MONROE — Monroe Arts Center has planned entertainment scheduled as part of the 2020 Summer of Music concert series. These free concerts will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. on the south outdoor lawn area, on corner of 11th Street and 14th Avenue, of Monroe Arts Center property.

Wednesday, Aug. 12 the Jodi Beach Trio is the first of five concerts in this series to take the outdoor stage. This well-known Rockford, Illinois-based group is well-known for entertaining audiences across the country with performances combining unique and original arrangements of well-loved jazz classics with the finest contemporary works. Whether Stardust to Moonglow, Gershwin to Nat King Cole, Jodi enchants audiences with her voice. She is more than a singer and pianist; she is a storyteller, a theme weaver and presents a scrapbook of our lives in song. The trio also includes the cool and slick upright bass playing by Jim McDowell, and smooth percussion of Eddie B.

Jodi’s warm and engaging performances take audiences on a sentimental journey of melodies and lyrics that leave them smiling. Jodi comments, “In a time of “social distancing,” music still unites us.”

The trio has received five RAMI (Rockford Area Music Industry) Awards for Best Traditional Jazz Group, five Best of Rockford Awards, four Rockford Mayor’s Arts Awards, RAMI Song of the Year, Album of the Year, and Best Original Song. She is also a RAMI Hall of Fame Inductee. She has recorded six albums and toured extensively throughout the country.

Beverages during the concert will be made available by Bailey’s Run of New Glarus. There are no rain dates for the concert series. Changes in programming may be made periodically in response to rapidly changing public health concerns. For questions, up-to-date information on this event, and MAC’s guidelines for outdoor viewing, contact Monroe Arts Center at 608-325-5700 or visit monroeartscenter.com.