Last updated on Nov. 25, 2025 at 10:01 p.m.
Even on a cold and rainy night, the Rose Bowl Tavern packed a full crowd for “The Urbana Hootenanny,” a weekly, one-of-a-kind jam session open free of charge every Monday night for over a dozen years.
The performances at the Hootenanny are primarily country and bluegrass, but the only set rule is that all performances are acoustic, meaning only singers and instruments that produce sound naturally rather than through electricity.
Performers of all levels are encouraged to get on stage, with both amateur and professional musicians playing side by side. Throughout the night, performers will invite other players up from the audience to perform with them.
Urbana resident Daniel Schergen, known in the community as “Big Dan,” makes an effort to come to the Hootenanny every Monday. Schergen is an avid acoustic musician.
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“I’ll put it like this: I play everything but the flute,” Schergen said. “I love the Hootenanny. It’s a beautiful community that’s been curated, and I’m very happy to be a part of it. I’ve lived in a lot of places, and many of them have open mic nights, but none of them are Hootenanny.”
The Hootenanny runs from 8 p.m. to midnight, allowing plenty of open slots for any acoustic performers to play. Around five artists perform each hour, and because it is all acoustic, there is minimal setup between acts.
Throughout the four-hour event, the devoted local audience keeps the music going well into the night. With music playing over the chattering of friends and the clinking of drinks, the sense of community is palpable when you enter the Rose Bowl Tavern.
While the performances are mostly in the folk genre, the event is all-inclusive. From poetry to classical music to jazz, the Hootenanny has everything; it even has a regular harpist come out to play.
As one of the hosts of the Hootenanny, Clayton Dering, host and musician, helps to organize the time slots and encourages participation by opening up the show.
“What I like about the community is that everybody is trying to do their thing with hope,” Dering said. “That inspires people to do something exciting, too. I feel like I am surrounded by great artists here at the Hootenanny.”
The Hootenanny brings in both old and new guests. Liam Phillips, sophomore in LAS, came to the Hootenanny for the first time after hearing about it through word of mouth.
“I’m a musician myself,” Phillips said. “It was amazing … everybody has been very kind and welcoming. It’s nice to know we have such a tight-knit music community.”
Along with the Hootenanny, the Rose Bowl Tavern hosts live music seven days a week. The Urbana Hootenanny happens every Monday without fail, even on major holidays when the dates overlap.
“It really provides a space for newer musicians to play with more seasoned musicians in a place where nobody is going to judge you,” Schergen said. “Everyone is here for that energy.”
