Tunes of acoustic music with touches of bluegrass sound filled Auburn Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on Friday night, August 21, as part of the Sundilla Concert Series. Seats were filled by 7:30 p.m. when Act of Congress, a Birmingham-based band, took the stage.
Bailey Jones, president of the series, said approximately 162 people lined the auditorium to watch the performance. He said they average about 80 viewers per show.
"The crowd just gets bigger and bigger every time they come, and I think we've about maxed out," Jones said. "I don't know how we can cram more people in here."
Act of Congress consists of four musicians: Chris Griffin on guitar, Connie Skellie playing violin, mandolin player Adam Wright and upright bass player Tim Carroll.
Griffin said the band started 10 years ago when he and Wright met at Montevallo and they both met Skellie and Carroll in recording studios.
Act of Congress members are U.S. cultural ambassadors, meaning they travel the world on tour. The band returned to the United States two weeks ago from a 10-day trip to Jordan. They have also been to Liberia, West Africa and the Middle East twice.
Griffin said they received a random email about a competition in St. Louis, Missouri. He said they auditioned for a panel of judges and won allowing them to tour Southeast Asia for six weeks in 2012 beginning their ambassadorship.
Wright said while in Jordan they rode camels.
"It's a beautiful place, very different than here," Wright said.
Griffin said Israel was outside their hotel in one of the cities, adding history to their trip.
"It's kind of the hot bed of what's happening in the middle east right now, like Iraq and Syria are right on the border," Griffin said. "Just to be so close to all the things that you hear about on the news, but the people were like just so awesome and gracious to us."
Penny McCoy has been on the board of the Sundilla Concert Series since October. She said she hopes Act of Congress comes back next year.
"Love them," McCoy said. "First time and they're great. I like their sound, but everyone's different."
According to McCoy, Sundilla has a huge following and "everybody wants to play here."
Jones said Sundilla operates on volunteer-work and the series started in 1993. He said he has been president since 2003.
The Sundilla Concert Series usually organizes 12 concerts per year and Jones said the bands contact him interested in performing.
Act of Congress first performed at Sundilla in 2011. Now, Jones said they aim to have them back every other year.
"We are kind of the place where acts who aren't going to play anywhere else around here, will come and play here," Jones said. "That's one of the reasons we don't do a lot of the local stuff. We want to be the place where the people you can't see around town come."
Lipbone Redding will be playing the next concert Thursday, Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the AUUF.
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