Written by Erin Krochmalny, Photographed by Erin Krochmalny and Geoff Haggray
For the past three weeks, the Savannah Music Festival brought out music lovers to enjoy a wide variety of performances from classical music to jazz and folk to dancers and dance parties. The Savannah Music Festival started back in 2003, and each year the program’s music selection has grown to include more and more artists. Some of these artists have made it their mission to come to Savannah’s festival each year. The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra started coming in 2006 and is one such group.
This year’s festival brought more artists out, including fourteen-time Grammy award winner, Jerry Douglas and American Idol contestant and full-time vintage pop singer, Kat Edmonson. The events took place all across Savannah from Charles H. Morris Center to SCAD’s own Lucas Theater. It livened the city up with the performances given by the Del McCoury Band, Steep Canyon Ranger, the Zydeco Dance Party, Aaron Diehhl, Herlin Riley Quintet, Delvon Lamar Organ Trio, the Andersson Dance and Scottish Ensemble’s Goldberg Variations and many more.
Artists came from across the country and the world to share with us their talents. The Union Tanguera, came from one of the farthest places away, France, to partner with New York group, Kate Weare Company, to give us “Sin Salida.” This performance was intense and arresting as they combined the styles of tango and contemporary dance. The sound of the piano, played by Gustavo Beytelmann, was the only sound heard while the audience held their breath as the dancers moved across the stage.
The performance showed that two different dance disciplines could work together to create something beautiful by allowing both styles to compete with and complement each other. The seamlessness of these combinations created a sense of connection and longing that translated to the audience who seemed desperate to watch even more of the performance when it was finished.
Another of the closing events, Latin Dance Party, brought out lovers of dancing to experience the dance band Plena Libre, who traveled from Puerto Rico to give people a taste of their energetic and dynamic performance. Music played by the band was bound to get people on their feet. Last time they came to Savannah Music Festival their event was filled, and this year’s was no different. Their percussion, bass, keyboards and horns filled the venue with beautiful, lively music that rang through the souls of the listeners and sunk deep into their hearts. It created a powerful conclusion to the festival as one of the last events to showcase artists.
The Savannah Music Festival has been a staple in the city of Savannah as it brings everyone from different cultures and music preferences together. The Savannah Music Festival allowed us to enjoy a good time filled with music, fun and excitement.
