Ted Garber Brings Blues Americana Rock to Mason District Park

Ted Garber will bring his unique blend of Blues Americana Rock to the amphitheater tonight as part of the Spotlight by Starlight summer concert series. The Bethesda-based musician won a 2010 Washington Area Music Award (WAMA) for "Pop Rock Recording of the Year," recognizing his late-2009 studio album, "American Rail." He is also a 2010-2011 Strathmore Performing Arts Center Artist-in-Residence.

Garber plays guitar and harmonica and sings. He will be joined tonight by some of D.C.’s best young talent on bass and drums.

Learn more about tonight’s performance in this Q&A with Garber.

What are you looking forward to most about your show tonight?  

I played for years in the Irish bar circuit in Springfield and Annandale. I hope that the people who remember that time and had fun come out to hear these new songs. I think they will be equally if not more entertained. A lot of people in that area remember me as a bar act but I’ve been cultivating my own sound (Blues Americana Rock) over the past few years. I’m looking forward to this Braddock Road adventure.

What can local concertgoers expect to hear at your performance?

I have a wonderful assortment of songs designed specifically for this show to get people singing and clapping along and hopefully movin’ and groovin’. I have one or two sentimental songs as well to give people that nice personal touch. I have a great band coming with me. My drummer is a fellow Strathmore artist and my bass player is another young man about town playing all over D.C.’s jazz and blues scene. We’ve got a phenomenal trio for this show.  

How did you develop your unique sound of Blues Americana Rock?

I’ve been playing this area for 15 years for a living. I’ve played just about every single pub, club and college bar between Frederick, MD and Richmond, VA. My songs are inspired heavily by my travels. I’ve been to over 30 countries on five continents and still counting. This inspires my music and my stories.

My music is also heavily influenced by New Orleans, the city I went to school in and where I started my music career. There was lots of heavy old school rhythm, funky street corner shuffle and bluesy sounds to get people dancing.

There is also a real Americana sense to my music. In addition to playing the local Irish bar circuit in the 90s, my father was a country singer so I write the occasional ballad as well.

What do you love most about being a musician?

I love being able to tap into something that I’m feeling and figuring out a way to try to connect it to what other people might be feeling, too. It’s an opportunity to connect to my fellow human beings out there. Having the ability to inspire and entertain other people is a magical thing. I think it’s something that we all need.  

Each and every time I get on a stage, no matter how small the band is or how big the venue is, I endeavor to reach out to all of the people in the audience. I try to make something magical happen that gives people a sense of being truly alive. Doing that for 15 years has been a real treat.

Ted Garber will also be performing at Blues Alley downtown on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Follow him on Twitter @TedGarberMusic. His albums are available at his website and on iTunes. Click here for more information.

For last minute performance cancellations due to inclement weather, call 703-324-SHOW (7469) one hour prior to the program start time.

Wednesday, Aug. 24, 7:30 p.m.; Free
6621 Columbia Pike, Annandale, VA; (703) 324-SHOW