Your pick of music: Bluegrass, country, rock and opera this weekend in Bloomington
Editor's note: The SteelDrivers concert scheduled for Friday, Sept. 8, at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater has been postponed until Feb. 2, 2024.
September is a time for great music in Bloomington and this coming weekend brings a plethora of options for music lovers of many genres — from bluegrass and country to rock and opera. If you'd rather hum a different tune, there's the Black y Brown Arts Festival with music and more on Friday and Saturday as well as chance to purchase native plants and watch a Hitchcock thriller.
Bluegrass, fingerstyle guitar performances Friday at the Buskirk-Chumley
One of the best of bluegrass bands, The SteelDrivers, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. Tickets are $30-$45 and can be purchased at the BCT box office, 114 E. Kirkwood Ave., or online at buskirkchumley.org/events. Kade Puckett, the 2013 Indiana State Fingerstyle Guitar champ, will open the show.
Rockin' in Switchyard Park on Friday
Bring a lawn chair or blanket and be ready for a night of music beginning at 6 p.m. Friday at Switchyard Park. The Infield Flyers will start things off with American rock, followed at 7:15 by the Garth Brooks cover band No Fences. It's all free and fun for all ages.
5th annual Black y Brown Arts Festival this Friday and Saturday
The Fifth Annual Bloomington Black y Brown Arts Festival (BYB) will be Friday and Saturday in several locations. The free events begin with a gallery exhibit (PG-13 rated) 6-9 p.m. Friday at the 4th Street Garage Storefront and a screening of "Chico and Rita" at 9 p.m. from Cicada Cinema. Along with visual art, the gallery event will showcase performance art such as poetry, musical performances and dance.
On Saturday, at the Switchyard Park Pavilion, family-friendly events will include a visual arts exhibition in the pavilion from 1 to 3 p.m. with food trucks offering items for sale nearby. Performances by visual, literary and performing artists on stage begin at 4 p.m.
The festival seeks to raise and expand art appreciation, create a space that affirms persons of color in the community, and provide a medium for local talent to showcase visual and performing arts in an environment that engages the audience with artists and their work, while enhancing Bloomington’s spirit of inclusion. For more, go to http://tinyurl.com/25strk7v.
Pick up some native plants on Saturday
MC-IRIS (Monroe County-Identify and Reduce Invasive Species) will have a native plant sale 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday at the Switchyard Park Maintenance Building, 1601 S. Rogers St. Pots of native plants of more than 100 species will be sold for $4-$10 each including trees and shrubs from Woody Warehouse. If you can, bring boxes to carry your selections home.
Another work by local composer: WWII hero the focus of Bloomington composer Lauren Bernofsky's developing opera
Reimagining Opera for Kids presents "Rufus and Rita"
Help choose the adventure for a special opera written by Bloomington resident composer Lauren Bernofsky during "Rufuas and Rita," performed 2-3 p.m. Saturday at the Southwest Branch of the Monroe County Public Library, at 890 W. Gordon Pike. Reimagining Opera for Kids engages young musicians from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, and the larger Bloomington community, to come together to craft performances for schools, community centers and community events. Before you go, register at mcpl.info/calendar.
Watch Hitchcock thriller "Strangers on a Train" in Bryan Park
Alfred Hitchcock's thriller film noir "Strangers on a Train" will be presented free of charge beginning at 8:30 p.m. Saturday in Bryan Park, 1001 S. Henderson St. Bloomington Parks and Recreation and the Ryder Film Series are presented the PG-rated movie; families can determine if it's appropriate for your family.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bluegrass, country, rock, opera music in Bloomington this weekend
