READY FOR SOME JAZZ — Toni Dondzila, secretary, and Matthew Gallabrese, treasurer, are co-chairs of the Ohio Valley Music Guild’s “Downtown Jazz” event happening July 24 at Froehlich’s Classic Corner, 501 Washington St. and featuring Ava Preston, below, and her band. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. with dinner and entertainment beginning at 2 p.m. Tickets are $55 per person for the dinner and entertainment that includes a summer meal featuring chicken and salmon with a cash bar available. For information, contact Dondzila at (740) 317-3273 or order tickets on line at https://ovmusicguild.square.site. Preston is a vocalist and songwriter who enjoys writing and performing jazz, blues, pop/rock and indie songs as a solo artist and as a featured guest with various combos and bands throughout the Cleveland and Akron area. -- Janice Kiaski

STEUBENVILLE — For Toni Dondzila, the beat goes on, she says, when it comes to involvement in the Ohio Valley Music Guild.

Her father, the late Geno Morelli, was one of the founding members of the organization established in 2004, and while that family connection and sentiment keep her motivated, so, too, does the guild’s continued efforts to bring quality musical experiences close to home for area residents to experience and enjoy.

Proof of that comes July 24 when the guild offers the second of its three 2022 events — “Downtown Jazz” featuring singer/songwriter Ava Preston and her band of the Cleveland area. It will be held at Froehlich’s Classic Corner at 501 Washington St., Steubenville, with doors opening at 1:30 p.m. and dinner and entertainment starting at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $55 per person with a sit-down summer meal featuring chicken and salmon with brussel sprouts, spring salad and dessert. A cash bar will be available. Those planning to attend should RSVP by Thursday by contacting Dondzila at (740) 317-3273 or by ordering tickets online at https://ovmusicguild.square.site.

Preston is described as a vocalist and songwriter who enjoys writing and performing jazz, blues, pop/rock and indie songs as a solo artist and as a featured guest with various combos and bands throughout the Cleveland and Akron area.

The website for the 17-year-old from the Cleveland area, notes that “When performing her wide array of jazz and blues standards, audience members often describe her as an ‘Old Soul.’ She is a nine-time national Downbeat Student Music Award Winner — five times for Vocal Jazz Soloist 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019 2018 and four times for Blues/Pop/Rock Soloist in 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2018.

“An active singer in Northeast Ohio, she began her career singing at a jazz club when she was 10 years old. A few years later she was featured at a number of local venues, including the Bop Stop, BluJazz+, Nighttown, Beachland Ballroom, Brothers Lounge, the Standard, Tri-C JazzFest and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She has performed with the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, Dominick Farinacci, Swingbone, Djangophonique, the Joey Skoch Trio and is the lead singer for Swing Time Big Band, a 17-piece big band.”

Her website goes on to note that, on the national scene, Preston has performed at “Jazz at Lincoln Center — Dizzy’s Club (NYC), Small’s (NYC), Birdland Jazz Club (NYC), Bluebird Cafe (Nashville), Andy’s Jazz Cafe (Chicago) and the Monty Alexander Jazz Festival (Easton, Md.) Ava has been privileged to perform with such jazz greats as Christian McBride, Monty Alexander, John Clayton and Sullivan Fortner. In 2017, Ava was honored to sing for Wynton Marsalis, who said she had ‘a gift … a lot of talent and personality.’ In 2019, legendary band leader and composer Paul Shaffer watched Ava perform her original song ‘Toy Solder’ and said, ‘That was a terrific song. You have a big future ahead of you.’

“As an aspiring songwriter,” her website continues, “Ava has recorded a number of original songs that span jazz, indie and pop/rock. Steve Bogard, songwriter of 10 No. 1 country songs, recognized Ava’s songwriting ability when she was 11 years old at his songwriter’s camp and encouraged her to visit Nashville. Ava released her ballad ‘Toy Solder’ in 2020 and is releasing ‘Move Along’ and ‘Some Overdose’ in 2022. A passionate consumer all types of musical genres and styles, she also loves to sing in French, Spanish and Portuguese.”

A program featuring jazz is nothing new for the guild with such an offering typically a July staple, according to Dondzila, guild secretary, and Matthew Gallabrese, guild treasurer. The two are co-chairing the event where they credit Kathy Antinone, a former guild board member, with recommending the talent.

In considering venues for the show, Dondzila liked the idea of “Downtown Jazz” and supporting a downtown location that not only is where the guild has held planning meetings but offers comfort and convenience as well.

“It’s kind of ‘Love Where You Live,’ and it just seemed to work,” she said.

Gallabrese noted two of the guild’s last three events were held at Le Chateau Pier in Smithfield, owned by Todd Piergallini. “Todd does such a great job, and people loved it,” he said of the event.

“We kicked around a lot of options, and this (Froehlich’s) just seemed to make the most sense and to be just perfect for our organization,” Dondzila interjected.

“It’s good to come back to the city,” Gallabrese added.

Preston will perform predominantly jazz but also jazz contemporary, according to Gallabrese, as part of what promises to be a relaxing way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Being entertained, however, constitutes but one facet of the guild, which exists as well to generate money to award $1,000 annual scholarships to college students who have a local connection and who have declared to be in a music-related major field of study. The scholarships are offered to music students who have completed their freshman year in college.

Supporting the Grand Theater’s restoration with an annual gift of $1,000 — a more than 10-year tradition — has been another objective of the guild.

Planning for the next event already is on the minds of the co-chairs with November being the month for the guild to have its membership meeting and musical program.

“We have it down for Nov. 28, and we’re trying to do a Pittsburgh Ballet,” Dondzila said. “The venue will be the new Indian Creek High School auditorium where we hope to bring back the Nutcracker Ballet that the late Anita Jackson of the guild brought years ago,” she said, referring to what was a well-received event at St. Florian Hall.

“It’s not technically finalized, but that’s the goal,” Gallabrese added of a performance the two said tied in to Steubenville Nutcracker Village theme come the holiday.

Sponsors to help make that performance happen are welcomed.

So are new members to the guild, the two said.

New members are welcome to join the guild with the annual membership fee being $20, although other donor membership levels are available, from $50 on up. Checks can be made payable to the Ohio Valley Music Guild and mailed to the guild at P.O. Box 2158, Wintersville OH 43953.

“We’re crawling our way back from COVID,” Dondzila said of a struggle not unfamiliar to other organizations.

According to the program book from the April event, the guild has been providing quality events and entertainment, arts and culture preservation and music scholarships to many throughout the Ohio Valley for more than 17 years.

The guild’s Facebook page acknowledges the history of the guild, noting, “In 2003, a group of musically minded people in Steubenville brought in a New York City impresario with local connections to produce and stage ‘Madame Butterfly,’ an opera by Puccini. The audience at Steubenville High School loved it. The next year (2004) they staged an equally wonderful opera, ‘LaBoheme’ also by Puccini featuring an extraordinary lead tenor from the Colon opera in Brazil.

“Based on early efforts, a committee was then formed in November 2004, a president was elected and commitments were made to develop an opera guild. Their goals were to bring opera and good music to the Upper Ohio Valley area by raising funds to support the arts through membership drives, grant requests, donation solicitations and fund-raising events.

“From a handful of music devotees at our first meeting in November 2004 we have since grown to more than 100 members with more members being added on a regular basis.”

The nonprofit altered its name later to clarify that its programs weren’t exclusive to opera offerings.

The guild has brought more than 50 performances to the Ohio Valley through the years, some of them being Act II of the “Nutcracker Ballet” by the Pittsburgh Ballet performers; a swing band performance with dance instructors; opera, Broadway and jazz singers and ensembles; and a steel drum orchestra.

Guild sponsors include Hauser Furniture, R.E. Saxon of Weirton and First Choice America with in-kind gifts from Microsoft and Google for Nonprofits program.

Aside from Dondzila and Matthew Gallabrese, guild officers are Ross Gallabrese, acting president, and Judi Gaynor, past president. Board members are Dottie Bossert, Carlotta Jordan, Liz Morelli, Joyce Ryan-Orlando and Roxanne Matysiak.