FUN & FREE: From Congolese Rumba to Salsa to Classic Rock, It’s All Downtown

This year’s River to River Festival (rivertorivernyc.com) runs through July 14 and there’s something going on Downtown—music, dance, theater and more—nearly every day.

JUNE
Sun, 6/16
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction Dance in and around a 1977 Coleman pop-up camper that has been retrofitted as a stage. Performance artists with the Third Rail Project use the camper as a setting for their quirky and surprising dance-theater choreography. Brookfield Place Plaza.

Mon, 6/17
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.

Tue, 6/18
5:30 pm Dana Leong Trio The trio performs a blend of jazz, classical and pop, including original compositions and arrangements. Brookfield Place Plaza.
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
7 pm Laurie Anderson One of America’s most renowned multimedia performers, Anderson joins guest writers and musicians on stage for live music and spoken word. Rockefeller Park.

Wed, 6/19
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
7 pm Laurie Anderson See Tue, 6/18.

Thu, 6/20
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
7 pm Peripatetic Audio Visual Ensemble Digital musician Liubomir Borissov and composer Konrad Kaczmarek superimpose images and sounds onto the streets and parks of Battery Park City in a musical and visual show. Rockefeller Park.
9 pm Sam Green with the Quavers and YMusic Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Sam Green teams up with two local musical groups to create a blend of music and cinema. He will screen two new film pieces that will be accompanied by live music. Pier 15.

Fri, 6/21
12, 12:30 & 1 pm The Jazz Saxophone Fifteen-minute solo sets performed by up-and-coming NYC jazz saxophonists. The performances take place simultaneously in three locations. Brookfield Place Plaza, One New York Plaza and Zuccotti Park.
2 & 7 pm Peripatetic Audio Visual Ensemble See Thu, 6/20.
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
9 pm Indiamore Filmed in Calcutta and Varanasi, Indiamore  combines imagery of Indian sitarists, dancers and children, along with harmonized voices, music and other sounds to create a multimedia documentary about Indian life. Pier 15.

Sat, 6/22
2 & 7 pm Peripatetic Audio Visual Ensemble See Thu, 6/20.
6:30 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
9 pm Tidal Andrew Schneider presents a live, palindromic multimedia performance about time travel. Cameras, projectors, microphones and underwater cameras turn the viewer’s perception of time toward the past. Pier 15.

Sun, 6/23
12 & 1 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.

Mon, 6/24
12 & 1 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.

Tue, 6/25
12 & 1 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.
5:30 pm James Maddock British-born solo artist will perform Americana tunes. Brookfield Place Plaza.
7 pm Angelique Kidjo This Beninoise singer-songwriter performs original music that blends Afropop, Caribbean zouk, Congolese rumba, jazz, gospel and Latin styles. Her song’s lyrics are in Fron, French, Yoruba and English. Rockefeller Park.

Wed, 6/26
12 & 1 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.

Wed, 6/26
7 pm Terri Lyne Carrington & Guests Grammy Award-winner brings together jazz greats, including Antonio Hart and Jeremy Pelt, to perform arrangements of music by Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Dave Brubeck and Billie Holiday. The music will be accompanied by poetry and spoken word pieces from the Beat generation. Rockefeller Park.

Thu, 6/27
12:30 pm James Maddock See 6/25. Note different location: One New York Plaza.
1 & 7 pm Roadside Attraction See Sun, 6/16.

Sat, 6/29
5 pm Ecstatic Summer Two full sets of newly commissioned, collaboratively based music, one for brass and the other for percussion, by three composers. Brookfield Place Plaza.

Sun, 6/30
5 pm Ecstatic Summer See Sat, 6/29.

JULY
Tue, 7/2
5:30 pm Jeffery Broussard and the Creole Cowboys One of the most influential accordionists and vocalists in modern Zydeco music, Broussard has defined a new style of Creole music by incorporating R&B and soul into Zydeco music and dance. The Creole Cowboys join him on guitar, bass, scrub board and percussion. Brookfield Place Plaza.
7 pm Pedrito Martinez Cuban-born world-class conga player and singer Martinez performs funk, rumba, guaguanco and Afro-Cuban rhythms. Rockefeller Park.

Tue, 7/9
7 pm La Excelencia This nine-person salsa ensemble brings modern vitality and social consciousness to the musical genre. Rockefeller Park.

Wed, 7/10
7 pm Leon Russell Singer-songwriter, pianist, guitarist and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer performs classic rock. Rockefeller Park.

Thu, 7/11
12:30 pm Hungry March Band The Brooklyn-based brass ensemble embodies the spirit of the city’s streets with its unique sound and eclectic dances. The performance includes guerrilla art, European jazz and circus feats, and more. One New York Plaza.
7:45 pm Hauschka, Kosminen and Zeigler Three experimental musicians form a trio comprising piano, percussion and cello, creating a medley of music with electronics. Pier 15.

Sat, 7/13
2 pm Andrew Ondrejcak Writer, director and designer performs an open rehearsal of his new adaptation of August Strindberg’s “A Dream Play.” The piece investigates what happens when the divine visits everyday humans in ordinary circumstances. Building 110, Governors Island.
6:30 pm Brasslands Four brass bands from the Balkan region, followed by a screening of “Brasslands,” about the world’s largest trumpet competition, which took place in Serbia. Brookfield Place Plaza.

Sun, 7/14
3 & 7 pm The MP3 Participatory event in which attendees download an mp3 file, arrive at the designated destination and dance at the same time. South Street Seaport.