The 317 Main community joins countless others in mourning the passing of Bau Graves—musician, cultural leader, advocate, teacher, and friend. His legacy runs deep, not only in Chicago through his transformative leadership of the Old Town School of Folk Music, but also here in Maine, where his vision and generosity have already left an indelible mark.

A Maine Beginning, a National Impact

*Bau Graves/Photo: Joe Mazza | Brave Lux*

Bau’s roots in Maine ran deep. In 1976, he opened Welcome Home Music in downtown Brunswick, a shop that sold instruments and doubled as a gathering place for musicians. In 1987, as Artistic Director of the Maine Festival, Bau—alongside his beloved wife, Phyllis—expanded the event into a nationally recognized celebration, presenting artists from across the United States and the world. Together they later founded the Center for Cultural Exchange in Portland, a hub that championed cultural democracy and gave immigrant communities a seat at the table.

Over decades of programming, Bau and Phyllis brought hundreds of artists to Maine: African bands, Cajun and Zydeco players, fiddlers from around the globe, Mongolian throat singers, American blues legends, jazz innovators, tap dancers, storytellers, and even a juggler or two. He embraced both the unknown and the world-famous—Ray Charles, local fiddlers, and everyone in between—with the same warmth and curiosity.

The Old Town Years

From 2007 to 2018, Bau served as Executive Director of the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, the nation’s largest community school of the arts. He guided the institution through a period of growth while reinforcing its grassroots ethos. Under his leadership, Old Town:

Expanded equity and access through outreach to immigrant and working-class neighborhoods.
Broadened its programming to embrace Latin, African, Middle Eastern, and other global traditions alongside American folk.
Balanced institutional growth with cultural sustainability, ensuring financial strength without losing community character.

Old Town became a social fabric-builder: toddlers strumming ukuleles alongside grandparents, world-class musicians sharing space with beginners, and neighbors meeting across cultural lines.

A Philosophy That Endures

Bau never saw folk music as a museum piece. Tradition, for him, was alive—shaped by contemporary communities, open to new sounds, constantly evolving. He believed music’s power lay not only in preservation but in its ability to fortify societies against fear and division, creating space for empathy, connection, and shared identity.

That conviction resonates deeply at 317 Main. In Maine’s tightly woven communities, music has the power to broaden perspectives and push back against fear-based narratives. Bau’s philosophy offers a blueprint: music as both shield and beacon, building resilience while opening hearts.

A Gift of Art and Story

Bau’s eye for culture extended beyond performance. During Old Town’s facility expansion 25 years ago, he sought to “Old-Town-Schoolize” what he feared would become too corporate a space. He recalled a series of musician portrait cards created by cartoonist R. Crumb—images of blues and country players presented like baseball cards. After gaining rights to reproduce them, Bau oversaw the installation of 40 enlarged panels along Old Town’s grand staircase, transforming glass and steel into a glowing tribute to American vernacular music.

A production mishap left an early batch of panels mis-drilled and destined for the dump—until Bau intervened. Instead, they were stored and eventually auctioned at Old Town fundraisers, where they raised thousands of dollars and became cherished artifacts. Upon his retirement in 2019, Old Town gifted Bau one of the panels.

This year, Bau entrusted that panel to 317 Main. His gift is more than a striking piece of art: it is a story of ingenuity, persistence, and love for cultural traditions. It will be permanently installed early next year in our space as a symbol of Bau’s conviction that art belongs in the commons, enlivening community spaces and reshaping even our architecture into something that sings.

Scholar, Musician, and Family Man

In addition to his leadership, Bau was a scholar and writer. He earned an M.A. in Ethnomusicology from Tufts University, published essays on culture and diversity, and authored Cultural Democracy (University of Illinois Press, 2005). He produced and appeared on numerous recordings, and as recently as 2024 published Bau’s 101 Arrangements for Mandolins.

He was also, always, a musician and a fan—playing, listening, booking, and celebrating the joy of sound. And at the heart of it all was his family, especially Phyllis, with whom he shared a lifelong partnership in both love and work.

A Lasting Legacy

Bau Graves’ passing leaves a void in the world of community arts. But his legacy endures—in every concert where strangers become neighbors, in every classroom where a child picks up an instrument for the first time, in every festival where cultures meet across boundaries.

Here in Yarmouth, we will honor him by carrying his vision forward—ensuring that 317 Main remains a place where music strengthens bonds, fosters equity, and helps our communities weather whatever comes.

We are humbled to be part of his story, and to hold a piece of it in our care.

Honoring Bau Graves: A Life in Service of Music, Culture, and Community