Sounds Of Blues, Jazz, Zydeco Highlight MPAartfest Musical Lineup

MCLEAN, VA — The musical lineup for MPAartfest 2022, coming Oct. 2, features a wide variety of genres, from jazz to blues to a 15-piece youth swing band.

MPAartfest, organized by the McLean Project for the Arts, will take place on Sunday, Oct. 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in McLean Central Park.

Selected by Ken Avis, radio host of Antidote on WERA 96.7 FM, MPAartfest’s music stage will include artists who have performed on the stages of the Kennedy Center, The Smithsonian Institution, Wolf Trap Farm Park, Blues Alley and other music venues.

Blues Alley Youth Orchestra will kick off the festival at 10 a.m. on Oct. 2. The award-winning swing big band, directed by bassist Michael Bowie, performs musical selections by jazz composers such as Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and John Coltrane.

Alison Crockett will perform her nu jazz/progressive soul music on stage at 11 a.m. Crockett has performed on recordings by King Britt, Blue Six, John Wicks and others.

Folk-blues singer-songwriter Bobby Thompson will hit the stage at noon hour. Thompson has fronted bands like Blueheart Revival and Revelator Hill, and has been a sideman for artists such as Justin Jones, Laura Tsaggaris and SOJA.

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Be ready to dance when Little Red & The Renegades comes on stage at 1 p.m., performing their blend of blues, zydeco, funk and gospel at 1 p.m.

Ruthie and the Wranglers take the stage at 2 p.m. From original Americana Country to Surf instrumental or a whisky-drenched ballad, their music is like if “Loretta Lynn meets the Ramones at a Dick Dale party!”

Taisha Estrada will close out the MPAartfest Music Stage at 3 p.m. Her sultry vocals reminisce of R&B, while her chord progressions pull heavily from jazz.

The festival will also feature the work of visual artists, showcasing a wide variety of media and styles. Along with the artists’ tents and live music, MPAartfest offers food from local restaurants, the New Dominion Women’s Club Children’s Art Walk, and a hands-on Children’s Art Village.

MPAartfest admission is free. Parking will be available at the McLean Community Center, at 1234 Ingleside Avenue. For more information, visit www.mpaart.org.