Patricia Tanner, longtime director of Calliope: The Pittsburgh Folk Music Society, dies at 77

By Scott Mervis / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Not only will Patricia Tanner be remembered for all the music: She’ll be remembered for hosting it with a cheerful demeanor and a sweet smile, which is part of why so many major artists made return trips to play concerts with Calliope: The Pittsburgh Folk Music Society.

Tanner, who spent 25 years as the executive director of Calliope before retiring last year, died on Feb. 14, at 77, after a bout with pancreatic cancer.

A lover of music and art — and football — Ms. Tanner, of Mt. Nebo, graduated from the University of Pittsburgh with a master of arts in art history and produced documentaries on the arts for Pittsburgh Filmmakers. Her early jobs included public relations at U.S. Steel and executive director of the Laurel Mountain Symphony.

She took over as Calliope’s director in 1999, and began building the organization’s profile by presenting such artists as Ritchie Havens, Doc Watson and the David Grisman Quintet. She went on to produce more than 900 concerts with the likes of Mickey Hart, Gillian Welch, Mavis Staples, Odetta, Roseanne Cash, Arlo Guthrie and Emmy Lou Harris.

She also introduced the market to such breaking artists as Rhiannon Giddens and the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and The War and Treaty. During the pandemic, she kept the music going with livestreams, including one with actor-musician Jeff Daniels.

“We shared more than the work. Tricia’s passion for the music was infectious. That’s what made working with her such a joy,” Donna Isaac, former Calliope operations manager, said in a statement,

Tanner supported the local music scene as well, with everything from Calliope house shows to acoustic concerts at  First Unitarian Church in Shadyside to the Summer Series at Schenley Plaza. In 2009, she oversaw the renovation and grand opening of Calliope’s Roots Cellar Series in the Marshall Building in Shadyside.

“People are really reaching out for more entertainment in these glum times,” she told the PG upon opening the Cellar. “They're not spending on big-ticket items, so maybe they’ll take their 10 or 20 dollars and go out to hear some music instead. It’s better for the soul anyway.”

“Tricia was skilled at using the diverse strengths of a few to achieve the Calliope mission, which required patience, kindness and a sense of humor,” Calliope board presidents Ray Werner and Phil Smith wrote in an obituary on Dignity.

Their memorial notes that at the Mariposa Folk Festival in Ontario, Tanner took a walk along the lake where she ran into a young musician eyeing an empty rowboat. Next thing she knew, she was paddling around with none other than Bob Dylan.

Dylan wasn’t at Woodstock, but Tanner was, making the trip from Pittsburgh to upstate New York in August 1969.

“My experience was that it was wet and I was cold,” she told the PG in 2019. “Food was not readily available and we sat in traffic for hours. The music was fantastic. Many of the artists I had seen at other festivals or concerts. Over the years, I have presented many Woodstock artists including The Weight Band (former members of The Band), Jorma Kaukonen (Jefferson Airplane), David Crosby, Richie Havens, Arlo Guthrie, Mickey Hart and Roger McGuinn.”

Football was in the picture too. In the ’60s, Tanner was one of the Steelerettes, the short-lived cheerleading squad for the Steelers, and recent Facebook posts show her happy reunions with fellow Steelerettes. Her uniform is on display at the Western PA Sports Museum at the Heinz History Center.

Tanner passed away on what would have been her wedding anniversary with her late husband, Jay Thomas Steffler.

“I worked with Tricia for many years, and I've very rarely come across someone who loved music as much as she did,” said Calliope operations director Lisa Alexander. “She just seemed to have a sense about what would work and as a result, all these amazing musicians have come through our organization in so many ways. I keep thinking of being at a concert with her when I was feeling anxious and stiff, and she was next to me, fully present, immersed in the music and free. I'd rather be more like her. I'll really miss her.”

A Memorial Service will take place noon Feb. 27 at H.P. Brandt Funeral Home,1032 Perry Highway. A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. At the family's request, do not send any flowers. Instead consider donations to Calliope: Pittsburgh Folk Music Society via calliopehouse.org/donate.