Credit: J.R. Tracy
If you’re passing through the center of rural Stanfordville on a Friday night, you might be surprised to hear the gentle sway of bossa nova or the lyrics to a German synth-pop group, Nena’s, 1983 single, “99 Luftballons”, emanating from Coyote Flaco, the Mexican restaurant across from Town Hall on Route 82.
Wander inside and you’ll discover Anne Bernstein and Tosso Hettinger, the musical couple known as The Stanfordville Swingers, performing before a rapt audience of local diners. In just a few years, Bernstein and Hettinger have established themselves as fixtures in the heart of the community they now call home.
Though they both spent time in Germany – Hettinger is originally from Augsburg, and Bernstein spent several years in Berlin in the 1990s – their paths would cross thousands of miles away, in New York City.
In 1997, Bernstein and Hettinger both worked in New York. Bernstein worked in independent film, and Hettinger performed as a professional musician, while commuting to Boston to complete a degree at the Berklee College of Music. The couple married in 1998, pursuing careers in the city, but the grind took its toll and they looked for relief in the Hudson Valley.
Bernstein and Hettinger started spending time in Stanfordville in 2013 before buying a place on South Anson Road that same year. They commuted into New York, but their appetite for city life ebbed. “It just got harder and harder for me to go back to the city,” Bernstein said. “The more time I spent here, the more my exoskeleton became porous. In the city I had to brace myself for every interaction, but here I can just relax and enjoy the proximity to nature.”
Bernstein let her city commitments fade away but Hettinger maintained a heavy weekend performance schedule, often performing ten or more gigs over the course of three days. They’d given up their apartment in New York so Hettinger slept in his music studio, with construction going on next door. “They were pile-driving for a foundation,” Hettinger said, “and as they’re pounding away, the glasses are falling off the shelf. They didn’t start until 8:00 a.m. but I wasn’t getting home until 3:00 a.m.”
The charms of the city eventually wore thin for Hettinger, and he settled in alongside Bernstein as a full-time Stanfordville resident.
The couple arrived in town around the same time Jaime Lopez-Cabrera and Araceli Parra opened Coyote Flaco. “When we first moved up here, we were fixing up our place, and afterward we’d be starving and roll down the hill to go to Coyote Flaco,” Bernstein said.
They quickly got to know Lopez-Cabrera and Parra who often suggested Hettinger should play at the restaurant. Before that could happen, Lopez-Cabrera was killed in a confrontation with New York State Police, but their bond with Parra survived the tragedy.
Before moving to Stanfordville, Bernstein and Hettinger had never performed together in public. Bernstein, largely self-taught, always had an interest in music. She decided to focus on bass, and in 2017 paired with Hettinger for her first paid gig, a burger cookout at the Big Rock Community Farms Market (just south of Coyote Flaco on Route 82).
Nerves consumed Bernstein in the run-up to her first performance. “I wanted to puke all week,” Bernstein said. “But as soon as I started playing, I was totally fine!” And just like that, the Stanfordville Swingers were born.
Bernstein and Hettinger continued to play local gigs, including fund-raisers for the family of Lopez-Cabrera and Parra and more sessions at Big Rock. They approached Parra about performing at Coyote Flaco, and together they settled on Friday nights.
“It’s never just been about making the music,” Bernstein said. “It’s about the event, the gathering of people, it’s about community.”
The couple has fond memories of a regular gig Hettinger’s band played at a neighborhood Italian restaurant in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn. “There was a regular crew, and a cool vibe,” Bernstein said. They believe they’re creating a similar mood on Friday nights at Coyote Flaco.
“We get so much from the people here, and Araceli is a great host. She’s the best I’ve ever played for,” Hettinger said.
The Stanfordville Swingers play a broad spectrum of music, driven by Hettinger’s background in Cuban and World music along with jazz and blues, paired with Bernstein’s love of 80s and 90s pop and rock. They have over 150 songs in their repertoire, but go into each Friday night without a plan, selecting tunes to match the mood and the crowd.
For Bernstein, their song selection has a deeper meaning. “Some of the music I choose, like ‘Where do the Children Play’ by Cat Stevens, is my way of promoting peace, and for a future for children everywhere,” she said. “Music is a very emotional profession. In some small way, I hope to help create and foster a safe space for everyone.”
You can hear the Stanfordville Swingers most Friday nights from 7 to 9 p.m. at Coyote Flaco, 6063 NY-82, Stanfordville. For announcements of upcoming performances follow them on Instagram.