All Over Albany

Music Haven 2014 lineup

The Cuban band Conjunto Chappotin y Sus Estrellas will be making a stop in Schenectady during its first tour of the US.

The lineup for this year's Music Haven series of free concerts in Schenectady's Central Park is out. As usual, it has a bit of an international and folk flavor to it. This will be the 25th year for the series.

Without further ado, here's the lineup...

Descriptions via Music Haven organizers.

June 29: Mokoomba
With: balafon master Famoro Dioubate
Hailing from the remote, rural village of Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Mokoomba makes its very first appearance on American soil at Music Haven! Dance to the electrifying mix of traditional Tongan rhythms and modern Afro-fusion beats, which has been thrilling audiences abroad for years.

July 13: Eileen Ivers
With: TBA
She's played with Sting, Hall & Oates, The Chieftains and Patti Smith. She's the original star of "Riverdance" and a nine-time All Ireland Fiddle Champion. She's been called "The Jimi Hendrix of the violin" and "The future of the Celtic fiddle." Billboard says, "Nobody does it better than Eileen Ivers."

July 20: Conjunto Chappotin y Sus Estrellas
With: Maria Zemantauski
With roots stretching back to the 1940s, Conjunto Chappottin y sus Estrellas is one of the most renowned 'Son' bands in all of Cuba. This classic and classy big band--on its first tour of America-- features horns, vocals, congas and bongos in a vibrant dance explosion of Afro-Cuban grooves.

July 27: James Cotton
With: Matt Mirabile
Tunica, Mississippi's "Superharp" is celebrating 70 years in showbiz. He's a living link to blues greats like Sonny Boy Williamson, Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters, and a legend in his own right. From his first 15-cent harmonica to superstar status, Cotton is the heart of the blues.

August 3: Jeffery Broussard & The Creole Cowboys
With: TBA
As a founding member of Opelousas, Louisiana's legendary Zydeco Force, Jeffery Broussard's accordion and fiddle drove the influential nouveau Zydeco movement. With his Creole Cowboys, Broussard returns to his roots, making R&B-inflected dance music that honors the past while charting Zydeco's bright future.

August 10: Ghost Train Orchestra
With: Colleen Pratt & Friends
Brian Carpenter's GTO echoes the "Hothouse Stomp" of 1920s Harlem and Chicago as well as the exquisite, romping "chamber jazz" of the 1930s. They've been called "a joyous vaudevillian ride," and "a delightful trip through a retro aural funhouse," conjuring up what NPR refers to as "old music, which somehow sounds new."

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Earlier on AOA:
+ Alive at Five 2014 lineup
+ At The Plaza 2014

photo via Alma Artist Booking and Management