11-hour Winter Garden Music Festival is Saturday

Music fans have a chance to hear their favorite genres and explore others this weekend at the Winter Garden Music Festival. A total of 33 acts will perform throughout downtown Winter Garden from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24, at this huge, outdoor concert.

Whether you’re into rock, pop, country, folk, flamenco, mariachi, blues, salsa, jazz, reggae or contemporary, you should find something that moves your feet or sooths your soul with music filling the streets from six stages.

In addition to tunes, the event will include a children’s zone with activities from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; vendors selling refreshments, including beer and wine; and opportunities for dining and snacking at the local restaurants.

Guests are being encouraged to take lawn chairs for comfortable seating.

On-site parking will be available at the parking garage on South Boyd Street and the Sam Williams Little League Complex on South Park Avenue.

Off-site parking will be set up at Dillard Street Elementary and at the corner of Ninth and East Plant streets, with parking attendants and shuttle service from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Parking attendants also will be at Veterans Memorial Park, but there will be no shuttle service.

VIOLECTRIC

Michelle Jones’ life-changing moment arrived in 1995 in the form of an 83-foot-tall, lighted, guitar-shaped sign in Las Vegas.

She had been playing violin on tour with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant when she was offered a contract with the Boston Pops. She had a decision to make.

“Do I want to be with the orchestra or be a touring rock violinist?” she said.

She was in Vegas and saw the neon Hard Rock Café guitar as a sign from God, chose the life of a touring rock violinist and has never looked back.

In 2017, the giant guitar, without its brilliant and spark, was sitting in the boneyard of the Neon Museum, where all aging and historical and broken neon signs go to rest.

“I found out Hard Rock moved and donated the sign to the Neon Museum; it was in need of major restoration,” Jones said. “And it changed my life. … I said, ‘I want to do a concert to raise money to restore it.’”

She performed a solo concert, with all money raised going toward fixing the sign.

“I wanted to raise a few thousand, anything to help out,” Jones said. “It was me on violin telling stories and how it changed my life.”

The concert was a wild and unexpected success — raising $11,000 in ticket sales alone. Then, she found out attendees were making huge donations. In all, the benefit brought in $186,000, which significantly shortened the multiple-year fundraising and restoration project.

The sign was fully restored, and Violectric was asked to become a Performing Artist in Residence in Las Vegas. The band continues the role today and is based in both Vegas and Orlando.

It’s hard for Jones to pinpoint the pinnacle of her career so far, she said. The violinist has toured with members of Led Zeppelin; performed with artists such as Wayne Newton, Josh Groban and Andrea Bocelli; and she recently performed a solo sold-out show at Carnegie Hall. In 2022, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer declared Violectric the house band for the city of Orlando.

“I feel like we’re just always hitting a new (pinnacle) every day,” Jones said. “Every day there seems to be something new; just when you think it can’t get any better.”

She now has her own label and, as a producer, has her first signed artist whose album is in the works.

“Every day has a new goal, a new pinnacle, a new dream, and there’s still so much I want to do for sure,” Jones said.

As busy as she is, Jones continues to make time for her beloved Violectric, an electric strings band she started in 2008.

The group also includes Kaitlin Higby on violin; Yamilet Trujillo on cello; Paul Cuevas on bass; Carol Hensal on keyboard; Darrell Wahlberg on drums; Madison Harding on harp; and engineer Jerry Jones.

Violectric performs custom arrangements of classic and modern rock tunes — everything from Led Zeppelin to SIA, and the band has opened for major touring acts such as Coldplay, Sting, Adam Levine, The Killers and Ne-Yo.

Michelle Jones said Violectric is the only band in the world with wireless-controlled LED-lighted instruments.

Violectric is performing Saturday at the Winter Garden Music Festival, and Michelle Jones, a Horizon West resident, is excited to perform again in Winter Garden. Attendees can expect to hear music from Metallica, Rush, Ozzy Osborne and Queen, as well as other recognizable artists.

FOREIGNERS JOURNEY

Put the sounds of two iconic rock bands from the 1980s together, and what do you have? Foreigners Journey, a group that pays tribute to Foreigner and Journey with its take on classic power ballads such as “Feels Like the First Time,” “Hot Blooded,” “I Want to Know What Love Is,” “Separate Ways,” “Anyway You Want It” and “Don’t Stop Believing.”

Nailing the songs is frontman Keith Carmichael; rounding out the ’80s vibe are Peter Konstantakos on guitar, Carter MacDowell on bass, Antonio Exposito on keyboards and Luis “Brooks” Torres on drums.

THE SPAZMATICS

“Crack that whip!”

The Spazmatics capture the pop and fun of the ’80s — and pay homage to the film “Revenge of the Nerds” — by dressing up in costumes that include bowties, plaid pants, taped glasses and pocket protectors to sing a repertoire of pop-rock cover songs.

It is considered a chain band because there are versions in cities all around the country. The local Spazmatics has been playing together for eight years.

Lead singer Kurt Frohlich dreamed of being a performer ever since receiving his first KISS album at the age of 6. He has performed in various bands, as have his fellow Spazzies, including projects such as Riley’s LA Guns and Megaphone.

“We love putting out original music and reaching people with our songs,” Frohlich said.

The band has played the last two Winter Garden music festivals; guitarist Richard Dumas is a Winter Garden resident.

Who are their inspirations?

“Our parents and teachers,” Frohlich said. “Oh, yeah, and AC/DC.”

TOM JACKSON BAND

“I have been performing for more than 20 years and knew pretty early on that music was a passion of mine,” said Tom Jackson, lead singer of the Tom Jackson Band, whose brand of music is a new old-school country likened to a combination of Jason Aldean meets Charlie Daniels. “I started in singing competitions, both gospel and country music. With success in that, I started my first band, and I’ve never looked back.”

He is looking forward to returning to Winter Garden and its music festival.

“The downtown area is so full of charm, and the people really love the music,” he said. “The band and I have a lot of fun entertaining such a receptive crowd.”

Encouraged by fans of his music, Jackson also is inspired by his family, especially his wife and his mother.

“Their support is the backbone of my success,” he said. “We live the country life that I write about; faith and family and the outdoors inspire my music.”

Jackson has shared the stage with many big-name artists, including Aldean, Alan Jackson and Luke Bryan.

“A true highlight for me was performing with Dean Dillon and co-writing a song with him,” Jackson said. “For a songwriter, there is nothing better than playing music with a songwriting legend who has penned almost all of George Strait’s No. 1 songs.”

SHAMANIC ROOTZ

Shamanic Rootz is a reggae band that’s sure to get audience members on their feet Saturday. The artist Cacique is the face of the five-member band, which has been performing since 2017. Shamanic Rootz is based in Orlando, and several of the members hail from Jamaica, including Cacique, who moved to Central Florida about 10 years ago.

He has been interested in performing since he found a two-string guitar in Jamaica and started playing it, he said. His inspiration is reggae legend Bob Marley.

Shamanic Rootz played last year’s festival and is eager to return this year to spread its message and love of music.

That message?

“Peace, love and unity and enjoy each other’s company,” Cacique said.