May 01 Wednesday
Every Wednesday, join us for relaxed acoustic play at the Old Art Building. Share techniques, talents and good vibes. We play pop, blues, rock, jazz, bluegrass ... All levels of ability are welcome. Knowledge of basic chords is helpful. And of course, you are more than welcome to just hang out and listen. Jam session is hosted by Jim Redmond. Jim supplies lyrics and chords on large screen video so everybody can easily join and jam along.
Occasionally lessons are thrown in—Jim’s commentary about the history of a song and some music theory. Shared musical knowledge and songs by attendees add to the fun. Every session begins with “The Carp River Blues” and ends with “Sportin’ Life Blues”.
For questions or concerns, contact Jim Redmond directly at 720-965-0231
May 02 Thursday
The band’s core and founders Mike Merenda & Ruth Ungar write songs to heal hearts and rouse minds. They have recorded and performed together for two decades, as the duo Mike + Ruthy and with The Mammals. They make their home in the lush Hudson River Valley of New York where they host a thriving community folk festival called The Hoot.
This show will take place in the home of Paul and Nancy Brown. Feel free to bring your own beverage and snacks. Tickets for this show are $30.00 and are very limited.
Gopherwood recommends you get your tickets early.
May 05 Sunday
The Northern Michigan Brass Band (NMiBB) will present a concert at 3:00 P.M. on Sunday, May 5, in the Great Lakes Center for the Arts at Bay Harbor in Petoskey. Continuing their long-standing tradition of programming something for everyone, this 30-piece, British-style brass band will perform an eclectic mix of traditional brass band classics, marches, transcriptions, contemporary contest pieces, pop and jazz. The narrator for this program will be Judy Wagley from CMU Public Media.
The concert will begin with "Fanfare for the Vienna Philharmonic" written in 1924 by Richard Strauss to celebrate the famous orchestra’s 40th anniversary, followed by "Colonial Song" by Percy Grainger, one of his most original pieces. The program will continue with three selections from "Pineapple Poll," a comic ballet by Charles Mackerras based on the music of Gilbert and Sullivan, "Symphonic Concert March" by G. Bonelli and the "March for Archduke Albrecht" by the Austro-Hungarian composer, Karl Komzák. The second half of the program will open with "Farewell to a Slavic Woman," a pre-revolution patriotic Russian march by Vasily Agapkin followed by "Elton John in Concert," a medley of some of his biggest hits including Nikita, Blue Eyes and Don’t Go Breaking My Heart. Next, as a tribute to the big band swing era of the 1930’s, NMiBB’s own Bob Bellairs will be featured as the drummer on Louis Prima’s "Sing Sing Sing." Of course, no brass band concert would be complete without at least one traditional American march, and this time the band will close the program with "The Chimes of Liberty" by Edwin Franko Goldman.
May 08 Wednesday
May 09 Thursday
Benzie Central Middle School, High School, Symphonic, and Jazz bands will perform their spring concert. Each band plays 3 songs. Free admission.
May 15 Wednesday
May 17 Friday
St. Andrews Presbyterian Church “Arts on the Hill” Ministry Team is happy to announce the first concert of the 2024 season at the church (8190 Lincoln Road, Beulah, Michigan). These programs are planned in memory of and honoring Rev. Bob McQuilkin. Northwest Michigan College’s “Canticum Novum” performs “Music from Around the World” on Friday, May 17th at 7:30 p.m. A free will offering will be taken to support future Arts on the Hill events and cover concert costs. Free and ample parking.
Jeff Cobb, Coral Director at Central Methodist Church in Traverse City and Director of music programs and choirs at the College says of the Canticum Novum Ensemble , “ I think for a lot of us, we long for those moments when we get the chills or we get that tingly feeling. I think when you’ve got a group of people who really connect..that’s when those magical moments happen.”
Come to connect and be part of the magical moments!
May 18 Saturday
Coming to Gopherwood Concerts, on May 18 th (rescheduled from March 9 th ) , Moss Manor is Seth Bernard, Michael Dause, and Dan Rickabusa, Patrick Booth, and Justin Avdek a group of veteran professional musicians from various walks of life, drawn together by the isolation of a global pandemic and their own desire to work with each other in a project that became a bit more enduring than they might have first envisioned. They hit the Gopherwood Stage on May 18 th at 7:00 pm
Atmospheric, harmonious, and in tune with a world of nature, their music is both comfortable and engaging. Multi-instrumentalism reigns to create a vital soundscape that promises to serve the respected Gopherwood listening audience well.
May 22 Wednesday
May 25 Saturday
Grow Benzie is hosting a special evening of music featuring Ruth and Max Bloomquist. Making music together since they met in 1975, Ruth and Max immersed themselves in folk, bluegrass, country, singer songwriter, and other acoustic genres to create a style of their own. Take part in a springtime celebration of song with “veritable folk music legends in Michigan, captivating audiences with their songs, their harmonies and their folk-infused charm” this May at the Grow Benzie Event Center.
This event is sponsored by Connemara Concerts with support from WNMC 90.7 FM and Underwritten by McMillen's Custom Framing