[August 18, 2011] Area fall concert preview: Music from Ted to Taj Tweet Aug 18, 2011 (The Pantagraph - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Now that summer's cooling down, don't think the heat's off: the mercury's just beginning to rocket on the fall entertainment front. In September, the blaze ignites, with everything from Miranda Lambert at the Coliseum to the fourth edition of the University of Illinois' amazing Ellnora Guitar Festival (formerly Wall-to-Wall Guitar Festival) to the eclectic sixth season of the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts. Celebrating its first anniversary is downtown Bloomington's latest music mecca, the Castle Theatre, which has enlivened the nightlife scene beyond measure in its brief 12-month tenure, with promises of sonic gold galore for its second dozen. In between and beyond: a veritable raging inferno of performing arts and concert activity, as every area venue comes alive with music, comedy, dance and theater. We count virtually a touring concert event per week in B-N alone (and we're not even including the numerous recitals and concerts by our own homegrown talents). What's more, the season is still evolving, with more announcements coming in the weeks ahead. To help you get your bearings, GO! presents the following overview of the big music, comedy and variety events coming to Pantagraphland beginning in two weeks and continuing through year's end. September --9/1: Ted Nugent, 9 p.m.; cat-scratch fever strikes Pontiac!; Crystal Palace. --9/1-2: Budweiser Illinois Blues Festival 2011, 6 p.m. and noon; with headliners Sawyer Brown and Duke Tumatoe; Riverfront Festival Park, Peoria. --9/2: Larry Gatlin, 6 p.m.; the country vet performs a solo show before the CornBelters game; Corn Crib, Normal. --9/2: Rick Estrin & The Nightcats, 9 p.m.; blues group; Castle Theatre. --9/3: Jerrod Niemann, 7 p.m.; country singer fresh off the Illinois State Fair grandstand; Watseka Theatre, Watseka. --9/3: Montgomery Gentry, 4 p.m.; country twosome par excellence; Crystal Palace, Pontiac. --9/4: Dwayne Dopsie & The Zydeco Hellraisers, 7 p.m.; "America's Hottest Accordion" victor; Castle Theatre. --9/8: Double Heart, 2 p.m.; the country duo is back for "World's Oldest Concert Promoter" Marguerite Campbell's annual show; McLean County Nursing Home lawn, Normal. --9/9: Miranda Lambert and Little Big Town, 7:30 p.m.; Mrs. Blake Shelton gets equal time in Bloomington; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --9/9: Taj Mahal, Carolina Chocolate Drops and Alvin Youngblood Hart, 9 p.m.; all-star guitarists; Ellnora Guitar Festival in U of I Krannert Center, Urbana. --9/9: Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder, 7:30 p.m.; bluegrass meets gospel meets honky-tonk meets long-running Ricky; Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts (BCPA). --9/10: Adrian Belew, 8:30 p.m.; guitar alum of King Crimson, Talking Heads, David Bowie and more; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Dan Zanes and East Central Illinois Youth Orchestra, noon; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Bill Frisell and "The Great Flood" (film), 1:30 p.m.; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Calexico, 4:30 p.m.; guitar ensemble; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Richard Thompson and My Brightest Demand, 7 p.m.; acoustic guitarist and group; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Robert Earl Keen, 8 p.m. (rescheduled from 9/8); cult Texas singer-songwriter; Castle Theatre. --9/10: Robert Randolph & The Family Band with Luther Dickenson, 10 p.m.; one of Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" & friends; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/10: Sharon Isbin, 3 p.m.; classical guitarist; Ellnora Guitar Festival. --9/11: Del McCoury Band, 7:45 p.m.; half-century bluegrass legend; Castle Theatre. --9/13: Tapes 'N Tapes, 8 p.m.; loopy pop-rock quartet; Castle Theatre. --9/14: Gordon Lightfoot, 8 p.m.; veteran Canadian folk-pop singer; Sangamon Auditorium. --9/15: Nathan & Julie Gunn, 7:30 p.m.; he's a little bit baritone, she's a little bit soprano; Krannert Center. --9/16: Lucky Boys Confusion; rock band; Canopy Club, Urbana. --9/17: Almost Elton John, 7:30 p.m.; the man who would be Reginald Dwight, but isn't; Kirkland Fine Arts Center, Decatur. --9/17: American English, 6:30 p.m.; Absolutely Fab Four; Summer Series Stage at BCPA. --9/20: Steve Earle & The Dukes (and Duchesses), 8 p.m.; storied rock-country star in a big first-anniversary show for the Castle Theatre. --9/21-24: Pygmalion Music Festival, various times; dozens of bands from everywhere; Canopy Club. --9/21-22: Tommy Emmanuel, 8 p.m.; guitar god extraordinaire; Virginia Theater, Champaign (9/21), Peoria Civic Center (9/22). --9/23-24: Threshermen's Bluegrass Festival, various times; eight bluegrass bands from around the country, including Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike; Threshermen's Park, Pontiac. --9/24: Heidi Newfield and Frank Ortega, 7:30 p.m.; award-winning country chanteuse; Castle Theatre. --9/24: It's All Relative with Kirsten & Karin Paludan, 8 p.m.; sister act; Sangamon Auditorium. --9/25: Cantus Vocal Ensemble, 7:30 p.m.; "No. 1 men's vocal ensemble in the U.S."; Kirkland Fine Arts Center. --9/25: Los Pinguos, 3 p.m.: hatched in the clubs of Buenos Aires and first winner of Ed McMahon's "Next Big Star" TV competition; ISU Bone Student Center Brown Ballroom. --9/29: Mat Kearney, 8 p.m.; folk-rocker; Canopy Club. October --10/1: Bassnectar, 7 p.m.; electronic music wiz (Lorin Ashton) plugs in; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --10/1: Miles Davis Experience, 1949-1959, 7:30 p.m.; tribute to the jazz legend; Krannert Center. --10/1: Ricky Lee Jones, 6:30 p.m.; Chuck E.'s still in love, after all these years; BCPA. --10/4: Anberlin, 7:30 p.m.; the "Feel Good Drag" rockers; Castle Theatre. --10/6: Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis, 7:30 p.m.; all-star jazz; Sangamon Auditorium, Springfield. --10/7: Reba McEntire, The Band Perry, Steel Magnolia and Eden's Edge; down-home diva & friends; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --10/8: Rockapella, 7:30 p.m.; an encore performance for the unaccompanied wonders; BCPA. --10/8: Styx, Eddie Money and Loverboy, 7 p.m.; '70s-'80s rock nirvana; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --10/10: Erin Bode Group, 8 p.m.; jazz group; Sangamon Auditorium. --10/11: Blast!, 7:30 p.m.; marching band rhythm meets half-time spectacle, all indoors; U of I Assembly Hall. --10/16: St. Louis Symphony, 7:30 p.m.; conducted by David Robertson with violinist James Ehnes; Krannert Center. --10/16: Time for Three, 3 p.m.; string threesome billed as "a classically trained garage band"; BCPA. --10/21: Michael W. Smith, 8 p.m.; a dean of Christian pop singers; Sangamon Auditorium. --10/22: Blast!, 7:30 p.m.; marching band rhythm meets half-time spectacle, all indoors; BCPA. --10/22: In the Mood, 6:30 p.m.; big band-era tribute; Sangamon Auditorium. --10/22: Third Day and Tenth Avenue North, 7 p.m.; Christian pop groups; Prairie Capital Convention Center, Springfield. --10/25: Midori, 7:30 p.m.; tres chic violinist; Sangamon Auditorium. --10/29: Brooklyn RundFunk Orkestrata's The Hills Are Alive, 7:30 p.m.; a "Sound of Music" mash-up mixing hip-hop, R&B, rock, country and more; BCPA. --10/29: Casting Crowns and Sanctus Real, 7 p.m.; Christian rock double-header; Peoria Civic Center. --10/29: Tokyo String Quartet, 7:30 p.m.; with pianist Alon Goldstein; Krannert Center. November --11/6: Soyeon Lee, 3 p.m.; Naumburg Piano Competition winner; Krannert Center. --11/8: Vienna Symphony Orchestra with Eroica Trio, 7:30 p.m.; conducted by Fabio Luisi; Krannert Center. --11/9: Jake Shimabukuro, 7:30 p.m.: described as the Jimi Hendrix and Miles Davis of ... the ukulele; BCPA. --11/9: Judas Priest, Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy, 7 p.m.; '70s rockapalooza; Prairie Capital Convention Center. --11/9: Railroad Earth, 7 p.m.; New Jersey roots rockers; Canopy Club. --11/12: Christmas Music of Mannheim Steamroller, 8 p.m.; seasonal perennials roll again; Sangamon Auditorium. --11/12: George Winston, 7:30 p.m.; the king of new age pianists calls it "rural folk piano"; BCPA. --11/17: The Avett Brothers, 7:30 p.m.; folk-rock cult favorites; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --11/17: Nellie McKay, 7:30 p.m.; jazz-pop singer-pianist, Cafe BCPA in BCPA Ballroom. --11/19: Paul Thorn, 8 p.m.; blues-rock singer-songwriter; Canopy Club. --11/29: Oak Ridge Boys Christmas Show, 7:30 p.m.; happy holidays from the country long-runners; Peoria Civic Center. December --12/2: Manhattan Transfer Christmas, 7:30 p.m.; the boys (and girls) from New York City go all seasonal on us; BCPA. --12/6: Danu: Christmas in Ireland, 7:30 p.m.; Irish ensemble; Krannert Center. --12/15: Celtic Thunder, 7:30 p.m.; the power Irish quintet will have you green with envy; BCPA. --12/15: Gaither Homecoming Christmas Spectacular, 7 p.m.; Bill and the family come home again; U.S. Cellular Coliseum. --12/17: Glenn Miller Orchestra, 7:30 p.m.: the pearls get strung again; BCPA. --12/29: Jim Brickman, 7 p.m.; a real rarity hereabouts -- a post-Christmas, pre-New Year's concert by a name performer; Peoria Civic Center. Making contact Following is contact information for the venues mentioned in the accompanying winter-spring arts and entertainment preview: --Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts: 866-686-9541 --Canopy Club, Urbana: 800-514-ETIX --Castle Theatre, Bloomington: 309-820-0352 --Crystal Palace, Pontiac: 815-842-1590 --Millikin University Kirkland Fine Arts Center, Decatur: 217-424-6318 --Peoria Civic Center, Peoria: 309-673-3200 --Prairie Capital Convention Center, Springfield: 217-788-8800 --Sangamon Auditorium, Springfield: 800-207-6960 --Ticketmaster: 800-745-3000 --Virginia Theater, Champaign: 217-356-9063 --U of I Assembly Hall, Champaign: 217-333-5000 --U of I Foellinger Auditorium, Champaign: 217-333-5000 --U of I Krannert Center, Urbana: 217-333-6280 --U.S. Cellular Coliseum, Bloomington: 800-745-3000 --Watseka Theatre, Watseka: 815-993-6585 To see more of The Pantagraph, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.pantagraph.com. 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