Peter & Paul to Perform Classic Folk Songs at Benedum; Byham Hosts Italian Songstress Giada Valenti (Sat.,9/17/16)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvQ41hsyPZU

1) Peter, Paul and Mary rose from the Greenwich Village folk revival scene of the early 1960s. The trio melded music with politics, performance with activism. They covered The Weavers’ “If I Had a Hammer,” a song which supported the late 1940s progressive movement. Also covered—Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind,” which targets both war and racism. Peter, Paul and Mary would perform both songs at the 1963 March on Washington, where the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech. These covers were also hits as were many other songs that the group recorded throughout the ‘60s, notably “Puff, the Magic Dragon.” In 1970, the band broke up. Solo careers followed, but the trio reunited in 1978. Although Mary Travers died from leukemia in 2009, Peter Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey continue to perform. Audiences often sing along during Travers’ parts, as will surely be the case when Peter & Paul play the Benedum Center this month. 8 p.m. 237 7th St., Cultural District. (CM)

2) Italian songstress Giada Valenti has sprung onto the American music scene in part due to concert specials on PBS in recent years. Born and raised in Venice, she started singing and playing the piano at the age of seven and would later go on to earn a degree in music from the Tartini Conservatory in Trieste. Valenti fires on all cylinders with a good voice, charismatic personality, and classic Italian beauty. She’s able to sing and speak in five languages, and her songbook contains American and Italian hits from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, as well as recent contemporary songs. The beautiful dresses she wears in concert are all custom-made for her in Venice. Valenti will be performing From Venice With Love at the Byham Theater. 7:30 p.m. 101 6th St., Cultural District.

3) Tonight is the Diesel Rock Off Final. Bands vying for the title are: TerraChain Sky, Spinning Jenny, A Little Less Human, and Alter the Design. Let’s get down there and support some top local rockers. 7 p.m. 1601 E. Carson St., South Side.

4)  Brian Edward, host of “Burgh Vivant” a cultural talk magazine website, as well as playwright and actor, will perform a one person comedic send up, Brian Edward: In Person & On Film. The show will feature incredible film clips, funny personal anecdotes, and humorous observations regarding movies from Hollywood’s golden era of camp films like Auntie Mame, Sunset Boulevard, Mommie Dearest, and Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? The show’s proceeds will benefit the ReelQ Pittsburgh LGBT Film Festival. 7 p.m. Bricolage, 937 Liberty Ave.,The Cultural District.

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