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| Jazz Nativity Comes to St. Louis The Missouri Mid-South Conference United Church of Christ, along with nationally-acclaimed musicians presents Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativity. These FREE concerts promise a contemporary retelling of a story that has long shaped and informed our culture. This exciting presentation marks the Mid-Western launch of the East Coast tradition of Jazz Nativity—presenting the age-old Christmas story through the decidedly modern American voice of jazz. Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativitywill include performances by The Oîkos Ensemble, a national jazz ministry led by saxophonist, Rev. Clifford Aerie and pianist, Dr. Christopher Bakriges, who have performed at more than 300 faith based communities around the country. Grammy Award winner Paul Winter says of their music, "I salute Cliff Aerie and the Oikos Ensemble for their inspired music and mission. They are serving the world with their song." The Oîkos Ensemble will feature St. Louis jazz musicians and special guest, Denise Thimes, national recording artist and locally iconic jazz singer. The Riverfront Times says that Denise Thimes is "the classiest of the living St. Louis jazz greats." Legendary trumpeter Clark Terry has said "Denise ranks with the all-time greats such as Ella, Sassy, Lady Day, Nancy, Dianne, Monica, and Carmen, to name a few." The band will consist of vocalist Thimes, Aerie and Bakriges, with local St. Louis musicians rounding out the band: Danny Campbell, trumpet; Dave Troncoso, bass; Marty Morrison, drums; Arianna Aerie, vocalist. The host for the jazz nativity concerts will be Gina Kurre, Emmy award-winning television journalist. Kurre has traveled internationally as a news reporter and has worked at television stations in Arkansas, Tennessee, and St. Louis. She currently anchors and reports for several programs on HEC-TV in St. Louis. Aerie promises, "a wonderful program that will weave jazz, stories and the gospel narrative together in creative ways. Our special guest will be Rev. Geoffrey Black, General Minister and President of the UCC denomination who shares a deep love of jazz. He, Gina and local actors will present a creative dialogue with the musicians to portray the Christmas story like it's never been imagined before." Both concerts are free. During the show, a freewill offering will be collected to support neighborhood ministries. There will also be collection points for food, where shelf-stable canned and boxed food items can be offered to a local food pantry. The event is open to all. Parking will be available on the east side of Union Avenue, where police will have marked off space especially for the event. The United Church of Christ (UCC)is a branch of mainline Protestant Christianity of approximately 5, 600 churches and 1.2 million members. The UCC prides itself on radical inclusivity, having adopted the welcoming catchphrase, "No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you're welcome here." The Missouri Mid-South Conference is the collective body of all UCC churches in the Missouri, Arkansas, and Memphis, TN, areas. write your comments about the article :: © 2011 Jazz News :: home page |