Orange County Great Park Announces 'Flights and Sounds of Summer' Dance and Concert Series

Orange County Great Park Announces 'Flights and Sounds of Summer' Dance and Concert Series

Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul to Perform August 1st

IRVINE, Calif., July 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The Orange County Great Park Corporation is pleased to announce the opening of its 2009 "Flights and Sounds of Summer" dance and concert series on Saturday, August 1st at 8:00 p.m. with nine-time All-Ireland award-winning Celtic fiddler Eileen Ivers, musical star of the international hit "Riverdance," at the Orange County Great Park in Irvine.

"Flights and Sounds of Summer" features nine weeks of concerts and dance parties presented by the Orange County Great Park and the Irvine Barclay Theatre that will run through September 26th. On Friday nights, live bands will perform in front of historic Hangar 244 and dance instructors will give dance lessons to get the crowds dancing. On Saturday nights, audiences will enjoy music in a temporary concert pavilion near the Great Park's giant orange balloon. Admission is free. There is a parking fee.

"We are excited to launch our second summer music and dance performance series," said Larry Agran, Chair, Orange County Great Park Board Corporation. "More than 21,000 visitors to the Great Park were captivated by wonderful music and dance parties during last year's nine week summer series. This year's, 'Flights and Sounds of Summer,' truly offers something for everyone to enjoy."

The New York Times called Ivers, "the Jimi Hendrix of the violin" and you'll hear plenty of soul, jazz, roots and rock in her very tight band. Upcoming featured concert performances include, Francesca Gagnon & Inti-Illimani's music of Cirque du Soleil on August 22nd, and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy on August 29th, true heroes of the swing revival.

Beginning Friday, August 7th, visitors can dance to the rhythmical Cuban musical style of Nachito Herrera who will kick off the first of eight dance parties that will run through September 25th. Upcoming featured dance party attractions include, Pete Jacobs and his Wartime Radio Review on August 21st and Johnny Polanco y su Conjunto Amistad, LA's best salsa band, on September 11th .

Hangar Cafe will feature a fresh selection of organic food available for purchase inside historic Hangar 244 to enjoy at the Cafe or on the picnic lawn.

The Orange County Great Park is located off the 5 Freeway and Sand Canyon in Irvine. For more information, go to www.ocgp.org.

The complete "Flights and Sounds of Summer" schedule is listed below. (Please feel free to post.)

EILEEN IVERS and IMMIGRANT SOUL - New York
Saturday Night Concert
August 1st at 8:00 p.m.

Orange County Great Park summer festival opens with one of last summer's stand-outs: nine-time All-Ireland Award-winning Celtic fiddler Eileen Ivers and her heart-stopping band of Irish-American musicians. But don't miss the "soul" in Immigrant Soul; the New York Times called Ivers "the Jimi Hendrix of the violin" and you'll hear plenty of soul, jazz, roots and rock in her very tight band.

Nachito Herrera - Latin
Friday Night Dance Party
August 7th at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

After tutelage by Ruben Gonzalez and other giants of the Buena Vista Social Club, Nachito Herrera toured America with the Afro-Cuban All-Stars and later as music director of Cubanismo. An in-demand bandleader, he has mastered a wide variety of danceable Latin music styles.

Don Vappie's Creole Jazz Serenaders - New Orleans
Saturday Night Concert
August 8th at 8:00 p.m.

Classic jazz from the likes of Jelly Roll Morton, Jabbo Smith, Sam Morton and the New Orleans Owls - this unique American music explodes on stage with all the excitement and sizzle and satisfaction that defined the French Quarter 70 years ago. Vappie's virtuosic banjo fronts a bold horn section, piano, bass and drums.

Derek Bordeaux Group Rhythm & Blues
Friday Night Dance Party
August 14th at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

Derek's sultry, honey-sweet Motown voice is the heart of this tight-as-a-drum sextet, seen frequently in various Southern California and Las Vegas venues.

Toto La Momposina - Colombia
Saturday Night Dance Concert
August 15th at 8:00 p.m.

Mixing infectious Caribbean rhythms with lush romantic melodies and great vocal style, Toto la Momposina and her 10-piece band are frequent headline attractions at music festivals worldwide but they rarely perform in California. Her Great Park appearance is one of only four engagements on the West Coast.

Pete Jacobs and his Wartime Radio Review - Swing
Friday Night Dance Party
August 21st at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

It's like waking up in 1942. . . Benny Goodman-style clarinet solos, Andrews Sisters-style harmonies, and dance - a tribute to the Great Park's legacy of El Toro Marine Air Station.

Francesca Gagnon & Inti-Illimani - The Music of Cirque du Soleil
Saturday Night Concert
August 22nd at 8:00 p.m.

A special event created just for the Great Park: Francesca Gagnon, the voice of Cirque du Soleil's longtime hit "Alegria" sings the music of Cirque du Soleil with Chilean folk icons Inti-Illimani. An inspired pairing: Gagnon's otherworldly vocals float above Inti's earthy, raw sound. In their four decades of music-making, Inti-Illimani has shared stages with Peter Gabriel, Bruce Springsteen, Sting and Wynton Marsalis; Canadian born Francesca Gagnon has been charmed by the music of many cultures and she in turn charms us with her gorgeous voice.

Cedric Watson - Zydeco
Friday Night Dance Concert
August 28th at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

Accordion master Cedric Watson won a Grammy nomination for his first album; now he's on the road backed by his south Louisiana zydeco swamp-mates on guitar, bass, drums and rub board.

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy -- Southern California
Saturday Night Dance Concert
August 29th at 8:00 p.m.

True heroes of the swing revival, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy celebrates 100 years of Cab Calloway, the legendary fireball of talent whose goofy "hi-de-hi's" and "ho-de-ho's" in a rich and vibrant baritone brought a much-needed, high-voltage jolt of winning, feel-good energy to a country slogging through tough times. . . making Cab Calloway a man for our times, too.

Steve Lucky and the Rhumba Bums - Swing
Friday Night Dance Party
September 4th at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

Veterans of 'scenes' as diverse as the famed Derby in Hollywood, NYC's Lincoln Center, and CNN-TV, the Rhumba Bums along with Miss Carmen Getit play swing, jump blues and hot jazz with wit, style and plenty of tongue in cheek.

17 Hippies - Berlin
Friday Night Concert
September 5th at 8:00 p.m.

For the past 12 years Berlin's very own "orchester spezial" has been playing its whirling, crashing, diving, bobbing and weaving mixture of music that morphs French songs, English ballads and international rhythms into a captivating cocktail of sound. An eclectic band of virtuosi, the 17 Hippies are variously masters of the accordion, trombone, trumpet, violin, cello, woodwinds, mandolin, ukulele, banjo, Irish bouzouki, guitar, double bass and harmonium. And then there are the stellar vocals, in German, English and French.

Johnny Polanco y su Conjunto Amistad - Salsa
Friday Night Dance Party
September 11th, at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

So popular at the Great Park last summer that he was invited back immediately, Johnny Polanco is our favorite salsero, with regular gigs at El Floridita, The Mayan and other iconic Southland venues.

Niyaz - Iran/Los Angeles
Saturday Night Concert
September 12th, at 8:00 p.m.

"Call it Sufi music or World Fusion, but one thing is for sure, the band Niyaz is an Iranian musical trio whose debut album ranked #1 on world music charts on iTunes. . ." This is trance music for the 21st century: hypnotic, ecstatic, ghostly, and delicious. Azam Ali, best known as half of the popular duo Vas, is the vocalist heard on the soundtrack of "The Matrix: Revolution"; Loga Ramin Torkian, formerly of Axiom of Choice, is a master of Persian and Turkish musical traditions. Loga and Azam are accompanied by tabla, bass, violin and laptop.

Merchants of Moonshine - Country
Friday Night Dance Concert
September 18th at 8:00 p.m., free dance instruction at 7:30 p.m.

The two-steppers, the line-dancers, the citified folk in their high-heeled boots: the Merchants of Moonshine make room for all. Expect good times, great guitar licks, and songs that'll break your heart, fix it up, and then break it all over again.

HAPA - Maui
Saturday Night Concert
September 19th at 8:00 p.m.

Last summer's HAPA concert at the Great Park was among our favorites; this year Barry Flanagan and Nathan Aweau are joined by traditional chant master Charles Ka'upu for an evening of Hawaiian bliss. Known as "the sound of Maui," HAPA filters the pan-Polynesian traditions of Hawaii through the lens of contemporary acoustic music to create a sound that has kept them in demand on the festival circuit while earning them a record-breaking number of Na Hoku Hanohano ("Hawaiian Grammy") Awards.

Bollywood Step -disco party!
Friday Night Dance Party
September 25th, at 8:00 p.m

Our 2009 summer dance party finale: a Bollywood blow-out! A special night of fun with exuberant Bollywood dance demonstrations, step-by-step instructions and simple choreography for all to follow, a party atmosphere and, of course, those irresistible dance rhythms.

Easy Star All-Stars
September 26th at 8:00 p.m.

Lonely Hearts Dub Band, Dub Side of the Moon, RadioDread. . . the Easy Star All-Stars are the very soul of dub reggae. Almost anybody can sing along to their favorite tunes, but only an artist can take something familiar and make it entirely their own, exploring the heart of the work and taking it to a new and different place. That's what you'll hear on the "Lonely Hearts" tour, plus Easy Star originals in our reggae fest conclusion to the summer concert series.

Source: Orange County Great Park

CONTACT: Jenn Starnes, +1-949-724-6574, for Orange County Great Park

Web Site: http://www.ocgp.org/

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