Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.
- Plato

Tony Falco’s remarkable life was cut short last week by COVID. Marlboro, and its surroundings, will never be the same.

Known best as the proprietor of a popular music venue in the heart of town, Tony was, at once, a man of science, art and music.

Armed with a degree in Environmental Science from SUNY New Paltz, Tony formed Environmental Labworks, a water testing laboratory that designed and operated several water treatment facilities in the Hudson Valley. His love of music brought him in another direction, first to a one-time Methodist Church, then to an old button factory.

In the 1990s, Tony led a rock band called “The Wild Animals of North America” into the church building for a benefit concert and ended up buying the former church building, dismantling it piece by piece and relocating it behind his Marlboro home. Amazing acoustics, a grand piano and a sound and lighting system brought it new life as an intimate concert hall, right in his back yard.

The sounds of music filled the former church sanctuary as talented musicians and a supportive audience filed in. The music was fed from a donation box, while the audience was served from a potluck table.

The power of the music grew, Falcon Music & Art Production outgrew its space, leading Tony to purchase the former button factory perched high above the Marlboro falls along Route 9W. It was here that art, music and nature combined forces: a spacious performance venue, an equally impressive gallery space and scenic hiking trails created along the majestic falls.

New York City’s finest musicians made their way up the Hudson to perform at what became known as the “Village Vanguard of the Hudson Valley.” There was no cover charge, but patrons were encouraged to buy drinks and dinner and leave a few extra dollars behind to “support the living artists.” Notables like Paul Shaffer and Donald Fagen hit the Falcon stage. Benefit concerts at the Falcon helped feed the Hudson Valley’s homeless and bring relief to hurricane-ravaged Haiti.

The pandemic brought business to a screeching halt, shuttering restaurants and live venues. It gave him time to create an outdoor beer garden until it was safe to re-open the upstairs venue. The Falcon survived COVID. Sadly, its creator did not.

Tony Falco brought us music. That music gave us a soul.