10 must-see shows at Savannah Music Festival

With music that covers a wide range of styles — from jazz and country to classical and Zydeco and everything in between — the Savannah Music Festival does a lot of different things, and even better: it does them all well. The festival has been steadily growing in size since its inception in 1989, and the event now sprawls over three weekends, March 24-April 9, hosting more than 92 ticketed concerts and other events along the way. Here are our picks for the top don't-miss performances at this year's fest.

Ry Cooder, Ricky Skaggs, Sharon White

Bluegrass legend Ricky Skaggs and his wife of 33 years, vocalist Sharon White, join forces with renowned guitarist Ry Cooder for a one night concert at the Savannah Music Festival. The performance promises to be an unforgettable journey into the heart of country, blues, bluegrass and gospel. A critic for The New York Times recently called a performance by the virtuosic trio a “rare, joyous occasion.” (7:30 p.m. March 30, Lucas Theatre for the Arts, $40-80)

Rhiannon Giddens/Mokoomba

We love the sound of this inventive double-bill. First up is vocalist Rhiannon Giddens, who appeared at the Savannah Music Festival in 2008 fronting the Grammy-winning string band the Carolina Chocolate Drops. The talented singer and multi-instrumentalist, who grew up in North Carolina and trained in opera at Oberlin Conservatory, has broken out on her own now with a classic sound that stays firmly rooted in old-school folk and the American vocal tradition. Giddens is followed by the spirited sounds of Zimbabwean pop ensemble Mokoomba. (5 p.m. April 8, Ships of the Sea North Garden, $40)

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

There are a lot of acts nowadays that go for a “retro” feel, but almost all of them could stand to learn a thing or two from Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, who have been working a throwback vibe for more than 20 years and have been nailing it for just as long. Recreating the sounds of mid-’60s and ’70s funk and soul, the group is incredibly convincing. Listening to one of their albums you’d almost swear it’s from the golden age. But the musicians are never academic or clinical in their reverent soul revival. Nor is it an empty pose. The music, and their approach to it. is always thoroughly fun, and that funk is undeniably the genuine kind. (7:30 p.m. April 4, Lucas Theatre for the Arts, $32-72)

The Complete Beethoven Trios

Classical music fans are usually completists. A quick look at the music collection of any fan will confirm this fact. And when the opportunity arises to hear “all” of something played by the very best there is, we’re totally there. Husband and wife team and co-Artistic directors of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han, will be joined on stage by violinist Philip Setzer for a two-night program consisting of the complete Beethoven piano trios. The epic musical journey will unfold in the stately and evocative setting of the Trinity United Methodist Church, one of Savannah’s oldest and most elegant churches. (6 p.m. March 30 and 6 p.m. March 31, Trinity United Methodist Church, $57 per concert)

Cajun & Zydeco Dance Party

Many of SMF’s events feature an admirably hushed focus on the music itself. Some of the classical concerts, for instance, take place in Savannah’s historic, regal and acoustically splendid churches. But other events are more in the “holler, leap out of your seat and shake that thing” tradition. If the latter sounds more your speed, you’d do well to check out the Cajun and Zydeco Dance Party. The evening, set in a gorgeous, intimate courtyard at Savannah’s old and charming Ships of the Sea Museum, features Grammy-winning Cajun accordionist Steve Riley backed by his Mamou Playboys as well as the rootsy Zydeco sounds of Jeffery Broussard and his Creole Cowboys. If this concert doesn’t get you moving, nothing will. (5 p.m. March 25, Ships of the Sea North Garden, $40)

Rokia Traoré

Even without singing, Malian singer Rokia Traoré is pretty stunning, with her shaved head, austere style and arresting beauty. But the thing is: Traoré does sing and what comes out is shimmeringly gorgeous, haunting, unforgettable music. With six albums under her belt, the 42-year-old singer-songwriter is a superstar in her native country. Her voice is smooth and gentle, the grooves delicate but deep. Her music is inflected with the rhythms of West Africa, making use of traditional instruments like the n’goni, and kora, but also bearing equally strong influences from jazz, classical and pop, often featuring electric bass and acoustic guitar. Traoré is a descendant of Malian nobility, the Bamana, who had traditional prohibitions against singing and making music. Like the singer herself, the music is a beautiful set of contradictions, quietly finding a subtle balance between tradition and innovation, the deeply personal and the universal. (6 p.m. March 26, Trustees Theater, $27-57)

Marc Broussard/Paul Thorn Band

When a professional boxer picks up a guitar, you wouldn’t expect the results to be anything special. But Thorn, a former Mid-South Middleweight Champion, has had an extraordinary performing career spanning nearly two decades in music. In a wide-ranging concert, Thorn and his band deliver the hard-hitting punches of American rock coupled with some softer blows of soulful, acoustic blues. The group appears with popular Southern soul singer Marc Broussard. (5:30 and 8:30 p.m. March 24, Ships of the Sea North Garden, $40)

Pericles: Recomposed

The mash-up of elements (and the talent on hand) for this one make us super-curious. The English Shakespeare ensemble Passion in Practice, best-known for their authentic and historically accurate approach to Shakespeare’s work, will perform the bard’s 1608 “Tragedy of Pericles” underscored by Max Richter’s popular reworking of Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons.” The music will be performed by no less than the great l’arte del mondo, a German ensemble which likewise strives for historical accuracy in its performances of early classical and Baroque works. And to top things off, the whole endeavor is led by superstar British violinist and music director Daniel Hope. An unusual and not-to-be-missed mixture of music and theater featuring some of the best in the field. (6 p.m. April 5, Lucas Theatre for the Arts, $45)

Within Our Gates

Waynesboro, Georgia native, trombonist and composer Wycliffe Gordon has created a score for the silent film "Within Our Gates," the oldest known movie by an African-American director. Filmmaker Oscar Michaux's 1920 film, made five years after D.W. Griffith's infamous "Birth of a Nation," tells the story of an African-American woman who travels to the North to raise money for an impoverished black school in the Deep South, confronting the racism and violence that shaped her family history and the country itself on her journey. The screening at the Savannah Music Festival, along with a live performance of Gordon's score from a 19-piece jazz orchestra, will only be the second time Gordon's work has been performed with the film. And the show comes with a little bonus: The program opens with performances from the top three finalists from the Savannah Music Festival's Swing Central, an intensive workshop for the best high school jazz bands in the country in which the students are schooled by top musicians visiting the festival. (7 p.m. April 1, Lucas Theatre for the Arts, $27-57)

Dwight Yoakam

Country music superstar Dwight Yoakam kicks off the second weekend of the Savannah Music Festival, taking to the stage of the Johnny Mercer Theatre at the Savannah Civic Center on March 31. There are lots of superlatives we can think of to use, but in some ways, the numbers speak for themselves: 25 million albums sold (12 gold and nine platinum). Fifteen Grammy nominations. Five Billboard No. 1 Albums and more than 30 charting singles. We’re pretty certain that’s gonna be one great show. (7:30 p.m. March 31, Johnny Mercer Theater, $37-80)