Music

THE ROLAND PARK Second Presbyterian Church looked absolutely stunning last Saturday for the wedding of Natalia Pia Melanie Sommer and Richard Matthew Dohler. Thousands of wildflowers, miles of lace ribbons and tulle, and window sills decorated with Singapore orchids set the stage for the nuptials of the daughter of pop music star Donna Summer and her first husband, Helmut Sommer,and the son of Dick and Bonna Dohler, he's an Ellicott City builder.The church was filled with the music of German trumpeteer Langston Fitzgerald and selections of Bach, Beethoven and Vivaldi, played by the church's music director Margaret Budd on the organ.

Revelers in the Preakness Infield were jovial Saturday morning, staking out prime spots -- near the track for some, and near concert stages for others. Lines for betting moved quickly, while the wait for those paying $20 extra for a refillable beer mug quickly swelled to a 30-minute wait. "I'm in it for the experience," said Megan Yardchik, a Federal Hill resident attending her third-straight Preakness in a wide-brimmed, gold and white straw hat. Yardchik and friends Leah Rogan and Matthew Egan staked out a spot near the Jagermeister tent in the middle of the infield, indifferent to the horses circling them but for the chance to win money off of them.

We're at the finale already (didn't this season seem short?). I'll say it right here at the top of the episode - unless William falls repeatedly on his keister, requiring the judges to give him 5's across the board, there's no way he's not winning this thing. That being said, I'd be OK with any of the three finalists winning, even though I'm personally Team Driver. Tonight's show will have each couple dancing two dances:  1. Judge's pick, which are new routines danced to new music, but in a style the couple has previously danced and in which the judges would like to see them improve.  2. Freestyle Tomorrow night, the couples will be doing some sort of third scored dance, details about which we'll learn later.

The deadline for submitting sports copy is 9 a.m. on Mondays. We prefer email (howardcountysports@patuxent.com). We do not accept results by phone. When two Howard County teams play, players from both teams (first and last names) must be mentioned in the write-up. Questions? Call 410-332-6578. Running Musical Madness 5k Winners of this year's Musical Madess 5k Run - Eric Schuler and Robyn Humphrey - are no strangers to the podium. Humphrey, also the women's champion in last year's race, was joined this year by second- and third-place finishers Caroline Bauer and Pat Wilkerson, making it a sweep for the Howard County Striders team in the women's race.

On paper, Sunday night's WrestleMania looked as if it could be one of the strongest installments in the event's 28-year history. In execution, it was anything but. I personally avoided Twitter and Facebook, so that the thoughts I would be sharing here would be as purely mine as much as possible. The show lacked the feel of WrestleMania; the first hour felt rushed and most of the matches seemed to be missing something. The show wasn't bad by any means, so I don't want people to misread what I am saying, but I expected more.

Tom opens calling it the "hardest fought season ever. " I'm not sure about that, but I will say that this is one with a lot of strong competitors, few loathsome personalities, and a satisfying final three. It starts with the pro dancers (the "real" pro dancers, not just the troupe) dancing to a song I would probably know if I were 20 years younger, but I'm not and the only 16-year-old in this house is a cat. At the end of the song, we get the pros walking the floor with their celebrity partners.

He was married, the proud father of three. He'd founded a construction company that was doing well, even in the midst of a recession. And after years of working what he calls "32-hour days," Michael Pomory was even finding time for a hobby he'd dropped years before: jamming with friends on his guitar. "I really thought I'd found a groove that would last the rest of my life," says Pomory, a South Baltimore native, in a voice made gravelly from years of smoking. Then he lost it all. Even now, it's hard to grasp how so much hard luck could hit one person in a single year: the divorce, the foundering of the company, the depression that set in and wouldn't go away.

It's classical night, which means a whole lot of songs I'll recognize but not know the name of. Oh, look, it's an exaggeratedly expressive violinist and some chicks in Marie Antoinette garb. Never change, DWTS, never change. DUDES IN BREECHES AND NECKCLOTHS! Excuse me while I make up historical romance novel cover scenarios for each of these couples. Ooh, that was Joshua Bell? If you've never read Gene Weingarten's excellent Pulitzer-prize winning essay "The Fiddler in the Subway" go do so now, and come back to this recap when you're finished.

The Chancel Choir presents "A Service of Lessons & Carols" at 7 p.m. today at Galilee Lutheran Church, 4652 Mountain Road in Pasadena. Service includes Scripture reading, brief meditations and congregational singing. An Italian dinner of lasagna and salad will be served beginning at 5:30 p.m. A free-will offering will be taken to benefit RAI Ministries, which offers assistance for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Call 410-255-8236 for more information. The service was originally scheduled for Dec. 20 but was canceled because of inclement weather.

Reviewing concerts has always been second nature for Greg Szeto - even if no one read his work. In college, Szeto would see shows and habitually scribble down his thoughts on whatever was on hand, including note pads and paper napkins. But he wanted to showcase his comments, concert reviews and random remarks on music. "I wanted an outlet that was more visible and structured, so I could focus and channel those thoughts into something more interesting," he said. Two years ago, Szeto, a 27-year-old who lives downtown, found that online when he started the music blog Aural States (auralstates.

He pioneered one the most influential, far-reaching musical genres of the past 50 years. He became a galvanizing force, too, in the cause of human rights. When he died, more than a million people turned out to witness his funeral cortege. Among those mourning his loss were the 27 women who had once been his wives. The extraordinary story of Nigerian musician and activist Fela Anikulapo Kuti inspired the 2009 musical "Fela!" which garnered three Tony Awards. Judging by the ecstatic reviews, the international touring production that comes to Baltimore this week has only increased the show's reputation.

Betty G. Hocker, a retired Baltimore opera singer and composer who wrote the "Fort McHenry March" at the time of the nation's bicentennial, died Saturday of complications from dementia at Stella Maris Hospice. The longtime Roland Park resident was 101. The daughter of a businessman and a homemaker, Sara Elizabeth "Betty" Gumpper was born into a musical family in Butler, Pa. Her father played the banjo and piano and had a small band, while her mother also played the piano and sang.

United Methodist Church of Savage presents "Riches 2 Rags" Friday, May 18 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, May 19 at 2 and 7 p.m., at 9050 Baltimore St., in Savage. This musical, created by Dennis and Nan Allen, takes the story of Job and places him in modern day times. Can "a good man" stay good through life's hard knocks? Cost is non-perishable food items for the Savage Food Pantry. For information, contact 301-725-7530 or office@umcsavage.org . http://www.umcsavage.org .

The screams of joy from Monica Lawler could be heard across the cavernous clubhouse at Pimlico shortly after the Kentucky Derby ended Saturday. She and her father, Bob Lawler, put money on No. 19, I'll Have Another, who had just won the first leg of the Triple Crown. Monica bet $6 on the Kentucky-bred horse to finish first, second or third. She picked the horse based solely on its name and quickly headed to the teller to collect $55 in winnings. Her father, who tried a more complex bet involving other horses, didn't take home a dime.

Our Savior Lutheran Church, 13611 Laurel Bowie Road, will present "A Little Night Music," a mini concert of handbells, strings, men's quartet and vocalists, on Sunday, May 6 at 7 p.m. A free-will offering will be taken to support the pastors' discretionary fund and to help obtain a diabetic service dog for a public school music teacher. For information, call 301-776-7670.

It's classical night, which means a whole lot of songs I'll recognize but not know the name of. Oh, look, it's an exaggeratedly expressive violinist and some chicks in Marie Antoinette garb. Never change, DWTS, never change. DUDES IN BREECHES AND NECKCLOTHS! Excuse me while I make up historical romance novel cover scenarios for each of these couples. Ooh, that was Joshua Bell? If you've never read Gene Weingarten's excellent Pulitzer-prize winning essay "The Fiddler in the Subway" go do so now, and come back to this recap when you're finished.

The Cat's Eye Pub isn't the only Baltimore bar known for its lineup of local bands. With the recent passage of the live entertainment bill, chances are we'll start to see more bars, coffee shops and clubs with live music pop up in the next year or two. Until then, here are three Baltimore bars and restaurants with regular live music. Joe Squared , 133 W. North Ave., 410-545-0444, joesquared.com. This pizza bar also serves up a melting pot of live music, including traditional New Orleans swing bands, folk artists and experimental beatboxers.

For bassist Victor Wooten, music is a language, just like English. Music should be taught the same way as any other language, and performing it should feel as natural as speaking, he said. It's a philosophy that, in the past three decades, has helped Wooten become regarded as a top bassist. Wooten's work, whether with bluegrass/jazz group Bela Fleck and the Flecktones or on a solo tour, is bringing the electric bass into the limelight and dispelling the stigma of the bass as a secondary instrument.

Avicii, Kid Cudi and the Shins headlined the Sweetlife Music Festival at Merriweather Post Pavilion on Saturday. Reporter Vivienne Machi reviews the event. If the Sweetlife Festival were an actual sweet, I'd vote for a lemon bar: smooth, luscious, with only a few chunks of sour, yet on the whole thoroughly enjoyable. For the second year in a row, music lovers from around the state and beyond gathered through rain and patches of sun to celebrate some of the biggest names in dance and electronic music, and, to a lesser degree, sustainability, environmental consciousness and all that jazz.

Annapolis became a major cultural metropolis this month, thanks to the presentation of two musical masterworks — one by a major 19th-century symphony composer, the other by a major 19th-century opera composer. Both works, which premiered within 20 years of each other, focus on the meaning of life and death. At the U.S. Naval Academy's Alumni Hall on April 19, the Distinguished Artists Series closed with the 39th annual Spring Oratorio. The presentation of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2 featured Aaron Smith conducting the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Naval Academy men's and women's glee clubs, the Goucher College Chorus, and soloists.