Music

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.

ArtsQuest, in partnership with Trans-Bridge Lines and Penn State University, on Monday announced a new satellite parking lot will be established at Penn State Lehigh Valley.

The opening night (the fest continues 2-11 p.m. today) offered New York gospel-blues trio The Harlem Gospel Travelers as headliners, and they offered an enthusiastic set. But it was some of the supporting acts that elevated the experience.

Cheap Trick, which was to be the opener for a show by rock band Heart, was announced Friday as the replacement for Heart as grandstand opening-night headliner at 7 p.m. Aug. 28. It will be joined for the show by another 1970s hit rock group — Blue Oyster Cult, best known for its 1976 hit "(Don't Fear) The Reaper."

It's been two weeks since rock band Heart canceled its opening-night headline concert at Allentown Fair, and it looks like the fair is set to announce a replacement.

For the first time, the two-day festival will feature a barbecue competition, along with 11 blues performers. It will take place Friday, July 19 and Saturday, July 20 at SteelStacks.

Badfish: A Tribute to Sublime, will perform at 7 p.m. Sunday, June 11. The band recreates the music of late 1990s ska-punk godfathers Sublime.

Local H, best known for its 1996 Top 5 Modern Rock hit "Bound for the Floor," will take the stage before Live at 7 p.m. Thursday, June 1.

Accessorize your festing togs with a mug.

Muhlenberg College is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its radio station with a special concert on Thursday, May 4 at the Saengerbund.

The free summer concerts series returns in Bethlehem. The weekly events showcase a variety of genres and regional musicians every Thursday through July 20.

G-Eazy will headline Musikfest's main Steel Stage at the massive music festival in downtown and South Side Bethlehem at 7 p.m. Aug. 5.

Highlights among the nearly 50 concerts in the Levitt Pavillion's 13th season include gold-selling punk rockers The Ataris, top blues singer/saxophone player Vanessa Collier, jazz-pop singer Morgan James, Cincinnati indie-rockers Motherfolk and Grammy Award-winning Latin rock-fusion band La Santa Cecelia.

The outdoor block party has been put off this year due to the rain and cold temperatures.

Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr. has announced a set of pop-up festivals and other outdoor events scheduled throughout the city during spring and summer. The free events will feature free food, drinks and entertainment for all.

Irish singer and comedian Seamus Kennedy and singer Gerry Timlin will perform in the same show at 7 p.m. on June 22 in Moravian College’s Foy Hall.

Local musicians submitted videos from their new singles in hopes of winning the contest.

The festival features free outdoor concerts on Fridays and a special presentation of Bach's Mass in B Minor on Saturdays.