The Amelia Island Jazz Festival takes place in Fernandina Beach, Florida, on October 3 – 10, 2010. This festival consists of a series of events celebrating this diverse all-American art form, with headliner, multiple Grammy award-winning pianist, Ramsey Lewis.
Les deMerle
The creative director, Les deMerle, has put in place a program consisting of world-class artists in a wide variety of jazz styles. At the Amelia Island Jazz Festival you can enjoy a wide variety of jazz from Dixieland, Smooth Jazz, Bebop, Big Band, Blues, Latin and to new, state-of-the-art styles. The festival takes place at the First Baptist Church auditorium, at the beautiful St. Peter’s Church Courtyard and at a selction of charming venues around Fernandina Beach.
Featuring:
The Ramsey Lewis Trio – Grammy Award winning pianist
Steve March Tormé – Explosive Jazz Vocalist
Les DeMerle Big Band – World-renowned Drummer – Exciting Big Band
Bonnie Eisele – Vocalist extraordinaire
Impacto Latino – Hot 10-piece Salsa Band
Bobby Pickwood Quintet – Chet Baker Tribute – Trumpet & Vocals
Michael Levine & Miami Vibe – Smooth Jazz Pianist
Nathan Skinner – Vibraphone Sensation, 2010 AIJF Scholarship Winner
18-Piece US Navy Band – Classic Band at its best
Midnight Blue Band – Bebop, Blues & Beyond
Spare Rib Six – N’awlins-style Dixieland Band
… and many more!
Friday, October 1, 2010 – 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Free Community Concert “Sounds on Centre”
Sunday, October 3, 2010 – 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Free Concert at Amelia Park “Jazz In The Park”
Tuesday, October 5, 2010 – 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
“Jazz at the Movies” (Tickets $15)
Wednesday, October 6, 2010 – 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
“Red, White & Blues” Blues Concert and Wine Tasting (Tickets $30)
Thursday, October 7, 2010 – 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
“Latin Jazz” Concert & Dance (Tickets $25)
Friday, October 8, 2010 – 8:00 PM
“Tormé Sings Tormé” Steve March Tormé in Concert
(Tickets $40 – $75)
Saturday, October 9, 2010 – 8:00 PM
“An Evening With Ramsey Lewis”
(Tickets $40 – $75)
Sunday, October 10, 2010 – 12pm – 2pm and 2pm – 4pm
“Dixieland Jazz Brunch”
(Tickets $45)
For more information, visit www.ameliaislandjazzfestival.com.
The 2010 Festival Featured Artists include:
Ramsey Lewis Trio
Grammy Award-winning pianist
Steve March Tormé
Mel Tormé Tribute Show
Les DeMerle Big Band
World-renowned Drummer
Exciting Big Band
Impacto Latino
Hot 10-Piece Salsa Band
Nathan Skinner
Vibraphone Sensation,
2010 AIJF Scholarship Winner
Bonnie Eisele
Vocalist Extraordinaire
Michael Levine
& Miami Vibe
Smooth Jazz Pianist
18-Piece US Navy Band
Classic Big Band at its best
Bobby Pickwood Quintet
Tribute To Chet Baker
Midnight Blue Band
Bebop, Blues & Beyond
Spare Rib Six
N’awlins-style Dixieland Band
On October 29th, 2010, Darius Rucker is coming to St. Augustine, Florida for a concert at the Amphitheatre.
Rucker will release his second country album:
Charleston, SC 1966
Darius become popular as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the rock band Hootie & the Blowfish. In 2008, Rucker began a solo career in country music. But now Darius is coming to St. Augustine for his own concert.
Crosby, Stills and Nash (CSN) – the group consisting of David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash is coming to Jacksonville this fall. The group might even be more famous as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (CSNY) when Neil Young becomes one of the members. The group is known for their vocal harmonies and influence on music over many years. All four members have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. Don’t miss this opportunity to see CSN perform live in Jacksonville, Florida on September 25, 2010.
Buy tickets for Crosby, Stills & Nash now!
From ragtime, to New Orleans, swing, dixieland, latin jazz, bebop, acid jazz and more – the music form itself is difficult to define. On the other hand, Louis Armstrong who really was the king of Jazz once said “If you have to ask what jazz is, you’ll never know.”
But it’s evident jazz has strong ties to the South and maybe that’s the reason why we have several music events in our area this fall celebrating jazz music.
Low Country Jazz Festival
September 3 – 5,2010
Charleston, SC
Even though it’s only the second time around for The Low Country Jazz Festival, this event is quickly becoming a very popular. Both local and international jazz artists will perform during the festival the North Charleston Performing Arts Center in Charleston and various other venues in the area.
Click here to read more about the Low Country Jazz Festival
Hilton Head Jazz and Brew Fest
September 13 -18, 2010
Hilton Head Island, SC
This festival manages to combine several coastal favorites – live music, great food and good beer. The Seafood Jazz & Brew Festival on Hilton Head Island includes include beer tastings, beer and food pairings, and of course plenty of jazz performances. This festival utilizes the coastal locations of the Shelter Cove Community Park and the Shelter Cove Harbour. Click here to read more about Hilton Head Jazz and Brew Fest
Savannah Jazz Festival
September 19 -26, 2010
Savannah, GA
This is one of the most anticipated festivals in Savannah where the best jazz talent gather in Forsyth Park in Savannah, Georgia. This year it’s actually the 27th year for event. There are many live performances, jam session and also film screenings. This outdoor jazz festival is free and open to the public.
Les deMerle
Amelia Island Jazz Festival
October 3 – 10, 2010
Fernandina Beach, Fl
Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island celebrates jazz with a week-long annual festival. The popular event consists of a series of events around the island. This year the headliner is multiple Grammy award-winning pianist, Ramsey Lewis. The festival’s creative director, Les deMerle, has put together a program with world-class jazz artists in a wide variety of styles from Dixieland, Smooth Jazz, Bebop, Big Band, Blues, Latin and to new, state-of-the-art styles. Read more about the Amelia Island Jazz Festival here
Little River Shrimp & Jazz Fest
October 9 – 10, 2010
Little River, SC
This is one of the most anticipated events in Little River near Myrtle Beach. There’s lots of fun for the whole family and lots of live music.
Read more about Little River Shrimp & Jazz Fest
This free festival will be filled with multiple stages of entertainment. Art in the Heart Downtown Art Show & Sale, Wine Down Tasting Experience, Generation Next Youth Talent Competition, Jazz Juniors educational activities, jazz exhibits and more will be there. Other festival highlights includes the Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition, ‘Round Midnight Jazz Jam, Jazz Talks, Sunday Jazz Brunches and other exciting activities.
This year the Jazz Festival offers free performances from renowned artists such as the Sonny Fortune Quartet, Basia and Tito Puente Jr. and his Orchestra.
The parade will be on Sunday, May 30 at 1:30 p.m. The parade in the streets led by JB Scott’s Swingin Allstars! Festival attendees are encouraged to bring their instruments and parasols to participate in this spirited celebration through downtown Jacksonville!
The City of Jacksonville is once again presenting Starry Nights which was well-known as one of Jacksonville’s most popular outdoor events for more than a decade, combining the wonderful sounds of the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra and an exciting variety of top entertainers. This event creates a festive downtown atmosphere in Metropolitan Park with the beautiful St. Johns River serving as the perfect backdrop.
Here are some of the concert dates and performers.
April 10 – Styx
Styx transformed from a suburban Chicago basement in the early 1970s to the virtual arena rock prototypes by the late 1970s and early 1980s, due to a fondness for big rockers and soaring power ballads. Styx’s mainstream success began with “Lady.” Most of their subsequent releases throughout the late 1970s earned at least platinum certification and spawned such hit singles and classic rock radio standards as “Come Sail Away,” “Renegade,” “Blue Collar Man,” and “Fooling Yourself.”
April 24 – Idina Menzel
Featuring Broadway powerhouse Idina Menzel, the Tony award-winning “Elphaba” from the international blockbuster “Wicked.” With a diverse repertoire of classic pop, musical theater favorites (including hits from “Wicked” and “Rent”) as well as songs from her album “I Stand,” Idina Menzel demonstrates why she is one of the great vocal performers of our time. Catch her this spring on the FOX television series “Glee!”
April 24th – Conductor Matthew Kraemer
Recognized for his “musical sensitivity” and “energized sense of interpretation”, conductor Matthew Kraemer begins his tenure as associate conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra in September 2009. In this role he will appear on each of the orchestra’s major series, including subscription weeks, Pops, and Family concerts. He will play a vital role in the BPO’s award winning education and community engagement programs, in addition to assisting Music Director JoAnn Falletta during her Kleinhans Hall weeks, recording sessions and on tour. The 2009-2010 season will also mark his third and final year as associate conductor of the Virginia Symphony. Upcoming season highlights include an all Mozart program and The Music Man with the BPO, Strauss’ Don Juan and Stravinsky’s Firebird with the VSO, and performances with Philippe Quint, Ben Folds, and Chris Botti. He will also debut with the Jacksonville Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony orchestras in the spring of 2010.
Join Beatles lovers from around the world at the Times-Union Center for Performing Arts in Jacksonville Florida this Valentines day at 7:00 pm. This is one experience you don’t want to miss!
In their production of “Rain: The Beatles Experience”, this show is a multi-media, multi-dimensional event which features 5 different scene and costume changes, 3 video screens, and live camera projection, combining television commercials and historical video footage from the ’60′s. As anyone who has witnessed Rain in concert will attest, the music is first and foremost, and is recreated with the utmost care and integrity. Rain distinguishes itself by focusing on details, and delivers a perfect note for note performance. All the music is performed live, with no pre-recorded tapes or sequences.
The first set is an astonishing recreation of the Beatles stage set from the 1964 Ed Sullivan show, with the band dressed in the authentic Saville Row custom tailored suits, Beatle boots, and donning hair styles to match the likenesses of John, Paul, George and Ringo. The set, combined with black and white camera work instantly takes you back in time to that historic first night that the Beatles appeared on American television.
Second Set – Shea Stadium
After a brief interlude of songs from their movie era featuring selections from “A Hard Days Night”, the band is suddenly transported to Shea Stadium via helicopter where nearly 56,000 fans witness the group’s highest attended concert to date. Live video technology provides views of the band through close- ups and different angles, as members of the audience are projected onto the main screens for a completely interactive experience.
Third Set – Sgt. Pepper Era
The third set features the music and colorful costumes of the “Sgt. Pepper” era. Behind the band, a huge backdrop of the Sgt. Pepper album cover is shown. Or so it seems. Upon closer inspection, you’ll see that the band has cleverly interspersed their own photos to completely re-create the famous album cover. With the use of sophisticated sound and lighting, audiences will experience the music, energy and excitement of seeing the Beatles live in concert – something that the Beatles themselves never did during this period.
In fact, the Beatles stopped touring after 1966 and never performed the music of Sgt. Pepper live.
Fourth Set – Flower Power
After a quick intermission, the fourth set opens to the strains of Indian music where a brief description of the “Summer of Love” and the group’s new-found interest in meditation transports us back to that memorable time. The curtain opens to reveal the band attired in costumes reminiscent of the flower power era, as they perform the music of the years 1967-68. Of special note here is the performance of an acoustic set, revealing to the audience what the Beatles’ actual song writing processes may have been like.
Fifth Set – Abbey Road
The Abbey Road period brings the show to its fifth set. A re-creation of the famous “Abbey Road” album cover provides the backdrop, while stage props such as the doorway to EMI studios add to the visual effects that accurately reflect this period. The transformation to this era is complete with yet another costume change, reflecting the style of the Beatles during 1969-70. The visual effect is such that you think the band has stepped out of the album cover. The music within this set includes selections from the “Golden Slumbers” medley through “The End” — the Beatles’ swan song of their short but magnificent career.
Join the Black Eyed Peas on Tuesday, Feb 9 at 8:00pm for the concert of a lifetime. This will change the very way you experience music. The concert will be at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. Tickets are available now. This is going to be an amazing show that will completely change the way you experience music! Described as the ultimate Black Eyed Peas party experience, it also marks the first time that the group – will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo and Fergie – is united for a North American headline tour since their 2006 Monkey Business world tour.
In support of their multi-platinum #1 album, The E.N.D, featuring the chart record-breaking consecutive #1 singles, “Boom Boom Pow” and “I Gotta Feeling” – The Black Eyed Peas will replicate the party vibe of a hot
The E.N.D., The Black Eyed Peas’ fifth studio album, is also their first original album since Monkey Business (released May 2005), certified RIAA triple platinum in the U.S., with worldwide sales of more than 9 million copies. Monkey Business generated Grammy® Awards over two consecutive years, for “Don’t Phunk with My Heart” and “My Humps.” The Peas’ first Grammy® Award came six years ago, for “Let’s Get It Started,” from their breakthrough album of 2003, Elephunk, which introduced Fergie into the lineup, and turned the group into international superstars with cumulative 25-times platinum sales in nearly a dozen countries around the world.
[AEG Live]
We went to the songwriter contest/music festival in Jacksonville at Treehill Nature Center. Nashville producer Michael Knox, who was part of the jury, was there as well.
Below is the list of the winners. The talented Kelty Shellhorn is only 14 years old! Watch the video for more.
Top 3 Songs:
1) Bryan Fogle
2) Kelty Shellhorn
3) Craig Hand
Top 3 Artists:
1) Kata Rhe
2) Kelty Shellhorn
3) Rebecca Hewitt
Best Green Song:
Al Monte
Upcoming Star:
Kelty Shellhorn
