Kerry and the Music
Donation protected
Background:
Many of you know my talented, multifaceted friend Kerry Davis.
Kerry is an artist; singer and pianist, an educator, as well as an arts administrator. In addition to all of this he continues to do the important work of bringing people together.
Committed to working at the intersection of community-based endeavors and the Arts, Kerry generously offers the space for people to create incredible art.
Before leaving Southeast Missouri, Kerry served as the conductor and artistic director of Charleston’s Community Chorus. For nearly a decade, he skillfully curated “must see” experiences for the participants, the community at large, and the surrounding area.
The Project:
Now a resident of Northeast Ohio, Cleveland is the backdrop for Kerry’s most current project. In recent years, Kerry has been experimenting with jazz. That creative spirit and drive is at work again with a new project.
The consummate purveyor of hospitality and joy, Kerry is host for a week-long experience for a group of jazz musicians. In keeping with the tradition of jazz, the musicians are invited to bring their own knowledge, skills, and musings into a peer to peer experience. He is standing at the intersection of his most well-developed skills: music and hospitality.
Think of this quote:
“Imagine it's 2 or 3 in the morning--the aroma of fried chicken and mustard greens. You know-- all the guys have gathered around from their regular gigs, but there’s always something left for a jam session. I thought about it and I said “Richard, I want to record at home --have a jam session..This is what it's all about. The music. The main ingredient”
Shirley Horn, “Blues For Sarge”; “The Main Ingredient”
Inspired by Horn’s home-based collaboration, Kerry started a tradition in 2021 and invited four cherished musician friends into his home for a week of music making and connection. Creatively documenting this work was vital to the success of this project. Through the collection of photographic images, audio, video/film, this music contributes to what hopefully becomes an annual Cleveland happening outlasting Kerry and his current musical guests. I can share clips from last year’s project for anyone interested in seeing/hearing them. The final project was amazing.
Your Support:
Please take this opportunity to support the Arts as well as a trusted friend and artist as he continues to do his part in filling the world with care, love, joy and music. This project isn’t just philosophical. It is the embodiment of who Kerry is and is important.
In short, he brings beauty into our world. Most of us have experienced it firsthand. From funerals to festivals, in some way Kerry and his ART has impacted your life.
Kerry has not only sunk his heart into the Cleveland residency project, he’s invested his own resources. Housing musicians in his own home, feeding and caring for them, renting equipment and recording spaces, promoting shows, paying artists–often with his own resources.
It was not easy to convince him to consent to this “Go Fund Me” campaign. It isn’t his way. But…I think about all of the ways knowing him has enriched my life. The music, wisdom, the creativity and I want to feed that light. Think of it as a Christmas gift…to these artists. To the arts. To people who keep trying, relentlessly, to make the world a better place.
Oh…and I’m pretty sure I can convince Kerry to come for a visit in the Spring. A private house concert could be in order for those who find it in their hearts to support.
Many of you know my talented, multifaceted friend Kerry Davis.
Kerry is an artist; singer and pianist, an educator, as well as an arts administrator. In addition to all of this he continues to do the important work of bringing people together.
Committed to working at the intersection of community-based endeavors and the Arts, Kerry generously offers the space for people to create incredible art.
Before leaving Southeast Missouri, Kerry served as the conductor and artistic director of Charleston’s Community Chorus. For nearly a decade, he skillfully curated “must see” experiences for the participants, the community at large, and the surrounding area.
The Project:
Now a resident of Northeast Ohio, Cleveland is the backdrop for Kerry’s most current project. In recent years, Kerry has been experimenting with jazz. That creative spirit and drive is at work again with a new project.
The consummate purveyor of hospitality and joy, Kerry is host for a week-long experience for a group of jazz musicians. In keeping with the tradition of jazz, the musicians are invited to bring their own knowledge, skills, and musings into a peer to peer experience. He is standing at the intersection of his most well-developed skills: music and hospitality.
Think of this quote:
“Imagine it's 2 or 3 in the morning--the aroma of fried chicken and mustard greens. You know-- all the guys have gathered around from their regular gigs, but there’s always something left for a jam session. I thought about it and I said “Richard, I want to record at home --have a jam session..This is what it's all about. The music. The main ingredient”
Shirley Horn, “Blues For Sarge”; “The Main Ingredient”
Inspired by Horn’s home-based collaboration, Kerry started a tradition in 2021 and invited four cherished musician friends into his home for a week of music making and connection. Creatively documenting this work was vital to the success of this project. Through the collection of photographic images, audio, video/film, this music contributes to what hopefully becomes an annual Cleveland happening outlasting Kerry and his current musical guests. I can share clips from last year’s project for anyone interested in seeing/hearing them. The final project was amazing.
Your Support:
Please take this opportunity to support the Arts as well as a trusted friend and artist as he continues to do his part in filling the world with care, love, joy and music. This project isn’t just philosophical. It is the embodiment of who Kerry is and is important.
In short, he brings beauty into our world. Most of us have experienced it firsthand. From funerals to festivals, in some way Kerry and his ART has impacted your life.
Kerry has not only sunk his heart into the Cleveland residency project, he’s invested his own resources. Housing musicians in his own home, feeding and caring for them, renting equipment and recording spaces, promoting shows, paying artists–often with his own resources.
It was not easy to convince him to consent to this “Go Fund Me” campaign. It isn’t his way. But…I think about all of the ways knowing him has enriched my life. The music, wisdom, the creativity and I want to feed that light. Think of it as a Christmas gift…to these artists. To the arts. To people who keep trying, relentlessly, to make the world a better place.
Oh…and I’m pretty sure I can convince Kerry to come for a visit in the Spring. A private house concert could be in order for those who find it in their hearts to support.
Organizer and beneficiary
Christina Mershon
Organizer
Cape Girardeau, MO
Kerry Davis
Beneficiary