| The 3rd Annual Summer Smooth Jazz Concert Series Featuring Gregg Karukas
July 10th 1pm-3:30pm
7/15/2010
Contact: Sharbie Higuchi
Director of Marketing and Public Relations
949-464-4282
For Immediate Release
The 3rd Annual Summer Smooth Jazz Concert Series Featuring Gregg Karukas
July 10th 1pm-3:30pm
Laguna Beach, CA – The Festival of Arts presents Gregg Karukas at the Summer Smooth Jazz Concert Series on Saturday, July 10th from 1-3:30pm. Keyboardist Gregg Karukas is currently debuting his new CD GK and has had two singles reach the “Top 20” on the Jazz Billboard charts in the last year! Karukas plays to sold-out crowds all over the world and the Festival has the great opportunity to let our visitors see him for Free with their one-time purchased Festival of Arts Admission ($7). The concert series is sponsored in part by Union Bank & KSBR.
Originally from the Washington, D.C. - Maryland area, Karukas was one of the top fusion and studio players. Gregg moved to Los Angeles in 1983 with the desire to expand his multi-keyboard style by playing with as many other artists as possible. He quickly developed a reputation as a solid keyboardist/arranger as he found himself performing with the likes of Patti Austin, Shelby Flint, Richard Elliot, Melissa Manchester, Ronnie Laws, Sergio Mendes, Ricardo Silveira and Brenda Russell.
Karukas commented, "What really got me into music as a passion and a lifestyle was first seeing the Beatles, and then hearing Stevie Wonder and singer/songwriters like Carole King, James Taylor, Leon Russell and Joni Mitchell. I was inspired by the idea that you could touch people's emotions with melodic songs and lyrics that meant something.”
In 1987 Karukas released his first solo album, The Nightowl, which quickly became a radio staple. That same year he became the original keyboardist with the Rippingtons, recording the classic Moonlighting project with Kenny G and David Benoit. Over the course of his 10 solo CD's, he has been one of the few artists whose own creative growth and commercial success perfectly parallels that of the smooth jazz genre as a whole. Riding high on the success of his critically acclaimed #1 radio hit Nightshift and his recent Best Keyboardist nomination at the National Smooth Jazz Awards, he created another his solo CD, Looking Up, which reached Top 5 status in 2007. True to the optimistic, forward thinking title, Looking Up is a melodic, rhythmically diverse oasis in the midst of these challenging times, and his trademark sophisticated acoustic piano melodies sound warmer and more up-front than ever before.
That uplifting attitude shows in his concerts, as Karukas has emerged over the years as one of the genre's most dynamic and inspiring live performers since he first took the stage at the 1987 Catalina Jazz Festival with the original Rippingtons and toured through the years with superstars Boney James, Rick Braun, Eric Marienthal and Larry Carlton. For more information on Gregg Karukas visit his website www.Karukas.com.
Admission is free to Smooth Jazz Concert Series with the purchase of The Festival of Arts ticket ($7). Festival admission prices are $7 for general admission and $4 for seniors and students. All general admission tickets to The Festival of Arts – California’s Premier Fine Art Show are season passes giving unlimited access to the Festival of Arts all summer long. Patrons are encouraged to visit the Festival again and again to enjoy all the art, activities and events offered. Laguna Beach residents and Military personnel with ID receive free admission, as do children under the age of 12. Tickets for Pageant of the Masters are $15-$100 (depending on seat location and night of the week). Pageant of the Masters ticket holders can present their stub at The Festival of Arts front gate for free admission all summer long. The Festival of Arts – California’s Premier Fine Art Show runs from July 5th through August 31st (closed August 28th at 2pm for a fundraising event).
A special promotion this year offers patrons the opportunity to purchase a Passport to the Arts for only $19. Receive unlimited admission all summer long to the Festival of Arts – California’s Premier Fine Art Show, the Sawdust Art Festival and Art-A-Fair. Go online for more information and details at www.LagunaBeachPassport.com or call 949-497-0521. Each passport includes one-time free parking in the ACT V parking lot on Laguna Canyon Road and FREE shuttle service. Offer excludes Pageant of the Masters.
The Festival of Arts and Pageant of the Masters are sponsored in part by Acura, Fidelity Investments, KOST Radio 103.5, the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, the Orange County Register and COX Communications. The Festival of Arts is a non-profit organization that produces The Festival of Arts – California’s Premier Fine Art Show and the Pageant of the Masters. For general information, call 949-494-1145 or visit the website at www.LagunaFestivalofArts.org. The event is located at 650 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach, California. Proceeds support the arts and art education in and about Laguna Beach.
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Editor’s Note: Photo provided as an attachment.
Cutline for photo: Gregg Karukas will perform at the Festival of Arts Smooth Jazz Concert Series.
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