Garden Gate Jazz, Wine and Craft Beer fest set for April 16

Embrace the sounds of JAZZ pouring through the air in Huntingburg, Indiana during the Garden Gate Festival, taking place on Saturday, April 16.

Now in its fifth year, the Garden Gate Festival returns once again to feature jazz, art, wine, and craft beer as well as some other additions.

The Garden Gate festivities begin at 8 a.m. Saturday, April 16 with the Huntingburg Kiwanis Car Show. Be sure to make plans to see classic and antique cars lined up on Huntingburg’s Historic 4th Street. The car show is scheduled to last until 3:00 p.m.

This fun-filled day continues as individuals put on their running shoes and join in on the “JazzedUP” 5K and 10K, beginning along Huntingburg 4th Street. Proceeds for this run/walk benefit the Make a Wish Foundation.

At 11 a.m., browse 28 different artisan booths with the Art Market, featuring handcrafted items, art pieces, and vintage finds. The art market takes place behind the Old Town Hall located on Geiger Street and just steps away from Huntingburg’s Historic Fourth Street. The Art Market will continue well into the evening and will be joined with food, wine, craft beer, and jazz music.

Hungry? Along with the art market, delicious local and regional food booths will open up at 11 a.m. and feature a wide variety of snacks and entrees. The sweet aromas will make mouths water.

While all this is taking place, a wonderful line up of jazz ensembles will be featured on the stage. The first Jazz ensemble begins at 12:30 p.m. with the University of Evansville Jazz Ensemble. Their ever-popular concerts for audiences both on and off campus include jazz, swing, be-bop, fusion and neoclassical jazz.

At 2:00 p.m., Rascals of Rhythm takes the stage with their five person band. Each member has an impressive jazz background with decades of experiences, including Broadway Musicals, Ice Shows, circuses, Dixieland groups, Opryland USA, and more. Three of the band members are music instructors at different institutions.

At 4:15 p.m., welcome the original stylings of Small Time Napoleon on the stage. The band has been featured on The World Cafe as a part of David Dye’s “Sense of Place” series, was listed as one of Louisville’s 5 Best Local Acts, had the opportunity to play alongside The Wood Brothers twice, played large festival style shows (including WFPK’s Waterfront Wednesday), and currently hold the record for most presale tickets for a local show at The Clifton Center. They’ve combined their affection for harmony, curiosity of rhythm, and fascination with the tunes of the past to create a unique musical experience. This band is poised for big things in the future.

At 6:30 p.m., the Honey Roy Band takes the stage. The Honey Roy Band is a 7-piece Jazz and Blues band from Evansville, Indiana that plays upbeat recognizable songs that are entertaining for any age group. Roy Micah Carter is the band leader for the Honey Roy Band. In 2015 Roy’s father, saxophonist for the band Roy Lee Carter, received the Blues and Heritage Award from the River Basin Blues Society during their performance at their annual Blues Blast Concert. Roy Lee Carter also was awarded Musician of The Year by the Evansville Philharmonic Guild during their Performance at the Kenny Kent Lexus Wine and Jazz Festival.

In between these Jazz ensembles, the award winning Jasper High School band will be performing.  Recently, this band won 1st place at the Ball State University Dimensions in Jazz and awards for best trombone, best saxophone, and best lead trumpet.

Admission for the festival is free for children; for adults, the cost is $5 or purchase a bracelet for $15 which includes entry, wine and craft beer samples, and a commemorative glass. Bracelets are for those that are 21 and older. Wine enthusiasts will be overjoyed with the eleven Indiana wineries in attendance, including Best Vineyards, Blue Heron, Buck Creek Winery, Easley Winery, Ertel Cellars, Madison County Winery, Monkey Hollow Winery, Pepper Ridge, Quibble Winery, Windy Knoll Winery, and Winzerwald Winery. Wine will be available to be purchased by the bottle. Craft Beer lovers will be happy to hear that ten different craft beers will be available, including options from Basket Case, Carson’s, Quaff On!, Schnitz Brewery & Pub, and St. Benedict’s Brew Works. Dubois County Suds Club will be offering samples. 12 oz. craft beer pulls will be available for $3.00 a piece.

For more information, check out www.gardengatefestival.com.