Ridgefield BandJam winners hail from Connecticut & Northern Westchester

Industry pros i95 DJ Ethan Carey, Broadway star Linda Eder, singer/songwriter/producer Vaneese Thomas and bassist for the band Living Colour Doug Wimbish cast their votes at the April 26 BandJam 2015 rock band competition at The Ridgefield Playhouse.

And the winners are:

In the Middle School category, Abby & The Roadsters (pictured), hailing from So. Salem & Katonah, NY, and Danbury & New Fairfield, CT, took top honors.

The Bothers (pictured), from Ridgefield, Danbury & Wilton, CT, won as the best High School band.

Other middle school bands who made the final cut and competed to a sold-out crowd are GRaviToNiK (West Hartford), Distorted Truth (Southbury, CT) and Painting Elephants (Redding, CT).

In the High School category, Short Change (Cross River, NY), Darkest Shade (Newtown and Danbury, CT) and Clueless (Fairfield & Westport, CT) also did an amazing job proving why they were finalists in this highly anticipated annual fundraiser for the not-for-profit performing arts center.

This year’s event was made possible by the dedication of Cole Butchen and Tucker Hearon along with the support of the amazing Playhouse staff, myriad volunteers and esteemed sponsors Guitar Center, Music Shed, Pepsi, i95fm, The Enchanted Garden and Hal Prince Music and Entertainment, with support from Ridgefield Music, pda films, and AllShows, which donated a pair of tickets to see Taylor Swift this summer that auctioned for $1000.

Just completing its sixth year, Ridgefield BandJam, an event created by kids who share a passion for the Playhouse and the arts, has raised approximately $80,000 for The Ridgefield Playhouse.

Visit RidgefieldBandJam.com, a Web site developed by the kids. ‘Til next year, rock on! The Playhouse is a not-for-profit performing arts center located at 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main Street, Ridgefield, CT; 203-438-5795 box office; ridgefieldplayhouse.org.