As we march through the merry month of May, live music is on the upswing at several venues, including indoor-outdoor music gardens, as the weather lightens up full time.
For a spectacular event of great beauty and also a very cool happening, join us for the first-ever coming together of three Springfieldarea high school jazz bands on Friday, May 13. The special concert, officially called the Springfield Area High School Jazz Festival, is presented at The Legacy Theatre (101 E. Lawrence Ave., 528-9769). The concert was organized by Kyle Muskopf, band director at Williamsville High School, and includes jazz bands from Chatham-Glenwood (directed by Gina Coonrod) and Rochester (directed by Dennis Jones). Joining the students in performance are special guest trombonists Aaron Eckert from the prestigious Eastman School of Music and former RHS student teacher John Sluzalis, plus legendary area drummer and instructor from Decatur’s renowned Millikin University Perry Rask on alto sax, and Buddy Rogers, a retired band director from Cincinnati and founder of the L.I.N.K.S. Program (Lonely Instruments for Needy Kids), which is supported by this concert, on tenor sax.
Sponsored by local businesses and emceed by Paul Presney, the event not only gives students a chance to shine on the big stage but provides an opportunity for the community to donate any old band instruments to a good cause. Tickets are available ($8 adults; $5 students; kids under 10 are free) when the doors open at 6 p.m., with performances by Chatham-Glenwood at 7, Rochester at 7:45 and Williamsville at 8:30. Please join in for an exciting night of modern and traditional jazz tunes done by our next generation of musicians with some help from the current crew.
On Friday evening from 5:30 to 7:30, Robbie’s hosts one of our community music treasures as Gus Pflugmacher brings his trio to the Springfield Area Arts Council-sponsored weekly music series. Gus has played too many shows to count in his half-century plus of making music happen around here. Tell him thanks, and listen to the good stuff get better.
In other goings-on around town, the country crowd hauls some cool, contemporary music into our local venues. Check out the all ages “3 Girls Rock Iinto a Bar Tour” at Boondocks on Saturday featuring Natalie Stovall, Kelleigh Bannen and Ruthie Collins as the three rockin’ not walkin’ girls. The Capital City Bar & Grill pulls off a double header with Matt Woods and Jeff Shepherd on Thursday night and Jesse Keith Whitley (son of the late Keith Whitley and Lorrie Morgan) and Matt Kennon on Saturday.
HISO Music brings a showcase to Bar None on Friday as they present The Sammy Flores Show with Matt Wingo Live, Ayo and Phileo starting at 8 p.m. Cousin Eddie’s Bar & Grill at Fairhills Mall hosts an evening-long tent party featuring The Deep Hollow and The Shenanigans on Friday, and Mike Burnett and a Garth Brooks tribute by Brian Shartzer on Saturday with proceeds going to Christ the King School.
Paris-Belle House Concerts in Williamsville (paris-belleconcerts@outlook.com) booked Cathy Barton Para and Dave Para, a wonderful folk duo from Boonville, Mo., on Friday and The Balkan Trio with Kamen Petkov on violin, Maryna Meshcherska on piano and University of Illinois Springfield music professor Yona Stamatis playing violin and bouzouki, the Greek-based, string instrument on Saturday.
Wait, that’s not all, as on Monday the world-famous, Texas-blues guitarist Holland K. Smith remembers The Alamo during the Illinois Central Blues Club’s weekly shindig. On Tuesday the Brass Quintet from the Illinois Symphony Orchestra performs an “Around the Town” concert at the Old State Capitol in downtown Springfield at noon.
That there is some pretty cool stuff, folks.
