Sounds of Summer:Layout 1
5/28/15
9:38 AM
Page 43
Studio Palm Beach Corby Kaye
Versatile pianist Copeland Davis was born in Orlando but moved to Palm Beach County to study music at Florida Atlantic University more than 40 years ago – and our area has been a better place musically ever since. A master of jazz and popular music as well as classical, Davis teaches music at the Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach. He’s performed frequently in Las Vegas, sharing stages with Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight and Sammy Davis Jr., and has also appeared on The Tonight Show and Good Morning America.
Copeland Davis
“I came down here to study classical music, so the soundtrack to my summers here would sound like that. I still also play jazz and pop music. Mostly pop gigs, because I can insert some classical and jazz elements into that genre. It’s all interconnected. I recently performed George Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue,’ which embodies those connections and sounds like summer to me, [at the Eissey Theater in Palm Beach Gardens]. Other than music, I’d have to mention the sound of the kids running around and playing while school’s out.”
Rod MacDonald Following a successful stint on the Greenwich Village folk scene through the 1980s, Connecticut native Rod MacDonald settled in Delray Beach 20 years ago. The singer/songwriter has since become a fixture, playing gigs as both a solo acoustic artist and with a full band. He’s also a Lifelong Learning Society instructor at Florida Atlantic University and a first-time author whose new book is called The Open Mike. His latest of 11 CDs is the 2014 release “Later That Night.”
Photo: Jacek Gancarz
“Summer is partly about nostalgia, especially regarding music, since it was the time of year as a kid when we weren’t affected by the school year and actually had the time to listen. With my two young daughters home through the summer, I hear lots of Disney material! Most local gigs tend to be indoors to beat the heat, but either way, I find myself leaning more toward romantic songs in the summer.” art&culture | 43