Fort Mose Jazz & Blues Series 2022: Count Basie Orchestra

The St. Augustine Amphitheatre has joined with Fort Mose Historic State Park to present a series of 6 award-winning jazz and blues artists to appear over three weeks in honor of the historic and cultural significance of Fort Mose. On Friday, February 18, 2022 at 7:00 p.m., the legendary Count Basis Orchestra will perform.

Now directed by Scotty Barnhart, The Count Basie Orchestra has won 18 Grammy Awards, performed worldwide and in movies and televisions shows, and at all major jazz festivals. Now with eighteen members, the Count Basie Orchestra continues playing the shouting and stomping blues and moving swing that was started by Count Basie when he formed his orchestra in 1935. 

The site of the Fort Mose Historic State Park is America's first legally-sanction settlement of free Africans, and was a safe destination for escaped slaves during the early years of the Underground Railroad. This series is part of the County's celebration of Black History Month and proceeds of this series will help fund the construction of a representation of the original Fort Mose, which was destroyed in 1740 during the Battle of Bloody Mose.

The Fort Mose Jazz & Blues Series is jointly produced by the Fort Mose Historical Society, the St. Johns County Cultural Events Division — which includes the St. Augustine Amphitheatre and the Ponte Vedra Concert Hall, the St. Johns County Tourist Development Council, the St. Johns Cultural Council, and Flying Saucer Presents.

Performer: Count Basie Orchestra

When: Friday, February 18, 2022 at 7:00 p.m. The doors open at 6:00 p.m.

Admission: Tickets range from $65.00 to $115.00. To purchase tickets, go here.

Where:Fort Mose Historic State Park, 15 Fort Mose Trail. For more information, go here.