A student duo’s capstone project is a hit that brings in a diversity of music experiences.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Weekends for Syracuse students consist of many fun activities, including chances to experience live music. But what about the opportunity to see a jam band perform? Or dance to some jazz house music? Sage Haus has got you covered.
The venue was founded by Bandier Program juniors Anjali Engstrom and Romy VanAlmen. Inspired by past house venues like The Garden and The Recital, Engstrom and VanAlmen created a place that had “a little bit of everything” for their Bandier Program capstone.
“We always sort of had this idea, that this was something we wanted to do ourselves and capstone really gave us the opportunity to do it,” VanAlmen said.
The duo represents the entirety of the brand. VanAlmen’s role in their capstone partnership is head of production and booking, handling the day-of logistics and communication between Sage Haus and artists. Engstrom is head of marketing and press, so she handles brand partnerships and marketing tactics for each show.
“We want people to personally know us, and know that when they come to the house, we are the ones running it. We are here to help, make sure things are running smoothly and looking out for people,” Engstrom emphasized.
Inside a small capacity space that showcases a diverse range of musical events, their shows allow audiences to develop a deeper venue-audience connection. Their tagline, “Sage Haus: where each night reinvents itself,” encapsulates the idea that Engstrom and VanAlmen wanted to capture.
“Romy and I really draw inspiration from the things that we enjoy and the things that we love…the concept is that every time you come back, you have a quality experience that you enjoy that is completely different from the previous one,” Engstrom said.
Starting this semester, Sage Haus has already held a couple of events including a “Farmer’s Market,” where jam and rock bands performed, as well as an unplugged acoustic night. During their most recent event called “Jazz Haus,” attendees enjoyed DJ sets of jazz house music and afro-beats.
Sophomore Eva Papapetropoulos started the night DJing with her jazz house music set. While she has played jazz house music before, this was Papapetropoulos’ first experience with Sage Haus, performing a full 45-minute set.
“I really, really loved the crowd interaction. There were some parts of my set [where] people were really interacting with the music. As a DJ that’s why I do it, I love making people happy through my DJing, and just like looking up at the crowd and seeing them dancing,” Papapetropoulos said.
At its core, Sage Haus is a home that houses not only different music but different people throughout every event. People come for a community and feel welcomed when they experience the music Sage Haus has to offer.
“Just knowing that people want to come back and they loved being here after we put so much work into all of these events, it is just so rewarding,” VanAlmen said.
Sage Haus is hosting its next event, a tailgate party, on Nov. 2. Follow @sagehauscuse on Instagram for updates on future music events.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Sage Haus is a home for all music lovers
Romy VanAlem: Our freshman year, we were going to a lot of house shows, and we were playing in them, and going as an audience member. So we always sort of had this idea that it was something we wanted to do ourselves, and capstone really gave us the opportunity to do it, and yeah.
Anjali Engstrom: Romy and I really draw inspiration from the things that we enjoy and the things that we love and our whole concept for Sage Haus was— Our tagline is “Sage Haus: where each night reinvents itself.” The concept is every time you come back you have a quality experience that you enjoy and that is completely different from the previous one. And that’s even making sure that our outdoor shows are completely different from one another, our DJ sets are completely different. What’s something unique, what’s missing in the social and musical scene, and then we also combine that with trends happening right now and culture and things that Romy and I just have a taste for.
Eva Papapetropoulos: So I really, really loved the crowd interaction. There were some parts of my set [where] people were really interacting with the music. As a DJ that’s why I do it, I love making people happy through my DJing, and just like looking up at the crowd and seeing them dancing. But I also really really loved the vibe of Sage Haus, they had some candles out and some plants. The ambiance was there.