If you can’t wait for the annual May Festival of Music there’s no need to! This Saturday, February 17, come enjoy a taste of what is to come! You will hear the crowd favorite selections from Lerner and Loewe’s “My Fair Lady” and” Camelot”, Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story”, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “The Phantom of the Opera”, “Send in the Clowns” from “A Little Night Music” to Charles Gounod’s dramatic “Faust.”

Doors open at 6 p.m. for cocktails (cash bar), with dinner and show beginning at 7 p.m. Seating is limited so get your tickets quickly at www.natchezfestivalofmusic.com. Tickets are $75 per person.

The evening includes entertainment from the ever-talented Maryann Kyle and Corey Trahan. An elegant seated dinner will be specially prepared by Chef Bingo Starr. A Silent Art Auction with local, regional and out-of-state artists and Live Auction featuring Dinner/Travel Packages will be featured.

Our 28th May Festival “Sound Waves!” season tickets are also now on sale.

We are thrilled to announce that we will begin with The Opening Night Gala featuring Mac McAnally and Members of the Coral Reefer Band. Mac McAnally, CMA Musician of the Year winner, is beyond dispute one of the most respected musicians of our time. A long-time member of Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band, McAnally has written numerous classic songs for some of the leading popular artists of our time including Alabama, Kenny Chesney, Sawyer Brown, and Jimmy Buffett. His peers have honored him as Country Music Association’s Musician of the Year for an unprecedented nine years and have elected him to both the Nashville Songwriters Halls of Fame and Mississippi Musicians Hall of Fame.

The Natchez Festival of Music’s “Sound” hits our river town with a diverse series of events that celebrate the merging of historic eras, three different centennial seasons, and musical offerings spanning three continents. Our season slates several events celebrating the centennial of Leonard Bernstein, the bicentennial of Charles Gounod, and the tricentennial of New Orleans. We also bring in top vocal performers from all over the United States who will be featured in Stephen Sondheim’s smash hit musical, A Little Night Music as well as Gounod’s iconic opera Faust. The season continues with several now-traditional and fan-favorite events, Rossini, Puccini, and Martinis, and Rockin’ on the River at Bowie’s.

We will present an engaging evening of Beyond Phantom: The Majestic World of the Organ, celebrating the power of this legendary instrument with everything from Bach to Phantom of the Opera and film scores by John Williams. We will feature “The British Invasion of Natchez II: The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s and Beyond,” which includes songs by Led Zeppelin, The Who, and more, then celebrate an evening of “hot” salsa music with our Havana Nights event.

Mark your calendar for this Saturday’s dinner and a show season prelude. It will be a lovely evening and a great way to sample our upcoming season!
Mary Lessley is the fundraising chairman for the Natchez Festival of Music.