Art, Rhythm and Brews 2016
By JENNIFER DITLEVSON HAGLUND Staff writer
Ty Green of Holden, Missouri, prepares to perform with The Matt Cook Collective. The group, which consists of Green, Nick Brown, Jeff Ceba, and Matt Cook, played jazz songs. They met in high school and have been playing together ever since.
In its inaugural year, the Maryville’s Art, Rhythm, and Brews festival featured talents in music, visual art, and cooking Friday night on the community’s historic Downtown Square.
The Maryville Public Arts Committee organized the event to bring adults together to celebrate the arts and socialize.
The early crowds thinned somewhat as temperatures dropped several degrees throughout the evening, but the event drew curious members of the community as well as paying customers who sampled light food offerings and a variety specialty beverages provided by A&G Restaurant, the Bread Basket at St. Francis Hoispital, Grill Sergeant Barbeque, and Simply Siam.
Julie Marez of Maryville said a friend had told her about the festival earlier in the day, and she wanted to find out more. She wasn’t there to do much but enjoy the art and the music.
“It was really nice that they had this here,” Marez said.
The Matt Cook Collective jazz group added Maryville to its tour history Friday.
Late last year, the band toured Missouri, Kansas, and Iowa playing small, local bars, coffee houses, and restaurants. In a week, they played 19 shows. The group has played together since high school, and now that all but one of the musicians has graduated college, guitarist Ty Green said he hopes they can continue to perform together while working day jobs.
Other performers during the evening included the St. Joseph a cappella women’s chorus RiverSong; folk Americana-style performers, The Center State; Brian Nelson and Nicole Salmond; and Hendrix and Craig.
By JENNIFER DITLEVSON HAGLUND Staff writer
Dina Green of Maryville volunteered to head a community compilation piece for Friday’s street fair. As people passed by her easel, they could add to the sketch of Maryville’s downtown square. Green said she spends most of her time raising her children, but she would like to find more opportunities to expand her artistic knowledge and hobbies. For now, she’s working on T-shirt art, experimenting with bleaching techniques.
By JENNIFER DITLEVSON HAGLUND Staff writer
When Barb and Ken Nelson of Maryville stopped by the St. Francis Hospital Bread Basket tent they had the choice of pot roast sliders, chocolate covered bacon, chips with beer cheese, and a salted caramel dessert, all of which could be paired with a watermelon margarita or peach lemonade. A&G Restaurant, Grill Sergeant Barbeque, and Simply Siam also served guests samples and drinks.
