As July begins, Northeast Ohio prepares to transition from June festivals to the vibrant opening of the Blossom Music Center season. Here are the highlights for the week surrounding Independence Day:
The Kent/Blossom Festival continues with faculty concerts featuring the acclaimed Imani Winds on Wednesday at 7:30 PM at Ludwig Recital Hall on Kent State Campus. Additionally, K/B Young Artists will perform at various venues starting Friday through Sunday.
The Blossom Music Festival launches with Galen S. Karriker conducting the Blossom Band on Wednesday at 8 PM. The program promises a mix of patriotic marches, Broadway favorites, and an Armed Forces Salute, culminating in a fireworks display at Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls.
Banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck joins Brett Mitchell & The Cleveland Orchestra on Saturday at 7 PM at Blossom. Fleck will perform his arrangement of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, alongside works by Leonard Bernstein, Samuel Barber, and William Grant Still.
Ohio Light Opera presents its traditional Independence Day Pops Concert on Thursday at 7 PM near the pavilion in downtown Wooster. The company also continues its productions of The Sound of Music, Guys and Dolls, and Me and My Girl at the College of Wooster throughout the week.
Stand-alone events include an organ recital featuring American music by Florence Mustric on Wednesday at 12:15 PM at Trinity Lutheran in Ohio City, and a Lunchtime Carillon Concert by Sheryl Modlin on Friday at 12:15 PM from the McGaffin tower in University Circle.
A unique highlight is the Classically Lake View chamber music series concert on Sunday at 3 PM at Lake View Cemetery Community Mausoleum. The event celebrates Cleveland’s forgotten composer and abolitionist Justin Holland with chamber music by Black composers, performed by Damian Goggans (guitar) and Cleveland Orchestra members.
These events showcase the region’s rich musical heritage and diverse cultural offerings as residents and visitors celebrate Independence Day in Northeast Ohio.
