Smiley LIVE! presents Cougar Estrada

Free Live Concert! Smiley LIVE! is a series of monthly free concerts featuring a variety of musical genres sponsored by the A.K. Smiley Public Library. Its family-friendly, with a Q&A segment where young and old alike can ask the performers questions about their music, their performance, and anything else they may be curious about. Cougar plays piano, composes, produces, and records for others as well as releases his own albums, which can be found at CougarRecords.com. Cougar began private drum studies at the age of 13, with renowned jazz drummer from Kansas City, MO, Frank Butler (who recorded with Ben Webster, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Art Pepper, Lou Rawls, Gerald Wilson among others.) By age 14, Cougar was playing professionally with local musicians in Ventura County, CA. Later, he opened and co-headlined with jazz aficionados such as Stan Getz, Dave Brubeck, Les McCann,Gato Barbieri, Lalo Schifrin, Chic Corea. Cougar's early music education included courses at Oxnard College, Moorpark College, and Dick Grove School of Music (Los Angeles, CA.) where he studied piano, melody,harmony, ear training, sight-reading, rhythmic dictation, arranging,composition, percussion, and big band drumming. "Jazz is where I started my learning, although I've been fortunate to play in different musical situations...Jazz is where I feel I'm at my best."

• Wed. 9/18 7 - 8pm
• More info on free concerts