Festival South in Hattiesburg

June might be my favorite time of the year in Hattiesburg (in spite of the hot weather). It's because of Festival South, which is in its ninth year.  "The Hattiesburg Concert Association presents Mississippi’s only multi-week, multi-genre festival, offering both free and ticketed events that showcase the area’s rich creative economy. There is something for everyone!" (from their website www.festivalsouth.org)

There are morning concerts M-W-F at coffee shops, afternoon and evening events at churches and auditoriums. 

The morning coffee concert at The Depot Kitchen and Market showcased Harlan Mapp, baritone, and Kay Guiles, piano, with popular showtunes. The outdoor setting was beautiful and breezy, although the musicians had to take a timeout every so often to work around the noise of a passing train.

Eight guitarists from Mexico charmed the audience at Hattiesburg Cultural Center. I was sitting so close that I could not get all eight in one photo. A broken string was only a minor distraction for these talented fellows. The maker of the guitars was also present. Ricardo Hernandez Reyes is a student at USM and was responsible for getting this group to perform at Festival South. Ricardo is the fifth from the right in the picture below.

 Ricardo is the fourth from the left in the picture below.

The New York-based Harlem String Quartet was quite a treat to hear at First Presbyterian Church. They played music from Debussy to Dizzy Gillespie. 

Patrick Scott, Assistant Organist-Choirmaster at the Episcopal Cathedral of Saint Philip in Atlanta, Georgia, played an outstanding concert at Westminster Presbyterian Church. Patrick is a native of Picayune and formerly studied with Kathy Vail on this very organ during his teen years when it was located at First Baptist Church. The organ has been relocated to Westminster Presbyterian Church, and Patrick demonstrated the majesty of this instrument.

I attended another concert--Timeless Impressions, at Main Street United Methodist Church with flute, clarinet, harp, string quartet but did not get a picture.

Still to come will be the Victory Belles, a singing group from the World War II Museum in New Orleans, celebrating Father's Day and our veterans.