Saturday, Sept. 28 promises to be an exciting date for any music lover in Springfield. There will be not one but two music festivals all day: the Springfield Jazz Festival and Do Good Music Festival.

Springfield Jazz Festival

Beginning at noon in downtown Springfield, the 10th annual Springfield Jazz Fest promises an interesting variety of local jazz.

“Springfield has a great jazz history from the era celebrated on the Springfield-Greene County African American Heritage Trail to today,” said Rusty Worley, executive director of the Downtown Springfield Association. “The newest example of that is the recent opening of The Hepcat jazz club in downtown at Campbell and Jefferson.  The local universities provide an outstanding pipeline of talent from their students and faculty for the Springfield jazz scene.”

“It is a collaboration of several community partners to promote diversity and the arts, as well as offering more street festivals to young professionals to enhance talent attraction and retention for the area,” said Worley.

Collegiate Stage

There will be two stages at the event. The Collegiate Stage is located on Park Central Square. This stage features jazz groups from Missouri State University, Evangel University, and two Drury groups.

Drury will be represented by Drury Jazz Ensemble I and Drury Jazz Combo I.

“Typically, our ensembles here at Drury are about 50 percent majors and non-majors, and are open to anyone on campus regardless of major,” said Dr. Tina Claussen, director of the jazz ensembles and combos here at Drury. “This is the third year these two groups have played at the event.”

This year, audiences can expect more modern pieces from Drury Jazz Combo I, including one composed by Dr. Claussen herself. “A couple of others are from the 1960s, an era of jazz called soul jazz that combines some African American pop music of the day with jazz,” explained Claussen.

“Jazz Ensemble I is a mix of some different things. Some are arrangements of jazz standards; other things are original tunes. That’s usually what we try to do with both the jazz ensembles, get a mixture of different things since they’re student groups. We try to get in as many styles as we can.”

The Drury Jazz Ensembles have a history as far back as the 60s and 70s, according to Claussen.

“There’s all kinds of different things at this event,” said Claussen.

You can see the two Drury groups starting at 4:00 p.m. at Park Central Square. MSU Jazz Ensemble II will kick off performances at 12 p.m., and Evangel University Jazz Band will perform at 1:00 p.m., followed by more music from MSU Jazz Symposium I and II.

Photo via Rusty Worley.

Local & Regional Stage

The Local & Regional Stage is at a separate location at Park Central East, near the historic Gillioz Theatre. Beginning at noon, this venue will feature local professional talent, including Dr. Claussen who will perform with The Missouri Jazz Orchestra at 6:00 p.m. There will be a total of seven groups at the Gillioz. MOJO Lite will kick off the festivities, followed by the Matt Streuber Trio. Also present are Duologue, the Austin Farnam Quartet, Hamm/Aho Duo and the Arthur Duncan Trio.

The headlining event is at 8:00 in the theater, however.

Lee Ritenour is a Grammy Award-winning guitarist. His career has covered a wide spectrum of music, from jazz to rock and Brazilian music. He has been nominated for a Grammy 17 times and released 40 albums.

The event is free all day, with the exception of Ritenour’s performance. Tickets run from $35 – $50. All tickets are reserved seating, with an RSVP on the Gillioz’s Facebook page.

Do Good Music Festival

Also on Saturday beginning at noon is the annual Do Good Music Festival at Tie & Timber Beer Co.

Tie & Timber Beer Co. is a community driven brewery in the Roundtree neighborhood on East Cherry St. A fairly new brewery, Tie & Timber opened in April of 2018, according to Brett Johnston from the company.

“We have 18 beers on tap covering a crazy number of styles,” said Johnston. “We have been thrilled at a very warm response from the Roundtree neighborhood and Springfield in general.”

The brewery focuses on building community and supporting local businesses.

According to Johnston, “There is going to be something for everyone here. We are a family-friendly space and just want everyone to have a good time.”

The event will feature 12 local bands covering every genre of music.

“One of the local groups, JM Buttermilk, has full horns, a killer rhythm section, and crazy-high energy,” said Johnston.

The festival will feature several bands that have found considerable success in the music industry. Fans of modern reggae might recognize 77 Jefferson from Kansas City.

“They have a pretty impressive following,” said Johnston. “They’ve charted on iTunes in the reggae category and have even made the Top 10 Billboard Reggae. We’re really excited to have them here.”

Arkansas-based National Park Radio, a folk/bluegrass band from Arkansas, will also perform. “If you like the Lumineers or Mumford and Sons, you’ll like these guys. They’re high-energy and great to see. They give bluegrass a new, modern feel that I love,” said Johnston.

Drury students might recognize another act, Jackson Stokes. The man behind the music is Tyler Stokes, a Drury alum who played with blues/rock band Delta Sol Revival. Stokes learned guitar playing with The Allman Brothers Band from Jacksonville, Florida.

The Do Good Music Festival is an effort to raise money for three local charities. Eden Village, which combats chronic homelessness with their tiny homes initiative. Sculpture Walk Springfield, another beneficiary, is responsible for the 22 sculptures from artists around the country in downtown Springfield. Their mission is to create a “museum without walls.” Finally, Johnston shared plans to provide funding for the PTA of Roundtree neighborhood.

“The elementary school in the neighborhood is pretty much universally loved, and we want to give back for all the good they do for Roundtree,” said Johnston.

Tickets for the Do Good Music Festival are available at Tie & Timber Beer Co. at 1451 East Cherry Street for $5, or $15 at the door on the day of the festival.

Article written by Forest Swisher.