Welcome To MacArthur Metro

Sol-Innocence performs at last years Laurel Summer Solstice Music Festival. Photo by Kathleen Rolinson. Click to enlarge.

International Day of Music

On Saturday, June 21 the Laurel community joins 300 cities across the world in the Fête de la Musique celebration. 2008 marks the third annual Summer Solstice Music Festival. Unlike typical music festivals that feature a stage or two, the Summer Solstice Music Festival features amateur and professional musicians of all skills and genres dispersed throughout the neighborhood. Approximately 15 performance locations are planned for 2008, including parking lots at Ace Hardware, Lucky, and Citibank, closed streets on Kansas and California, select indoor locations, and residential driveways and

sidewalks from 39^th Avenue to Brown Avenue. Musical groups include festival veterans, Gemini Soul, Lakay and Music Man, and Miena Yoo, with genres ranging from rock to jazz to recorder ensembles.

The Fête de la Musique originated in France in 1982. Intending to promote musical diversity and liberate dust-ridden instruments from cupboards, the French Ministry of Culture declared the longest day of the year as a day to "make music." French pronunciation of the word "Fête," meaning festival, is the same as "faite," meaning make, giving us "Faite de la Musique" or "make music." The spirit of the event encourages everyone with interest or desire to make music on June 21. No skills necessary.

New York City joined the growing list of Fête locations in 2007 with their Make Music New York festival. The Laurel Village Association hosted its first Summer Solstice Music Festival in 2006, and this is the first year the festival is an official Fête site. This year's festival is on June 21, from 1 to 7 p.m., and is free to all. Information and programs will be available at the check-in station on MacArthur Blvd and 38^th Avenue, just outside the Laurel Lounge. A food and beverage station is planned for Kansas Street and there may be another one in the Lucky parking lot.

Laurel, Maxwell Park, and Allendale community members joined forces this year to organize the event. Space is available for musicians, and volunteers are needed for day of event duties. For contact information and updates, visit the festival Web site at

www.laurelsummersolticemusicfestival.org. Funding for the event comes from generous donations from community members and businesses. Additional funding comes from raffle ticket sales, with prizes including roundtrip airfare for two, jewelry, champagne, and gift

baskets. For a full list of prizes and where to purchase tickets, visit the Web site or check with festival planners.

Join the world in celebrating the summer solstice and make music within your community—June 21, 1 to 7 p.m.

John Frando can be reached at jfrando\@gmail.com and Kathleen Rolinson at krolinson\@gmail.com.