UB to "Rock the Casbah" with New Summer Concert Series

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo will open its doors to the public with a six-part summer concert series featuring hometown groups and musicians including Babik, the Latin Jazz Project and Dee Adams.

The goal of the "Rock the Casbah: College of Arts and Sciences Summer Concert Series," new this year, is to enliven the university's North Campus during summer months, says Donald McGuire, CAS summer programs coordinator. The performances are free and open to the public, running from late June to early August. The series, which officials are hoping to make an annual event, supports local music while encouraging the community to visit UB.

"We're trying to make summer a more active time of year," McGuire says. "We would love to see the public enjoying our campus. And we would like to give the students who are participating in summer courses a fun diversion."

"We tried to pick a cross-section of acts that would appeal to students, faculty and the community," says Rob Falgiano, assistant director of the Center for the Arts, whose staff helped organize "Rock the Casbah." "A lot of the groups we picked are the prominent groups for summer, outdoor concert activity -- the up-tempo, audience-friendly groups."

The summer concert series is just one of many public activities the university is hosting this summer. Other offerings include lectures by prominent researchers, youth sports camps, the UB Mini Medical School, and workshops to engage high school students in topics including computational science and physics and art.

For a listing of summer events, please visit http://ubthissummer.buffalo.edu/more.html. For more information on the summer concert series, contact McGuire at 716-645-2711 or dmcguire@buffalo.edu.

Rock the Casbah CAS Summer Concert Series

Location: Outside UB's Student Union on the North Campus

Rain Venue: Ground floor lobby, Capen Hall on the North Campus

Time: 12:05-1:05 p.m.

Cost: Free

Lineup, with band and musician biographies culled and pulled from their official websites:

June 29

Babik (pronounced Bah-Beek) is a progressive Gypsy jazz band inspired by the legendary guitarist Django Reinhardt. The group's ability to connect is evident in the way crowds clap, dance and cheer along with nearly every performance. At concerts it is not uncommon to see a white-haired 75 year-old grandmother dancing next to a purple-haired 20-something. Babik performs more than 150 shows a year at concert halls and festivals, and facilitates educational programs and improvisation workshops at high schools and colleges. For more information on Babik, visit http://www.babikjazz.com.

July 6

Outer Circle Orchestra is an eight-person African-Caribbean and world-beat band featuring music on the bass, congas, drums, guitar, saxophone, timbales, trombone and trumpet. The group has performed at numerous concerts around Buffalo, including the Elmwood Village Association's Bidwell Concert series and the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy's Music at the Marcy series. For more information on Outer Circle Orchestra, visit http://tiny.cc/et37m.

July 13

The Waz-Davis Duo is an instrumental jam duo that performs a unique style of acid jazz and improv groove. The on-stage chemistry between players is infectious and allows for audience and group to become one pulsating entity. For more information on The Waz-Davis Duo, visit http://www.thewaz.com.

July 20

Lazlo Hollyfeld is a four-man experimental instrumental rock band featuring a bassist, drummer, keyboardist and guitarist. Formed in 2003, the group's first release, "Our Universe Is Feeding," is a raw, one-take-recorded, instrumental journey spanning melodic happiness to lethargic, hypnotic rhythms. The group followed up on its initial success with additional albums and two U.S. tours. For more information on Lazlo Hollyfeld, visit http://www.lazlohollyfeld.com.

July 27

Dee Adams is a professionally trained folk rock musician who writes and sings punchy, poetic and acoustically driven songs heavy with hooks and harmonies. Her voice is warm, rich and bluesy. Reviews have coined Dee's style as "earthy" and "sweet to spunky" and have said her lyrics "speak to the heart and mind." For more information on Dee Adams, visit http://www.deetuned.com.

Aug. 3

Latin Jazz Project has been entertaining Western New York for nearly a decade with a repertoire that has included the rhythms of salsa, meringue and the son montuno and the sounds of the samba, bassa nova and cha-cha. The group is a mainstay of local restaurants including the Anchor Bar. For more information on the Latin Jazz Project, visit http://latinjazzprojectbuffalo.com.