Music and Visual Art Merge in the City

The City of Gaithersburg ushers in spring with a series of live music and art events at Kentlands Mansion and the Arts Barn.

Tonight at 8 p.m. debuts the first Music on the Move concert, featuring performances by guitarist Douglas Rogers and pianist Alex Peh. A 30-minute, pre-concert introduction at the Arts Barn explains how Rogers's Spanish guitar music influenced Peh's French piano music. From 7 - 7:30 p.m., Rogers and Peh will discuss the program and their collaboration.

Rogers is a featured classical guitar artist on 90.3FM WHRO. He is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins Peabody Conservatory of Music and on the guitar faculty of the Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C.

Peh is also on the faculty of the Levine School of Music and has performed in venues throughout the U.S. and Europe, including Carnegie Hall and Kennedy Center. His recordings have been broadcast on Washington, D.C.'s WETA 90.9 and Chicago's WFMT 98.9. He is a graduate of Northwestern University and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.

Music on the Move features simlutaneous performances with an intermission. Guests attend two concerts - Rogers at the Arts Barn and Peh at Kentlands Mansion - and can parttake in complimentary desserts, with champagne, wine, beer and soft drinks available for purchase at intermission.

The Arts Barn and Kentlands Mansion have ongoing art exhibits accompanying the music. Surrealist Izya Schosberg and expressionist Michelle Izquierdo provide a glimpse into the visual imagination at the Arts Barn, while Gaithersburg's own Gaithersburg Fine Arts Association (GFAA) is holding its annual members show at Kentlands Mansion. Over 80 pieces of art are on view at both venues.

The City's new Art After Dark program, which debuted at Kentlands Mansion on March 16, takes the fusion of art and music a step further. Artists, musicians and guests unite at the Mansion one Friday a month for a happy hour event with live music, artist discussions, complimentary snacks and a cash bar.

The March 16th debut featured visual artists Michelle Izquierdo and Anthony Palliparambil Jr. and singer Kyla Simone.

Upcoming Art After Dark soirees will be on April 20 and May 18 from 6 - 9 p.m. The April 20th event will include the abstract paintings of Kentlands artist and Arts Barn art instructor Jaree Donnelly and musical numbers by E. M. Spencer, a Towson indie rock band.

The next Music on the Move concert is scheduled on June 1 with jazz perfomances by The Bruce Swaim Quartet (sax, bass, piano and drums) at the Arts Barn and The Rick Whitehead Jazz Trio (guitar, drums and bass) at Kentlands Mansion.

The Bruce Swaim Quartet has performed at the Kennedy Center, DAR Consitution Hall, Blues Alley, Wolf Trap and Lincoln Center. The group received the 2010 Washington Area Music Association award for Jazz Group of the Year as well as Jazz Recording of the Year for "Winter's Waltz."

The Rick Whitehead Trio has performed at Blues Alley, Bohemian Caverns, the Smithsonian's Jazz Club, the IOTA Club and the Kennedy Center and has won the Washington Area Music Association award for best Contemporary Album in 1998.

To find out more about these events or purchase tickets, call the Arts Barn: 301-258-6394.