Entertainment - Entertainment News

POSTED: Thursday, Jul. 09, 2009

Blaine Jazz Festival kicks off this week

MaD Fusion - percussionist David Rozenblatt, pianist Matt Herskowitz and bass player Mat Fieldes - headlines Saturday's opening night concert of the eighth annual Blaine Jazz Festival.

The festival features dozens of musicians from the United States and Canada in free concerts in Blaine, in ticketed events at the Blaine Performing Arts Center and at the Dakota Creek Center in Blaine; and in by-donation concerts at Bellingham Cruise Terminal and the Blaine Performing Arts Center, Saturday, July 11 through July 18.

The festival also showcases the talents of young jazz musicians who spend a week playing with and learning from the jazz faculty, which includes Clipper Anderson, Steve Barnes, Darin Clendenin, Ted DeCorso, Bob Gray, Randy Halberstadt, Larry Holloway, Greta Matassa, Jon Mutchler and Chris Woitach.

For details, call 676-5740 or go to blainejazzfestival.org.

SOUTH AFRICAN RHYTHMS

Ladysmith Black Mambazo returns to Bellingham for a concert of traditional South African tunes and Christian gospel music at 8 p.m. Thursday, July 16, at Western Washington University's Performing Arts Center Mainstage Theatre.

Tickets are $28 for main floor seats and $23 for balcony seats, and are available by calling 650-6146 and online at tickets.wwu.edu.

For more on the music of the ensemble, go to mambazo.com.

BUCKIN' BRONCOS

The first Sumas International Bull-A-Rama of the summer offers spectators shows by regional competitors in events such as mutton busting and bull riding as well as a calf scramble for kids ages 7-12, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 11, at the rodeo grounds at Bowen Field Memorial Park off Cherry Street.

Admission is $10 adults, $5 ages 7-12, free for ages 6 and younger. A concession stand and beer garden are on-site.

The next Bull-A-Rama is Aug. 8. For details, call 988-7412.

DANCIN' IN THE STREET

Six-piece funk-infused ensemble Acorn Project kicks off this summer's Downtown Sounds concerts, now in its fifth year, from 5 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 15.

The family-friendly events take place in a new location, on Bay Street between Holly and Champion streets, near the American Museum of Radio and Electricity.

There'll be food available for purchase from Mount Bakery and Bayou on Bay, as well as beverages for the over-21 crowd from Boundary Bay Brewery & Bistro.

For details on the free concerts, which happen every Wednesday through Aug. 12, go to downtownbellingham.org or call 527-8710.

ARTS ON THE BEACH

The Harrison Festival of the Arts, one of the largest running music and arts festivals of its kind in the area, takes place Friday, July 10, through July 19 in the lakeside village of Harrison Hot Springs, B.C.

International performers in visual and literary arts, theater, music, crafts and special children's events, as well as workshops, are presented on the beach, on the streets and in more formal settings in the Harrison Memorial Hall.

Among the talents this year: Eric Bibb, the Red Stick Ramblers, Bellowhead, Umalali and Yves Lambert & Berbert Orchestra.

Ticket prices vary; for details, visit harrisonfestival.com.