MEDIA ADVISORY: Sacred Steel Performance at Lee Hall Auditorium

Tallahassee –

The Florida Department of State’s Florida Folklife Program announces a free workshop and evening concert featuring America’s celebrated African-American sacred steel ensemble, The Lee Boys, at Lee Hall Auditorium on November 4, 2016. The Lee Boys represent the tradition of sacred steel music rooted in gospel, but infused with rhythm and blues, jazz, rock, funk, country and Hawaiian music. The Lee Boys will be joined by the Florida A&M University Concert Choir directed by Dr. Mark Butler, and blues group The Heather Gillis Band. The ensemble will lead a workshop and discussion prior to the concert at Lee Hall from 2:30-3:30 PM. The public is encouraged to bring instruments or simply sit in to learn more about this fabulous Florida tradition!

This special performance is the culmination of the Folk Artist Residency series and is sponsored by the Florida Folklife Program, the FAMU Department of Music, College of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities, and the Institute for Research in Music and Entertainment Industry Studies.

DATE AND TIME:     Friday, November 4, 2016

                               Free workshop 2:30-3:30 PM                               

                               Free concert 7:00-8:30 PM

LOCATION:               Lee Hall Auditorium, Florida A&M University

PARTICIPANTS:       Introductions by State Folklorist Amanda Hardeman and FAMU Musicology Professor Dr. Rebecca Sager. Performance by The Lee Boys, comprised of Alvin, Derrick and Keith Lee, Chris Johnson, Alvin Cordy, and Kenneth Earl Walker; FAMU’s Concert Choir members; and The Heather Gillis Band, comprised of Heather Gillis, Nyan Feder, Kyle Chervanik, and Gerald Watkins.

RSVP:                        No RSVP is necessary, and the event is free to the public.

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About the Florida Department of State’s Florida Folklife Program

The Florida Folklife Program, a component of the Florida Department of State's Division of Historical Resources, documents and presents Florida’s folklife, folklore and folk arts. The program coordinates a wide range of activities and projects designed to increase the awareness of Floridians and visitors alike about Florida’s traditional culture. Established in 1979 by the legislature to document and present Florida folklife, the program is one of the oldest state folk arts programs in the nation. For more information visit dos.myflorida.com/historical/preservation/florida-folklife-program/.