Lubber Run Amphitheater – Free Concert Series

Las Cafeteras

Friday, June 9, 8pm

Las Cafeteras

Las Cafeteras

Friday, June 9, 8pm

Las Cafeteras

Lauren Calve

Saturday, July 1, 8pm

Lauren Calve

123 Andres

Sunday, June 18, 11am

123 Andres

Lubber Run Summer Concert Series

Since the construction of the first permanent stage in 1969, generations of Arlingtonians have enjoyed free summer cultural events at the sylvan venue nestled two blocks off Route 50, ranging from Encore Stage & Studio to bands like Raul Midón, Eddie from Ohio and superstar Ritchie Havens.

The Lubber Run Summer Concert series features free performances from a variety of genres including big band, blues, soul and orchestral music as well as cabaret to the Lubber Run Amphitheater. Working in partnership with the Lubber Run Amphitheater Foundation which funds four family-friendly shows at the end of the season, we bring the very best of DC metro area arts to the heart of Arlington.

The series will run Friday, June 9 through August 11, 2023, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 11am.

View our events on Facebook to share or save to your calendar. Wondering about the weather and last-minute cancellations? Visit our Facebook page for the most up-to-date information.

2023 Lubber Run Summer Concert Schedule

Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 11am*

*Please note exceptions to the general schedule as indicated by an asterisk.
View our events on Facebook to share or save to your calendar. Wondering about the weather? Visit our Facebook page for the most up-to-date information.

Las Cafeteras -  Fri, June 9, 8pm

Las Cafeteras Las Cafeteras have taken the music scene by storm with their infectious live performances and have crossed many genres and borders along the way. Their electric sound & energy has taken them around the world playing shows from Bonnaroo to the Hollywood Bowl, WOMAD New Zealand to Montreal Jazz, & beyond!
Born and raised East of the Los Angeles River, Las Cafeteras are remixing roots music as modern day troubadours.  They are a sonic explosion of Afro-Mexican rhythms, electronic beats and powerful rhymes that document stories of a community seeking to ‘build a world where many world fit.’
From Afro-Mexican to Americana, from Soul to Son Jarocho, from Roots to Rock and Hip Hop, Las Cafeteras take folk music to the future.
Las Cafeteras honor the past by using electrifying traditional instrumentation like the 8 string Jarana, 4 string Requinto, Quijada (donkey jawbone) and Tarima (a wooden platform). Las Cafeteras sing in 5 distinct languages, English, Spanish, Spanglish, Love and Justice … and they believe everyone understands at least one of those languages.
They’ve performed in the good company of Mexican icons Café Tacuba, Natalia LaFourcade, Lila Downs, Gypsy Kings, Colombian superstar Juanes, Hip Hop artist Common, Los Angeles legends Ozomatli and Los Lobos, performing with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and many more. More

The 19th Street Band - Sat, June 10, 8pm

The 19th Street Band Characterized by high energy and strong vocal harmonies, The 19th Street Band bridges the musical traditions of country and roots from Ireland to the Appalachia with their eclectic gypsy-rock spirit leaping from the stage and engaging every crowd. The charismatic vibe that Caolaidhe Davis (guitar player/vocalist) blends with fiddle/mandolin player/vocalist/partner-in-crime, Meghan Davis, creates a joy-filled chemistry that no crowd can resist. Add to the mix the highly talented rhythm section, Greg Hardin (bass) & Patty Dougherty (drums), and this band will have every crowd addicted. The band’s newest album, Diamond in the Rough, was chosen as ‘Album of the Month’ on West Norfolk Radio, selected as a finalist for the DC Wammie Awards and has received air play on numerous radio stations throughout the UK. It includes three songs that were co-written by the late, great Philip Donnelly and John Prine. Donnelly invited the band to record these songs with him in Tipperary, Ireland. More

Arlington Children's Chorus - Sun, June 11, 11am

Arlington Children's Chorus The Arlington Children’s Chorus is a diverse and inclusive group who embrace the joy of singing in a non-judgmental and non-competitive manner while enjoying high quality instruction and performance opportunities to develop character, responsibility, teamwork, kindness and community spirit.
Groups rehearse weekly in Arlington with children from 2nd (unless recommended by a music teacher) through 12th grades from September through the end of May. These children come to the chorus with many gifts, voice types, musical experiences, and personalities, and are encouraged to come prepared to each rehearsal, ready to learn and contribute to their own and their peers’ education, teamwork and responsibility to their community and to each other. More

Rose Moraes' Forro Party! - Fri, June 16, 8pm

Rose Moraes Forró, the accordion-driven party music of Brazil, and the legacy of its primary innovator, the great Luiz Gonzaga. 
Forró evokes the experience of a Saturday night at a club or backyard somewhere deep in the northeast of Brazil. The band thrills audiences with an experience both uplifting and enlightening. They are nationally acclaimed as a premier Forró band. More

Veronneau - Sat, June 17, 8pm

Veronneau Live Duo Photo The multi-lingual, award-winning, world-jazz group VERONNEAU return to Lubber Run by popular demand! Led by Quebecoise vocalist Lynn Veronneau, and UK guitarist Ken Avis, VERONNEAU have had 3 Top 10 charting albums and toured internationally. For this band it’s all about the song. It's been a big year for the Arlington based international band. Their Live at Blues Alley album, captures a performance described by the Washington Post as “inspiring and joyful”. The album was released with a month-long residency at the legendary club; and they will be among this year's headliners of the DC Jazz Festival....but, of course, VERONNEAU are at-home performing at Lubber Run. For the Lubber Run performance VERONNEAU will be joined by Dave Kline, violin (UK); Karine Chapdelaine, bass (Quebec); and Manny Arciniega on percussion (USA). More

123 Andrés - Sun, June 18, 11am

123 Andrés y Christina Presented in partnership with Arlington Public Library

In this energy-packed program, 123 Andrés brings music from different parts of the Americas. Families and children of all ages will have a great time doing the moves and hearing the instruments and stories through genres such as cumbia, salsa, merengue, bachata and more.  More

Eric Scott - Fri, June 23, 8pm

Eric Scott Washington, DC Modern Soul singer/songwriter and bassist Eric Scott has toured internationally performing his own evolving brand of funky, upbeat, socially aware and ever soulful grooves. He’s shared stages with B.B. King, Mavis Staples, Aaron Neville, REO Speedwagon, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, and has been the long time bassist and vocalist for award winning blues and jazz artist Deanna Bogart. He’s written, produced and released 5 solo albums and his music has been featured in international and regional ad campaigns for HGTV, NAT GEO, Ford, Chevy, Jeep, Chrysler, DC Lottery, and many more. He is a 15-time Wammie winner (WAMA - Washington Area Musicians Association). “What do I love most about what I do? I love the freedom of artistic expression that playing music provides for me, and the ability to connect with people and get them moving and thinking about the world we live in.” More

Joe Keyes & The Late Bloomer Band - Sat, June 24, 8pm

Joe Keyes and the Late Bloomer BandJoe Keyes will be the first to tell you that he is a late bloomer. A lifelong musician who got his start DJing in middle school, it wasn’t until 2009, as he was approaching his 50s, that Keyes found his band, and his true sound. The Freehold, NJ, native formed Joe Keyes & The Late Bloomer Band around an ensemble of young musicians equally adept at playing the funk, R&B, soul, rock and jazz flavors Keyes throws at them.
Equal parts front man, poet, and conductor, Keyes draws on the influences of Miles Davis, Gil Scott-Heron, Sun Ra, and early Parliament-Funkadelic when bands were led by strong, almost otherworldly leaders. As the nine-piece band grooves through the musical spectrum, Keyes cues the horns and the solos and directs the dynamics from epic crescendos to soft melodies. Add to the mix his deep, commanding vocals, which are punctuated by tales of love, family, and addiction from Keyes’ six decades on earth. More

Arlington Philharmonic - Sun, June 25, 5pm*

Arlington Philharmonic The Arlington Philharmonic is a professional symphony orchestra in Arlington, Virginia led by A. Scott Wood, Conductor and Music Director. The Philharmonic’s mission is to make classical music accessible to every Arlington citizen, to promote the value of classical music in our civic life, and to build strong, creative partnerships with schools, local government, businesses, and other organizations. Each season, the Philharmonic presents a series of free public concerts. More

Kiti Gartner & The Drifting Valentines - Fri, June 30, 8pm

Kiti Gartner and the Drifting Valentines Kiti Gartner & the Drifting Valentines is a band out of Washington DC who play old American roots music (rockabilly, western swing and country). Their influences range from classic Sun Records in Memphis to music recorded at the Quonset Hut and RCA Studio B in Nashville in the 1950s and ’60s. Kiti Gartner (vocals and rhythm guitar), Zachary Sweeney (lead guitar), Steve Wolf (upright bass), Brian Alpert (drums). More

 

Lauren Calve - Sat, July 1, 8pm

Lauren Calve On Lauren Calve’s debut album Shift, she invites you to come along on her journey of self-discovery and change, demonstrating a musical masterclass in the art of emotional storytelling. "The subtle understated yearning in her voice, the intonation in her haunting delivery, Calve is longing for something more" (DittyTV),  and you can hear it throughout the ten-track collection. Shift was recorded in Nashville with producer, engineer, songwriter Dex Green, Fred Eltringham (drums), Audley Freed (guitar), Robert Kearns (bass), Marlon Patton (drums), Jared Reynolds (bass), and Joe Costa (engineer). Watch Calve perform "Be My Home" on Mountain Stage Radio ShowMore

Munit and Z Lovebugs - Sun, July 2, 11am

Munit & Z Lovebugs Munit and z Lovebugs are an adorable family band born of the time spent together during the pandemic with Munit (Mama Lovebug) on voice and drums, Gabriel (son Lovebug) on bass, Meezan (daughter Lovebug) on ukulele and voice, Ayana (youngest Lovebug) on voice and being the fun firecracker of the band! They play songs that leave children 3 to 103 feeling better than they did when they came in - songs of love, positivity, and joy, songs about geography and our place in the planet, songs that encourage, and songs of peace from around the world - in English, Amharic, Spanish and no words at all :) ! They love when they see all those around them shine, singing along, and joining in as they perform their originals and the classic, funky, and fun songs that many know and love by artists like Ella Jenkins, Miriam Makeba, Bob Marley, Harry Belafonte and more! It's bound to be a good time, telling stories, and making memories across the generations with Munit and z Lovebugs!  More

Roberta Flack Tribute, Fri, July 7, 8pm

Munit Mesfin Did you know Roberta Flack comes from Arlington? We’ll be celebrating the music of the Grammy-winning artist with Munit Mesfin and her band. A long-time fan of Roberta Flack, Munit is bringing her music to life. Munit Mesfin is an Ethiopian-American singer, songwriter, teaching artist, and producer. She is a pioneer of the Ethio-Soul movement, bringing elements of jazz improvisation, reggae grooves, and songs of resistance, with soulful, sultry melodies in her Ethiopian flavored style. Her influences hail from around the world - from Girma Beyene to Miriam Makeba, Roberta Flack to Zap Mama, Bob Marley to Chaka Khan! More

King Soul - Sat, July 8, 8pm

king-soul.jpg Born of a mutual passion for the deep, down home sounds of an earlier time, eight-piece band King Soul is bringing the excitement of real Southern Soul to a new audience. Featuring original songs, powerful vocals, soaring horn work and driving rhythms, King Soul has become a top draw at area clubs and events. The all-star band includes members of the Slickee Boys, the Rhodes Tavern Troubadours, the Recliners, the Grandsons, the Hula Monsters the Thangs and the J Street Jumpers. King Soul’s membership holds more than 30 Washington Area Music Association Wammies and Austin Music Awards to its credit. King Soul’s new self-titled album on Austin’s Freedom label was recorded live in the studio and features nine new original tunes that sound like lost Muscle Shoals sessions. “We are proud to play the music the way it is meant to be played – with energy and conviction,” says lead vocalist Tom Clifford. “We believe that our original songs and stage show uphold and add to this great tradition.” Adds guitarist/vocalist Jake Flack “King Soul reflects the love each of us holds for playing music. We like to say that King Soul is the sound in your mind. King Soul is Washington music.” More

Mr. Jon - Sun, July 9, 11am

Mr. Jon & Carrie Mr. Jon & Friends makes music for kids and their families that inspire fun, laughter, and dancing. We are a multiple Parents' Choice Award winning band and perform over 250 shows a year for kids and their families. Sometimes with a band, sometimes as a duo, and sometimes solo, the music of Mr. Jon & Friends is sure to bring a smile to your face! More

 

The Hot Lanes - Fri, July 14, 8pm

The Hot Lanes The Hot Lanes is a 16-piece culmination of a dream Bobby Jasinski had in 2014. Influenced by Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Bobby’s focus of The Hot Lanes is to promote jazz in the D.C. metropolitan area through festivals, concerts, educational masterclasses in the public school system and other appearances. The group features a diverse and talented group of musicians. More

Cumbia Heights - Sat, July 15, 8pm

Cumbia Heights Cumbia Heights is an Alternative tropical band based in Washington DC, made up of 8 immigrants representing Latin America from Tierra del Fuego to the international border in northern Mexico. More

 

Soul in Motion - Sun, July 16, 11am

Soul in Motion Presented in partnership with Arlington Public Library

Learn about African history while dancing and moving to the drum battery from the Soul in Motion African Dancers and Drummers. They have performed at premier dance events in the Washington D.C. area and across the country. Join us as they celebrate 39 years of Diversity in our Community. More

Hot Club of Baltimore - Fri, July 21, 8pm

Hot Club of Baltimore The Hot Club of Baltimore performs inspired arrangements of the Django Reinhardt repertoire, French waltzes, and Trad Jazz. The ensemble boasts a variety of configurations including an instrumental trio of two guitars and upright bass, a classic quintet with violin, a late 40's instrumentation adding piano, drums, and horns, and a Django Big Band, which emulates the sound of the early 50's when Reinhardt performed with Duke Ellington. The group often features captivating vocalist Alexis Tantau who sings in her native Occitan language as well as songs in French and English by Edith Piaf, Eartha Kitt, Charles Trenet, Maxine Sullivan, Jacques Dutronc, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, and Henri Salvador. More

Mama Moon & The Rump Shakers - Sat, July 22, 8pm

Mama Moon & The Rump Shakers Mama Moon & The Rump Shakers are a 6-piece blues fusion group based out of Washington DC. Formed in June of 2021. Mama Moon & the Rump Shakers brings a unique creativity to Blues Music all while keeping the soul and roots of Blues Music alive. Mama Moon has a dynamic stage presence with an eccentric sense of style and energy that will stand out from the rest. Known as DC's Goddess of the Blues or the barefoot blues singer, Mama moon brings the audience to the edge of their seats. MMRS is the 2022 DC blues society battle of the band Champions and Semi-Finalist in the 2023 International Blues Challenge in Memphis TN. They are currently working on their first EP. More

Encore Stage & Studio presents "Circulo\Circle" - Sun, July 31, 11am

Encore Stage & Studio Encore Stage & Studio, Arlington's award-winning children's theatre company. Featuring professional artists, join us on our journey as we bring park adventures to life, all while teaching your little one about navigating through life's surprises. Recommended for all ages, especially the young at heart. More

 

Crush Funk Brass - Fri, July 28, 8pm

Crush Funk Brass The Crush Funk Brass Band is a brilliant, innovative group of young musicians hailing from Washington DC. Comprised of alums from The University of the District of Columbia, Bowie State University, Howard University and IU. Influenced by all genres of music, the band’s style is unique, embodying the brass tones of New Orleans, with an Urban Capital City modern pop-fun(k) twist. The mission of the band is simple: “To bring life to the city through music where least expected, to enrich the lives of others and to continue growing and striving for high musical excellence.”  More

Seven Voices: A Tribute to Patsy Cline - Sat, July 29, 8pm

Patsy Cline Seven Voices 2023 Seven Voices is a fun, innovative musical collaboration Jess Eliot Myhre produces annually with a group of incredible women and musicians to pay tribute to the First Lady of Country, Patsy Cline. They’ll treat your ears and spirit with classic renditions of her songs, as well as re-imagined versions with new instrumentation and creative arrangements. Your singers and storytellers are internationally-touring, award-winning musicians and songwriters: Jess Eliot Myhre (Bumper Jacksons), Nicole Saphos, Dave Chappell, Maureen Andary (Sweater Set), Be Steadwell, Shannon Bielski and Ele Rubenstein. More

 

Rainbow Rock Band - Sun, July 30, 11am

Rainbow Rock BandAre you ready to rock the rainbow?? Join the Rainbow Rock Band as they entertain your little dudes with tunes, laughs and more! Winners of a Parents’ Choice Fun Stuff Award for their debut CD, “Meet the Rainbow,” and a 2018 Family Choice Award for their newest release “Total Eclipse of the Rainbow,” they provide an absolute mix of musical genres from folk, pop rock to rockabilly, all the while being EDUCATIONAL and FUN!! Your child will learn about shapes, colors, movement, and more! The Rainbow Rock Band encourages all rainbow rockers to participate in the show on the microphone or at their seat, either way your little one is sure to have fun! More

Crooked Sparrow - Fri, August 4, 8pm

Crooked Sparrow Crooked Sparrow is the combination of award-winning singer songwriters Valeria Stewart and Kevin Dudley. They are joined by fiddler Jenny Smith. There is never a dull moment with the blend of Texas, Latin America, Folk and Americana roots in this trio’s music. More

 

Ardmore - Sat, August 5, 8pm

Ardmore Named for towns in both Ireland and Scotland, ARDMORE (“great height”) burnishes traditional Celtic melodies with folk, bluegrass & rock influences. ARDMORE is Matthew Dunne, who has played bass and guitar in bands in New York and DC for more than twenty years, including jazz, rock, folk, soul, and musical theater. Now he’s finally taking some lessons • Eric McCleaf, who has played guitarist and percussion in various bands in the Washington, DC area for 20-plus years. Eric teaches guitar & drum and is active in the Celtic/traditional music community, serving as the Entertainment Chair for the Virginia Scottish Games and Festival • Amy Nazarov, who sang in the award-winning folk/bluegrass band Dead Men’s Hollow for 14 years. In addition to Ardmore, she sings and writes original songs as part of the alt-folk duo Tiber Creek • Don Walters, whose passion is exploring the fusion of rock, folk-rock, bluegrass, Celtic and Americana music. Don’s driving mandolin —plus his lead & harmony vocals — round out ARDMORE’s fresh take on Celtic tunes of yore. More

Uncle Devin - Sun, August 6, 11am

Uncle Devin Presented in partnership with Arlington Public Library

The Uncle Devin Show® is an interactive musical experience for children by renowned drummer, Devin Walker. Uncle Devin and 25 other artists are members of the 1 Tribe Collective whose album “All One Tribe” was GRAMMY - nominated for Best Children’s Music Album in 2022. The entire family will experience the rhythm of Uncle Devin’s infectious blend of Jazz, Funk, and DC’s official music, Go-Go. 
The show cultivates the minds of children through percussion instruments and is a dynamic cross between DC’s Trouble Funk and Schoolhouse Rock. Uncle Devin is also a Teaching Artist with both the Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning and Teaching for Change and owner of the children’s online music platform, WEE Nation Radio. More

The 257th Army Band, The Band of the Nation's Capital - Fri, August 11, 8pm

The 257th Army Band The 257th Army Band, “The Band of the Nation’s Capital,” is the official musical ambassador for the D.C. Army National Guard. The band boasts a proud lineage going back to the organizational lineage and association with the legendary Corcoran Cadets, the D.C. militia that inspired John Philip Sousa to compose his march of the same name. Noteworthy performances include musical support for the Inauguration of President Obama, performances in Greece, Jamaica, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Panama, consecutive appearances at the Great American Brass Band Festival and concert tours throughout New England, Texas and the Mid-Atlantic. Although centrally located among the finest military bands in the world, The 257th Army Band is officially recognized as “The Band of the Nation’s Capital”. More

Policies

Admission to Lubber Run Amphitheater remains FREE.

Lubber Run Amphitheater events are suitable for the entire family, unless noted. While ‘sensible cancelations’ in extreme weather should be anticipated (driving-rain, lightning, tropical storm warnings, etc.), in the case of drizzle or intermittent rain, the decision to cancel is made at the last possible moment. The information will be posted on our social media channels: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Due to the packed performance schedules of area bands, canceled performances cannot be rescheduled. Bring a picnic, but alcohol is prohibited in all Arlington public parks! Smoking is discouraged. 

Getting There

Address:
North Columbus Street & 2nd Street North (two blocks north of Rt. 50)
Arlington, Virginia 22203
Google Maps

By Metro Bus  – Take Bus # 4B or 4E to Park Dr. and N 2nd St

Bookings

The Lubber Run Summer Concert Series programming begins in mid-January. We recommend that performers interested in being considered for the upcoming Lubber Run season email links to sample recordings/videos starting January 1. Please understand that we endeavor to create a diverse and fresh range of offerings each season, and submission of your materials for consideration does not guarantee a booking. Please email them to: Josh Stoltzfus, Cultural Development Director at jstoltzfus@arlingtonva.us

                                                          

 


The Lubber Run Summer Concert Series is produced by Arlington Arts, the presenting arm of Arlington Cultural Affairs Division, in collaboration with the Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation, and with the cooperation of the Lubber Run Amphitheater Foundation.