Blue Bear School of Music, San Francisco’s original “school of rock,” capped the celebration of its 50th anniversary this year with a one-of-a-kind gift from Jack Black.
The actor, who starred in the fictionalized 2003 film “School of Rock,” recently joined with members of the nonprofit organization’s youth program over Zoom to record an effusive version of David Bowie’s “Suffragette City.”
“A good friend of mine told me about Blue Bear and the incredible work they’ve been doing,” Black said in a statement. “I jumped at the chance to celebrate their 50th anniversary by jamming some Bowie with their teen all-star band. So fun. What an honor.”
As part of its celebrations, Blue Bear is also hosting a fundraising auction through Tuesday, Nov. 30, offering supporters the chance to bid on items including original Fillmore posters from the 1960s to tickets to Metallica’s upcoming fan-club-only 40th anniversary shows at San Francisco’s Chase Center in December.
Founded in 1971 with the mission of welcoming students of all ages and skill levels, Blue Bear has taught tens of thousands of city residents how to play a riff, carry a tune and navigate the choppy waters of the music industry.
The school is driven by Executive Director Steve Savage’s philosophy of letting its educators “teach the way they want to teach.” Among the roster of 40 or so teachers at the school are drummer Jay Lane, who regularly performs with Bob Weir and Les Claypool; Jasmin Moosavi, vocalist of the band Azar; and local singer-songwriter Francesca Lee.
“It’s really motivated by people rather than any kind of doctrine or preconceived notion about what music should be,” said Savage, who also co-founded the school. “We want to empower people to play the music they love.”
At its campus inside Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture along the city’s northern waterfront, aspiring rock stars can sign up for private lessons, group classes, band workshops or music camps, or — if they are younger than 4 years old — learn how to shake a tambourine at a nearby park as part of the school’s Little Bears program.
Liana Holmberg, whose son attended Blue Bear’s Get Ready to Rock summer camp, happily reports “it was the best camp he’s ever been to, and his love for music was absolutely lit up.”
The kids who jammed with Black are members of Blue Bear’s teen all-star bands, the Dietary Supplements and the Hellaments, both of which formed at the school. They are the latest of countless groups that have come together there over the years.
“Blue Bear is an incredible organization, and I love any group of people that spread the absolute joy of music,” said Matthew Cava, a longtime student. “It’s been the one thing that carried me through for a lot of years.”
Blue Bear enrolls about 850 students a quarter. It also offers free music education courses for thousands of additional San Francisco children through public schools and community organizations.
Not bad for an idea that was hatched as a hobby by a couple of band members who were anticipating a completely different career path.
“The plan was we have a little music school and teach music until we got our big break,” said Savage, recalling his brief stint with the psychedelic-era band Wolfgang & Strauss. “The school was just a fun way of making some money for us.”
His band broke up two years later. But for five decades, the school has continued to serve San Francisco.
Blue Bear Waltzes School of Music bounced around several small storefronts across the city — including the space on Ocean Avenue currently occupied by Zanze’s Cheesecakes — before shortening its name and becoming a fixture at Fort Mason Center in 1978.
But even that move felt dicey at first.
“For many years we thought we were going to get thrown out,” Savage said. “But we hung on.”
Over the years, Blue Bear brought together several artists and bands that played local venues like the Fillmore, the Chapel and Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley. It also hosted a series of benefit concerts headlined by the likes of Mavis Staples, Los Lobos and Elvin Bishop.
“I was a classical pianist, but I didn’t even know what chords were,” said San Francisco musician Bonnie Hayes, who scored a major-label deal and wrote songs for Cher and Bette Midler. “My teacher taught me chords and opened up the whole world of music to me. I was there as much as I could be.”
The coronavirus pandemic brought on a new set of challenges for Blue Bear. When the city’s nonessential businesses were forced to close their doors in March 2020, the school had to cancel all its in-person programs. In less than a week, the school shifted to an online model, offering lessons with its 40 music instructors.
“We learned how to use Zoom really quickly,” said Savage. “We discovered for private lessons it was not a bad alternative. But our band program disappeared, and classes hobbled along. We went down to about 60% of our normal revenue, which was a struggle.”
The school was able to survive, operating at a limited capacity, through a pair of Paycheck Protection Program loans and help from local benefactors, including the Hellman Foundation, which produces the free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park.
Blue Bear reopened for in-person classes in the fall but is still operating with a hybrid model and working to once again scale up its outreach program, which offers free classes and music education courses in the city’s underserved neighborhoods such as the Bayview and the Tenderloin.
“It’s a struggle,” said Savage. “Nonprofits are always on a shoestring, but we have such a great staff and it’s gratifying to be able to do that work.”
Savage is already looking ahead to the next 50 years.
“I had no idea how much Blue Bear would be such a pivotal part of my life and become what it’s become, which I think is a substantial cultural institution in San Francisco,” Savage said. “I feel fortunate and privileged.”
Blue Bear School of Music: 1-8 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Saturday. Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina Blvd., Building D, S.F. 415-673-3600. bluebearmusic.org