COLUSA, CA (MPG) – About 400 people showed up last Thursday for the final Levitt AMP Colusa Music Series concert of the summer.
Caro Pierotto capped off the series of concerts that began June 13 in Veterans Memorial Park with rock singer Wolf Jett.
Singing original and covers, including Arethra Franklin’s “Killing me Softly,” Pierotto’s captivating voice and Samba roots defied labels, as she belted out tunes in Portuguese, Spanish, and English.
“I sing everything with a Brazilian flare,” said Pierotto, who carried the party with songs like “Sambalismo,” which showcases the fun spirit of her personality and “Espaçonave” the Samba-Rock hit from the album, “Recado dos Anjos.”
“It’s been a crazy, great long summer,” said Sadie Boggs Ash, one of the primary organizers for the series of concerts, hosted by the Colusa County Arts Council and the City of Colusa. “We did 10 shows over a 12-week period through one of the hottest Julys in history. We had a lot of great bands, new music, and we saw a lot of new faces – along with our tried-and-true regulars. It was a great season.”
The 2024 concert series was made possible by a grant from the Mortimer and Mimi Levitt Foundation, the City of Colusa, and dozens of local sponsors who pitched in to bring people together through the power of high-quality music at no cost to them.
This year’s attendance was up over last year’s, averaging between 275 to 325 people at each concert throughout the summer, and ending with close to 400 people at the Aug. 29 close-out session, surpassing the goal set by the Arts Council.
“Last year, we ended with about 300 people,” Ash said. “This year, we started with 300 people. That was a huge improvement.”
Colusa is in the second year of its current three-year grant from the Levitt Foundation, which Ash said allows the Arts Council to attract both top talent and a wide range of performance styles to please all people.
Even in the final hour of the series, as vendors packed up for the last time, people could be seen dancing, laughing, and enjoying one another’s company under flag pennant banners that fluttered in a slight breeze.
“We liked the music from South America,” said Marva Vigeny, a 17-year resident of Colusa, formerly of Nicaragua, who swirled and twirled to Pierotto’s rhythmic sound with her daughter, Nicole. “Latin music is fast. When you hear it, you want to dance.
Since 2015, the Levitt Foundation has provided funding to more than 50 communities across America. The Foundation awarded the Arts Council a $90,000 matching to present three free concerts each summer through 2025. Colusa was the only California community to receive a grant in 2023.
The Arts Council will begin planning in October to determine what they want next year’s series to look like, perhaps splitting the season to avoid the July heat.
“We will have a survey so the community can help us make that decision,” Ash said.
Artists this year included Rita Hosking, Curley Taylor, The Gold Souls, Julia Pratt, and others that brought a broad array of music genres and cultural programming. Next year’s concerts may see a return of artists from the first year, brought back by popular demand.
“The whole philosophy of the Levitt Foundation is bringing people from all walks of life together through music,” said Steering Committee member Denise Conrado. “We used to have Concerts in the Parks, which were cover bands, and we would get about 100 people if we were lucky – and it was always the same people. Now, we have people we have never seen before coming out. So, we are meeting the goal of bringing people together through music.”
The Arts Council will be eligible to apply for a second round of funding to help cover concerts through 2028, although the grants are highly competitive and require matching funds from the community.
The Arts Council also partnered with the City of Colusa and local concert sponsors to improve the concert stage, add tables, seating, and ambiance, while partnering with local nonprofit organizations to provide dinners, all of which could still draw large crowds with the return of local bands.
“It’s a lot of fun to see everyone out here with their kids dancing,” Conrado said. “It’s wonderful. But what we need are more volunteers. These free concerts over three months take a lot of work and a lot of money. We are going to make that effort to start recruiting people. We all feel wonderful to be able to do this, but we are just starting to get a little tired.”