Travelsmartplanet

In Seattle’s Museum of Pop Culture, you can go into the Sound Lab and have fun making sounds. What else? This one allows you to make a lot of noise as it recreates the sounds of the percussion section of the orchestra. 

Music and fireworks will once again fill the air as part of Boston’s legendary July 4 celebrations attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors to the birthplace of American independence.

Deemed one of the most popular Massachusetts summer events,  the Pops will once again throw one of the country’s largest Fourth-of-July parties. The Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular concert is FREE and open to the public.

Entering their 133rd season of entertaining audiences in Boston and beyond, feature Conductor Keith Lockhart and the Boston POPS Orchestra will take the stage at the Hatch Shell, on the Esplanade, performing the identical concerts on July 3rd and 4th, and on July 4th when the concert wraps up, a stunning half-hour display of pyrotechnics.

The headliner for the 2018 Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular, is American singer/songwriter Rachel Platten, whose mega hit “Fight Song”  topped the charts, will headline the 2018 Boston POPS Fireworks Spectacular Concert. The event will also feature 2 Grammy Award-winning artists, Rhiannon Giddens from The Carolina Chocolate Drops and Folk-Rock Duo Amy Ray and Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls.

The legendary singer/actor/dancer, Academy Award Winner Rita Moreno will make a special appearance on the July 3 and 4 performances in honor of the Leonard Bernstein centennial tribute.

Event Schedule:

Celebrate America with this amazing concert and 4th of July fireworks extravaganza.

Photo Credits: Michael Blanchard

Location: DCR Hatch Shell, 47 David G. Mugar Way, Boston, MA 02108
Date: July 3- July4, 2018
Time: July 3rd, concert 8pm -10pm, July 4th, concert  8pm – 10:30pm, fireworks display 10:30pm – 11pm.
bostonpopsjuly4th.org
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: bostonusa.com

Francophiles and Lafayette enthusiasts, this concert is for you.  On Jan. 11, the Fayetteville Symphony will explore the area’s heritage with the concert “The French Connection.” The first chamber concert of the season at St. John’s Episcopal Church will feature the Fayetteville Symphony String Quartet as they perform Ravel’s String Quartet, a piece that is a cornerstone composition of French Impressionism.

Founded in 1956, the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra holds the distinction of being the oldest continuously-funded community orchestra in North Carolina. Fifty-one years later, their mission remains: To Educate. To Entertain. To Inspire.

Location: St. John’s Episcopal Church, 302 Green Street, Fayetteville, NC 28301
Date: Thurs, Jan 11, 2018
Time: 7:30 – 9:30 pm
Tel: 910-433-4690
www.fayettevillesymphony.org/2017-2018-concerts
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: visitfayettevillenc.com

Looking for something different?  If you love blues harp, this show is for definitely for you. Harmonica players from throughout the state will battle at the 11th Annual Florida Harmonica Championships. Every October the Florida Harmonica Championships combines performances from more than 20 great harp players with internationally known guest stars. Each year, music lovers from all over the country travel to beautiful New Smyrna Beach to witness what has become a signature Florida music happening.

This combination of raw new talent, a show oriented format, great backing band and internationally renowned guest stars has made the Florida Harmonica Championships and New Smyrna a music destination for fans from Florida, the US and the world. Anyone can compete.

Other activities include a master class, a harmonica repair clinic and a “harmonica orchestra” performance open to all spectators with a harmonica.

Location: Beachside Tavern, 690 E. 3rd. Ave, New Smyrna Beach, FL 32169
Date: Sun Oct 16, 2016
Time: Noon – 9PM
Tel: 386-314-5718
floridaharmonicachampionships.com
For Regional Accommodations, Restaurants & Attractions: nsbfla.com

The Wittelsbach dynasty ruled the German territories of Bavaria from 1180 to 1918 – that’s 738 years,  pretty impressive.  Munich Residenz,  their former royal palace, is  located right in the center of Munich and very much open to the public. After 4 centuries of building it, the giant palace is made up of  many styles: late Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo and Neo-Classicism.

Though spartan on the outside, it is very opulent inside. You can tour it for its architecture, over-the-top room decor (130 rooms), and displays from the former royal collections. After WWII, the Cuvilliés Theatre was built into the Festsaalbau wing. You can also catch the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra in Hercules Hall. In his time, Mozart performed in this palace.

The Treasury houses the jewels of the Wittelsbach dynasty and spans 1,000 years, from the early Middle Ages to Neo-classicism, and includes: crowns, swords, golden objects, rock crystal, ivory, goblets, icons, tableware and toiletries.

The palace suffered huge damages during WWII, but the curators managed to store furnishings, art and  details of its architecture in mines. When you are wandering around the 10 courtyards, see if you can find this fountain with statues of  fire, water, earth and air on its corners.

The Wittelsbach family’s head, since 1996, is Franz, Duke of Bavaria, and he still hangs out in Munich. During WWII, the Wittelsbachs were anti-Nazi and were arrested when Franz was 11. He spent time in several Nazi concentration camps. After the war, he studied at the University of Munich and became a collector of modern art. Some of his collection is on loan to the Pinakothek der Moderne Museum (see other post).

www.muenchen.de/int/en/tourism.html