With a voice frequently compared to Joni Mitchell’s, Nancy Jephcote is gearing up for the release of a solo album this fall — but you can hear the Vineyard singer, songwriter and award-winning fiddler at a concert at 8 p.m. tonight, Friday, August 15, at Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven.
Well known for her work with the Flying Elbows fiddle band, songwriting has long been another side of this versatile performer’s offerings. Paul Thurlow and Brian Weiland will add instrumentals and vocal harmonies.
More than 150 young musicians will play such favorites as Georgia on My Mind, Charlie Brown’s Linus and Lucy and African Bell Carol in the all-Island winter concert on Wednesday, Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center at the regional high school. Admission is free, and the show lasts under an hour.
He is a seasoned pianist with an Island legacy that echoes through the streets of Oak Bluffs, where he spent a 20-year run entertaining guests at David’s Island House. She is a teenage singing prodigy who won the chance to perform with the Boston Pops, a homegrown celebrity just beginning to leave her footprint on the musical world.
The Vineyard Sinfonietta will present selections ranging from Handel and Corelli, to Beethoven, Chopin, Benjamin Britten and even a modern piece by Island resident Heidi Schultz at a concert at the Trinity Methodist Parish House in the Camp Ground in Oak Bluffs on Wednesday, Dec. 16, at 3 p.m.
This well-established Island amateur classical and Pops string ensemble will perform Ms. Schultz’s composition Contemplation, featuring Island cellist Jan Hyer, who will be accompanied by the rest of the group.
Chris Velan is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, lawyer and producer of the soundtrack to the documentary film, Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, called Living Like a Refugee. He’s also an environmentally concerned musician, and he’s making a stop on his North American tour to play at Nectar’s nightclub at the Martha’s Vineyard Airport for a concert to benefit Plum Hill School’s effort to build a permanent and eco-green home for the school here on the Island.
On Monday, why not begin the longest night of the year with a very Vineyard thing — something casual, free, short, uplifting and all about connecting with other people? It’s musical, too, and, like so many events in this community, makes you wonder what other hidden talents your friends and neighbors may have.
Fifteen years ago, the New Hampshire barn that had been dismantled, shipped and reassembled off Panhandle Road in West Tisbury was finished, and officially became the New Agricultural Society Hall. While a decade and a half of potlucks, dances, meetings and exhibitions have taken the new out of its name, the Ag Hall remains something to celebrate. Saturday’s Barnraisers’ Ball will do just that, with help from Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish. The barn doors open at 7:30 p.m., and admission is a dessert to share.
A dance party featuring the Sting Rays playing live music is set for Nov. 14 from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Tisbury Senior Center in Vineyard Haven. Too shy to dance? There will also be an hors d’oeurves and drinks (non-alcoholic) table, and you can tap your toes without leaving your seat. All are welcome and there is no charge.
Nectar’s closes out its first year here in true Vineyard style: a legion of Island musicians will take the stage for the venue’s final show, and a portion of the $15 ticket sales will go to a pair of charities: West Tisbury’s David Tucker, who suffered a heart attack back in September and has since acquired a decent pile of medical bills; and the Island Affordable Housing Fund.
Doors open at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 28. For details, call 508-693-1137.
