Normandy Park City Scene      Summer 2026
12
S
ummer is just getting 
started, it’s the perfect 
time to start thinking 
about Music in the Park and 
those sunny Sunday afternoons 
when the Normandy Park 
Arts Commission brings eight 
outstanding performances to the 
gazebo and lawn of Marvista Park. 
We’re starting a little later this year, 
on July 12, so you’ll have plenty of 
time to recover from fireworks, and 
we’ll end again with the popular jazz 
festival finale on August 30, a week 
before Labor Day weekend. Along 
the way, we’ll offer Shakespeare, 
The Winter’s Tale, brought to you by 
Greenstage Shakespeare in the Park.
Last year, the Normandy Park 
Arts Commission asked community 
members to weigh in on Music in 
the Park with an online survey. 
Though ever-increasing crowds 
(400 for one show last summer!) 
suggest we’re on the right track, we 
were curious about what folks had 
to say. Most said they really liked 
the diversity of the programming – 
music from around the world – but 
Music in the Park 2026
a few also added that they wouldn’t 
mind hearing something a little 
more familiar. 
That’s the mix we’re dishing up. 
This summer, we’re bringing in 
the infectious Afro-Cuban beats 
of Sonando, Adriana Giordano’s 
lively Brazilian forró group, 
Foleada, and the Po’okela Street 
Band’s inimitable Hawaiian take 
on Jamaican reggae, affectionately 
known as “Jawaiian” music. A touch 
of Americana, by Seattle-based 
string-meisters Old Coast, rounds 
out the world tour.
Along the way, we’re also 
presenting the fabulous new wave 
power pop band of Seattle’s pre-
grunge era, The Heats (remember “I 
Don’t Like Your Face”?) and the sweet 
and soulful songs of internationally 
known songwriter LeRoy Bell (“Mama 
Can’t Buy You Love,” by Elton John, 
for one), with his group LeRoy Bell 
and His Only Friends. 
To cap off the season, we’ll 
present another jazz festival, 
with – count’em, three – first-rate 
Seattle ensembles. (Please note 
on your calendar that this concert 
begins at 3 p.m., not the usual 5 
p.m.). Susan Pascal’s mellifluous 
vibraphone quintet kicks off the 
festival, followed by the all-star 
Seattle quartet The Wellstone 
Conspiracy – John Bishop (drums), 
Brent Jensen (saxophone), Bill 
Anschell (piano) and Jeff Johnson 
(bass) – plus a rare performance by 
the Pete Christlieb 10-piece Tall 
and Small Band. Tenor saxophone 
giant Christlieb played in The 
Tonight Show with Johnny Carson 
band for 20 years, never mind 
recording with everyone under the 
sun on hundreds of albums. His 
group features some of the best 
jazz players in the area.
The Normandy Park Farmers 
Market will be onsite to whet your 
whistle when the music and the 
weather are too hot to handle.
Here’s the full lineup, above. All 
concerts begin at 5p.m., except the 
jazz finale, which begins at 3 p.m. 
See you there!
Summer Concert Lineup 
July 12: Sonando
July 19: Old Coast
July 26: Foleada
August 2: Greenstage  
Shakespeare in the Park  
presents The Winter’s Tale
August 9: Po’okela Street Band
August 16: LeRoy Bell and His 
Only Friends
August 23: The Heats
August 30: Jazz Finale
3 p.m. Susan Pascal Quintet
4:30 p.m. The Wellstone 
Conspiracy 
6 p.m. Pete Christlieb’s  
Tall and Small Band
BY PAUL DE BARROS

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