Fort Smith Jazz Festival primer: The Rogers Jazz Society

Editor’s note: The Fort Smith Jazz Festival is being presented this year by The City Wire, Downtown Fort Smith, Arvest, Kirkham Systems, Raymond James and Associates, Dixie Digital, and Arkoma Services. The festival music begins at 1 p.m., May 22 at Pendergraft Park in downtown Fort Smith. The following is one in a series of Jazz Fest primers.

review by Peter Lewis
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In 2005, the Rogers Jazz Society was created to promote jazz music in the Benton County area. To the founders of the non-profit RJS, Benton County seemed to be an underserved market for jazz music and appreciation. Over the years this association of jazz musicians have underwritten scholarships for promising students and partnered with local schools to promote the genre itself through a plethora of projects.

Though this non-profit association was born with the goal of musical promotion and education, it was also an artistic outlet. In addition to the weekly Wednesday residency at the Iron Horse Coffee shop in downtown Rogers, the Jazz Society has performed throughout the area in a variety of venues and is often supplemented by other players depending upon the gig and group availability.

The society is made up of a diverse core of players, all of whom are full-time professionals. Berklee-trained guitarist, Robby Pantall, works in IT for Wal-Mart. Bassist Ron Pennington is a music historian and DJ. Tomek Siwiec is a Polish-born Arvest VP and an accomplished guitarist. Drummer Gary Guthrie practices denistry. Felicia Hamilton, the group vocalist, is a real estate manager for Wal-Mart.

While jazz may be a sideline for these folks, their musical output in no way reflects this fact. Instead, their superb skill underlines just how passionate they are about the promotion and performance of quality jazz music.

As a result, they’ve had no shortage of success playing in the Benton County area. From open houses and parties to corporate affairs, the band has found a supple market for their tunes. Additionally, the RJS recently partnered with the Rogers Little Theater to supplement their stage performances with musical programs.

Guitarist and band leader, Tomek Siwiec describes the groups output as “straight jazz” that seeks to “incorporate elements of Latin and traditional swing music into the performances.” He added that there was a focus on traditional jazz standards that emphasized the original orchestrations.

More info about the Jazz Festival
The Farmer’s Market will be available in the morning. The Park at West End will be open for fun and refreshments. Retailers and restaurants will also have their doors open during the event, and since the admission to the festival is free, we encourage everyone to feel free to explore downtown and listen to their favorite bands at the park as they please. We will also have Whole Hog BBQ and Sweet Bay Coffee onsite for those who feel the music’s just too good to leave.