The Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County (FAC) along with the City of Camden will partner to present a free weekend of jazz in historic downtown Camden Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25. Jazz Under the Stars is sponsored by First Citizens, Van Horn Agency, Inc., TruVista and Wells Fargo Financial Advisors/Roy Fakoury, CFP.
The weekend will kick off at 6:00 p.m. on Friday evening at the City's new Broad Street Park on the corner of Rutledge and Broad Streets (1001 Broad Street.) Jeff Liberty will kick off the event followed by Palmetto Nights and The Mark Rapp Group will close out the night. Rutledge street will be closed for the event between Broad and Church Streets to accommodate for the concert goers. Food and beverages will be available to purchase on site.
On Saturday, the Camden Middle School Jazz Band, under the direction of Nancy Neal, will perform at the newly located Farmers Market at 222 Broad Street on the grounds of Historic Camden. Their performance is scheduled for 9:00 a.m.
During the day, take time to enjoy the downtown shops and historic sites, have a leisurely lunch or dinner and then join us for the amazing Mike Frost Band at the Venue On Broad (1020 Broad St.) starting at 9:30 p.m. The Mike Frost Band is one of the South’s best jazz ensembles and will thrill any jazz enthusiast.
•About the artists:
Jeff Liberty earned his musical chops on the sidewalks of New Orleans' French Quarter, the back streets of St. Louis, and Beale Street in Memphis. Currently living in Columbia, SC, Liberty was voted "Best Local Solo Artist" in Columbia's Free Times Reader's Poll. A year later he formed the Jeff Liberty Band and was named "Best New Local Band" and "Best Local Blues Band" by Free Times readers in 2001. Stomping through the bars, juke joints, and blues festivals throughout the Southeast, Liberty has performed with Kenny Neal, Shrimp City Slim, Juke Joint Johnny, Sonny Landreth, Little Charlie and the Nightcats, and has also shared the bill with such greats as Robert Plant, The Eagles, Aerosmith, Robin Trower, Cheap Trick, and The Marshall Tucker Band.
Palmetto Nights (Sheri Speaks Berry, Geoff Collier and Brian Parmeter) — Sheri Speaks Berry is a native to South Carolina. She has lived in California and Pennsylvania and returned to SC in 2012 and began working with guitarist, Geoff Collier, soon after. Sheri fronted two bands (one jazz, one folk/rock) in Pennsylvania. She studied vocal performance at both high school and college levels. She is currently working towards her Master's degree and is employed by the Kershaw County School district. Geoff Collier is a New York native who relocated to South Carolina several years ago as a psychology professor. Geoff holds a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University and is a multi-instrumentalist who plays the saxophone, keyboards, and guitar. Brian Parmeter, a talented, upright bassist with a great love for the standards, recently relocated to South Carolina from Minnesota. Brian is an R&B veteran of the Uptown and downtown Minneapolis scenes. Jazz and the acoustic upright bass became his mainstays during a dozen years gigging in HoTown Michigan.
The Mark Rapp Group — Mark Rapp is a distinguished trumpeter, composer, arranger, didgeridoo player, recording and touring artist. He has released five diverse recordings, and is featured on the closing track of Disney’s "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" CD. His celebrated 2009 debut release "Token Tales" (Paved Earth Music,) earned him a spot as a "Top Emerging Trumpeter" in Downbeat Magazine. His release “Good Eats” (Dinemec Jazz) had critics saying, “Rapp is quickly developing a reputation as a superb interpreter and great stylist, willing to tackle the history of this music with his eyes on the past and his mind on the present and future of this music,” according to AllAboutJazz.com. Rapp has performed in jazz clubs and festivals around the world. He has performed with such greats as Brandord Marsalis, Hootie & the Blowfish, Herbie Hancock, Aretha Franklin, Wycliffe Gordon, Nate Smith, Clerence Penn, and Wess “Warmdaddy” Anderson.
The Mike Frost Band--Aiken, SC's Mike Frost Band - features the superb vocals and saxophone of Lauren Meccia energizing the music scene by blending together several musical styles to create a sound that’s all their own. Anchored by the dynamic bass playing of Mike Frost - an artist with decades of worldwide touring and performing experience - they combine a crowd-pleasing sense of fun with adventurous, turn-on-a- dime musicianship. As evidenced by their stellar CD releases, “Riddle Me This?” (2011,) “Get Frosted! Live at the Blue Horse” (2011,) “Frosty Christmas” (2012,) and “Live at the Red Pepper” (2013,) their sound contains elements of danceable funk, classic rock, and R&B, while their approach to jazz standards and modern ballads is laced with undeniable verve and performed with a soulful spirit. Mike Frost (bass) is a former student of jazz legends Pat Martino and Jaco Pastorius. He is a composer, studio musician, educator, recording engineer, and designer of Brickhouse speaker enclosures. Mike has recorded and performed with a long list of high-profile musicians including Donald Vega, Wycliffe Gordon, Jorma Kaukonen, Jimmy Bruno, New York Voices, The Gypsy Kings, David Mann (Tower of Power,) Manolo Badrena (Weather Report,) Todd Turkisher (David Byrne, Ute Lemper,) John Scarpulla (Tower of Power, Bruce Springsteen,) John Miceli (Meatloaf,) and George Cintron (Leslie West, Blue Oyster Cult.) Lauren Meccia is a vocalist, saxophonist, educator, composer, and lyricist. Listeners have said that her voice is like medicine, comparing her tone to Norah Jones, Eva Cassidy, and Ella Fitzgerald. Her saxophone sound has an organic warmth that is rare for the instrument, incorporating influences of bright jazz and dark classical styles and tonal colors. She is the director of jazz ensembles and instructor of saxophone and clarinet at USC Aiken. She is the founder and director of the CSRA (Central Savannah River Area) New Horizons Band, a beginning band for adults.
For more information, please call the FAC Box Office, or visit the FAC website at www.fineartscenter.org. The Fine Arts Center of Kershaw County is located at 810 Lyttleton Street in Camden. Office hours are Monday through Wednesday and Friday, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. and Thursday 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.
The Fine Arts Center is a 501c3 organization that is funded in part by the Frederick S. Upton Foundation and the South Carolina Arts Commission, which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional funding provided by the City of Camden, Kershaw County, and BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina along with donations from businesses and individuals.