JEANNE KUHNS & FRIENDS

Selected as Door County Magazine's Female Artist of the Year in 2008, Jeanne Kuhns is a folk/blues singer, songwriter and a passionate performer who conveys to her audiences her love of life and love of music. She has been influenced by folk, blues and rock and these threads have been woven into her songs. She carries her poetic lyrics to you with a voice that has a private, intimate quality, full and deep yet capable of sliding into a clear high falsetto. Jeanne Kuhns & Friends will provide audiences with beautiful music in a beautiful waterfront setting in Jacksonport. More information and CD's at www.jeannekuhns.com.

THE BIRCH CREEK AMBASSADORS

Birch Creek Music Performance Center is proud to present their advanced student jazz combo, “The Ambassadors,” on July 25 and August 8, 2009 as part of the Jazz in Jacksonport series of concerts at Lakeside Park.  Lakeside Park is located at the corner of Hwy 57 and County Road V along the Lake Michigan shoreline on Door County's east coast.

The Ambassadors group was formed in 1999 to serve as Birch Creek’s goodwill ambassadors, acquainting residents and visitors with Birch Creek’s mission and programs, as well as bringing jazz to numerous venues throughout Door County.  At the same time, these promising young musicians are offered the opportunity to experience the real life of a professional musician, thus fulfilling Birch Creek’s mission.

Performing side by side with Birch Creek’s nationally-acclaimed faculty, the student musicians develop technical and improvisational skills that far surpass those developed through ordinary classroom instruction.  It is sometimes hard to believe that the performers are only between 15 and 18 years of age.

Membership in The Ambassadors is attained by audition upon arrival at Birch Creek, and members represent the school’s most elite students.   The Ambassadors maintain an intense rehearsal and performance schedule for the two weeks they are at Birch Creek, sometimes rehearsing for 3 hours in the morning followed by an afternoon and an evening performance.

Their repertoire consists of jazz standards, and the group is generally comprised of a saxophone, trumpet, trombone, piano, bass, drums, and guitar player.  The director of the Ambassadors oftentimes performs with the group.

ABOUT BIRCH CREEK

Birch Creek offers on-campus concerts and academic programs in Symphonic, World Percussion/Steel Band, and Big Band/Jazz from late June through late August.  Founded in 1976, its mission is to provide intensive, performance-based instruction to promising young musicians by immersing them in a professional, mentoring environment. Over the course of the summer, 200 students and 90 faculty from across the nation converge on the rural campus east of Egg Harbor, and join together in 32 concerts in the Dutton Performance Barn.