Music lovers can prick up their ears this weekend and hear something they like — the Island will boast eight separate music events in a three-night span, and many of the shows are free.
There will be solo acoustic café shows, a folk choir performance, local bands and a flute and percussion workshop and performance at the Blue Heron.
A rollicking celebration of Irish music and poetry is also on tap at Red Bicycle Bistro & Sushi as part of the Vashon Poetry Fest, and another fest event at “O” will feature devotional music of the Middle East.
With so many choices, why stay home?
Clap along with the Free Range Choir
Vashon’s Free Range Folk Choir will present a concert at 7 p.m. Friday, May 22, at the Methodist Church. Under the direction of Shane Jewell, the choir will perform songs from the Republic of Georgia, South Africa, Bulgaria, medieval France and the American folk tradition. Admission is free; donations are welcome. For information, call Jewell at 463-0778 or e-mail shanefiddle@gmail.com.
Resonate at the Red Bike
The instrumental ensemble Resonance will debut music from its new album, “New World Music,” at a CD release party at 8:30 p.m. Friday, May 22, at Red Bicycle Bistro & Sushi.
The performance is free and will be an all-ages event until 11 p.m, when the venue is reserved for ages 21 and older only.
Resonance includes Islanders Ken Jacobsen on guitar and cello; Chip Lamason on mandolin, mando-cello and guitar; Jason Everett on basses, Carolyn Candy on flutes and Fletcher Andrews on drums and percussion.
The band plays mostly original compositions.
“When we compose, we draw our inspirations from musicians and traditions from around the world, and often combine the tones and rhythms of flamenco, Middle Eastern, Indian and Eastern European styles with the more American styles of funk and jazz,” said Everett.
Resonance has played venues including Strawberry Festival, the first annual Vashon Music Festival and the Sacred World Music Festival.
The band’s Web site is www.resonancemusic.info.
Discover wisdom in ancient music
“Knocking at the Gate: Ecstatic Poetry and Persian Music,” a Vashon Poetry Fest event, will take place at 7 p.m. Friday, May 22, at “O.”
Author and mythologist Michael Meade will be joined by the Qadim Ensemble, which offers devotional music of the Middle East. The group celebrates the spiritual heritage found in Arabic, Jewish, Turkish Sufi, Greek and Moroccan music.
Tickets, $12, are available at Vashon Bookshop, www.mosaicvoices.org and at the door.
Find a flute master at the Blue Heron
Flute master Gary Stroutsos and guest percussionist David Revelli will perform at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 23, at the Blue Heron Art Center.
Stroutsos has a background in jazz, Afro-Cuban and Native American flute. Concert-goers can expect a diverse array of flute stylings, including American Indian, Chinese bamboo xiao and dizi, contemporary clay aerophones, silver alto and C concert flutes.
Revelli plays frame drums, clay pot Udu drums and tabla.
Tickets for the performance are $12 for VAA members, seniors and students; general admission.
is $14. Children ages 12 and under will be admitted free.
Stroutsos will also lead a flute workshop, “Winds of Honor,” open to all ages and levels, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 23, at the Blue Heron. To register, call 463-5131 or visit www.vashonalliedarts.org. Class participants will receive a free concert ticket.
Ride the Bike to the Emerald Isle
Vashon Poetry Fest will present “Raising the Word in Song and Drink: Irish Poetry and Song,” at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 23, at Red Bicycle Bistro & Sushi.
Organizers described the event as a “rollicking evening” that will feature award-winning Irish poet Tony Curtis, Washington state’s poet laureate Samuel Green, storyteller and mythologist Michael Meade and renowned fiddle and guitar player Randal Bays.
“The real heart and soul of Irish music is the small session in a house or pub, just a few players gathered together for some tunes and fun,” said Bays. “You start to play, and the next thing you know, the sun is coming up. That’s the feeling I try to recreate in my concerts.”
Admission is free. All ages may attend until 11 p.m., when the event is for ages 21 and older only.
Relax with a New Age guitarist
Damon Buxton will perform a free concert at Café Luna from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday, May 23.
Buxton is an acoustic guitarist and composer working in the tradition of the Windham Hill artists. His latest release, “Forgiving Dreams,” was produced by Will Ackerman, Windam Hill’s founder.
Critic R.J. Lannan wrote in the New Age Reporter, “Like a writer who speaks volumes with a few words, Buxton’s sparse style shouts to the rooftops that the musical voice you hear is one to be reckoned with.” For more information, see www.damonbuxton.com.
Take the family to a Sunday show
The Vashon band Poultry in Motion will perform a free all-ages show at Red Bicycle Bistro and Sushi at 7:30 p.m Sunday, May 24.
