Meet the Performers!
Alla Boara
Sunday, May 18, 2025
5pm in the Sanctuary
Italian Folk Music
Alla Boara celebrates the deep history of human music-making by cultivating fresh sounds from the ancient roots of regional Italian folk songs. Amanda Powell’s impassioned vocals burst with the drama and humor of Italian life propelled by drummer and ensemble founder Anthony Taddeo. The storytelling behind this daring ensemble is intoxicating and has the dazzling soloing of a veteran jazz ensemble to Taddeo’s imaginative re-composition of these ancient songs, many of which have disappeared in a tide of modernity. The band has received critical acclaim from NPR’s “Shuffle,” SWR2 in Germany, All About Jazz, Jazz Weekly, and Cleveland Magazine.
Additional performers in this Alla Boara performance will include Dan Bruce (guitar), Tommy Lehman (flugelhorn/trumpet), Ian Kinnaman (bass) and Mark Micchelli (accordion/piano).
Ben Gage
Sunday, June 8, 2025
5pm in Fellowship Hall
Rust Belt Folk Music
Ben Gage is a songwriter from Akron, Ohio blending folk and roots blues. He grew up in the rust belt in Northeast Ohio, in the countryside along the great Lake Erie. His roots run deep alongside the hard working blue collars that Ohio has to boast. That tenacity, love of family, and respect for a long day can be seen in his music. In the fall of 2021, Ben quit his job in the tech sector to pursue music full-time. Now he travels the US sharing stories and songs and always collecting more.
“For me, nothing captures a moment the way a song can. I have always struggled to live in the moment, itching to get to the next “thing”, but a song stops me in my tracks. It demands attention and will fall to pieces without it. Songs are my anchors to the now.”
-Ben Gage
Hunter Skeens and the Forerunners
Sunday, July 13, 2025
Event opens at 4pm- RaK's BBQ truck on site
Concert starts at 5pm on the Front Lawn
(Performance will move inside to Fellowship Hall if it rains)
Bluegrass
"Hunter Skeens and The Forerunners" is a Akron-Canton area band that has been captivating audiences in small concert venues and festivals across the country with their impressive energy, musicianship and talent. Their ability to blend traditional Bluegrass with modern Newgrass styles has resulted in a unique sound that is both innovative and refreshing. With their unparalleled stage presence and remarkable instrumental abilities, Hunter Skeens and The Forerunners has become one of the most sought-after live acts in the genre.
Band members for this performance include: Hunter Skeens (guitar, mandolin, vocals), John Feist (bass), Andy Pastor (fiddle) and Jim McLaughlin (banjo).