The summer Berkshire live music scene ramps up in a spectacular week celebrating Juneteenth, the summer solstice, and the kick-off of the Tanglewood Popular Artist Series. We have four international headliners and a total of 65 live music events this week! You’ll find a wide range of music, including classical, opera, jazz, rock, R&B, blues, funk, pop, folk, West African sabar fusion, and even a ukulele concert. Below are a few highlights of the week ahead, followed by our comprehensive show rundown.
Classical and Opera
We have two classical and opera performances in the county this week. Saturday morning at the Clark Art Institute you’ll find a Clark Society Special Program: Opera Lafayette. Soprano Ariana Wehr joins musicians from Opera Lafayette to present selections from Gluck, Philidor, and others, often performed by the Haitian soprano Minette in the years leading up to the Haitian Revolution. Saturday night, you can listen to Jonathan Suters, guitar with Stephen Bennett, harp guitar at The Southfield Church. The local duo will feature baroque, Spanish romantic, and 20th-century Brazilian music.
Jazz
It’s a strong week for jazz, with 17 performances in the county, and at least one performance every day of the week! The music starts with Andy Wrba, Conor Meehan, and Benny Kohn hosting Monday Night Jazz at Pizzeria Boema in Lenox. Tuesday, enjoy Jazz Night with Paul Ostermayer and Friends at Tito’s Mexican Bar and Grill in Pittsfield. On Wednesday, music is back at the Ostrich Room at the Apple Tree Inn when The Lucky 5 performs! Actually, three of the five will perform – you’ll need to show up to find out which three. Also on Wednesday, catch Mary Ann Palermo at portaVia in Dalton, and at the same time, the Chad McLoughlin Trio performs at The Lion’s Den in Stockbridge. Thursday night, you can enjoy some jazz and tap dancing with Stefanie Weber and Bryan Bender, SOLE & BONE, at Dottie’s and Dorothy’s in Pittsfield. Also on Thursday, Simone White and The Tarik Shah Trio perform jazz standards at Dewey Hall in Sheffield. Friday night, the Spring Fest with Lucky 5 Band takes place at Guthrie Center in Great Barrington, a benefit for the non-profit Walking our Talk. Also on Friday, Standard Edition performs jazz and swing standards at the Knox Trail Inn in East Otis. And for some New Orleans-style jazz, catch Soggy Po’ Boys at The Stationery Factory in Dalton.
Saturday afternoon, catch Jazz in Persip Park with Rees Shad and The Conversations at Pittsfield’s Persip Park. In the evening, Chris Brubeck’s Triple Play performs at the Sandisfield Arts Center. Chris is the son of the renowned jazz pianist and composer Dave Brubeck. Also on Saturday night, the David Bartley Quartet performs at Dottie’s and Dorothy’s. Sunday morning, you can catch the Domingo Brunch featuring Richard Stanmeyer at Dottie’s and Dorothy’s. Sunday midday, you can enjoy the Jazz Brunch with Pamela Knowles at Race Brook Lodge in Sheffield. In the evening, you’ll find the Chad Mcloughlin Trio at Bascom Lodge at the top of Greylock Mountain in Adams or Michael Junkins and Friends at The Lion’s Den. Joining Michael this week is Benny Kohn on piano.
Popular (Rock, Pop, Folk, Blues, etc.)
Our calendar is dominated by the popular music category, with over 40 performances this week – we can’t highlight them all but will mention a few (see our calendar or show rundown below for all the performances).
The music starts on Tuesday night with Melissa Brinton at Methuselah Bar & Lounge. If you miss her there, she performs again Friday night at Drifters at Bousquet in Pittsfield and Saturday afternoon at Balderdash Cellars in Richmond. Wednesday, Greg Caproni performs outdoors at the Windsor Lake Concert Series in North Adams, while folk, country, and Americana band The Montvales visit Tourists in North Adams.
Thursday night marks the opening of the Tanglewood Popular Artist Series, with John Fogerty: The Celebration Tour performing in the Koussevitzky shed. For something a little more intimate, catch Andy Wrba & Friends at The Lion’s Den in Stockbridge. Andy’s guests include Wanda Houston, Ed Moran, Benny Kohn, and Conor Meehan. We saw this quintet at The Den a few months back and loved their rendition of The Beatles’ “Golden Slumber,” which you can view on our Instagram page. Or catch a performer we know and love when she makes her debut with a new band: Gold Crush Featuring Hannah Bracken at The Egremont Barn.
Friday night, catch Greg Humphreys & Johnny Irion at The Lion’s Den or Samoa Wilson & Eli Smith at the Dream Away Lodge in Becket. Up in North Adams, Railway Concerts Presents: Connor Garvey at Studio 9. Connor is a folk and alt-indie performer. You’ll also find two Music in the Berkshires Featured Musicians performing: Jordan Weller at Roberto’s Pizza in Sheffield and Misty Blues Band at The Egremont Barn.
Saturday is a busy day musically, with over 24 performances, including two international headliners: Roger Daltrey With Very Special Guest KT Tunstall is at Tanglewood while Ben Folds – Paper Airplane Request Tour is at the Mahaiwe in Great Barrington. You can read my recent interview with Ben Folds here. For something more intimate, folk legend Tom Chapin performs at The Guthrie Center in Great Barrington, while Mark Bryan of Hootie & Blowfish is at The Lion’s Den. Fans of Joni Mitchell won’t want to miss Big Yellow Taxi ~ Joni Mitchell Tribute at Egremont Barn. Another of our Featured Musicians, Milton, will be performing in his trio configuration at The Ostrich Room at The Apple Tree Inn. In fact, we first saw Milton at the Ostrich Room and fell in love with his music. It’s great to have live music back at The Ostrich Room!
Sunday afternoon, Kool & the Gang (pictured above) and En Vogue take the stage at Tanglewood. You can read Dr. Joshua Sherman’s interview with Kool in the May/June issue of Berkshire Magazine here.
On the Sunday afternoon “winery and brewery circuit,” you’ll find Micah Stone at Antimony Brewing, Sky Full of Dippers at Balderdash Cellars in Richmond, and Nate Martel in the Taproom at Bright Ideas Brewing in North Adams. Also in the afternoon, you’ll find the fourth installment of the Lenox Loves Music outdoor series in Lilac Park when Wintergreen takes the stage. Sunday early evening, you’ll find Music On The Moltz Terrace: Garcia Peoples And Mountain Movers at The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown. Later in the evening, catch folk-indie musicians Wes Pearce with Devin Champlin at Dream Away Lodge.
Something Else
This week, we have three options in our Something Else category. On Wednesday early evening, catch the Sunday Strummers Uke Band at the Great Barrington outdoor concert series at the pavilion at Town Hall. On Thursday, you can listen to some Brazilian music when Nanan performs in the music room at Dream Away Lodge. Also on Thursday, the Aba Diop Trio makes a visit to Race Brook Lodge in Sheffield, performing West African sabar fusion.
You can read about all of these performances and more in our day-by-day show rundown below or jump right to our music calendar. Please note that our deadline for inclusion in the weekly narrative above and the day-by-day listing below is Wednesday at noon. Check our music calendar for shows we’ve added after our weekly publication deadline. Use the subscribe button below to receive this free weekly rundown of upcoming performances in your inbox each Monday. And if I missed a performance, please contact me, and I’ll add it to the calendar.
Monday
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Monday Night Jazz @ Pizzeria Boema, Lenox. Monday Night Jazz summer residency with Andy Wrba, Conor Meehan, and Benny Kohn. Learn more about Andy here. Read our interview with Andy here.
Tuesday
5:30 pm – 8:30 pm Jazz Night with Paul Ostermayer and Friends @ Tito’s Mexican Bar and Grill, Pittsfield.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Melissa Brinton @ Methuselah Bar & Lounge, Pittsfield. Folk, Pop, Rock. Learn more and listen here.
Wednesday
5:30 pm – 7:15 pm Sunday Strummers Uke Band @ Great Barrington Town Hall, Great Barrington.
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Mary Ann Palermo @ portaVia, Dalton. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm Chad McLoughlin Trio @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm Greg Caproni @ Windsor Lake, North Adams. Rock.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm The Lucky 5 @ Ostrich Room at Apple Tree Inn, Lenox. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
8:00 pm – 9:30 pm The Montvales @ Tourists, North Adams. Folk, Country, Americana. Learn more and listen here.
Thursday
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Stefanie Weber and Bryan Bender, SOLE & BONE @ Dottie’s and Dorothy’s, Pittsfield. Jazz and Tap dancing. Learn more and listen to Brian here.
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Live Music with Clara Guatta @ Tito’s Mexican Bar and Grill, Pittsfield.
7:00 pm John Fogerty: The Celebration Tour @ Tanglewood, Lenox. Rock. Learn more and listen here.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Andy Wrba & Friends @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge. Featuring Wanda Houston, Ed Moran, Benny Kohn, and Conor Meehan. Learn more about Andy here. Read our interview with Andy here.
7:00 pm – 9:30 pm Simone White and The Tarik Shah Trio @ Dewey Hall, Sheffield. Jazz Standards. Learn more about Simone here. Learn more about Tarik here.
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm Gold Crush Featuring Hannah Bracken @ Egremont Barn, South Egremont. Folk, Indie-rock.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Nanan @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket. Brazilian. Learn more and listen here.
8:00 pm – 11:00 pm Aba Diop Trio @ Race Brook Lodge, Sheffield. West-African sabar fusion. Learn more and listen here.
Friday
5:00 pm – 9:00 pm Spring Fest with Lucky 5 Band @ Guthrie Center, Great Barrington. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Youth Alive in Persip Park @ Persip Park, Pittsfield.
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Jack Waldheim @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
5:30 pm – 7:15 pm Joint Chiefs @ Great Barrington Town Hall, Great Barrington. Rock. Learn more and listen here.
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Melissa Brinton @ Bousquet, Pittsfield. Folk, Pop, Rock. Learn more and listen here.
6:00 pm Jordan Weller @ Roberto’s Pizza, Sheffield. Folk, Rock. Read our Featured Musician interview with Jordan here.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Greg Humphreys & Johnny Irion @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge. Rock. Learn more about Greg here. Learn more and listen to Johnny here.
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm Standard Edition @ Knox Trail Inn, East Otis. Jazz and Swing standards. Learn more and listen here.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Nate Martel @ Antimony Brewing, Lenox. Rock, Folk. Learn more and listen here.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Samoa Wilson & Eli Smith @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket. Folk, Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
7:30 pm – 10:30 pm Misty Blues Band @ Egremont Barn, South Egremont. Learn more and listen here. Read our Featured Musician interview with Misty Blues’ Gina Coleman.
7:30 pm Railway Concerts Presents: Connor Garvey @ Studio 9, North Adams. Folk, Alt-Indie. Learn more and listen here.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm Soggy Po’ Boys @ The Stationery Factory, Dalton. New Orleans-style jazz. Learn more and listen here.
Saturday
10:30 am – 12:30 pm Clark Society Special Program: Opera Lafayette @ The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown. Opera. Selections from Gluck, Philidor, and others.
1:00 pm – 4:00 pm The Decoys (out front) @ Antimony Brewing, Lenox.
1:00 pm – 4:00 pm Melissa Brinton @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond. Folk, Pop, Rock. Learn more and listen here.
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Jazz in Persip Park with Rees Shad and The Conversations @ Persip Park, Pittsfield. Folk, Americana, Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
3:00 pm – 4:20 pm Bobby Sweet and Lara Tupper @ Devonfield Inn, Lee. Learn more and listen to Bobby here.
4:00 pm – 5:00 pm Robin Oherin (back beer garden) @ Antimony Brewing, Lenox. Blues, gospel. Learn more and listen here.
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Evan Lanoue @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond. Rock, Pop. Learn more and listen here.
5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Music Brings Communities Together – Kilashandra @ Becket Arts Center, Becket. Celtic-inspired jam-band. Learn more and listen here.
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm David Bartley Quartet @ Dottie’s and Dorothy’s, Pittsfield. Jazz. Learn more and listen to David here.
6:30 pm Jack Waldheim and Pete Adams @ Holiday Brook Farm, Dalton.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm John Nalepa and Riverbend Orchestra @ Methuselah Bar & Lounge, Pittsfield.
7:00 pm Roger Daltrey @ Tanglewood, Lenox. Rock. Learn more and listen here.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Firetown Road (taproom) @ Antimony Brewing, Lenox.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Mark Bryan Hootie & Blowfish @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge. Learn more and listen here.
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm Austin Honig @ Firehouse Cafe & Bistro, Adams.
7:00 pm Jonathan Suters, guitar with Stephen Bennett, harp guitar @ The Southfield Church, Southfield. Featuring baroque, Spanish romantic, and 20th-century Brazilian music.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Chris Brubeck’s Triple Play @ Sandisfield Arts Center, Sandisfield. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Milton Trio @ Ostrich Room at Apple Tree Inn, Lenox. Rock, Pop, Folk, Jazz, R&B, Country. See our Featured Musician interview with Milton. Listen to Milton here.
7:30 pm – 10:30 pm Big Yellow Taxi ~ Joni Mitchell Tribute @ Egremont Barn, South Egremont. Learn more and listen here.
8:00 pm – 11:00 pm Whiskey City Duo @ Locker Room Sports Pub, Lee. Rock, Country. Learn more and listen here.
8:00 pm Ben Folds – Paper Airplane Request Tour @ Mahaiwe, Great Barrington. Rock. Learn more and listen here. Read our interview with Ben Folds here.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm Jackson Whalan @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket. Rap, Hip Hop. Learn more and listen here. Read our Featured Musician interview with Jackson here.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm Emotion @ Knox Trail Inn, East Otis. Hits from the 60’s to today.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm Tom Chapin Live At The Guthrie Center @ Guthrie Center, Great Barrington. Folk. Learn more and listen here.
Sunday
10:00 am – 12:00 pm Domingo Brunch featuring Richard Stanmeyer @ Dottie’s and Dorothy’s, Pittsfield. Jazz. Learn more and listen here.
12:00 pm – 3:00 pm Jazz Brunch with Pamela Knowles @ Race Brook Lodge, Sheffield. Learn more and listen here.
12:00 pm – 3:00 pm Micah Stone @ Antimony Brewing, Lenox.
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Sky Full of Dippers @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
2:30 pm Kool & the Gang and En Vogue @ Tanglewood, Lenox. R&B, Soul, Funk. Learn more and listen to Kool & the Gang here. Learn more and listen to En Vogue here. Read Dr. Joshua Sherman’s interview with Kool in the May/June issue of Berkshire Magazine here.
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm Wintergreen @ Lilac Park, Lenox.
4:00 pm – 6:00 pm Taproom Music: Nate Martel @ Bright Ideas Brewing, North Adams. Rock, Folk. Learn more and listen here.
5:00 pm – 6:30 pm Music On The Moltz Terrace: Garcia Peoples And Mountain Movers @ The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown. Learn more and listen to Garcia People here. Learn more and listen to Mountain Movers here.
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm Chad Mcloughlin Trio @ Bascom Lodge, Adams. Learn more and listen here.
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm Michael Junkins and Friends @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge. Jazz. Learn more and listen here. Featuring Benny Kohn on piano.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Wes Pearce with Devin Champlin @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket. Folk-Indie. Learn more and listen to Devin here. Learn more and listen to Wes here.
Please get out and support your local musicians and venues!
— Mark @ Music in the Berkshires