Med Flory Not Appearing at Second Annual Festival

[Confluence Logansport]

I've been monitoring the Floryfest.org site pretty closely the last
several days. I just noticed the following disclaimer after the newly
ordered schedule that now clearly omits Mr. Flory.

"We regret that Med will not be able to join us this year. He called
late April to say that due to some health problems, his doctor has
advised him not to travel. We hope he'll be back with us next year".

Obviously, I wish Mr. Flory a quick recovery.

I don't understand why it took the festival over a week to make any
announcement about this at all. It's also unfortunate that they could
not find a suitable headline replacement.

Also worth noting LHS graduate Dave Lowe who was originally scheduled
to return for year 2 has been removed from the final schedule. I've
heard nothing about Mr. Lowe dropping put previously, but it may be
old news.

[Confluence Logansport]

Anyone notice that the fact that Mr. Flory will not be appearing at
the festival just hit the newspaper( a mere three days before the
event)? Obviously, I don't fault Mr. Flory at all. He needs to stay
put and regain his health. I do think the festival organizers should
have made a better effort to book a headline worthy jazz artist. The
festival has known about this dilemma for at least three weeks.
Honestly, without a headliner this event has turned into an overpriced
local music festival. All of the peripheral activities might make it
more attractive to the community which is not a bad thing, but it does
little to attract die hard jazz fans. The people driving from several
states are the ones we can count on to spend money at our hotels and
in our restaurants.

Jazzing it up

Med Flory Jazz and Blues Festival starts Friday
by Denise Massie
Pharos-Tribune staff writer

Want to go?

Advance tickets are $13 per session and $22 for the weekend. Beginning
Friday, tickets will be $16 per session and $28 for the weekend.
Student tickets are $5 each. Late-night tickets will be available both
nights at the gate for $5 after 9 p.m.

For more information call (574) 735-2787 or online at www.floryfest.org.

Friday:

• New Orleans style parade kicks off event and arrives between 5:45
p.m. and 6 p.m.

• Bands begin to play at 6 p.m.: The Ones, Tuxedo Junction Wind Band,
The Tim Miller Band and Toy Factory.

Saturday:

• Bands begin to play at 3 p.m.: Ezra, Wabash Valley Sound Machine,
Rhudebarb & the Beggars, Cherresa Lawson & Friends, Hip Cats, The
Juggernauts, Randy Handley Band and Stan Hillis, Steve Allee and
Friends.

On the Web: www.floryfest.org/



The area of Market and Fourth streets will be filled by the sounds of
music, displays by local artists and a variety of food vendors this
weekend.

Visitors to the second annual Med Flory Jazz and Blues Festival will
see a number of changes this year.

“We have made a lot of good changes,” said Lita Rouser, chair of the
committee organizing the event. “We’ve really improved it this year,
and that is thanks to evaluations people filled out last year.

She said organizers had expanded the variety of food vendors and had
moved the festival a couple weeks later in the year.

“And local artists will display work in addition to great music,” she
said. “We will have lots for folks to enjoy.”

Festival namesake Med Flory, a Logansport native and Grammy winning
saxophonist and composer, is unable to attend this year for health
reasons, but Rouser said the event would continue as planned with a
few minor adjustments.

“Our intention, as a namesake event, is to keep going with the event
and celebrate his artistic contributions,” she said. “He wouldn’t want
it any other way.”

The Cass County Arts Alliance conceived the event as a way to
celebrate America’s jazz music as an original art form and to pass
that music on to a new generation, Rouser said.

There are several reasons the Arts Alliance wanted to hold the event.

“Not many small towns in Indiana have a Grammy-winning native,” Rouser
said. “It also boosts tourism, since jazz festivals typically draw in
people from other communities.”

According to the festival’s Web site, a variety of music will be
heard. Some of the styles include swing, bebop, big band, R&B, funk,
blues, ragtime, Chicago blues, vocal jazz and New Orleans-style jazz.

The event will kick off with a New Orleans-style parade, which will
start at Logansport Municipal Utilities Park and continue through the
downtown until it reaches the festival site. The parade will be led by
Grand Marshal Joe Huffman, a retired Logansport High School teacher.

Those attending the festival are invited to dress in 1920s-era
clothing. The idea came from Rouser, who said she had wanted to hold a
1920s festival in Logansport for several years. Instead of starting a
separate event, she decided to combine ideas.

Rouser noted that the festival would take place under tents, so the
show will go on, rain or shine.

In the meantime, organizers are already looking ahead to 2010.

“Next year, we will increase the things we do with young people,”
Rouser said. “This is something we want to have grow year after year.
We’re looking to have an event during the previous weekend for young
musicians and get schools more involved.”