Hayes Center Presents Davis & Dow: Great Jazz Divas April 11

On Saturday, April 11, Blowing Rock’s Hayes Center will swing the sounds of the greatest female jazz vocalists of all time as the venue hosts the critically acclaimed show Davis & Dow: Great Jazz Divas. Tickets are $20 for adults and $14 for students.

Davis and Dow: Great Jazz Divas features masterful performances of well-loved standards made famous by jazz legends such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and others. The show, infused with commentary, poetry, interview clips and slides, plays for one night only on Saturday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m. at the Hayes Performing Arts Center in Blowing Rock.

For anyone wanting to learn more about the timeless jazz icons and the influential legacy they left behind, Davis and Dow: Great Jazz Divas is a must-see. The show’s multimedia component includes projected photographs of the singers and commentary from other famous musicians and writers. Eschewing impersonation, Davis and Dow: Great Jazz Divas is a musical tribute, a concert that pays respect, appreciation and homage to the lives and music of these remarkable women.

Recognized as one of the finest and most versatile jazz singers of her generation, Julie Davis runs the gamut from scat singer to balladeer. Singing jazz came natural to Julie at a young age, as she grew up listening to the music of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald and others on her parent’s extensive vinyl collection. A stylist who seeks an original twist on everything she performs and a confident singer with a compelling stage presence, Davis feels it is her turn to expose newer generations to that young American art form known as jazz.

The other half of the eponymous duo, Kelly Dow is a world-class guitarist whose primary influences are Joe Pass, Jimmy Bruno, Django Reinhardt and the modern-day European gypsy jazz virtuosos. He blends be-bop, blues, flamenco and classical genres to create a strong individual sound delivered with sensitivity, power, and creativity.

“Davis and Dow: Great Jazz Divas is brazen excellence,” raves Cadence Magazine. “This duo breathes and thinks as one. Dow’s guitar is positively orchestral in support while Davis’ scatting suggests she probably learned in her bassinet.”

Davis and Dow have toured Japan, London and New York, and composed and performed original music for the TV show Food Nation with Bobby Flay. Their CD Naked won Best Jazz Album at the Florida Music Awards, and was featured in Jazz Times Magazine’s 2002 year in review issue. The duo was awarded a juried showcase at the prestigious Performing Arts Exchange 2007 in Louisville, Ky., voted Best Jazz Artists by New Times Magazine, and Davis was voted Best Jazz Vocalist by City Link Magazine. Recently Davis and Dow won a two-year grant from the Florida Cultural Arts Division to perform in underserved communities.

For more information about Davis and Dow: Great Jazz Divas, click to the show’s official website at www.davisanddow.com.

Tickets for Davis & Dow: Great Jazz Divas are $20 for adults and $14 for students and can be purchased by calling the Box Office at 828-295-9627. Purchase tickets online by clicking to www.HayesCenter.org or in person at the Hayes Center box office. Special group rates are also available.

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