Singing and teaching the blues keeps Tim Nekritz from being blue

By Tom and Jerry Caraccioli

 

A widely-known folk proverb, often attributed to blues music legends Muddy Waters and B.B. King, dramatically states: “Ya gotta have the blues, to sing the blues.”

While it may be true that the genre’s deep roots and storytelling elements often come from highlighting personal highs and lows, as well as lived experiences, the blues isn’t always about doom and gloom.

SUNY Oswego Director of Communications Tim Nekritz, 57, can tell you first-hand how the blues have brought him joy, opportunity and confidence as a musician who didn’t start out with any type of musical prowess.

“I had a very non traditional path,” Nekritz explained. “I did not play an instrument in high school. I picked up the bass guitar in college and played a little bit.”

Nekritz didn’t really find his musical courage until he started attending The Sterling Cidery in Fair Haven. Having always had a penchant for writing and storytelling, he would attend the “Cider Jam” every third Sunday of the month.

“I would watch that and decided I wanted to get back into playing the bass,” Nekritz said. “So, I bought an acoustical electric bass. I would go and play, jam and sometimes play some old-time tunes. No one ever told me I sucked and people were there to encourage and support me.”

Nekritz also found support from local blues legends. He had opportunities to play with people of the caliber of the late-great Dan Duggan, Pat Kane, who recorded in Nashville and Larry Kyle. They had bona fide experience in the genre and gave him confidence. With that empowerment and encouragement, Nekritz decided maybe it was time to try and sing a song or two.

“I walked into Old City Hall in January of 2020 to an open mic and people asked me if I was going to play,” Nekritz recalled with a laugh. “I thought, ‘Why on Earth would anyone want to hear me play?’ And then, a small part of me said, ‘Why not?’ I worked up some songs, performed them and people were very supportive. I started doing more open mics and really getting into it…and then we all know what happened; COVID.”

During the pandemic, Nekritz had more time to practice and would do livestream performances that were watched by a few loyal and supportive people. So, he continued to keep trying to get better and better.

“I had a real interest in the blues,” Nekritz passionately explained. “I started writing more and more blues songs and expanding out from that. After COVID I started to play covers and some originals. But I was falling more in love with the blues. I walked into the Rivers End Bookstore looking for something to read and there was a biography about famous blues musician Lightnin’ Hopkins. I also came across a book written by an Oswego State alum, Roger House.”

That book was “Blue Smoke: The Recorded Journey of Big Bill Broonzy,” a biography about Big Bill Broonzy, a highly influential American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, as well as a foundational figure in 20th century music and blues. It triggered another idea.

“I read it and realized this could be an American history story told through the music of the blues,” Nekritz said.

As the pandemic began to subside and life got back to a new normal, Nekritz took a leap by proposing his idea of creating a class about the social and cultural history of the blues. As a communications and media Bachelor of Arts recipient from SUNY Brockport and a Master of Arts in history from SUNY Oswego, Nekritz felt it was worth a shot to propose his idea.

Not long after, his proposal of using his interest in music to teach history came to fruition.

“I started my class as a first-year student course in 2021,” Nekritz said. “I did the first class and it went well enough. I had some students that were really interested in old-time blues. I asked my class to write a blues song about something that was bothering them — home sickness, not getting along with their roommates or time management — and got a lot of good feedback. I chronicled it on Facebook so people would see the different take on history I was presenting. That led to people in the campus honors program showing up and asking me to teach the class in the honors program. Eventually, I ended up teaching the class to this highly-driven group of high achieving students.”

Today, his two classes — “American Blues” and “Interpreting the Arts” — have become sought-after electives.

What students find in those classes are connections they didn’t know existed. For Nekritz, it’s about nurturing a passion for the arts, whatever that art form and music genre is.

At the end of each of his classes, he always asks, “What’s one thing you didn’t know about before you took this class?” Without hesitation, Nekritz said that most of his students say they didn’t know rock-n-roll came from the blues.

Almost anything heard on the radio these days — except classical — is inspired by the blues. That is proof that his idea has left a mark fulfilling his passion for music and history.

“The idea of ‘paying it back’ is something I really value,” Nekritz said. “There’s an element of vulnerability in writing songs and putting them out there. When people come up and tell me they can identify with a song, it’s really gratifying.”

And history can easily back that up.