Summer Music series - Dixie Dudes and Dance Band at Jacoby on Friday, June 26

June 25, 2015 10:22 AM

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ALTON — The Jacoby Arts Center gives a nod to Alton’s river heritage with the appearance of Dixie Dudes and Dance Band on Friday, June 26.

The group will perform as part of Friday Nites Live! at 8 p.m. Doors will open at 7:30, with seating available on a first-come basis.

This popular eight-member ensemble has extended their traditional riverboat jazz sound to include rock and roll and dance tunes since they began as an extension of the Lewis and Clark Community College Concert Band in 1985.

“The band is constantly adding new tunes,” said member Charles “Doc” Herzon. “Some of our most recent additions are two Latin tunes, “Sway” and “Oye Come Va,” a Swing tune “Tuxedo Junction” and a Dixieland tune “Muskrat Ramble.

“Our music will lift the spirit, lighten the heart and start the foot tapping.”

Dixie Dudes and Dance Band members are a mix of amateur and professional musicians who play for fun and recreation. The players include two teachers, a politician, two engineers, a pilot and two doctors, including Rusty Lucy on drums, Jerry Lavick and Kathy Bowman on key board, Dick Whorthen on trombone, Bob Crause and Yvonne Mossman on sax, Dave Miller on clarinet/sax, Linton Luetje on tuba and Herzon on trumpet.

“We are committed to featuring a broad range of area talent in Jacoby’s informal east gallery,” said Denny Scarborough, Jacoby’s president. “As the summer series has evolved, we have enhanced the experience by hanging Sun Smith-Foret’s monumental “Delta Blues” textile art on one wall and large-scale landscape paintings by local artist Eric Gray, who rents a studio space at Jacoby, on the other.

“On a Friday night, the gallery really comes alive and allows us to highlight Jacoby as a community art center.”

This concert will also showcase the extraordinary edible talent of River City Savories.

“For the concert, I am making small ‘crab cake’ sized bites,” said chef Brian Runge. “I will feature summer favorites such as peaches, plums and nectarines along with a salmon savory, which will be served with a fresh garden dill and lime zest aioli.

“I am also bringing my new summer appetizer, morel mushroom purses,” he continued. “This is a small round pastry served with brandy brown butter sauce.”

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Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis, and no reservations are required. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $10. Food and drink are available at an additional cost.

Splash II, curated by Dee Kilgo, will remain on display through July 4 in Jacoby’s main gallery.

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After a break for the 4th of July holiday, the summer music series will resume on July 17 with The James Hegarty Trio playing cool jazz from the likes of Miles Davis, Oliver Nelson and other artists, on piano and electronics, electric bass and percussion. LuciAnna’s Pastries will prepare the treats.

For more information on the series, call (618) 462-5222 or visit www.jacobyartscenter.org.

About the Jacoby Arts Center

The mission of the Jacoby Arts Center is to nurture and promote the practice and appreciation of the arts through education, exhibits, cultural programs, and community outreach initiatives.

Jacoby Arts Center is a 501(c)6 non-profit organization

The Jacoby Arts Center is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.