Story and Song

Submitted by Evelyn C. McDonald
Arts & Culture Reporter
February 3, 2016 1:00 a.m.

Last Saturday I went to a concert, a musical event at St. Peter’s. It was a great evening, thanks in no large part to the efforts of Mark and Donna Kaufman. For the past 11 years, Mark and Donna have been bringing musicians to Fernandina Beach in their Story and Song series. Four to five concerts a year have featured singer-songwriters as solo performers and in groups.

St. Peter’s provides the venue in Burns Hall. Mark coordinates with the musicians and St. Peter’s. Volunteers help support the concerts. Donna and Mark promote the concerts. Money donated by concert attendees goes to the musicians. Last Saturday was a prime example of the quality of music that the Kaufmans have provided.

Saturday’s group was Harpeth Rising, a trio of classically trained women musicians from Louisville, Kentucky. The lead, Jordana Greenberg, provides vocals and plays the violin. Maria di Meglio plays the cello and does vocals, and Rebecca Reed-Lunn plays the claw hammer banjo and also sings. Their music is ranges from folk to rock to classical with original songs as well as covers of other songwriters. Their vocal and instrumental harmony is beautiful. They played material that was new to the audience as well as a couple of familiar tunes. Albums by the group were available for sale.

Singers and songwriters that Mark and Donna have introduced us to over the years have sometimes been friends of theirs from their time living in Nashville. Other artists have been ones the Kaufmans have heard and thought we would enjoy. I can remember being in Nashville once and being overwhelmed by the quality of talent in the small venues. I went there not a big fan of country music and was surprised enough to change my definition of “country.” It’s a lot more than what we hear on the radio stations.

My first experience with a Story and Song concert featured an outstanding group, “Queen of Hearts.” Four women, all solo artists and song writers in their own right, banded together to sing their songs and accompany each other. They were gifted musicians as well as humorous entertainers. It was an evening you just didn’t want to end.

Mark and Donna support this series to provide new venues for artists and to introduce new music and musicians to our community. It is a tribute to the two of them that they have kept the concerts up over so many years and have brought us so much talent. They have a few more concerts planned for this year so be on the lookout for them.

Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. She is a chair of Arts & Culture Nassau, a city commission charged with support of the arts in Nassau County. She serves on FSCJ’s Curriculum Committee for the Center for Lifelong Learning. She is also the chair of the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.