Top 11 concerts this week in Sarasota, Bradenton, Englewood
As we get further into December and its lengthy lineup of local events, it'll be another week full of things to do, including live music. It'll be especially busy at Sarasota's premier performing arts hall Van Wezel, with a rescheduled date for a chart-topping, Grammy-winning pianist and singer-songwriter, a tribute show featuring multiple ties to Sarasota-Manatee, and two Christmas concerts headlined by renowned singers.
There'll be even more Christmas-themed concerts this week at other area venues — part of the lineup of local winter holiday season events — as well as a celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast Day headlined by another Grammy-winning musical act. Here are this week's highlights. Event details are subject to change.
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Bruce Hornsby
After rescheduling a November date at Van Wezel, Grammy-winning pianist and singer-songwriter Bruce Hornsby is now set to play the venue this weekend for a show celebrating the 25th anniversary of his 1998 album "Spirit Trail." He initially rose to fame with Bruce Hornsby and the Range, whose 1986 debut full-length "The Way It Is" scored a No. 1 hit with its title track and helped the group win a Best New Artist Grammy. He's continued to lead an eclectic music career that's included winning two more Grammys for Best Pop Instrumental Performance and Best Bluegrass Recording, being a "floating member" of the Grateful Dead, and contributing music to multiple Spike Lee films. 7:30 p.m. Friday; Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; $52-$82 (includes a copy of "Spirit Trail 25th Anniversary Edition" three-CD box set); 941-263-6799; vanwezel.org
Matt Walden
Singer-songwriter and Manatee High School graduate Matt Walden will return to the area for a show at Bradenton cafe and music venue Oscura. Walden, who released his latest full-length "This Album is About Heartbreak" earlier this year, also currently has more than 10 million Spotify plays on his 2018 single "Milestone" with YouTube star Joey Kidney. Sarasota alt-R&B artist Me Umbra, who just released the EP "A Goddess Returns" earlier this month, will also perform along with Jordan Esker and Gabe Hernandez. 7 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m. show Friday; Oscura, 816 Manatee Ave. E., Bradenton; $10 advance, $15 day of; 941-201-4950; oscura.live
Nate Najar's Jazz Holiday
St. Petersburg jazz guitarist Nate Najar will bring his annual holiday concert to Sarasota. The musician's discography includes the 2017 winter holiday album "Christmas in December" along with last year's "Jazz Samba Pra Sempre," paying tribute to Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd's acclaimed 1962 bossa nova album "Jazz Samba" that celebrated its 60th anniversary that year. Najar's Jazz Holiday show will feature special guests including singer Daniela Soledade, who appears on "Jazz Samba Pra Sempre," along with bassist Joe Porter, keyboardist Patrick Bettison, drummer Jean Bolduc, guitarist Carl Amundson, trumpeter Bruce Harris and sax/flute player Adrian Cunningham. 7:30 p.m. Friday; Glenridge Performing Arts Center, 7333 Scotland Way, Sarasota; $20-$25; 941-552-5325; gpactix.com
Have Gun, Will Travel
Also playing Oscura this weekend will be one of Sarasota-Manatee's most acclaimed musical acts, Bradenton alt-Americana band Have Gun, Will Travel, playing a "Hometown Holiday Hootenanny." The group's music has appeared on television shows "The Good Wife" and "The Ranch," and been covered by outlets including NPR and No Depression. Last year, the band released the EP "Silver Sounds," featuring songs including "Our Fair City," which pays tribute to Bradenton with lyrical references to the Riverwalk, Village of the Arts and other local landmarks. Tampa rockers The Dirty Janes will also perform. 7:30 p.m. doors, 8:30 p.m. show Saturday; Oscura, 816 Manatee Ave. E., Bradenton; $10; 941-201-4950; oscura.live
Damon Fowler
Blues guitarist, singer-songwriter and former Anna Maria Island resident Damon Fowler will return to Sarasota's Big Top Brewing Company (the brewers of Fowler's IPA) this weekend for its Sunday Blues & Brews concert series. Fowler topped the Billboard blues albums chart and earned a Blues Rock Album Blues Music Award nomination for his 2021 full-length "Alafia Moon," which was followed earlier this year by the live album "Live at the Palladium," recorded at the titular venue in St. Pete. Along with his solo career, Fowler plays in the supergroup Southern Hospitality with Grammy-nominated pianist Victor Wainwright and fellow Floridian J.P. Soars. 3 p.m. Sunday; Big Top Brewing Company, 975 Cattlemen Road, Sarasota; 941-371-2939; bigtopbrewing.com
Allman Betts Family Revival
An annual concert celebration with multiple ties to Sarasota-Manatee will return to Van Wezel this year after a rebranding. Along with showcasing the music of the late Allman Brothers Band co-founder, frontman and former Manatee County resident Gregg Allman, the concert will now feature a set of songs by co-founding guitarist and longtime Sarasota County resident Dickey Betts. The two ABB members' sons — Devon Allman and Duane Betts, a Sarasota native who released his debut solo album earlier this year — will be joined by other musicians such as Anders Osborne, Luther and Cody Dickinson, Jimmy Hall, Jackie Greene, Larry McCray, Orbi Orbison, Ally Venable and the Allman Betts Band featuring Tal Wilkenfeld on bass. 7 p.m. Tuesday; Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; sold out as of press time; 941-263-6799; vanwezel.org
La Santa Cecilia
To celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe Feast Day, which happens Tuesday, The Ringling will host a concert by Los Angeles-based band La Santa Cecilia, who are named after the patron saint of music. The group that plays a blend of bossa nova, cumbia and other styles won a Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album Grammy for their 2013 full-length "Treinta Días" and have been nominated multiple other times, including last year for their album "Quiero Verte Feliz." They've also had their music appear in movies such as 2017's Oscar-winning Pixar film "Coco," contributing a cover of the song "Un Mundo Raro," and 2014's "The Book of Life." 6 p.m. Tuesday; The Ringling, Ca' d'Zan Bolger Campiello, 5401 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota; $40; 941-360-7399; ringling.org
Marie Osmond
Marie Osmond, the singer and television star both by herself and with her brother Donny Osmond, will visit Van Wezel on her An Orchestral Christmas tour. It's a recurring holiday throughout her career, including releasing 1986's "Marie Osmond's Merry Christmas," performing a Christmas show on Broadway and on tour with her brother, and appearing in multiple Lifetime Christmas movies. Her debut single as a solo artist was a 1973 cover of "Paper Roses," which became a Top 5 hit and topped Billboard's country and adult contemporary charts, making her the youngest solo musician with a No. 1 country hit (a record she still holds) and earned her Grammy nominations for Best New Artist and Best Country Vocal Performance, Female. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; $75-$105; 941-263-6799; vanwezel.org
Sarah Brightman
Another winter holiday tour visiting Van Wezel this week will be soprano singer and classical crossover musician Sarah Brightman's A Christmas Symphony. Brightman is known for originating the role of Christine Daaé in her then-husband Andrew Lloyd Webber's hit musical "The Phantom of the Opera," as well as her 1996 duet "Time to Say Goodbye" with fellow classical crossover star Andrea Bocelli. She also has plenty of experience with Christmas music, appearing as one of the four lead singers in 1998's "A Gala Christmas in Vienna" and releasing the 2008 album "A Winter Symphony" and the 2021 special "A Christmas Symphony," featuring Lloyd Webber. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 14; Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota; $148-$188; 941-263-6799; vanwezel.org
J.P. Soars and the Red Hots
After playing this year's Bradenton Blues Festival with Gypsy Blue Revue featuring violinist Anne Harris, South Florida blues guitarist and singer-songwriter J.P. Soars will play Englewoods on Dearborn with his band the Red Hots. The group received four Blues Music Awards nominations last year including Band of the Year, B.B. King Entertainer and Instrumentalist — Guitar for Soars, and Instrumentalist — Drums for his bandmate Chris Peet. Can't make this show? Soars is also set to play Punta Gorda's Celtic Ray on Dec. 15. 6:30 p.m. Thursday; Englewoods on Dearborn, 362 W. Dearborn St., Englewood; $7; 941-475-7501; englewoodsondearborn.com
The Music of Vince Guaraldi: 'A Charlie Brown Christmas'
Another Christmas-themed concert will take place Thursday in Sarasota when Zach Bartholomew performs The Music of Vince Guaraldi: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" at Fogartyville. Jazz pianist Guaraldi's 1965 soundtrack for "A Charlie Brown Christmas," featuring both traditional songs such as "O Tannenbaum" and original compositions such as "Christmas Time is Here," is included in the Grammy Hall of Fame and Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. Bartholomew is also a jazz pianist and current full-time faculty member at Florida Memorial University. This concert will also take place Dec. 18 at Florida Studio Theatre's John C. Court Cabaret. 6:30 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m. show Thursday; Fogartyville Community Media and Arts Center, 525 Kumquat Court, Sarasota; $24, $20 members, $12 students ages 13 and up; 941-894-6469; fogartyville.org
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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Top 11 concerts near me this week in Sarasota, Bradenton, Englewood
