MUSIC
JAZZ SOCIETY STAGING
30
SPRING FESTIVAL
BY SUSAN BURGESS
Even though there’s expected to be a lot of singin’ the
blues, organizers are upbeat about the first Jazz &
Blues Festival scheduled in Fort Pierce in March.
The festival, hosted by the Fort Pierce Jazz & Blues
Society, will run from Friday, March 22, through Friday,
March 29, and will be staged at a variety of venues.
“The festival will present, free to all, a professional reflection
of America’s unique original art form — jazz, and of its
earlier musical roots — blues,” said society board member
Gene Hull.
The society wants to expose Treasure Coast audiences to
a concentrated menu of varied jazz and blues performances,
he said. “We believe the best way to educate audiences on
the appeal of such music is to play it for them,” Hull said.
“If its beauty, excitement, intricacies, exuberance, and artistic
achievement appeals to listeners, they will seek out ways to
hear more and learn more about it. The festival will be a feast
for fans and an appetizer tray for the musically curious.”
The Friday-to-Friday festival kicks off March 22 with a joint
party and fund-raiser called “Support the Arts, Enjoy the
Grape!” featuring jazz, art, wine and cheese at Art Mundo
studios at 111 Orange Avenue. Several artists will be doing
demonstrations. A donation at the door is requested and may
be about $20 but the amount and the time are still unconfirmed.
Saturdays are great days for festivals and the Jazz & Blues
Festival joins Main Street Fort Pierce’s annual Sandy Shoes
Festival downtown on March 23. The society’s Jazz and
Blues Ensemble will take the stage at a time that still has to
be determined, said Mia Batalini, a vocalist and the group’s
office administrator.
Waterside Blues Concerts, held Sundays at scenic Marina
Square, encourage music awareness and fun for the entire
family and community, she said. The free waterfront event
March 24 opens with the Jazz Ensemble at 1 p.m. The featured
band, “The Party Dogs” goes on at 2:30 p.m. with hot jazz
and classic cool rock. Enjoy refreshments, food, arts and crafts
vendors and bring your lawn chairs for a fantastic afternoon.
For the rest of the week anyone who stops by the waterfront
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. can sit and enjoy a brown bag lunch
and hot jazz. The concerts are free. Different artists will take
the stage each lunchtime and showcase a variety of jazz and
blues. These outdoor concerts are free to the public. There will
be lunches and refreshments available for purchase.
On Friday evening Doc Grober and the Mudcats will be at
the Sunrise Theatre’s Black Box Theatre ready to knock your
socks off with some of the best jazz and blues you’ve ever
heard. You can come for the VIP cocktail hour at 6:30 p.m. or
just for the show at 7:30 p.m. Tickets $35 and $29 are available
at the Sunrise box office. Get yours before the show is sold out.
“The first annual Jazz and Blues Festival by the Fort Pierce
Jazz & Blues Society is to be a performance festival,” Hull
said. “No specific lectures are planned to explain or elaborate
on the nature of the music, except for introductory remarks by
the various performers. The music itself will be the message.”
>>
The James McCreavy Quintet entertains a crowd at a festival. From March 22-29 there will be concerts daily in the downtown Fort Pierce area.