FYI - Brief look at some of the happenings in and around the Valley

Crafts and Drafts at Whistle and Keg

YOUNGSTOWN

The Whistle and Keg, 101 W. Federal St., downtown, will present its Fall Crafts and Drafts Fest from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday. The event will begin with free yoga at 11 a.m., and there will be local craft vendors selling their items until 6 p.m.

Representatives from Southern Tier Brewing will be on hand, and there will be pumpkin decorating and apple-bobbing contests with prizes.

The musical duo of Terry and Diane McCabe will play on the patio from 8 to 11 p.m.

Symposium focus will be on making digital music

LIBERTY

An all-day music synthesis event will take place Saturday at the Metroplex Expo Center, Belmont Avenue, near the Interstate 80 interchange.

Synth God Music, Automation and Synthesis Symposium will run from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sponsored by the Northeast Ohio Association for Computing Machinery, it is free and open to the public.

There will be a live sound creation and performance competition at 6 p.m. and an all-day swap meet. Guests are encouraged to bring gear to trade or sell.

The event will also include a symposium. Guest speakers include Roger Dannenberg, creator of Audacity and professor of computer science, art and music at Carnegie-Mellon University; and Dave Smith, developer of the first commercial musical instrument with an embedded microprocessor.

There will also be a panel discussion with Bozhidar Bozhanov and Jack Ciarniello on “Will the New Artificial Intelligence and Digital Music Automation Help, Hurt or Hinder Artists?”

For information, go to neoacmchapter.org/synthgods.

Art exhibition to open at Curated Vintage

WARREN

An exhibition of work by Warren-based artist Charles Michael James will open Saturday at Curated Vintage Goods, 310 Elm Road, downtown, and run through Oct. 29.

James’ works, which include paintings, sculptures and assemblages, are dreamlike and somewhat nightmarish.

In addition to his career as an artist, James founded Fantome Press in 1976, which specializes in hand-assembled literary miniatures.

Curated Vintage Goods offers mid-century furniture and furnishings, motorcycles, art, decorative objects and pop culture artifacts.

The opening day reception will begin at noon with remarks by the artist, music by Tom Furgas and James, and a poem by Jim Villani, editor of Pig Iron Press of Youngstown.

James’ exhibition will include previously exhibited works. The artist had a bout with cancer in 2002, followed by two strokes that eliminated feeling in the left side of his body. Although he could no longer paint or draw, the artist could manipulate collage elements and embellish them with paint, and this body of his work makes up most of the exhibition.

James was born in Kentucky and grew up in Knoxville, Tenn. He moved to Warren in 1963 with his family, and is a graduate of Warren G. Harding High School.

Oktoberfest returns to Cascade Park

NEW CASTLE, PA.

The New Castle Eintracht Singing Society’s annual will take place from noon to 10 p.m. Saturday, and 1 to 8 p.m. Sunday, in Cascade Park. Admission is free; parking is $3. The event will include German food, music and dancing, plus a stein holding contest