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Music by the Lake
Music by the Lake
Summer Evening Concerts
Each summer, Blue Ridge Community College offers summer concerts beside the College lake as a gift to the community. These free Sunday evening concerts are scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. and feature a wide range of musical and vocal groups. The public is invited to bring lawn chairs and picnics to enjoy the music by the lake.
The series location will be on the east side of the lake behind the Technology, Education and Development Center.
Directions & Campus Map to HCC
In the event of inclement weather, the concert will take place in the Technology, Education & Development Center (TEDC) Building.
Baabals Ice Cream will be at every concert, serving eight flavors of delicious hand-dipped ice cream and freshly squeezed lemonade.
Music by the Lake 2026 Schedule
Asheville Junction
June 28, 2026
5 to 7 p.m.
Asheville Junction is a bluegrass/Americana band from the high country of North Carolina. Their lively, entertaining shows are filled with hot fiddlin’, harmonies and more. Folks find themselves singing, clapping, and toe-tappin’ along to the music. Tierra Raiti, lead singer and fiddler for the band, has been noticed as a formidable rising musician, and was invited to appear on Woodsongs International Radio Show. Tierra is a versatile player and vocalist, having won numerous fiddle contests and violin competitions, as well as singing competitions and scholarships ranging from jazz to classical to country. Asheville Junction formed when mother-daughter duo Tierra and Maria Raiti moved to Asheville and joined up with local musicians, including five-time Four Corner States banjo champion Rudy Cortese and Sam Gottlieb on guitar.
The Julie McConnell Jazz Quartet
July 26, 2026
5 to 7 p.m.
Julie McConnell, by way of San Diego, is quite simply one of the best jazz singers in the greater area, bringing shows that are powerful, moving, poignant, funny and personal through her delivery of song. Julie and her group were the “Clubland Feature” band in the Mountain Xpress for Valentines 2023, as well as featured in “30 Days Out” in 2019. Julie was also the featured story in the March 2020 issue of Sofia Magazine, and she was one of the headliners for the Johnson City Jazz Festival in 2025. Add to that her smokin’ hot trio with the phenomenally intuitive musician/composer, Bryan McConnell, previously the bassist for jazz legends John Handy and Bobby Hutcherson; the respected and attuned musician, Justin Watt, formerly the drummer for the Glen Miller Orchestra and the great composer/author/jazz guitarist, Tim Fischer, who studied with Bruce Forman.
Nicholas Edward Williams
August 9, 2026
5 to 7 p.m.
Producer and host of the roots music history podcast American Songcatcher, Nicholas Edward Williams has spent the last 15 years as a nomadic storyteller and multi-instrumentalist blending the American roots music spectrum with his own recipe across the US, UK, Western Europe and Southern Australia. He’s opened for esteemed acts such as Taj Mahal, The Wood Brothers, CAAMP, Dom Flemons, Ballroom Thieves, John Craigie, John Paul White and several others. His 2019 debut record, As I Go Ramblin’ Around, made the year’s Top 10 Folk DJ charts for album and song, and his critically acclaimed sophomore release Folk Songs For Old Times’ Sake has been heralded by well-regarded roots music figures such as David Holt, Oliver Wood and JP Harris. His newest endeavor is a lofi and stripped down reimagined traditional record titled Rags, Folk and Blues, Oh My! – released in early 2026. Nicholas is also the Founder and Executive Director of ReString Appalachia, a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to giving quality instruments back to people who lose them from natural disasters.
Free Flow Band
August 16, 2026
5 to 7 p.m.
According to the Mountain Xpress, the Free Flow Band members are the Guardians of Funk, an irresistible dance party that draws fans from across generations and social groups. If you ask their fans they will tell you Free Flow is a dance band that doesn’t try to sound like anyone but Free Flow. The members are Roger Ware, Darryl Griffin, Kevin Collins and Thomas Bomstad.
This project was supported by the North Carolina Arts Council,
a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.
Contact Us
workforce@blueridge.edu
(828) 694-1735