THE MILWAUKEE BREWERS
 If
you’ve been following my Facebook pages, you’ve gotten to
see a few major milestone events this summer, most notably
the three games I’ve played so far for the Milwaukee
Brewers. My working relationship with them began last season
when they hired me to record what has grown to become a
collection of more than 60 accordion and polka music prompts
they use between pitches and innings during home games at
American Family Field. They also play my recorded versions
of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and the “Beer Barrel Polka”
during the seventh inning stretch at most home games. This
season, they hired me to perform these prompts and songs,
plus the “Chicken Dance,” live during seven home games
around my busy performance schedule. It has been one of the
top highlights of my career!
 Behind
the scenes, if you’re a Brewers fan, you’ll be glad to know
the people behind the scenes are absolutely awesome! I
cannot believe how well they’ve treated me and my family
during the time I’ve been working with them. If you’d like
to catch me during one of the upcoming dates I’ll be playing
there, please check the schedule below. On September 12,
I’ll be there with the whole band for the Brewers’
Oktoberfest celebration. We’ll be playing on the plaza
outside the stadium prior to the game, and then assuming
teardown goes smoothly, we’ll be playing during the game, as
well.
 For
more pictures and a few videos from the games I’ve played
for so far, please check out my Facebook page for the Mike
Schneider Band
here.
THE MIKE SCHNEIDER BAND
In addition to my upcoming work with the Brewers,
it is going to be another Oktoberfest season for the record
books! Plus, the rest of this month, you can catch us at
events in Milwaukee, Fond du Lac, and West Bend, namely at
the Old German Beer Hall, the Fond du Lac County Fairgrounds
for the Holy Family Parish Picnic, and West Bend Germanfest
at Regner Park, where we’ll open the day for Alex Meixner,
who is perhaps the highest energy polka musician who has
ever lived.
In September, we’ll kick off the month with our annual visit
to Oak Creek for their Lionsfest celebration. Friday is
Senior Day, and suffice to say, Oak Creek takes good care of
their seniors! Sunday, we’ll “open” for the Steve Meisner
Legacy Band, an annual tradition that dates back now more
than a decade when Steve was an annual fixture there. His
memory and music live on!
September’s Oktoberfest highlights include our annual visits
to the Working Draft Beer Company in Madison, Gemuetlichkeit
Days in Jefferson, the Cambridge Taphouse, the La Crosse
Oktoberfest, the McFarland American Legion, Rock County
Brewing in Janesville, and Blessed Sacrament Parish in
Madison. Plus, we’ll be returning to the Hideaway Brew
Garden in Hoffman Estates, IL after a one-year hiatus, and
will also make our first ever appearance at the Baraboo
Oktoberfest at the historic Circus World venue. I hope
you’ll have the chance to join us at at least a few of these
celebrations!
In October, we’ll be back for another year of late morning
Oktoberfest fun at Duesterbeck’s in Elkhorn, WI, as well as
Mobtoberfest for MobCraft Beer in Milwaukee! I’ll also be
back for another solo strolling performance at the Milwaukee
County Zoo for their popular Zoo Brew event. Plus, look for
my band at a new-to-us venue at Grizzy’s in Berlin, and also
for my first solo appearance at the new Draft & Co.
restaurant in Downtown Milwaukee as they take part in
October’s Milwaukee Night Market event.
For details on all of these upcoming events and more, please
visit the
Schedule page.
PINT SIZE POLKAS
It was another awesome summer for my Pint Size
Polkas program! Since my first trip in 2009, I’ve visited
almost 1,000 different libraries in 30 states, putting on
more than 2,500 shows during that stretch. People are often
surprised to hear I drive everywhere! I generally put on
around 30,000 miles per year, between Pint Size Polkas and
my band work. This summer, I visited libraries in Colorado,
Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oklahoma,
Texas, and Wisconsin. It went so well, I’m already scheduled
for roughly three weeks of work next summer in Kansas, New
Mexico, and Oklahoma. Bringing polka music to the next
generation of fans and potential musicians across the United
States has been one of the great honors of my life. Can’t
wait to bring the fun to a whole new group of people in
2027!
As always, be sure to join
our growing list of fans on Facebook
here, or for Pint Size
Polkas
here. Once you’re there,
click the Like button at the top of the page.
That's all for this summer. Thanks again and talk to you
soon!
Mike Schneider
The Mike
Schneider Band |
