Author Archives: Katie Huang

Happy Thanksgiving!Today and every day, thanks for being a Levitteer!

On this day of gratitude, we’re especially thankful to the 16 communities who brought the Levitt program to life in 2015 – a testament to the power of free, live music to bring people together and celebrate our shared humanity.  

Warm wishes for a happy holiday! 

MarchFourthSpotlight

What do you get when you take a troupe of jazz, funk and brass musicians, dress them in marching band costumes, throw in stilt-acrobatics, hula-hoopers and Vaudeville dancers and ask them to put on a show? 

An experience unlike any other…that goes by the name MarchFourth!

Get ready Charlottesville, because the larger-than-life marching band is coming to IX Art Park as part of the Levitt AMP Charlottesville Music Series! Learn more about the “circus funk” group before their free show this Friday. Continue reading

PublicVotingOpens
Applications for the 2016 Levitt AMP [Your City] Grant Awards are in, and we’re excited to begin the next phase of the grants competition!

Reflecting our commitment that each Levitt project be community-driven, YOUR votes help decide which small to mid-sized towns or cities win up to $25K in matching grants to present their own free outdoor concert series in 2016.

Online public voting opens November 2, so start rallying your friends, family, neighbors and colleagues to sign up to vote now!

Music_moves_winner_sept

Thanks Ashley Reed, the September winner of our #musicmoves contest, for sharing this photo of the Levitt AMP Trenton Music Series! Last month, downtown Trenton rocked out to a free show by Danielia Cotton, who brought her powerful voice back to her home state of New Jersey for a fun night of community through music.

Want to be our final winner of the year? This month is your last chance to enter to win a $100 iTunes gift card, so keep sharing your photos through October 31, 2015, and check out the live #musicmoves feed!

ThisPlaceMatters

What’s your special place? 

Everyone has one—whether old or new, small or large, personal or public—from a neighborhood restaurant, to a famous tourist attraction, to a local Levitt venue.

Now’s the time to share the places you love with the world! Throughout October, the #ThisPlaceMatters campaign by National Trust for Historic Preservation and Curbed celebrates the diverse spaces that characterize our neighborhoods, towns and cities.  Continue reading

Every stroke of the brush, stitch of the needle, or moment of the memoir uniquely marks our society and contributes to our national character.  This month, we recognize the ways the arts and humanities have forever changed our country, and we recommit to ensuring every American has the opportunity and the freedom to question, discover, and create.
— Presidential Proclamation, National Arts and Humanities Month, 2015  

NAMH_logoHappy 30th anniversary to National Arts and Humanities Month!

Since 1985, October has been recognized by Americans for the Arts and the White House as a time to celebrate the importance of cultural experiences in our lives. At Levitt, we believe that the arts are essential to living healthy, happy lives—and that all people should have access to free, live music, regardless of age or background.

Join us this month in celebrating NAHM and check out some of our favorite reasons to support the arts, adapted from this infographic by Americans for the Arts: Continue reading

LukeWadeSpotlight

Not many people can say heatstroke is what inspired them to start writing music—but Luke Wade can. 

The Texas-born singer-songwriter and Season 7 finalist on The Voice began writing music after suffering from temporary brain damage and amnesia as a teenager after a high school cross country meet in the sweltering heat. Writing music became a way to heal, and Wade has been following his dream of becoming a professional musician ever since. 

This Friday, Wade returns to Levitt Arlington for a free show kicking off UT Arlington Weekend at the Levitt. Learn more about the soul singer—who has been compared to the likes of Ray LaMontagne and who also performed at Levitt SteelStacks and Levitt Westport earlier this summer—before the show. Continue reading


Ready for Beethoven’s Fifth…in virtual reality? 

Today and tomorrow, VAN Beethoven, a free, unprecedented classical music experience comes to Levitt Pasadena and Levitt Los Angeles as a part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Immortal Beethoven Festival.

Using virtual reality headsets, “concertgoers” will experience the opening minutes of Beethoven’s famous symphony as if seated in the Walt Disney Concert Hall—without ever leaving the VAN Beethoven truck. Continue reading

SpotlightMarcellaAndHerLovers

Growing up with GRAMMY-winning zydeco artist Terrance Simien as her father, Marcella René Simien always knew she wanted to be on stage. By the age of 14, she was performing and touring with her father’s band, appearing at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Festival International de Louisiane and the Legendary Rhythm & Blues Cruise, among others. 

Marcella and Her Lovers performing at the Levitt AMP Lafayette Music Series. Photo by Sara Virginia Yongue.

Marcella and Her Lovers performing at the Levitt AMP Lafayette Music Series. Photo by Sara Virginia Yongue.

Now a professional musician in her own right, Marcella wowed audiences in her hometown of Lafayette, La., at the Levitt AMP Music Series earlier this summer. And in the coming week, she will play two more Levitt stages with her band, Marcella and Her Lovers: Levitt Shell on September 13 and the Levitt AMP Cleveland Music Series on September 16.  Continue reading

Black Violin

This past summer, audiences in six Levitt cities across the country experienced Black Violin’s electrifying fusion of hip-hop and classical as part of the free 2015 Levitt National Tour.

StereotypesIn less than two weeks, the duo—violinist Kevin “Kev Marcus” Sylvester and violist Wil Baptiste—will release the follow-up to their previous albums, 2012’s Classically Trained and 2008’s Black Violin, with their major label debut Stereotypes on Universal Music Classics.

Preview some of Black Violin’s new tracks before the album drops September 18!  Continue reading