When live, in-person music was wiped out last year, Davenport-based River Music Experience provided a priceless lifeline – they brought music out to private residences in the Quad-Cities with Curbside Concerts. Now they’re back for a second year. With all the outdoor shows (in private yards, curbs, driveways and cul-de-sacs), events sponsored by Russell Construction for essential workers, and curbside caroling, RME hosted 350 concerts and reached 7,260 people from April to December 2020, RME director of entertainment Kate Dale said Monday. They contracted with about a dozen local artists, plus... Read More

DAVENPORT — Like many of his fellow musicians who are airing videos on Facebook and working to raise money during the Covid-19 pandemic, Don Gustafson is using the social-media platform for good. The 49-year-old Davenport man makes his living as a full-time musician – as bassist in the Q-C band Funktastic Five, assistant music director at Davenport’s St. Paul Lutheran Church, and adjunct music teacher at Black Hawk College, offering private piano, guitar and bass lessons. In response to the coronavirus, which has closed bars and restaurants, and put musicians out of work, Gustofson... Read More