The free Idyllwild Summer Concert Series comes again to the Butterfield Ampitheater this Thursday night, July 7, with Coachella Valley favorites and Summer Concert veterans Lisa Lynn and the Broken Hallelujahs. The show starts at 6:15 p.m. and is free to all. The first concert opens with globe-trotting, one-man band Nathan James.
Since 2000, local big band leader Ken Dahleen and his crew have booked the entertainment, made the necessary financial arrangements, and provided the sound and lighting to give the community a summer of memorable musical evenings.
Dahleen’s Big Band Staff always provide a special program, this year next week, July 14, when they present a tribute to 140 years of Broadway. That show will start at 7 p.m. without an opening act.
Dahleen’s vision of the series was “to have a different style of music each week, at some point everybody gets to enjoy the type of music they like. It turns out that most people enjoy all of it and come to all [the concerts.]”
The concerts are free, but donations are gratefully accepted. The funding is met through contributions from the community, and the series always starts on a wing and a prayer. The budget, like the popularity of the programs, has steadily risen. This year it is over $34,000. Contributions, checks payable to “Idyllwild Summer Concert Org,” may be sent to P.O. Box 1542, Idyllwild CA 92549-1542. Or call (760) 413-4638.
The 2022 series is dedicated to the memory of Idyllwild’s departed “Gentleman in Chief” Doug Austin. Austin will live on in the hearts of all who remember his years of service to our community, and his humble and entertaining way with a mic and a crowd at the series.
Remember that temperatures drop in the summer evening. Come prepared with an extra layer. Butterfield Amphitheater, 54201 Ridgeview Drive, with access through the Idyllwild Community Center Playground Parking lot on Highway 243 just south of town.
