Grab your lawn chair or beach blanket and get ready to listen and dance, if you're so inclined, to the music at outdoor venues throughout the Erie area this summer.

Starting in June, the area calendar is packed with bands performing under the sun and stars. The increase in the number of outdoor shows this year resembles a pre-pandemic schedule as many events were postponed or scaled back the past two summers.

There are numerous outdoor music performances scheduled, with most of the band lineups yet to be announced. Here is a sampling of some of them hitting an open-air stage near you:

Head to the peninsula on Wednesdays this summer to catch a run of six shows for the UPMC Presque Isle Sunset Music Series at Beach 11. The series begins June 22 and continues every Wednesday through July 27 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The free fun in the sand features two live bands, extended swimming hours and a weekly raffle. Food and beverages will be available for purchase from the beach concession stand.

According to organizers, selected bands for this year's series will be notified by Friday and announced later this spring. Last year's bands included Key West Express and The Breeze Band, among others.

The final run in the 2022 series will coincide with Discover Presque Isle week, which runs July 25-31.

For information, call 814-838-5138 or visit bit.ly/pisunsetmusic.

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The ErieBank 8 Great Tuesdays summer concerts on the bayfront return as a local favorite outdoor event. The free, eight-week series starts July 5 and runs for eight consecutive Tuesdays, through Aug. 23, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Highmark Amphitheater at Liberty Park.

Last year's event included several area acts as headliners, including The Pop Rockets, Chris Higbee, The Earthquakers, the Erie All Stars band and more.

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The 2022 8 Great Tuesdays lineup likely will be announced before Memorial Day — or possibly earlier — according to Brenda Sandberg, executive director of the Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority.

The 8 Great events also will feature numerous local vendors. For information, call 814-455-7557 or visit porterie.org/8greattuesdays.

The Blues and Jazz Fest returns to August dates after being held in late September last year.

The free three-day music, nature and arts festival is set for Aug. 5-7 at Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park, 1501 W. Sixth St. The bands, schedule and list of events will be announced at a later date. Last year's event, which included the nature-based LEAF Festival, had the Larry McCray Blues Band, King Solomon Hicks and Kahil El’Zabar's Quartet among the headliners.

John Vanco, artistic director of the Erie Blues & Jazz Festival, said in an email the festival will include the same array of programming as last year, but "even more of it."

"We are working to bring in great headliners for the main stage, an array of dance performances and workshops, visual arts, poetry, environmental organizations, an electric vehicle show (and more)," Vanco said. 

The annual festival will return to downtown Erie on Aug. 19-21 after cancelations in 2020 and 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The multi-day festival, free and open to the public, typically brings more than 200,000 people to downtown Erie, according to organizers.

Aaron Loncki, the city of Erie's marketing strategist, said the festival will again include Erie-area vendors, musicians, performers and chalk artists, as well as nationally-known musical acts. There also will be interactive drum circles and "jam sesh" areas where festivalgoers can participate in impromptu performance spaces.

CelebrateErie mainstage headliners will be announced later this spring. The last time the event was held, in 2019, country music star Scotty McCreery was the closing night headliner. For more information, visit www.celebrateerie.com.

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The Tall Ships Erie festival, which takes place every three years and last occurred in 2019, showcases a fleet of international ships at Erie's Presque Isle Bay. The festival will run from Aug. 25-28 and will feature the U.S. Brig Niagara.

Ticket prices range from $10 for a single-day pass to $199 for a VIP pass. Single-day general admission tickets and weekend passes are available. Both offer access to festival sites, dockside viewing of the ships, access to live music and entertainment to be announced, local refreshment vendors, the Maritime Marketplace and more, according to a news release from the Flagship Niagara League.

William Sabatini, executive director and fleet captain for the Flagship Niagara League, said he expects roughly 10 ships in the festival. For information, call 833-365-7245 or visit tallshipserie.org.

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If you know of an outdoor music event for summer 2022 not listed, please email tbattaglia@timesnews.com or call 814-870-1892.

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