Greenwood Music Festival

A Festival of Music in the heart of the Lakelands of South Carolina.

ABOUT THE GREENWOOD MUSIC FESTIVAL

The Greenwood Music Festival takes place in different venues in the charming Southern town of Greenwood, South Carolina. The Festival occurs annually during a weekend in January. Our inaugural Greenwood Music Festival was held in January, 2007, and featured Ensemble Radieuse, a trio of flute, oboe and piano, the musical “I Do! I Do!”, and the Greenwood Festival Chorale and the Laurens County Chorale under the direction of Dr. Charles T. Gaines.

During our second season we added chamber opera to our events, and presented a children’s opera. Future Festival seasons will continue to offer chamber music concerts, sacred music concerts, musical-theatre productions or chamber operas, film presentations, and vocal recitals and/or cabaret evenings. The chamber music concerts will primarily take place at the Arts Center at the Federal Building in Uptown Greenwood. Next door to the Arts Center, the newly renovated Greenwood Community Theatre will host the staged productions and films. Our Sacred Music concerts will take place at First Baptist Church, at 722 Grace Street in Greenwood. In the coming seasons we hope to feature other venues in Greenwood, including an event at the beautiful Cokesbury College just seven miles north of Uptown Greenwood. The Greenwood Music Festival will enrich and expand the musical offerings in Greenwood and the Lakelands areas during the winter season.

Another component of the Greenwood Music Festival is to commission a local artist to design a signature painting or pieces of artwork that will grace our Festival Programs, posters, and advertisements. We are proud and honored to have featured local artists Ruth Rutledge Martin, Jeffery Callaham, and Amy Alley.

Keith Jameson, Founder and Director of the Greenwood Music Festival, is a native of Greenwood, SC. He received his bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance from Furman University in Greenville, SC, and his Master of Music in Conducting and Doctor of Music in Vocal Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. His performances have included leading roles with English National Opera in London, Opera Royal de Wallonie in Liege, Belgium, New York City Opera, Los Angeles Opera, The Santa Fe Opera, Madison Opera, Opera Memphis, Glimmerglass Opera, Indianapolis Opera, and Utah Festival Opera. In 2007 he made his *Metropolitan Opera *debut in Sergei Prokofiev’s War and Peace.

In starting the Greenwood Music Festival, Keith hopes to present a unique festival of music utilizing acclaimed artists in a variety of musical events.