No better way to kick off the holiday season than with music. And for Vero Beach residents, you have quite the range of opportunities this weekend.
First, it’s the Vero Beach High School Jazz Band which will perform in concert 7 p.m. tonight, Thursday, Nov. 4., in the Vero Beach High School Performing Arts Center, 1707 16th St. Tickets are $12 and $12. There will also be a livestream concert which costs $5. Call 772-564-5537 or visit VeroBeachPerformingArts.com.
Next it’s the Navy SEAL Museum’s 36th Annual Muster and Music Festival. The entire two-day event runs 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 5 and 8 a.m. to evening, Saturday, Nov. 6. Friday’s schedule includes a 5K muster and challenge, a Chad Wilkinson workout, which raises awareness and funds for veterans struggling with PTSD, traumatic brain injury and blast wave injuries. There will also be a special membership dinner on Friday. Saturday’s schedule includes a 5K Beach Challenge, discounted admission to the museum, special guest speakers, an official 11 a.m. muster with Frog-X Parachute jump-in, a K-9 tactical display, a rifle raffle and a book signing. The music happens 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday with the American Rogues and the Outta Hand Band. The live music will be staged on top of the museum’s MK-V Assault Craft. There will be food trucks on site all day Saturday. The National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum is at 3300 North Highway A1A, Fort Pierce. Call 772-595-5845 or visit NavySealMuseum.org.
The Gifford Youth Orchestra will perform its 18th annual concert Saturday, Nov. 6 at the Gifford Community Center. Last year’s concert was a virtual one, so Saturday’s concert should be a pretty joyful event celebrating the students of the GYO program. Sponsored by five Indian River County Rotary Clubs, the special part of the concert is dedicated to the Peace Initiative, which has its own special composition written by musician Jeryl Thompson. The GYO’s founder, Dr. Crystal Bujol, says the board, staff and teachers are excited about the concert. “We are passionate about delivering our trademark brand of music education to enrich and empower the lives of more and more children,” she says. The GYO is music directed by Joan Haar and has piano instruction by Sue Lorimier and vocal instruction by Lynn DiMenna. The GYO has enriched the lives of more than 250 young people who have gone through their program. This 18th Annual Concert begins 2 p.m. at the Gifford Community Center, 4855 43rd Ave., Vero Beach. Admission is free, but donations are accepted and will help support student tuition scholarships. Masks are not required, but recommended. For more information, call 772-213-3007 or visit GYOTigers.org.
The Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra performs “Basie on The Beatles” beginning 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 7, at the Emerson Center. The idea here is what would the British music “invasion” sound like if American big band jazz great Count Basie would have used his swing aesthetic to perform songs like “Hey Jude,” “Can’t Buy Me Love,” “Norwegian Wood,” “Yesterday” and “Come Together.” The concert is under the direction of Frank Wosar. Tickets are $30 general and free to 18 and younger. There are also discounted tickets provided through the organization’s Symphony for Everyone initiative. The Emerson Center is at 1590 27th Ave., Vero Beach. Call 855-252-7276 or visit SpaceCoastSymphony.org.
Organist Ryan Kasten will perform in a Patriotic Concert 7 p.m. Nov. 9 at the St. John of the Cross Catholic Church. Joining Kasten will be the Paradise Women’s Chorale and the St. John’s Brass ensemble. The concert benefits the Veterans Council of Indian River County. The concert is free, but donations are gladly accepted. St. John of the Cross Catholic Church is at 7550 26th St., Vero Beach. Call 772-563-0057 or visit StJohnsVero.org.
Artist Josh McMiller makes his grand entrance into Vero’s art scene with “Revelations of Nature,” an exhibition of his work running Nov. 5-30 at the Center for Spiritual Care. McMiller, who studied at the University of Alabama, has had work featured previously in group shows at the Birmingham Museum of Art. Most recently, McMiller lived in New York, where the artist paid the bills by working as a model for the storied Ford Agency. He appeared in magazines like GB, Vogue and Cosmopolitan. Now, having moved to Vero Beach, he paints full time, creating vibrant, intense floral and seascapes not contained by the frame. Indeed, the paintings pour beyond the “box.” The Center for Spiritual Care is at 1550 24th St., Vero Beach. For more information, call 772-567-1233 or visit CenterForSpiritualCare.org.
