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Jazz and seafood sell well at St. Clements Island
Friday, July 10, 2009
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The Ruby Hayes Band will play first at the Potomac Jazz and Seafood Festival, which will celebrate Maryland's 375th birthday with jazz musicians from Maryland and Washington, D.C.
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Like many other St. Mary's County events this summer, the Potomac Jazz and Seafood Festival will celebrate Maryland's 375th birthday. Organizers have booked jazz musicians from Maryland and Washington, D.C., and the event features local seafood.
Note one more thing if you have not yet bought tickets: The event, like last year's, has already sold the 800 that were available.
The riverside festival, which will be held on the lawn of the St. Clements Island Museum from 4-10 p.m. July 11, benefits the site's programming. Vendors are Lenny's Restaurant, Bear Creek Open Pit BBQ, Circle "C" Oyster Ranch and Hawaiian Joe's. Bruster's Real Ice Cream will serve its "Celebrate Maryland's 375" cake batter ice cream.
Vocalist Ruby Hayes of Washington, D.C., sings Chicago and New Orleans-style blues songs by the likes of B.B. King and jazz standards from the 1940s and 1950s. When not performing in clubs and at festivals, she performs her original one-woman musical. From December 2007 to May 2008, Hayes and her band recently completed a six-month tour in Pattaya Beach, Thailand, where she performed blues, jazz and R&B for audiences in a resort. More recently, they played at the Presidential Inaugural Unity Ball at the Willard Hotel.
Following Hayes on the schedule, Jaared Arosemena of Washington, D.C., a saxophonist and vocalist, is said to be one of the busiest musicians in smooth jazz, with four bands in the U.S. and another in Europe.
Performing as Jaared, his 2002 debut CD was nominated for Best New Artist of the Year by the National Smooth Jazz Association, and last year he released his first album with England's Trippin ‘N' Rhythm Records. According to Jaared's Web site, his alto and soprano saxophone playing has been used in recordings by a variety of well-known musicians, including Nils Lofgren of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band.
Saxophonist and composer Art Sherrod Jr. will perform last. Born in Palestine, Texas, Sherrod picked up his instrument in high school but chose not to study music in college. However, after graduating in 1996, Sherrod decided to focus on music again. After honing his chops in churches and with local bands, he began performing solo in 2003 and has since toured worldwide.
He released "All 4 Love," a CD of originals and some covers, in 2005. In August, Sherrod will celebrate the release of a new CD at Rams Head Tavern in Annapolis. He now lives in Severn.
