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Elizabeth Pitcairn, Photo courtesy the Kimmel Center

On Valentine’s Day, the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra kicks off a three-part concert series at the Kimmel Center’s Verizon Hall.

The group will perform Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegels Lustige Streiche, Dvorak’s Symphony No. 7, and Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1. Famed violinst (and PYO alumna) Elizabeth Pitcairn will join the orchestra for the Concerto, performing with the legendary 1720 “Red” Stradivarius. It’s the real-life instrument that is said to have inspired the film The Red Violin, which stars Samuel L. Jackson and… a red violin.

Tickets are $16 to $30, and available online. Check out the Philadelphia Youth Orchestra’s official website for more information on the group.

Kimmel Center
300 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 790-5800
www.kimmelcenter.org

Last week, our friends over at Philebrity posted about Philly Rocks for Haiti, a benefit concert at the Troc. Well, the show is this Thursday, and they’ve got an outstanding line up of Philadelphia locals.

Performing on the bill? The West Philadelphia Orchestra, Black Landlord, Get the Led Out, Free Energy, and a special acoustic performance by Uwishunu favorites, Blood Feathers.

Proceeds from the show go towards the Haitian Professionals of Philadelphia, who will be shipping supplies to Haiti. Tickets are only $12, and can be purchased online here.

The Trocadero
1003 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107-2307
(215) 922-5483
www.thetroc.com

[ via Philebrity ]

Sweet Honey in the Rock, Image courtesy the Kimmel Center

This weekend, the Grammy Award-winning female a cappella group, Sweet Honey in the Rock, are bringing their award-winning gospel harmonies to Philadelphia.

The group is joined by Paddy Moloney and the Chieftains, and they take the stage at Verizon Hall this Saturday, February 6th. The show starts early, at 3pm, so plan to grab dinner in the area.

You can stream three tracks by Sweet Honey… on the Kimmel Center’s official website. Go listen!

Sweet Honey in the Rock
Saturday, February 6th, 2010

Kimmel Center
300 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 790-5800
www.kimmelcenter.org

Hamilton Hall... soon to be Jazz Hall?

Hey jazz fans! Don’t forget, the Junior Jazz festival starts on Sunday, launching a full month of music and events at the Please Touch Museum.

Running from January 31st to February 28th, 2010, the Junior Jazz Festival is the only event in the area that introduces young kids to the joys of jazz. Stop by and witness the transformation of the Please Touch Museum into a giant, kid-friendly jazz club.

It all starts this Sunday!

18th Annual Junior Jazz Festival
January 31st – February 28th, 2010

Please Touch Museum
4231 Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia, PA 19131
(215) 581-3181
www.pleasetouchmuseum.org

The Rain, Photo courtesy the Kimmel Center

Back by popular demand, RAIN, the acclaimed Beatles concert, returns to Philadelphia in February! Called “the next best thing to seeing the Beatles,” the show will be on stage at the Academy of Music for a short 5-day stint. Enjoy a live concert provided by a musically talented quartet that looks and sounds just like your favorite Brit sensation.

RAIN covers The Beatles from their early 1960s beginning through their psychedelic late 60s to the well-known Abbey Road and Let It Be albums. The concert uses multi-media, such as historical footage and television commercials from the 1960s, to light up the video screens at the Kimmel. The baby boomers will be in a time warp and their kids will simply enjoy good tunes.

I dare you to see RAIN and not sing along.

RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles
February 2nd – 7th, 2010

Academy of Music
260 South Broad Street, Broad & Locust St, Philadelphia, PA
www.kimmelcenter.org

Noche Flamenca, Photo by Andrea Mohin

One of the world’s most highly regarded flamenco touring companies returns to Philadelphia for two performances on Saturday, January 23 at the Merriam Theater at 2pm and 8pm.

Currently performing a 3-week run at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in New York City, and having recently completed tours in Australia, Mexico and Argentina, Noche Flamenca and Bessie Award-winning performer Soledad Barrio bring the fiery seductive complexity of Spanish traditional dance to the stage.

Founded by Martín Santangelo and his wife Soledad Barrio, Madrid-based Noche Flamenca are sure to please with a passionate performance in dance, song and music. Accompanied by two of Spain’s finest flamenco dancers, Juan Ogalla and Antonio Jiménez, in addition to five musicians, the troupe will perform new works along with traditional pieces that have captivated audiences around the globe.

For tickets, call 215-893-1999 or visit the Kimmel Center’s website.

Soledad Barrio & Noche Flamenca at the Merriam Theater
Saturday, January 23rd, 2010
2pm and 8pm

Merriam Theater
250 South Broad Street Philadelphia, PA 19102-5022
(215) 732-5997

The JACK Quartet, Performing at the Kimmel this Saturday

This Saturday, the JACK Quartet returns to the Kimmel Center for the first time since the Summer Solstice Celebration in 2008. Come welcome them back.

The group hits the Kimmel’ Innovation Studio at 7:30pm, and will be performing their spin on contemporary-classical music. Their recent album was featured in several Best of 2009 lists, and the group was listed as one of the LA Times’ Faces to Watch in 2010.

According to the Kimmel, the program will include “works by German composers Wolfgang Rihm and Matthias Pintscher; UK-based conductor-composer Aaron Cassidy; and New York-based composer Jeff Myers.” Myers actually wrote a piece specifically for the quartet, called Dopamine.

Tickets are only $10, and can be purchased on the Kimmel Center’s official website.

JACK Quartet @ the Innovation Studio
Saturday, January 23rd, 2010

Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Broad and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 893-1999
www.kimmelcenter.org

Philadelphia Baroque Orchestra, Photo by Mark Gavin

It’s a form of music first popularized before Philadelphia and Baltimore became anything resembling the major cities they are today.

This weekend, major groups that focus on 17th-century style Baroque music from the two mid-Atlantic hubs are partnering for a weekend program, featuring Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos No. 2 and 3, alongside works by Vivaldi, Heinichen and Pisendel.

The Philadelphia Baroque Orchestra, Tempesta di Mare, is meeting up with Baltimore’s Baroque ensemble, Pro Musica Rara, over Concerto alla Venetiana, a program with two shows in Philadelphia and a third in Charm City.

On Friday, Jan. 22 at 8 PM, the two groups are joining together at The Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, a big, beautiful facade that rises from a particularly tree-lined stretch of Germantown Ave. Then they’ll play in the first Catholic Church erected in Philadelphia, on Saturday, Jan. 23 at 8 PM, at Old St. Joseph’s Chuch. For the rubber match, it’s back to Baltimore on Sunday Jan. 24 at 3:30 PM at Towson University Center for the Arts.

It’s a chance to see the collaboration of two celebrated music organizations playing Baroque styles, composers and works not often played today. Tickets range from $10 to $35, and can be ordered on Tempesta di Mare’s official website.

The Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill
8855 Germantown Avenue, Philadelphia, PA
www.chestnuthillpres.org

Old St Joseph’s Church
321 Willings Alley, Philadelphia, PA 19106-3897
(215) 923-1733
www.oldstjoseph.org

Jeffery Siegel, image courtesy the Kimmel Center

After a successful performance in November, Jeffery Siegel is returning to the Kimmel Center this Monday, with another fantastic program about Chopin.

Entitled Chopin the Storyteller, Siegel will perform a number of Chopin’s works, including three ballades and a novelette by Chopin’s contemporary, Robert Schumann. The entire program is listed here, have a look!

Tickets to the show are only $30, and can be purchased via the Kimmel Center’s official website.

Jeffrey Siegel’s Keyboard Conversations @ the Perelman Theater
Monday, January 18th, 7:30pm

Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts
Broad and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 893-1999
www.kimmelcenter.org

Jerry Blavat, Photo courtesy the Kimmel Center

At the end of the month, radio icon Jerry Blavat is visiting the Kimmel Center, and bringing some good friends with him.

Blavat’s year-long, 50th anniversary celebration hits the Kimmel Center’s Verizon Hall on Saturday, January 30th. A number of performers responsible for major hits in the 50’s and 60’s are joining him for the party, including Jay Black, Shirley Alston Reeves (from The Shirelles), The Skyliners, Earl Lewis & The Channels, and the recent Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee, Darlene Love.

Ticket prices range from $40 to $80, and are available on the Kimmel Center’s official website.

Showing up early? There’s a free dance party in the Kimmel Center’s Commonwealth Plaza before the show.

Jerry Blavat’s Rock n’ Roll and R&B Celebration
January 30th, 2010, 8pm

The Kimmel Center
Broad and Spruce Streets, Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 893-1999
www.kimmelcenter.org

Blood Feathers, Photo courtesy Philebrity

Last Fall, our friends at Philebrity announced their brand new record label, as well as their initial signing, the Blood Feathers. The blogosphere and Philly’s local music scene was ecstatic, and with good cause.

Blood Feathers’ debut album on the Philebrity Label, Goodness Gracious, is available now on iTunes, and will by available on vinyl and CD next month. To celebrate their upcoming release, the band will be playing a CD release show this Saturday at Johnny Brenda’s, with local favorites BC Camplight.

Give Blood Feathers a listen via their Myspace. You’ll definitely like what you hear.

Blood Feathers’ Record Release @ JB’s
Saturday, January 16th, 2010

Johnny Brenda’s
1201 N. Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19125
(215) 739-9684
www.johnnybrendas.com

Please Touch Museum's Hamilton Hall, soon to be Jazz Hall!

Proclaiming that Philadelphia is a great city for jazz… well, it feels like a bit of an understatement. Plenty of jazz legends called Philadelphia home, and you can catch a lot of modern, local jazz greats at places like the Clef Club, Chris’ Jazz Cafe, and Ortlieb’s Jazzhaus.

So it only makes sense that our city hosts events like the West Oak Lane Jazz & Arts Festival and the upcoming, month-long Junior Jazz Fest at the Please Touch Museum, to celebrate our city’s rich jazz history.

The 18th annual Junior Jazz Festival, the only event in the area that helps introduce young kids to the joys of jazz, kicks off at the end of the month, on Sunday, January 31st. The month-long festival will transform the Please Touch Museum into a giant, kid-friendly jazz club, full of live music, educational activities, and more.

A number of kid-friendly musicians are taking the stage at the Museum’s playhouse each weekend during the festival, with all performances free with museum admission.

18th Annual Junior Jazz Festival
January 31st – February 28th, 2010

Please Touch Museum
4231 Avenue of the Republic, Philadelphia, PA 19131
(215) 581-3181
www.pleasetouchmuseum.org