- This event has passed.
GIMS Concert: Kenny Janak Orchestra
August 25 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
The Grand Island Music Series will present its final concert of the 2023-2024 season at Stuhr Museum! Food and drink will be available to purchase from the Chocolate Bar.
Admission is FREE!
The Kenny Janak Orchestra was formed in 2016 after acquiring the music library of the Eddie Janak Orchestra. Eddie was bandleader Kenny Janak’s uncle and he had a popular band in the midwest from the late 1950s into the 1970s. The band often featured the clarinet work of Eddie, and Kenny’s grandfather, Pete Janak. Eddie’s music continues to be a big influence on the musical concepts and style of the band. The band has continued to build the musical repertoire over the past several years, drawing from some of the great Czech, German, and American bands, as well as adding some original tunes.
The musicians in KJO have extensive experience playing a wide variety of styles and genres but all share in the love of playing this great European-inspired music known as dechovka (Czech), blasmusik (German) or simply polka music! KJO aims to share their love of the music through carefully crafted arrangements of the songs played with energy and feeling. You’ll hear vocals done in Czech and English with a little German as well. To provide some variety, you’ll also hear the band perform some classic swing, pop, and Latin tunes, aiming to offer styles that appeal to a wide audience.
Members of the band:
Kenny Janak – bandleader, clarinet, saxophone, vocals, composer, arranger
Leslie Janak – clarinet, saxophone
Cheryl Janak Janda – trumpet
Bob Zagozda – trumpet, baritone, saxophone, clarinet, vocals
Julia Williams – accordion
Jeff Janda – tuba, arranger
Dean Fornoff – drums.
GIMS Concerts at Stuhr Museum are brought to you free of charge through a partnership between the Grand Island Music Series and Stuhr Museum. GIMS Concerts at Stuhr Museum take place outside on the East Portico of the Stuhr Building. Please bring lawn chairs or a blanket to sit on, and enjoy the show! Please note, the Stuhr Building will not be open to the public during GIMS Concerts. In case of inclement weather, outdoor performances will be held indoors at College Park directly across the street from Stuhr Museum.