(The following article originally appeared in The Huntsville Forester on July 29, 2009.)
Local groups and guest artists will delight audience for hours
This Saturday, Aug. 1, will be the first all-day jazz festival in River Mill Park, running from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The afternoon of music, a new component of the Huntsville Jazz Festival, will feature a combination of local groups and guest artists.
The day will kick off at 11 a.m. with the music of the Muskoka Big Band, under the direction of Neil Barlow. This band of local musicians performs regularly throughout the community and always provides a rollicking good program. Vocalist Sherisse Stevens will accompany the band on a few numbers and the program will include a bevy of audience favourites.
Next up, at noon, the Muskoka Jazz Guys will perform. One of the busiest groups in the Muskoka area, saxophonist Doug Banwell, keyboard wiz Tim Sullivan and bass player Jamie Bestwick can play all types of jazz music and often look for requests from the audience to set their program. Known for their virtuosic solo work the group returns at 5 p.m. for a second set.
Marguerite and Bill Urban lead the Trillium Dixie Jazz Band onto the stage at 1:15 p.m. This six-piece ensemble is the perfect group for an outdoor concert, with lots of energy, toe tapping tunes and music we have all grown to love. Mixing Dixieland swing with well-known classics, the Trillium Dixie group has a large local following.
At 2:15 p.m. Laganza, better known for their pop/rock performances, take the stage. Led by the versatile Tobin Spring, the group will do a set of reggae and jazz-inspired tunes, showcasing Spring’s guitar wizardry and group vocals.
Special guest musicians, the Herbie Koffman Quintet, perform a set of jazz standards at 3:30 p.m. Koffman, a master on the trumpet, and his son are joined by a rhythm section and well-known jazz guitarist Rob Piltch.
Following the Koffman set, the Muskoka Jazz Guys and the Trillium Dixie band return for second sets at 5 p.m. and 6:15 p.m. respectively. In between artists, masters of ceremonies Doug Banwell and Ken Cole’s comedy troupe the Woodshed Collective will keep those in attendance occupied and entertained.
There is no charge for this event and the Huntsville Festival of the Arts invites you to bring your lawn chair, sit back and enjoy some great music. The performers will be set up on a professional stage and under a stage cover purchased by the festival through an Ontario government Celebrate Ontario grant. These facilities will be used in the future by various community organizations both in River Mill Park and at various outside venues.
