08/19/2026
Sunday evening at the Central Illinois Jazz Society at Trailside Event Center was one of those nights where you could feel the music in the room🎶🎶🎶
The house band set the stage with some smoking-hot jazz, and then it was time Pippi and Daniel Music and the Experience🔥🔥🔥
Leading The Experience is Daniel L Leahy, the musical professor in every sense of the word. From the way he dresses to the way he walks into a room, there is an unmistakable presence about him. At the helm, he doesn't simply play the piano, he seems to hear what is unseen, making subtle changes within the group and shaping the music as it unfolds. A savant at the keys, Daniel is an extraordinary pianist, a musical genius, and the professor who somehow hears the lesson before the rest of us even know it's being taught🎹🎹🎹
Alongside him are
Dick Mathias on sax🎷🎷🎷
David Sherrard on drums🥁🥁🥁
Dave Plunk on bass🎸🎸🎸
Scott Grulke on percussion🪘🪘🪘
each bringing their own sound, personality and artistry, yet together creating something that feels like one living, breathing piece of music🎼🎼🎼
Then come the featured vocalists...
Carol Lattner Maloney bringing all the glam and class, with a voice that always finds a way to touch your heart💖💖💖
Bobby Dillard with a voice that seems to come straight from his soul and somehow reaches right into yours⚡️⚡️⚡️
Becky Fleisher flirty, fun and beautiful, with a voice that makes you want to get up and dance💃💃💃
Missing from the evening was the lovely Lora Leahy Wright but she'll be joining them for the next concert🌸🌸🌸
And then there is Pippi Ardennia, what can you say❓❓❓
She is simply everything.✨✨✨
She moves through the room with this robust, joyful energy that she gives freely to everyone around her. She doesn't just perform for an audience; she moves through it, connecting along the way. A smile, a glance, a gentle touch—and for that moment, somehow, she makes you feel like you are seen.
Her passion is contagious, her presence fills the room, and there is something beautifully generous about the way she shares herself through her music.
She doesn't simply bring the energy to the room.
She brings the room into The Experience❣️❣️❣️
I hope as you look through these photographs, you can feel a little of what it was like to be there, the music, the personalities, the connection, the laughter and the sheer joy filling that room💖💖💖
And if these photos leave you wanting your own dose of Pippi and Daniel and The Experience, you won't have to wait long.
😍😍😍SHOW UP😍😍😍
🎶August 22 at 5:30 PM🎶
Polyrhythms Bill Bell Heritage Jazz Festival
MLK Park • Rock Island
Come get your fix🎵🎵🎵
Photos by Moments by Hart Photography
