Saturday in the Arts is a weekly feature covering a trend, subject, event or personality of local interest. It runs every Saturday morning on your site for the best entertainment and arts coverage in the area, QuadCities.com! Brianna Hobbs was in middle school when the then-new River Music Experience first opened its doors June 12, 2004, in the historic Redstone building at 2nd and Main streets, Davenport. Now, the 28-year-old East Moline native is thrilled to join the growing nonprofit’s staff as new programs director, as the veteran RME leaders Bret Dale and his wife Kate transition out as... Read More

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

Remember Valentine’s Day 2020, when life was still normal, before the world as we knew it ended? Well, the Midwest Writing Center (MWC) and River Music Experience (RME) are here to help you celebrate the holiday of love, 2021 pandemic-style. MWC is partnering with some of the best poets and writers in the community to offer bespoke poems this month, written for anyone you’d like to gift a poem. By participating in this limited-time program, “you’re not only giving unique poems to people you care about, but you’re also supporting local writers and writing/literacy programs in the Quad-Cities,”... Read More

Saturday In The Arts is a comprehensive weekly feature looking at a trend, personality, or major subject involving the Quad-Cities arts and entertainment scene. This past week was an historic one for the nation, as well as for Davenport-based River Music Experience. Five Americans died as a result of the massive Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, as pro-Trump insurrectionists disrupted the certification of the Electoral College presidential results. That same Wednesday, RME postponed the planned celebration of the online Music Lab’s 200th episode that afternoon. The half-hour weekday... Read More

While the live-music industry has been decimated by coronavirus, including Davenport’s River Music Experience, it was the massive insurrection 843 miles away in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday that postponed the planned online 200th episode of RME’s Music Lab. Wednesday, RME posted on Facebook they were postponing the episode until Thursday due to the chaos in Washington, D.C., at the Capitol building. “This is a historic moment in our nation’s history. As we witness a violent assault on our capitol and attempted coup on our democracy, we believe every American should be following these... Read More