuesdays @ 2.

The live-streamed summer Socorro Sessions are still available through the PAS website and through YouTube. Those bands are The Murillos, Doug Figgs Trio, Mine Country Drifters and Suavecito.

All live-stream performances offered by PAS this season are free. Family memberships of $40 a year help pay for production expenses and will afford families specials including pre- and post-concert Zoom events and first reservations for any drive-in festivals and concerts. For more information visit nmt.edu/pas, email pas@nmt.edu or call 575-835-5688.

-- NMT --