The following is a guest post by Claudia Morales, Music Division
THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS and WASHINGTON PERFORMING ARTS PRESENT
FREE SUMMER CONCERTS ON THE LAWN
Thursday evenings at 7pm, July 11 through August 15
Bring your dancing moves because our Concert Series is going to make you swing!
The Library of Congress and Washington Performing Arts present a taste of the local D.C music scene. This year’s lineup promises to energize audiences of all ages inviting them to dance to the incredible sounds of jazz, go-go, Latin folk music, salsa, West African music, and hip hop. Join us for a great miniseries: the Brent Birckhead Quartet, Latin folk band Elena & Los Fulanos, animé-inspired and hip-hop artists Shing02 and Fat Jon, D.C.’s hometown band ENTATY Music, KanKouran West African Dance Company and salsa and jazz artist, Verny Varela.
If you think a free summer concert is great, we have a terrific package to offer… LOC Summer Movies on the Lawn. Following each of our concerts, LOC will present a screening of an iconic film from the Library’s National Film Registry. This series is being presented as part of the Library’s 2019 programming theme, explore America’s changemakers.
Kids, we have a special treat for you! The series kicks off with Walt Disney’s first live-action movie to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture, Mary Poppins and ends with Jurassic Park. So bring the entire family and enjoy a great evening at the Library of Congress.
Find us on the north lawn of the Library’s Thomas Jefferson Building. Enjoy a fun Thursday evening at an incredible location. Come early! Spots on the lawn fill up fast. Bring a blanket, picnic and great company, the rest is on us.
You can register online to receive updates, but tickets are not required. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, July 11, 7pm: Brent Birckhead Quartet
Saxophonist Brent Birckhead is a “riveting” improviser (New York Times), award-winning soloist, bandleader and composer with a drive for creative risk and a deep respect for legacy. While studying at Howard University, he won Downbeat magazine’s Student Music Award for best blues/pop/rock soloist. His playing demonstrates an impressive mastery of styles—funk, r & b, and go-go in addition to mainstream jazz—honed in major D.C. groups like the Bohemian Caverns Orchestra and the Chuck Brown Band. Birckhead has performed and toured with a starry roster of legendary artists, among them Lauryn Hill, Nas, Dave Chapelle, Wale, Eric Benét, and many more. Recent appearances with his band have included stops at prestigious venues including the Blue Note, Hollywood Bowl, Merriweather Post Pavilion, and Billboard Tokyo and Osaka. Currently he is a member of the faculty at Morgan State University.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, July 18, 7pm: Elena & Los Fulanos
Elena & Los Fulanos is a WAMMIE-nominated DC-based Latin folk band, mixing original tunes with covers that share perspectives of Latinx identity. The artists are of Nicaraguan, Mexican, and American heritage and have a unique musical style based on the intersection of musical styles from each country. Elena & Los Fulanos recently appeared at the Washington Folk Festival, the National Portrait Gallery, Tropicalia, and the Hamilton.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, July 25, 7pm: BYTES & BEATS: Shing02 and Fat Jon
Samurai Champloo 15th anniversary event
The Bytes & Beats 15th anniversary concert of Samurai Champloo is a very influential and unique anime-hip hop experience. It celebrates the best of African American, Japanese, Eastern, and Western cultures combined by throwing a concert that pairs some of the most relevant, upwardly mobile influencers in the anime-inspired hip hop & lo-fi hip hop alongside emcees who worked directly with Samurai Champloo soundtrack composer/producer Nujabes. The show creator Shinichiro Watanabe, and key collaborators such as Nujabes and Fat Jon merged the worlds of anime and hip hop fans like never before. This provided a springboard for the now massive lo-fi, Chill hop, and underground hip hop movements.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, August 1, 7pm: ENTATY
Music & Go-Go Dance Workshop with Lorenzo “GoLo” Evans
Led by Demetrius Brown (ENTATY), a native of Southeast Washington, DC and an alum of Duke Ellington High School of the Arts, ENTATY Music is one of D.C.’s renowned hometown bands. ENTATY has performed in front of thousands of attendants in various venues around the country opening up for such artists as: Kelly Rowland,Tank, LL Cool J, DMX, Xzibit, The Loxs, Music Soulchild, Cassidy, and Lil Scrappy. He worked with producer Chucky Thompson’s Lifeprint Entertainment, collaborating with artists like Raheem Devaughn and Chuck Brown. The band was recently featured at Dupont Underground and the Anacostia River Festival.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, August 8, 7pm: KanKouran West African Dance Company
KanKouran West African Dance Company was founded in 1983 to introduce the essence of traditional African dancing and drumming to American audiences. The group’s thrilling performances captivate fans of all ages with electrifying dances and rhythms, promoting intercultural understanding and enriching our American cultural heritage through the integration of authentic West African performing arts.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Thursday, August 15, 7pm: Verny Varela Combo & Salsa Dancing
Verny Varela is a renowned D.C.-based arranger, composer, singer and flutist. He was born in Cali, Colombia and raised in the “Barrio Obrero,” home to some of the world’s most famous salsa musicians. Verny’s distinguished career as a jazz and salsa artist has included collaborations with Ismael Miranda, Adalberto Santiago, and Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, all members of the Fania All Stars. In 1997, Varela became the lead singer in the Gabino Pampini Band, and later toured Europe and the U.S. with Tito Gomez. He has been nominated three times for the Washington Area Music Awards (WAMMIES) and has performed at many prominent venues, including the Kennedy Center; Lincoln Theatre; Smithsonian; Embassy of Colombia; Embassy of Panama; the World Salsa Festival in Lima, Peru; and the Petronio Álvarez Festival and Feria de La Caña de Azucar in Cali, Colombia. Varela currently teaches at Howard University.
Click HERE to register. Registration is optional, but allows you to receive updates about the event. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Join us in the fall for the 2019-2020 season of Concerts from the Library of Congress. The season opens on October 12 with the winner of six GRAMMY and three Latin GRAMMY Awards, the Cuban pianist, composer and arranger, Chucho Valdés. For concert and ticket information visit our website www.loc.gov/concerts