The Ulster County Italian American Foundation had a big party at the marina, on Rondout Creek, in Kingston, New York, to celebrate Columbus Day. We also call it, with respect, Indigenous Peoples’ Day.

This celebration of pride brought out the boaters from Palm Beach, Florida to Newport, Rhode Island, and the flavor was gloriously Italian. My wife and I didn’t need our umbrella as the only precipitation was “Irish Rain” — just a drizzle — and it started to clear after 3 p.m. Everybody was breathing the fresh air in Kingston and enjoying the free party.

We arrived at the bandstand in Gallo Park just in time to see Vanessa Racci checking the sound with her all-star band. Vanessa, we discovered, sings just as good as she looks, which is a great combination. She has a warm, embracing alto voice, a hypnotic vibrato and a star’s command of the stage. With great respect to her Italian musical heritage, she honored the contributions of Italians to our indigenous musical idiom, which most people call jazz.

Vanessa paid homage to the strong Italian roots in American music, going back to the 19th-century traditional Italian music, advancing the chronology to spotlight on the great pop stars that so many senior citizens among us grew up admiring. Who knew that Connie Francis’s name was Concetta Maria Franconero? Did you know that Bobby Darin’s name was Walden Robert Cassotto?

We were treated to jazzy versions of “Where the Boys Are” and “Beyond the Sea.” Then the band played Louis Prima’s “Sunday Kind of Love,” which was perfect for our Sunday afternoon concert.

Great music in Kingston is not unusual, but to stumble into an event like this is what you might expect in New Orleans. It says a lot about Kingston as a cultural hub for the Hudson Valley.

Individual solos by Sam Dillon on sax and Fred Maxwell on trumpet, were scorching. As an ensemble, the musicians — rounding out the band was Glafkos Kontemeniotis, keyboard and arrangements; Marcus McLauren, bass; and Al Vester Garnett, drums — left us wanting more than time would allow. They deserve another big round of applause and let’s wish for a return engagement.

For more information about Vanessa, email vanessa@vanessasings.com