Bruce Fessier of The Desert Sun writes that there are more music festivals out there than Desert Trip, including this week’s Joshua Tree Music Festival, the Steinway Society Winners Concert (classical piano), the Shakti Fest (devotional music), “East Valley Voices Out Loud” (rap, indie rock and more) or the Mariachi Festival. He also advises to take a drive up to the Miracle Springs Spa and Resort in Desert Hot Springs to see the Hendrix Disciples, whose guitarist, JP Cervoni, promoter Jan Jacques refers to the closest thing he’s seen to Jimmy Hendrix. 

Here’s a sampling of activities in the Coachella Valley over the next couple of weeks, taken from Bruce’s list of the top 50 activities in and around the Coachella Valley: 

May 11

  • Free movies Wednesday: “Steve Jobs,” 10 a.m. Tolerance Education Center, 35147 Landy Lane, Rancho Mirage. Free. (760) 328-8252
  • Steinway Society’s 12th Annual Festival Winners’ Concert, featuring pianists from 7 to 17 years old, 7 p.m., Rancho Mirage Public Library, 71-100 Highway 111. Free admission. (760) 341-7323

May 12

  • “Women Built This Town” lecture, 6 p.m. Hear how women like Melba Bennett, Ruth Hardy and long time Historical Society supporter Moya Henderson shaped the growth and development of Palm Springs during the 1940s. Benefits the Palm Springs Historical Society. Los Compadres Club House, 1849 S. El Cielo Road, Palm Springs. $20-$25. (760) 323-8297
  • Electronic artist Alex Harrington, 10 p.m., Amigo Room, 701 E Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs. Free admission. (760) 325-9900

 May 12-15

  • Joshua Tree Music Festival, featuring bands including Dumpstaphunk from New Orleans, Dakhabrakha from the Ukraine, Empresarios from Puerto Rico, Dhara World Music from India, Denmantau from Germany, Royal Jelly Live from San Francisco, Todo Mundo from San Diego, Greener Grounds from Denver, Dam-Funk & the Light from Los Angeles and several bands from Joshua Tree, 5 p.m. Thursday-11:45 p.m. Sunday, Joshua Tree Lake Campground, 2601 Sunfair Road, Joshua Tree. $180 four-day pass, $120 excluding camping; $80 weekend for youths 11-16, $60 Thursday only, $90 Friday or Saturday only, $75 Sunday only. Kids 10 and under free. joshuatreemusicfestival.com
  • Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival, including classic femme fatale films starring Joan Crawford (”Sudden Fear”), Rita Hayworth (”Gilda”) and Marilyn Monroe (”Niagara”) with more obscure film noires such as “Outside the Wall” (1950), “Fly-By-Night” (1942) and The Hunted (1948) and films with guest appearances including Claude Jarman Jr. for “Intruder in the Dust” (1949), Ann Robinson with “Dragnet” (1954). Daily at the Camelot Theatres, 2300 E. Baristo Road, Palm Springs. $13 per film, $125 all access passes. http://arthurlyonsfilmnoir.ning.com/ or (760) 325-2582

May 13

  • Family Game Night, 5:30-8 p.m. Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert, 71701 Gerald Ford Drive, Rancho Mirage. $20-$70. (760) 321-0602
  • Visual Arts Senior Show III, featuring artists of the Idyllwild Arts Academy, 6 .m. reception, runs through May 21, Parks Exhibition Center, Idyllwild Arts Foundation campus, 52500 Temecula Road, Idyllwild. Shows daily except Sundays through May 21. (951) 659-2171
  • Royal Concertgebouw, 7:30-9 p.m. Marquee Academy of Performing Arts, 441 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs. $30. (760) 778-8000
  • Films on the Great Lawn, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sunnylands, featuring “Dr. Strangelove, or: How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb,” 8 p.m., Sunnylands Center & Gardens, 37977 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage. Free admission. (760) 202-2283
  • Mariachi Festival, 8-11 p.m. Spotlight 29 Casino, 46200 Harrison, Coachella. $40-$60. (760) 775-5566

May 13-15

  • Shakti Fest 2016: Festival of Yoga and Sacred Music, celebrating creative devine feminine energy, featuring Kirtan (chanting) artists Jai Uttal, Donna De Lory, Larissa Stowe, Saul David Raye, Govind Das & Radha, Girish, Prema Hara, Jaya Lakshmi & Ananda, Spring Groove, Prajna Vieira & the Mukti Kirtan Ensemble, and Amritakripa, plus workshops and yoga classes. $275 or or $150 for Joshua Tree residents, seniors 62 and over and students. $60 for camping. info@bhaktifest.com
  • The 29 Palms Military Film Festival, featuring 24 films and documentaries telling war stories, starting at 5 p.m. at the 29 Palms Inn in Twentynine Palms with a reception honoring Master Gunnery Sgt. Juan Jose Valdez, the last Marine to board a helicopter from the U.S. Embassy roof before Saigon fell, followed by the outdoor screening of 2014 Oscar nominee, “Last Days of Vietnam,” about the final days of the Vietnam War. Other Twentynine Palms venues are the Smith Ranch’s Drive-in Theatre, the Mobile Drive-in Theater at Knott Sky Park and Twentynine Palms Junior High School. Individual passes $25, family passes $40, VIP Passes $70, available at the 29 Palms Chamber of Commerce or29palmsfilmfestival.com/buy-tickets
  • “Earth and Fire Walking” Argentine Tango dance performance, 7 p.m. Fri. & Sat. 2 p.m. Sun. Featuring Tomas Galvan and Gimena Herrera. CVRep Theatre, 69930 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage. $25. (760) 296-2966
  • Idyllwild Arts Academy production of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” 7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sunday. (951) 659-2171

May 13-29

  • “Junk,” 8 p.m. A new musical by J. Michael Penny. Desert Rose Playhouse, 69620 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage. $30-$33. (760) 202-3000

May 14

  • Desert Hot Springs Classical Concert Series, 5-7 p.m. Featuring 4handsLA, Steven Vanhauwaert and Danny Holt, piano performance. SoCal Pianos, Palm Desert, Recital Room, 74111 Highway 111, Palm Desert. $20. (661) 993-1003
  • Russian singer Valery Meladze, 6 p.m. The Show at Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa, 32250 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage. $50-$150. (760) 321-2000
  • Ludacris, 8 p.m. Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, 84245 Indio Springs Parkway, Indio. $39-$79. (800) 827-2946
  • “East Valley Voices Out Loud,” showcasing singers, rappers, poets, storytellers, musicians, actors, playwrights and visual artists from the East Valley, 8 p.m., McCallum Theatres, 73-000 Fred Waring Drive, Palm Desert. $9-$22. (760) 340-2787
  • The Jimi Hendrix tribute band, Hendrix Disciples, featuring former Buddy Miles Band guitarist JP Cervoni, plus opening act Made-n-America, performing the hits from AC/DC, 9 p.m., Miracle Springs Spa and Resort, 10625 Palm Drive, Desert Hot Springs. $20-$30. (800) 400-4414

May 14-June 6

  • “Happiness is Freedom...” art exhibition, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. a combined exhibition featuring new works from renegade artists Tod Bailey and Casey Sheppard. Ted Casablanca Gallery, 388 N. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs. Free. (760) 883-1625

May 15

  • Jazz, Blues & Brunch, featuring teen saxophonist Chase Huna, 10 a.m., Woodhaven Country Club, 41555 Woodhaven Drive East, Palm Desert. $50. (760) 345-7636
  • “It’s Hip To Be Square: Guilty Pleasure Songs” starring Francesca Amari, with Wayne Abravanel on piano, 2 p.m., Arthur Newman Theater at The Joslyn Center, 73750 Catalina Way, Palm Desert. $11. (760) 325-2731

May 16

  • Celebrity Jazz Jam, featuring guitarists Adam Hawley, John Carey and Joe Baldino, singer Bobbie Eakes, singer-guitarist Slim Man, Latin jazz star Bob Desena, bassist, Darryl Williams, keyboard artist Greg Manning, saxophonists Rick Parma, Greg Vail and Victor Robles, percussionist Guillermo Yslas and more, 6-9 p.m., Desert Willow Golf Resort, 38995 Desert Willow Drive, Palm Desert. $25-$30 plus food and cocktails. (760) 346-0015

May 18

  • Tachevah Music Showcase grand finale, featuring four Coachella bands performing for $3,000 and more prizes, 6 p.m. doors, the Date Shed, 50725 Monroe St., Indio. Free admission. (760) 775-6699 or tachevahmusic.com

May 19

  • Spring concert in the park featuring The Dustbowl Revival, 7:30 p.m. Palm Desert Civic Center Park, Amphitheater, 73510 Fred Waring Drive, Palm Desert. (760) 346-0611, Ext. 416
  • May 20: Films on the Great Lawn, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sunnylands, featuring Peter Sellers in “The Pink Panther,” 8 p.m., Sunnylands Center & Gardens, 37977 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage. Free admission. (760) 202-2283

May 20

  • Lynyrd Skynyrd concert, 9 p.m. The Show at Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa, 32250 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage. $86-$126. (760) 321-2000
  • Free Friday concert: A Tribute to The Eagles, 8-11 p.m. Spotlight 29 Casino, 46200 Harrison, Coachella. Free. (760) 775-5566
  • Fortunate Youth with Sensamotion and Peni Dean, 9 p.m., the Date Shed, 50725 Monroe St., Indio. $15 advance, $20 at the door. 18 and over. (760) 775-6699
  • Saliva, 10 p.m., Morongo Casino Resort and Spa, 49500 Seminole Drive, Cabazon. $20-$40. (951) 755-5391

May 20-21

  • “Comedy in Small Servings: Six Hilarious One-Acts” by Desert Theatreworks, 7 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday, Arthur Newman Theatre, 73750 Catalina Way, Palm Desert. $16-$28. (760) 340-3220

May 21

  • Desert Film Society presents “In Harmony,” 9:15 a.m.-11:45 a.m. Camelot, 2300 E Baristo Rd, Palm Springs. $15. (760) 770-0507
  • The Actors Forum production of “Hamlet,” 2 p.m., Edward-Dean Museum 9401 Oak Glen Road, Cherry Valley. $10. (951) 845-2626

May 22

  • "Sharon Sings Them All” starring Sharon Sills with Paul Eshelman on piano, 2 p.m., Arthur Newman Theatre at the Joslyn Center, 73750 Catalina Way, Palm Desert. $11. (760) 325-2731
  • CV Music Awards, featuring awards 32 categories and performances by local bands, 6-9 p.m., with 4 p.m. pre-party, 9 p.m. VIP aftere-party, The Riviera Palm Springs, A Tribute Portfolio Resort, 1600 N. Indian Canyon Drive. $25 or $50 in advance, $35 or $65 at the door. (760) 501-6228

May 23

  • Waring International Piano Competition afternoon recital, 4 p.m. Family YMCA of the Desert, Gym, 43930 San Pablo Ave., Palm Desert. (760) 773-2575

May 24

  • The Desert Sun and the UCR-Palm Desert graduate writing program present Coachella Valley Storytellers, featuring local residents coached by UCR-Palm Desert writers Tod Goldberg and Maggie Downs telling stories based on the topic, “All I Ever Wanted: Stories of Growing Up,” 7:30-9 p.m. (6:30 p.m. doors), La Quinta Museum, 77-885 Avenida Montezuma, La Quinta. $10. https://tickets.desertsun.com/e/coachella-valley-storytellers-project-all-i-ever-w/tickets 

To read Bruce Fessier’s original article, courtesy of The Desert Sun, please visit: http://www.desertsun.com/story/life/2016/05/09/desert-trip-countdown-joshua-tree-fest-concerts-valley/84159466/