Over one hundred degree weather seemed to have kept many Concerts in the Park aficionados at home (or at least indoor at bars across Sacramento). Concerts in the Park’s line up for Friday included Juliana Zachariou, Autumn Sky, Gerald Pease and Kate Gaffney.

As I approached Cesar Chavez Plaza tonight I could hear Juliana Zachariou singing in the background. Juliana was runner up in the Jammies 2010 held earlier this year and I've been lucky enough to have seen her performance before. I heard her singing in the distance as I waited for a traffic light to turn green on the corner of I and 10th streets. Just as I was about to cross the street an ambulance was heading toward the intersection and cars sped off as the ambulance approached. The ambulance came and went but had to slow down for vehicles to move out of the way. I walked the one block to Cesar Chavez Park and by the time I was about to get comfortable in the shade Juliana’s performance ended. That was very disappointing but I was lucky enough to hear two of her songs.

Autumn Sky (her real name) started her act a few minutes after Juliana Zachariou finished her set. It was still pretty warm but there was a lot of shade around the stage. The saying “there’s a story behind every song” can be taken quite literally when Autumn Sky performs. She actually tells a story before almost every song making it seem like the audience knows more about the song and Autumn makes it seem like you can relate to the song. This was the first performance I’ve seen her where she shared a stage.

I did not get a chance to see her whole show as I had to go over to the Mix Downtown (on 16th and L) to see an art exhibition. Every Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. they showcase a local artist during those hours. Tonight’s featured local artist was my daughter Mariana. She had 12-15 pieces showing. Her four brothers and some friends were there to show their support. We were able to enjoy the atmosphere and meet some interesting people. It gave me a chance to meet a fellow Sacramento Press contributor Hannah Jones who’s an intern for the Press.

After the art show ended a little after 7 p.m. I made my way back to Cesar Chavez Plaza to enjoy a little bit more music. I missed Gerald Pease, who played with some of his other Bucho band members, and part of Kate Gaffney’s show. She performed on Thursday at the El Dorado Hills Town Center and it looks like she has a full schedule in Sacramento next month. You can follow her shows by going to her website. Anyway, I was able to enjoy several of her songs and she too connected with the audience by telling us a little more about her songs. The singing was excellent but they also had a musical jam session towards the end that had audience members kicking up some dust.

Although the weather seemed to keep many people away this evening, a cool breeze here and there, and cooler music made the evening quite enjoyable nonetheless.

Photos:

1 - Juliana Zachariou

2 to 5 - Autumn Sky

6 to 11 - Kate Gaffney