Free Planet Radio

Join world music trio Free Planet Radio in concert at the Tryon Fine Arts Center, 34 Melrose Ave. Tryon on Saturday, May 21, at 8 p.m. For over a decade, Free Planet Radio has brought its exciting and innovative world-jazz-classical music blend to both concert stages and classrooms.

Based in Asheville, N.C., this musical partnership began as the shared vision of three multi-instrumentalists exploring the infinite and seamless relationships between musical cultures through the universal language of sound.

Their performances expertly weave the improvisatory element of jazz, and the subtleties and harmonic vocabulary of Western classical music, with multi-cultural melodic and rhythmic structures. Performing mostly original compositions, even while playing extremely complex melodies and time signatures, the trio always maintains a sense of accessibility, spontaneity and easy engagement with the audience.

Free Planet Radio consists of two-time Grammy-winner Eliot Wadopian moving effortlessly between rhythm and melody on electric and string basses, River Guerguerian’s extensive array of percussion instruments gathered from his travels around the globe, and Chris Rosser exploring melody on the 17-stringed Indian dotar, Turkish cumbus oud, guitar, piano and melodica.

For this concert, Chris will play a very special guitar, handmade by Lichty Guitars in Tryon, N.C., who have generously donated this exquisite instrument for the annual Lichty guitar raffle for LEAF Community Arts. Raffle tickets will be for sale at the Tryon concert. The winner will be announced at the October LEAF Festival.

The band will be joined on stage by Tom Boots, a WNC visual artist, who will put brush to canvas as he creates a painting to the music. Tom blends ancient techniques with modern and contemporary styles.

Part of the proceeds from the silent auction of this painting will be donated to two local Polk County non-profits: Growing Rural Opportunities (GRO) which supports farmers, and Wind River Services, a cancer wellness retreat.

Concert tickets are available online and at the TFAC box office, Tuesday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., and at the door. VIP tickets include seating in the first four rows and a complimentary CD. Call 828-859-8322 or visit tryonarts.org/index.php or the Free Planet website, freeplanetradio.com, for more information.

-Submitted by Marianne Carruth