Everybody growing up in the small town of Kingman, 
Kans., took piano lessons, Delores (Dee) Stevens, 83, explained, sitting at the table of her Chilmark home on a sunny summer morning. That was just what you did. “I was so excited when I had my first lesson. I think I was about four,” Mrs. Stevens said.

The Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven will be pulsating with the beat of world jazz sounds as pianist Paul Thurlow brings friends Nancy Jephcote and Alejandro Carreno to the stage tonight at 8 p.m.

Mr. Thurlow’s music is described as having a Latin/Balkan/Celtic rhythm, and his compositions often feature his distinctive tenor voice. Mr. Thurlow is currently a member of the Flying Elbows. Ms. Jephcote will open with a set of songs.

Mark Lovewell is a journalist and photographer who has traveled all over the world and the Vineyard writing stories and chronicling aspects of the sea. He writes a fishing column and has charted his own course throughout his life, while keeping an Island base. More than anything, Mr. Lovewell wants to see the traditions and history of the seafaring community stay alive, which he does through his shanty songs and storytelling. As he likes to say, the kids he performs for will someday be in charge of the Vineyard.

On Saturday night the opening guitar licks of Steely Dan’s Reelin’ in the Years poured out the doors of Hooked in Oak Bluffs and the crowd roared with excitement. The house was packed and the music was loud — it was a good night for fans of rock and roll. The crowd had come to see a supergroup of classic rock musicians who, despite their graying hair, were still young of spirit and haven’t forgotten what it means to rock out.

From rockabilly to pop, rock and blues to jazz-rock, New Rhythm and Blues Quartet, NRBQ, can just about play it all. Founded by pianist Terry Adams in 1967, the band is known for its diverse sound and high-energy live performances. Recently Mr. Adams revamped the band’s lineup and has been as busy as ever, churning out two albums — one live, one from the studio — in the past two years. Another studio album is in the works. NRBQ returns to Martha’s Vineyard to play at Flatbread this Sunday, July 21, after a long time away from the Island.

Ladino music is a multicultural experience. A unique blend of Spanish and Hebrew lyrics, Mediterranean instrumentation and Arabic rhythms, it originated in the Jewish communities of medieval Spain in the years preceding their expulsion. When Ferdinand and Isabella expelled the Spanish Jews in 1492, the musical tradition continued to grow and change under various new cultural influences.