Spring 2008
Newsletter
Hi Opry Fans;
It is time for another Opry season. It is hard to believe
that we are starting our sixth season since we have been playing
at the Town Hall. Our show has been very successful and we
are grateful for the talented musicians who contact us to
perform and our great audience who want to hear our good "ol
Louisiana Roots music. We are blessed to have such a rich
musical heritage in Louisiana and so many talented musicians
who love to perform that music. We are all about keeping the
culture alive and our loyal fans and sponsors have made it
all possible.
We have a great season ahead that includes much more than
our Opry performances. Because of the presence of the Abita
Springs Opry and the construction of our new museum, we have
been chosen to host a Smithsonian exhibit entitled; "New
Harmonies, Roots music in America."
We are excited about this exhibit and flattered to have been
chosen. The exhibit will run from April 12 through May 28,
and we have a lot of activities in association with the exhibit.
If you like music, Abita Springs will be the place to be this
Spring. First, however we want to inform you of the acts that
will appear at the Opry.
New
Harmonies
The Smithsonian Institute along with the Louisiana Endowment
for the Humanities, the St Tammany Parish Arts Commission,
the St Tammany Parish Tourist Commission, the St. Tammany
Parish School Board, and the Abita Springs Opry are teaming
together to Present a museum exhibit,
"New Harmonies, Roots music in America."
The
exhibit will include a series of kiosks depicting the various
genres of American Roots music. Some of the kiosks have interactive
features, and will prove to be very inviting to children and
adults. Our museum curator, Mary Davis will present a local
exhibit that features visual displays of music in Abita Springs.
There will be a lot of additional programming that will feature
performances of the music.
The New Harmonies events are as follows:
March 1: New Harmonies
Talent Show auditions. The talent show is open to anyone who
performs traditional music with instrumental backup. The finalists
will perform at the New Harmonies talent Show at the Abita
Springs Town Hall on April 26. Anyone from children through
adults (performers will be categorized by age). For further
information, contact the talent show director, Mary Davis
at 892-3597.
March 9: Abita Springs
museum fund raiser, Jazz brunch at the Abita Quail farm. This
is a must on your social calendar. The Abita Springs restaurant
owners and the quail farm will be offering their best in a
buffet setting to allow you to enjoy some great food and hear
some of the best jazz music in existence. The performers will
be Tom Fisher and his Jazz Quartet. This group brought down
the house at the Opry and will be presenting their traditional
jazz in an elegant setting with some great food. The cost
is $20 per ticket and the function will last from 11:00 AM
until 3:00 PM. For tickets, call the Abita Town Hall at 985-892-0711
or you may pick one up at one of the local establishments
that are participating. This is a good cause and easily worth
the price.
March
24:The Cultural Alliance of the Americas,
in conjunction with the Abita Springs Opry, is presenting;
Rent Party 2008 another Bring
It On Home event on Monday, March 24, 2008 at the Abita Springs
Town Hall, Abita Springs, Louisiana. The concert will be from
6-9 p.m. with doors opening for ticket sales at 5:20 p.m.
The Maryland Jazz Band of Cologne, one of Germany's premier
New Orleans-style jazz bands, will provide the pre-show entertainment.
Tickets will be sold at the door: Adults - $25, Children 12
and under - $15, and Children 2 and under - Free.
Food and drinks will be available on site for purchase. The
concert will consist of Gospel, Bluegrass, Cajun, Jazz, R&B,
and Latin bands showcasing the rich musical heritage of Louisiana.
Performers will include:
- The Mount Zion Pilgrim
Missionary Baptist Church Mass Choir
- The Louisiana Purchase Bluegrass Band
- The Beausoleil Trio with David and Michael Doucet
- Don Vappie and the Creole Jazz Serenaders
- Fredy Omar con su Banda
- A Tribute to New Orleans' Rhythm &
Blues with special guests
Following Katrina in October 2005, Bring It On Home (BIOH)
was created to provide jobs for musicians. With the help of
several businesses and numerous contributions from individuals,
BIOH was able to provide jobs for over 200 musicians. In April
2006, the impromptu organization produced the first Rent Party
- a term established during the Depression of the 1920s &
30s where people would hold house parties providing music
and home cooked food for a price in order to pay their bills.
After Katrina, it seemed a fitting term to describe the improvisation
needed to create jobs for musicians struggling to find a way
to return home. Now, two years later, Rent Party 2008 returns
as a part of the Bring It On Home (BIOH) series with BIOH
now under the umbrella of the Cultural Alliance of the Americas.
The Alliance foresees this concert as the first of many great
events that will showcase the many cultures that have contributed
to Louisiana's rich heritage as well as the impact Louisiana's
culture has had on the rest of the world.
April
12: The New Harmonies exhibit will be open to the
public at the Aabita Springs Trail head Museum. The museum
is located alongside the Tammany Trace near the Abita Brew
Pub.
April
13: Musical performance and Jazz informance at
the trail head plaza music stage. This Sunday afternoon concert
will begin with some old time country and bluegrass jammin'
by some of our local pickers. This will be followed by a Jazz
informance on traditional Jazz to be presented by Don Vappie
and the Creole Trio. Don is known worldwide for his performances
of roots Jazz music and has performed at, among other famous
venues, the Lincoln center. Don is also featured on the television
documentary, "American Creole." We are hoping to
finish up the concert with a local high school instrumental
ensemble. The price is right too. Free admission.
April 20: Musical performance
and informance at the trail head. The format for all of the
Sunday Afternoon concerts will be the same, but the performers
will vary. This informance will feature Blues music history
and performance provided by a long-time blues musician and
Abita native, Amadee Frederick. Amadee is backed up by his
son Amadee Jr. And the rest of his blues group. Amadee has
been playing blues all of his life and has reached a point
of maturity and skill as a blues musician that allows him
to fully transmit the feeling of the music to the audience.
April 26 : New Harmonies
Talent Show finals at the Town Hall. 6:00 PM
April 27: Musical informance
at the Trail Head. The music of Hank Williams featuring the
Steve Anderson Group. Steve Anderson is another Abita native
who can belt out the music of the great Hank Williams as well
as anyone. Steve is not a Hank Williams impersonator, however,
he has his own soulful technique and rich rolling voice combined
with a style that compliments the music of country music's
greatest composer and performer. The group has worked very
hard to recreate the style and texture of William's music
and will be interspersing the performance of the music with
information about the life of this great performer. Steve
has performed at the Opry several times and has always been
well received by our audience.
May 3: Annual Crawfish
festival at the Abita Springs Park. This continues to be a
very popular festival and fund raiser for our local fire department.
Our Fire Chief, Gary Mendow has developed into a first class
festival producer. There will be lots of food and some great
music performed on several stages. The feature acts of the
day will include Rockin' Doopsie whose high energy performance
had everyone at the park on their feet last year will return
by popular demand. The other feature act will be the very
popular New Orleans group, the Chee Weez.
May 11: Musical informance
and concert at the Trail Head stage. This informance will
feature one of the best known guitar pickers in the area,
Mr Jerry Hess. Jerry has performed at the Opry a number of
times. He will be presenting various guitar finger picking
styles with accompanying vocals. Jerry is a virtuoso on the
guitar and always is a treat for his audiences.
May 18: Musical concert
and informance at the Abita Trail head Music Stage. Joe Manuel
and the Abita Strings are accomplished musicians who open
every show for the Abita Springs Opry. They have consistently
set the bar for the level of performance that our audience
has enjoyed. Joe has been a serious student of old time Country
and Bluegrass music for many years and will share his knowledge
as well as superior presentation of the music.
As
you can see, there will be some great opportunities for audiences
who love roots music in Abita Springs this Spring. We are
grateful that we will have a great place at our new trail
Head and Town Museum to present that music and we are flattered
and proud to have been asked to offer an exhibit from the
Smithsonian. By the way, If the Sunday afternoon concerts
get rained out, the performances will be moved to the Town
Hall. Please come out, bring your picnic lunches and enjoy
some great Spring Sunday afternoons in Abita. The construction
of the Trail Head and the presentation of the Opry could not
be possible without the continued support of Our Mayor, Louis
Fitzmorris, the town leadership, citizens of Abita, our corporate
sponsors, and, of course our great audience.
Acts for
Abita Springs Opry
2008 Spring Series
The
Petty Bones
The house band for the 2008 Spring Season will set the mark
of excellence that we have come to expect from our other acts.
They have a versatile repertoire that includes old time country,
bluegrass, gospel and a little blues thrown in. Their presence
is always a treat for the Opry.
Timberland Drive
This group features some very young performers who have appeared
at the Opry previously. Justin and Katie Nunez are a couple
of roots music prodigies who combine superior musicianship
with youthful drive and enthusiasm that is a sure audience
pleaser. They are joined by a youthful banjo player, Lucas
Poole from Mountain View, Arkansas The group is rounded out
by Lucas' father, Scott Poole who owns a music store in Mountain
view and heads up the Mountain View Bluegrass Association.
This group is a real treat.
Dirk Billy and Tom Marron
We first heard these talented musicians at the Covington Farmers
Market. We were wowed by their versatility and skill as musicians.
We were especially blown away by their playing of Irish fiddle
tunes, and we thought that it would be nice to hear them just
two days prior to St. Patrick's Day.
The New Orleans Jazz Vipers
This is one of the premier traditional Jazz groups in the
New Orleans area. They are perennial performers at the Jazz
Fest and have played regularly all over the city where Jazz
was born. We are pleased to have a group of musicians as accomplished
and talented as this one. Traditional Jazz has proven to be
a very popular feature of the Abita Springs Opry. It seems
to fit in real well with our traditional string music, and
it is in keeping with our mission of "preserving and
presenting Louisiana roots music."
The
Petty Bones
The High
Ground Drifters
Strong
vocals and hot picking highlight this group of musicians from
New Orleans. We heard about them and checked them out. This
is a new act to the Opry, but having heard their music samples,
they promise to be a great addition to the talented list of
musicians who have played the Opry stage.
The LA LA's
smooth musicianship and strong vocals highlight this very
eclectic of musicians from the Covington area. They have been
featured at the Covington farmer's market several times ant
the sound sample they provided to us made the choice to invite
them to the Opry a no-brainer. You will enjoy this group.
Ladyfingers
A touring musician who spends a lot of time in New Orleans
promises a strong Blues set. Our audience has responded well
to traditional blues & this guy does it as well as any
one else.
Ozark Songbirds
featuring Donna Newton. Pat Flory, Gina Forsyth and Mike Kerwin
on string bass. Pat is one of the oldest members of the Opry
family. He helped initiate the Abita Springs Opry's predecessor,
the Piney Woods Opry. Pat will be joined by another Opry old-timer,
Donna Newton and one of the strongest fiddle players on the
face of the planet, Gina Forsyth. This act promises to be
a real treat, and we are happy to see Pat back on our stage.
The
Petty Bones
Gene Lipps
Gene is a very talented local musician who has performed in
many venues locally. He is noted for being able to perform
Louisiana songs, and has a versatile repertoire.
The Ukulele
Trio
This group of musicians have been playing together for a long
time and their appearance on the Opry stage is long overdue.
This group exemplifies what the Opry is all about. They have
played in some form or fashion at the Opry before. You may
recall, Jude LeBlanc, Abigail and Sam Alfano from past performances.
Their strong musicianship is complimented by captivating personalities.
We can't wait to see this!
The Bings
A husband and wife team from Baton Rouge who present several
genres of Louisiana Roots music. Their sound sample included
bluegrass, gospel, Cajun and old time country music. They
fit in very well with our mission of preserving and presenting
Louisiana roots music. This act will be a welcome addition
to the Opry.
Washboard
Chaz
Traditional blues accompanied by washboard percussion is the
signature of this group that have played in many New Orleans
venues including the New Orleans Jazz fest. Don't think of
the traditional rub washboard in this case Chaz's unique percussion
board with various attachments raises rub board percussion
to a high art form. This act is a don't miss.
Ticket
Sales: As usual, you can secure advance reserved tickets
for $15.00 per seat. We have held the same price for several
years and we try to keep them as cheap as possible. Our mission
is to present and preserve Louisiana Roots music.
We remain a Non-profit group and the money we make goes into
production and musician pay. We also offer Season Tickets
for those who want to come every show.
The tickets can be purchased at the Abita Town Hall during
weekday working hours. You can also mail a check and receive
your tickets in the mail, but this has to be done well in
advance. This year we will offer a new feature. You will be
able to purchase tickets by credit card phone or on-site.
For further information on purchasing tickets, call the Abita
Springs Town Hall at 985-892-0711 and speak to Kathy.
You can still buy tickets at the door. These are not reserved
and are offered on a first come first served basis, and are
offered in the wing sections. All of our seats offer a great
view of the stage, and the Town Hall provides an intimate
concert setting that facilitates wonderful communication between
the audience members and the musicians. General admission
tickets are priced at $12.00 and $10.00 for Seniors over 65.
Front
Porch: As usual, we will offer entertainment for our audience
on the front porch while they wait for the show to begin.
These musicians perform voluntarily and have turned out to
be a popular part of the Opry. Come early, buy some gumbo
from the concession bar and sit outside and enjoy some music
while you are waiting for the feature performance.
See you at the Opry
Bryan
Gowland
Executive Producer
|
SHOWTIME!
|
Spring
2008 Schedule
MARCH 15, 2008
APRIL 19,
2008
MAY 17, 2008
|
|
| |
Check
out the articles from the
