Four seasons of fun are set to begin this February as the cultural treat, Jazz At The Lake, returns with a highly anticipated concert series.
Concert dates are set for one each season with attendees in for consecutive internationally renowned musicians set to hit the stage - season after season.
The first of the four events will see attendees ‘Rockin’ The Winter Away’ with Alberta Big Rocks - a collection of some of Alberta’s finest musicians bringing together some of the best the province has to offer.
The floor of the Sylvan Lake Community Centre will surely see some significant use this night as the band is known to be able to get a crowd moving and grooving with the sweet sounds of their 60’s and 70’s rock listing influences such as Colin James and Lighthouse.
Slated for May 21 is the ‘Swing Into Spring’ soiree with Jonny Summers who is described as a master of versatility and a swing dancers best friend. Concert go’ers can expect upbeat swing music with Summers styling his set around the stunning works of Stevie Wonder, Louis Armstrong and Frank Sinatra.
This event will also be held at the Community Centre with both events set to host a bar serving alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages as well as plenty of room to bust a move on the dance floor. Both events are $25.
Sounds of Summer on Aug. 20 will see Juno and Gemini Award winning artist, Tommy Banks, grace the stage of the Alliance Community Church in Sylvan Lake, where the atmosphere will be slightly more intimate offering a true musical masterpiece to the audience.
The series will wrap up with what can only be described as the final shine on a cultural gem, the Autumn Leaves Concert on Sept. 23. The Brothers Landreth, winners of the traditional/roots 2015 Juno Award, have proved themselves on a national stage and promise attendees a memorable bluesy show packed full of electric guitars, B3 organs and what organizers describe as the harmonized swoon of two voices that were born to mesh.
Both the summer and autumn concert series is set to be held at the Alliance Community Church with admission costs set at $35 per show or $100 for a 2016 season pass to attend all shows. Organizers emphasize season passes are only available up until Feb. 20.
Cheryl Fischer and Eric Allison - the dynamic married duo who founded Jazz At The Lake in 2003, say they are thrilled to return this year with the series after not having run the annual Jazz At The Lake festival last year for the first time in 12 years. Talk of the festival returning continues between the pair but for now they are setting the sights on creating a year round experience for music lovers from across the province.
“We are a such a young community now with so many people who don’t realize just how deeply Sylvan Lake’s cultural roots run,” said Allison. “Sylvan has such a connection deep connection with music and the arts.”
She remembers her childhood - filled full of the sounds of big bands escaping the walls of Town Hall on any given night. With Fischer’s grandfather having owned Cobb’s in SylvanLake, the pair understands the deep rooted history that music has in the Town.
“In fact he was once quoted in the newspaper saying that one of his goals would be to have more concerts in the park,” said Fischer of her grandfather. “We of course didn’t know that until after we had began Jazz At The Lake but it’s interesting to note how much a part of Sylvan Lake’s history music is.”
Allison recounts how there was a time where three dance halls once operated seven nights a week with live music every night.
“The arts are incredibly important in bringing a community together - all facets of the community,” said Fischer. “Music transcends differences in age, backgrounds, education,race, religion - it is a unifying force in all cultures. Music is a language that brings people together.”
For more information or to purchase tickets and season passes visit www.jazzatthelake.com
editor@sylvanlakenews.com