Bay Area R&B icon Booker T. Jones and Detroit’s “Great Lady of Soul” Bettye LaVette kick off the Stern Grove Festival’s 71st Season of free Sunday concerts with an afternoon of soul. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Booker T. Jones (of Booker T. and the MGs) is a legendary figure with an impressive string of hits, including the million-selling “Green Onions.” He has performed as a session musician on some of R&B’s most seminal songs, including “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” and “Try a Little Tenderness.” (more…)

Get ready for an afternoon of African rhythms in the Grove when Nigeria’s prince of Afrobeat, Seun Kuti and Egypt 80, make their San Francisco debut. With blazing horns, unstoppable rhythms, hypnotic dancing, and marathon performances, Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 will have the Grove moving. Opening the afternoon will be local group, Sila and the AfroFunk Experience, who know how to get dance floors around the Bay Area in motion with an exhilarating sound and energetic performance.

Since 1938, Stern Grove Festival has been the Bay Area’s home for outstanding performing arts in a beautiful outdoor setting, completely admission-free. Bring a picnic and arrive early as the main garden often fills up by 1pm.

Public Transportation:
Muni buses: 23 and 28, exit at 19th Avenue and Sloat Boulevard
Muni Metro: K or M, exit at St. Francis Circle

Stern Grove Festival presents an annual favorite, the renowned San Francisco Symphony, with conductor James Gaffigan. The program includes Verdi’s Overture to La forza del destino, Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Opus 43 with Orli Shaham on piano, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Opus 36. The Symphony Jazz Sextet will open the afternoon with a short set of works by some of the great jazz legends. (more…)

New Orleans legend and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Allen Toussaint brings the Big Easy back to the Grove. With a career spanning forty years as a singer, pianist, songwriter, arranger, and producer, Toussaint is one of America’s greatest musical icons and a captivating performer. Opening is Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue who break down traditional jazz rhythms with funk, pop, and hip-hop. (more…)

Rachid Taha combines Algerian rai music with modern rock, punk, and dance. With a rough vocal style and influences ranging from Johnny Cash and Marvin Gaye, to Kraftwerk and Public Enemy, Taha is a formidable talent with an international reputation. Los Angeles-based MC Rai will lead with a trend-setting mix of edgy Arabic grooves and electronica.

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Internationally acclaimed Bajofondo, a collective of Argentine and Uruguayan artists blend the drama and passion of tango music with diverse electronic genres ranging from house, trance and trip hop to dub, drum and bass, and more. Opening are New York’s Si*Sé  with their potent mix of Latin rhythms with electronica, soul, and trip hop. (more…)

Escape to the Hawaiian Islands with an all-star line-up performing together for the first time. Performers include Na Leo, the most popular female trio in Hawai’i; guitarist, vocalist, ukulele player and former member of the Ka’au Crater Boys, Ernie Cruz, Jr.; Kaukahi, who toured recently with Jack Johnson; and One Right Turn with Connie Cruz, Tiffa Cruz-Garza, and singer/ukulele player and member of the Opihi Pickers, Imua Garza. (more…)

Stern Grove Festival’s 71^st Season of free Sunday afternoon concerts closes with the renowned San Francisco Opera, featuring an afternoon of highlights and solos from the American opera canon.
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