Music

Catch a breakdown of some of the best free acts performing during Musikfest 2024 tonight on PBS39. The 30-minute program airs at 5:30 p.m. and again at 11:30 p.m. It features ArtsQuest's Patrick Brogan and LehighValleyNews.com's John J. Moser.

Joe Russo's Almost Dead is led by Russo, who was drummer in the Grateful Dead splinter group Furthur with Dead guitarist Bob Weir and bassist Phil Lesh.

There will be two “Twist & Shout” Musikfest Sunday Brunches in Hotel Bethlehem's Grand Ballroom — Aug. 4 and Aug. 11.

Wheatus, best known for its 2000 single “Teenage Dirtbag,” will perform at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 22 in Musikfest Cafe at ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks, it was announced.

The celebration of the Isla del Encanto in Allentown was organized by the Puertorrican Culture Preservation and held on Sunday, July 28.

Musikfest 2024 begins with a preview night on Thursday. The 11-day festival will feature more than 422 artists and more than 500 concerts. Headliners include Greta Van Fleet, ZZ Top, Ludacris and Jowell & Randy.

College Hill PorchFest, a celebration of music and community across the Easton neighborhood, will return in September, with applications for performers and porches being accepted until July 31.

Tickets for the 50 shows in the new season go on sale to theater members at 10 a.m. Aug. 1 and to the public at 10 a.m. Aug. 8 at www.statetheatre.org, or at the box office at 453 Northampton St., Easton.

Erica Silver, a music teacher with the Allentown School District, is the youth chorale's newest conductor and Alaina Swartz is the new director of education and community engagement.

Diana Ross, who with The Supremes had a dozen No. 1 hits in the 1960s, then a half dozen more as a solo artist in the 1970s and ’80s, will perform at the center at 8 p.m. Oct. 18.

The band retains lead singer Ed Kowalczyk from its classic lineup, with new members guitarist Zak Loy, drummer Robin Diaz and bassist Chris Heerlein.

Allentown native and three-time Grammy Award-nominated jazz singer, Denise Donatelli, recalls how the music of legendary composer Burt Bacharach she first heard as a teenager inspired her to record an album of his songs. Bacharach died Wednesday at age 94.

Feb. 12 is the Super Bowl Sunday of 2023. Here are some watch parties we've picked for you to enjoy in the Lehigh Valley.

A 55,000-square-foot, five-story, 140-room hotel, with a bar and restaurant, and a 30,000-square-foot, two-story entertainment center are being proposed for Hamilton Street in Allentown.

Concerts on the Grange, a two-day music festival featuring tribute acts portraying Elton John, Billy Joel, The Doors and The Grateful Dead, will be May 12-13.

ArtsQuest, the organization that annually presents Musikfest in Bethlehem, has announced it will offer a music festival and other events in Upper Macungie Township this summer.

After 50 years in business at Westgate Mall in Bethlehem, Hawk Music must vacate its location due to planned renovations at the mall.

Tyler Hubbard, who with partner Brian Kelly as Florida Georgia Line had more than 20 No. 1 hits, will perform on Aug. 31.

Damn the Torpedoes will play at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 27 at Musikfest Cafe at SteelStacks in Bethlehem and play a good number of songs from the album "Wildflowers."

Jerry Blavat was known as “The Geator” during an eight-decade career as one of the Philadelphia-area’s best known disc jockeys and who had strong ties to the Lehigh Valley.

Once a nationally touring musician, the alt-folk artist found a home and contentment here in the Lehigh Valley's original music scene, which he said supports him and other artists like no other outside major cities. His new show traces his path.

The symphony is asking composers in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding area to submit works for string quartet or any combination of traditional string quartet instruments.