Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

The African diaspora is a vast cultural archipelago, and in each community spiritual and communal necessities gave rise to music and dance traditions reflecting the realities of the landscape.

No Bay Area ensemble has forged deeper ties to Ukrainian musicians and composers than Kitka, the revered all-women vocal ensemble known for working with artists across Eastern Europe and the Balkans.

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

A supergroup bringing together leading Ethiopian musicians from Addis Ababa’s fervently creative music scene, QWANQWA features Endris Hassen on the bowed, one-string masinko, Bubu Teklemariam on groove-driving bass krar, Misale Legesse on goat-skin kebero drum and incantatory vocals by Selamnesh Zemene.

CAAMFest returns for a renewed collaboration with Yerba Buena Gardens Festival. 

It’s island time! Celebrating the various cultures of the Asian Pacific islands, including Micronesia and Macaronesia,

Deeply versed in jazz and classic soul music, PHER is equally comfortable in both musical realms, and often brings the techniques and cadences of one idiom into the other.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

As the founder, director and guiding spirit of Oakland-based CO-LLAB, Cava Menzies has created a powerful vehicle for bringing musicians together for synergistic collaboration.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

In reclaiming the legacy of a Bay Area giant, Beth Wilmurt has uncovered a trove of long-forgotten songs by Malvina Reynolds, the San Francisco-born singer-songwriter devoted to environmental and human rights activism (1900-1978). Directed by Wilmurt, singers from four Community Music Center Neighborhood Choirs perform Reynolds’ songs, which address topics both serious and lighthearted with sturdy, unpretentious melodies.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Created and led by percussionist Aaron Kierbel, RhythmALLogy is an innovative interactive children’s program that involves movement, body percussion and group drumming.

Marking the 30th anniversary of South Africa’s first free, post-apartheid election, this double bill presents the perfect artists to celebrate the momentous occasion. 

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Decked out in bespoke tuxedos to perform an elegant fusion of state-of-the-art jazz and classical music in the world’s most august concert halls, the Modern Jazz Quartet set an unimpeachable musical and sartorial standard for 45 years (1952-1997). Led by Portland, Oregon piano master Darrell Grant, MJ New is a virtuoso quartet inspired by the MJQ’s chamber jazz aesthetic.

Spanning three generations and an array of celebratory Latin American musical traditions, René y Familia is the latest gift from an iconic San Francisco musical clan.

A beloved Father’s Day tradition celebrating the creativity of North America’s indigenous peoples, the 26th annual Native Contemporary Arts Festival showcases a diverse array of Native music, dance, spoken word, visual artists, vendors and crafts. The program is curated by Janeen Antoine (Sicangu Lakota), American Indian Contemporary Arts’ founder and producer of the weekly KPFA 94.1 broadcast Bay Native Circle.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

A mesmerizing vocalist, Christelle Durandy has forged an Afro-Caribbean repertoire as intricate and multifarious as her own identity.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Indian-American percussionist and composer Rohan Krishnamurthy has staked out fertile soil where ancient Carnatic musical forms flow into the improvisational fields of jazz.

In a world dominated by electronic devices, it’s easy to lose a sense of wonder. Illusionist, magician and consummate entertainer Calvin Kai Ku reconnects audiences with youthful amazement via enchanting magic and abundant laughter.

The ukulele is truly the people’s instrument, and SF Uke Jam is the Bay Area’s leading force bringing fans of the diminutive 4-string uke together.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Led by New Orleans-native Michelle Jacques, a soul-steeped vocalist with a big, bold voice, Chelle! & Friends bring to the Gardens a family-friendly taste of the Crescent City, the cradle of so much essential American music.

After a week of euphoria, healing and celebration, the 5th Annual Get Free Festival culminates at Yerba Buena Gardens with Timing is Synchronicity, a playfully inventive interdisciplinary performance that intertwines street dance battle culture, live music, spoken word and improvisation.

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Yosakoi is often described as a traditional Japanese dance, but in a nation where there are nearly a dozen companies that have been performing for more than a thousand years it’s actually surprisingly modern.

What’s in that box, you ask? In the hands of Ka-Hon, a gentle spring shower, a flamenco troupe, a galloping stallion and a rumba circle.

A two-weekend festival of site-specific work, the Yerba Buena Gardens ChoreoFest showcases the extravagant creativity, diversity and vibrancy of the Bay Area dance scene.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Oakland percussionist Denise Solís founded one of the first ever all-female ensembles devoted to the Afro-Indigenous Puerto Rican tradition of bomba, Las Bomberas de la Bahia, and she’s been drumming down barriers for women in the art form ever since. 

A beloved Bay Area institution, the Unique Derique is a prince among clowns, an internationally esteemed performer who has honed a singular blend of physical comedy and hambone body percussion.

A two-weekend festival of site-specific work, the Yerba Buena Gardens ChoreoFest showcases the extravagant creativity, diversity and vibrancy of the Bay Area dance scene.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Curated by visionary percussionist Sameer Gupta, this gathering of musicians expands the boundaries of Indian classical music into new and exciting territory.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

A charismatic saxophonist who’s built an ardent following with a series of extended residencies at leading Bay Area night spots, Charles Unger is an award-winning jazz artist, bandleader and composer.

Founded in 1996 as the West Coast’s first ensemble devoted to danzón, an insuperably elegant and foundational 19th century style of Afro-Cuban music and dance, Orquesta La Moderna Tradición is a charanga orchestra with strings, woodwinds and percussion.

Joe Leon’s Caterpillar Puppets don’t just entertain kids and parents. His eccentric menagerie draws audiences of all ages into seemingly familiar stories that take unexpected turns.

One of the most respected MCs in any language, Ana Tijoux has been winning over fans around the world since her debut ‘1977’ bubbled up from an underground sensation into mainstream recognition after being featured on the hit TV show ‘Breaking Bad’ and favorited by Radiohead’s Thom Yorke.

Fasten your seatbelts for another wild yet thought-provoking ride with the world-renowned San Francisco Mime Troupe (SFMT).

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

More than a world hip-hop ensemble, Audiopharmacy is a community arts collective dedicated to the proposition that love, music and deeply rooted cultural expression are the path to collective liberation.

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Every year some of Brazil’s greatest musicians gather in the redwoods of Cazadero for California Brazil Camp, and every year several faculty members venture down to the Gardens to share their mesmerizing music.

First conceived for YBG Festival’s 20th Anniversary celebration in 2020 as 20 artist commissions, the YBG Festival Seed Commissions program quickly evolved to address the acute needs of Bay Area artists during the pandemic.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

A winsome singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who has cultivated a joyously effervescent body of music, Mae Powell has been spreading joy on the Bay Area music scene since 2016.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Adriana Giordano was born in Porto Alegre, one of Brazil’s southernmost cities, and raised in São Paolo, but she’s devoted to the style known as forró, working class dance music from Brazil’s sertão, the semi-arid northeastern interior. 

12 musicians. 10 countries. 1 concert.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

A wind quintet with a powerful mission, Quinteto Latino is a singular Bay Area-based chamber ensemble devoted to breaking down the racial and social barriers that have long plagued the classical music world.

When it comes to Afro-Cuban percussion, Jesús Díaz is Bay Area royalty.

The 5th Annual African Arts Festival celebrates the glorious diversity and extraordinary creativity of the continent’s peoples. 

A joyous celebration of departed ancestors, Bon is a Japanese Buddhist festival that’s been observed for more than five centuries with a traditional folk dance known as Bon-Odori.

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Bay Area percussion maestro Michael Spiro, a 10-time Grammy Award nominee, created Spirology as a vehicle to explore the relationship between Afro-Cuban folkloric music and Cuban popular music.

Everybody dance now! Yerba Buena Gardens Festival and Rhythm & Motion present the 3rd annual YBG Dance Day, transforming the Gardens into an outdoor dance studio where participants can sample a variety of art form’s traditions and styles with some of the Bay Area’s most talented teachers.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Since moving to the Bay Area in 2009, Chris Trinidad has become a vital voice on the Asian-American jazz scene. Originally from Vancouver, the Filipino-Canadian musician, teacher, multi-instrumentalist and scholar has honed a wide-open aesthetic shaped by his love of jazz, his embracing spirituality and his insistent curiosity about fellow humans.

A rising force on the Bay Area music scene, Filipino and Irish-American singer-songwriter Ouida (pronounced “wee-duh”) has quickly gained international attention.

After years of showing up to salsa and Latin jazz gigs only to find herself the only woman in the band, conguera and vocalist Rebecca Rodríguez decided she needed to take measures into her own hands. Born out of a desire to highlight the Bay Area’s deep pool of female talent, Agua Pura is an acclaimed all-femme salsa combo known for interpreting classic cuts by the likes of the Fania All-Stars and El Gran Combo with authority.

Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May to October, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.

Probably best known as leader and vocalist for the acclaimed Latin-reggae outfit Bayonics, Rojai (aka Jairo Vargas) is a charismatic frontman who brings soul-steeped authority to every setting.

Join us in celebration of San Francisco Indigenous Peoples Day at Yerba Buena Gardens with Native American art, music and vendors.

Wednesdays at Noon. Free RSVP encouraged, drop-ins are welcome.