Lions Club fundraiser features old-time jazz

KENT — Ninety-year-old Dolph Traymon, a pianist who has played for musical legends including Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Joel Grey, will be pounding out Duke Ellington and Cole Porter standards and more in a benefit performance on Saturday, Feb. 6, at 4 p.m. at the Kent School’s Mattison Auditorium. 

The performance by Traymon, co-owner of the Fife ’n Drum restaurant and gift shop on Main Street, will benefit the Kent Lions Club and support scholarships for local students to attend the Litchfield Jazz Camp this summer.

The Litchfield Jazz Ensemble will also perform. One ensemble member is 14-year-old Dakota Austin, who plays the alto saxophone and was the youngest performer ever at the Litchfield Jazz Festival’s main stage when he performed “Take Five� with the Dave Brubeck Quartet in 2008.

“I’ll also be doing a performance with them,� said Traymon, who feels strongly that the Jazz Camp should be supported. It teaches young people about this quintessentially American form of music, he said, and allows them to interact with professional musicians of many ages and musical styles.

“This is something you just can’t go to school for,� Traymon said. “You have to sit down and hear it, right in front of you.�

Traymon is a charter member of the Lions Club, the other beneficiary of the concert.  

“They donate all of their money to the community and to many good causes,� he said of the club. “None of us will be getting paid for this concert. All of this is for a good cause and it’s good live music. You can’t buy a better thing than that.�

Tickets are at several different tier levels.  A $40 patron ticket includes upfront seating, a program acknowledgment, a $5 discount to the after party and a $20 donation to the Jazz Camp scholarship fund.

A $20 reserved ticket includes upfront seating and a $10 donation to the scholarship fund.  

General admission tickets are $10.

The after-party dinner will be held at 6:30 p.m. at the Fife ’n Drum, 53 Main St. The dinner is open to the public and costs $30 for a three-course meal.

Tickets are available at businesses on Main Street. Or call Kent Lions Club President Mark Hamilton at 860-672-1098.

Latest News

Water main cleaning in North Canaan

NORTH CANAAN – Aquarion Water Company today announced a water main cleaning project in the company’s North Canaan system. The project is scheduled to take place from Monday, April 1 through Tuesday, April 16, and is being undertaken to ensure customers in North Canaan continue to receive the highest quality water.

The cleaning for April 1 and April 4 (subject to change) will take place on the following streets:

Keep ReadingShow less
Robert Cray’s soulful blues coming to Infinity Hall

Robert Cray

Photo provided

Blues legend Robert Cray will be bringing his stinging, funky guitar and soulful singing to Infinity Hall Norfolk on Friday, March 29.

A five-time Grammy winner, Cray has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and earned The Americana Music Awards Lifetime Achievement for Performance. He has played with blues and rock icons including Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, The Rolling Stones, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton and many more.

Keep ReadingShow less
Cabaret comes to St. Andrew's in Kent

George Potts

Photo provided

Music in the Nave will again tap into local talent April 6 at 7 p.m. when its features George Potts in an intimate cabaret concert in the St. Andrew’s Church parish house.

Pott is a well-known figure in the community, both through his presence in the perennially popular Fife ‘n Drum, the restaurant started by his father-in-law, renowned pianist Dolph Trayman, and through his own career as a folk musician.

Keep ReadingShow less