Hot shows for a cold month at Carmel’s Center for the Performing Arts

Photos provided

For obvious reasons, February is generally not the busiest month in the Midwest concert business, but the Center’s upcoming schedule illustrates the unique value of nonprofit arts and entertainment venues: We book artists based on quality and variety, resulting in shows you are unlikely to see anywhere else in Central Indiana. For example, our Center Presents concerts alone include:

Zach Brock Quartet

8 p.m. tonight!

Hailed as “the pre-eminent improvising violinist of his generation,” Zach Brock has scored two Grammy Awards for his work with the jazz-rock instrumental supergroup Snarky Puppy.

Piaf! The Show

7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 10

Acclaimed vocalist Nathalie Lhermitte is accompanied by live musicians and historical images as she portrays legendary French chanteuse Edith Piaf in a multimedia experience inspired by the award-winning film La Vie en Rose.

The Company Men

8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 18

This snazzy vocal group weaves today’s Top 40 hits with reimagined classics of the past, blending songs by such artists as Sam Smith, the Four Tops, Michael Jackson, Katy Perry, Adele, the Temptations, Bruno Mars, Billy Joel and more.

Polish Wieniawski Philharmonic Orchestra

8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 25

On its first U.S. tour, the esteemed Polish orchestra is featuring violin soloist Sara Dragan in a program of Rossini, Wieniawski and Schubert. Ball State Professor Heather Platt leads a preconcert Classics in Context discussion at 7:15 p.m.

Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis

7 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 27

World-renowned trumpeter and jazz ambassador Wynton Marsalis leads a 15-member big band dedicated to preserving America’s jazz heritage. Also, don’t miss his appearance on Tuesday, Feb. 8 in the next JazzTalk online discussion. It’s free.

Come broaden your musical horizons at the Center.