Tune Up Philly, the unique after-school music program, concluded the school year yesterday with a performance at St. Francis de Sales Catholic School (917 S. 47th St.). The performance featured pieces by the full orchestra and choir as well as quartets and quintets. About 85 St. Francis de Sales students ranging from kindergartners to eighth graders, have taken part in the program, which takes students from beginning musicians to concert-ready over the course of the school year.

JUMP magazine did a great piece on the program last week. Read it here.

Unfortunately we had to leave the concert early and we missed the performance of the full orchestra. We have heard rave reviews though. Below is a slideshow of some of the performances early in the concert.

You will be hearing a lot more about this program in the coming year. Tune Up Philly will be at the Henry C. Lea School (4700 Locust St.) next year and, as you can see in the photos, a film crew was shooting yesterday’s concert.

Tune-Up Philly began as an after-school program of novice Saint Francis de Sales Catholic School student-musicians tentatively playing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” at the beginning of the school year. Hours and hours of practice and a dozen or so concerts later, those same musicians will tackle Beethoven and Rossini today at the year-end concert from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the school (4625 Springfield Ave.)

The program, which features 6 to 13-year-olds and is designed to build self-esteem and a passion for music, has garnered praise across the city throughout the school year. Its director, Curtis Institute of Music graduate Stanford Thompson, hopes to take the program to the Henry C. Lea School (4700 Locust St.) next fall.

Today’s concert, which is free, will feature the Tune Philly Symphony Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, Choir, and String Orchestra.

The Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll seemed to be a great success last night. Great stuff available and tons of people on hand. How about those lines?

Here’s a quick slideshow:

Spiral Q Puppet Theater (3114 Spring Garden St.) is hosting an open house tonight from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Puerto Rican vocalist Taína Asili, flamenco dancer April Goltz, and guitarist Gaetano Vaccaro present an intimate and unforgettable performance of Latin American folk and flamenco tonight, at 7:30 p.m. at Crossroads Music (801 S 48th St.).

Taína Asili and April Goltz are former Philadelphians. Goltz took her first flamenco steps at the Arts League in West Philly beginning in 2002.

Tickets are still available here.

Before the main event, there will be a short children’s concert, from 6 p.m. to approximately 6:45 p.m. Tickets to this show are $5 for kids, with accompanying grownups free.

The Rita Jones Dance Company will present A Tribute To Billie Holiday concert tonight at 7:30 p.m. at The Rotunda (4014 Walnut St.). Proceeds from the event will go to Pancreatic Cancer Research program at Jefferson Hospital. General admission tickets: $10.