Should you decide to do so, you can immerse yourself in music pretty much all weekend, starting now, without venturing too far from home base. A pair of string quartets from across the pond by two of Great Britain’s most revered composers will be performed by musicians from the Space Coast Symphony this Friday evening at Our Savior Lutheran Church. The free concert, “British Road Trip: Britten and Vaughan Williams,” will feature Britten’s String Quartet No. 2 and Williams’ String Quartet No. 2 in A minor. A celebrated composer, conductor and pianist, Britten was a “central figure in 20th century British classical music,” according to Wikipedia, and wrote numerous operas, the best known among them 1954’s “The Turn of the Screw.” At the end of WWII, Britten toured Germany with violinist Yehudi Menuhin to perform recitals for concentration camp survivors. So moved was he by this experience that he wrote his Second Quartet as soon as he returned home to England. In his last year, he became the first composer to be given a life peerage. Williams was a prolific English composer whose body of work during more than 50 years includes operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal works and orchestral compositions, including nine symphonies. He wrote his second string quartet during WWII, and also helped organize lunchtime concerts at the National Gallery to support the war effort. Concert musicians are: Joni Roos, violin; Cindi Qi, violin; Michael De Jesus, viola; and Paul Fleury, cello. The concert begins at 7 p.m.
We move from classics to jazz on Sunday afternoon, when the Space Coast Symphony Jazz Orchestra and vocalist Linda Cole will swing into action in bring you “A Tribute to Ella Fitzgerald,” a celebration of Fitzgerald’s centennial birthday, at the Vero Beach High School Performing Arts Center. Cole will perform beloved songs that she’s made her own, including the fabulous “Blues in the Night” and “They Can’t Take That Away From Me,” and you can expect classic, super hits by such greats as Billie Holiday and Nat King Cole (no relation). According to her biography, Cole has sung professionally since she was 3 years old, an her family group, “The Singing Coles,” are a part of Illinois music history, starting out with religious songs, then adding pop music. With her smooth vocals, Cole moved into rhythm and blues and became part of Detroit’s MoTown scene, appearing with the Spinners, Count Basie, and many others. Tickets are $20. Students are admitted free. The show starts at 3 p.m. Or how about a bit of bluegrass? Pretty much every Thursday, Marsh Landing Restaurant in Fellsmere is “the” place for authentic, Old Florida, smile-making, toe-tapping bluegrass (not to mention gator tail and frog legs), and this week it’ll be extra special. “Meows and Mutts at the Marsh” is the clever name for an evening of food, beverages and bluegrass music to benefit Sebastian’s no-kill animal shelter, H.A.L.O. The fun starts at 6:30 p.m. H.A.L.O. has details.
Take a little road trip south to Stuart to enjoy one of the area’s favorite seven-days-a-week outdoor music venues, Terra Fermata. There’s strings of lights in the palm trees, comfy seating, tiki huts and good food and beverages, of course, but the main reason so many music lovers flock there is, of course, the live music. Just grab a brew and let the music get you. This very Thursday at 7 p.m., you’ll hear the Brown Goose, a rock group from Tallahassee, with a melodic alt-rock sound and a high-energy live performance. Then, TGIF! At 7 p.m. it’s the Bryce Allyn Band. Singer/songwriter Allyn gained popularity fronting for the well-known south Florida band Boxelder, and for the past 20 years, has brought his insightful message to dedicated fans all over the state. You should hear this band’s rendition of “Midnight Rider.” Later in the evening, it’s Nocturnal Resonance, with Victoria Leigh. Saturday, 7 p.m., brings Crazy Fingers, a 5-guy band (Rich, Josh, Pete, Bubba and Johnny), considered by their devoted following as one of the “premiere Grateful Dead tribute bands.” Reggae Sunday starts at 6 p.m., this week featuring Fireside Prophets out of Boca Raton.
