Outside the Spotlight

Outside The Spotlight is a series of jazz and improvised music events in Lexington, KY. We give a home to artists making music that doesn't fit with commercial sensibilities and build an environment where artists and audience can interact more directly.

We want to expand the the availability of this music to anyone who is interested. Performances are at all-ages venues and are generally pay-what-you-can donation-based admission.

OUR NEXT SHOW
COMING SOON
Contact Us
E-Mail Signup

DONATE TO OTS

Help us keep the action coming!
Click here for information about how support OTS.

Please consider supporting our local peer music series:
Origins Jazz Series and Jazz at the Library.

Home
COMING SOON
Contact Us
E-Mail Signup

Our Next Show...

OTS #248 - Bark Culture w/ Holden Bitner

August 14, 2026
Lexington Scottish Rite Bodies
553 Rosemont Garden
6:30 Doors. Show starts at 7 p.m.
All-ages. $10 Suggested Donation.Bark Culture is a Philadelphia-based trio led by vibraphonist Victor Vieira-Branco, featuring Joey Sullivan on drums and John Moran on bass. The band is touring their new record, "The Giant is Awkward," released on June 5th, 2026.The Giant is Awkward is the second album by vibraphonist and composer Victor Vieira-Branco’s Bark Culture. The Giant is Awkward is five pieces that mirror the prismatic nature of a sound Vieira-Branco has been tirelessly crafting with the group since 2021.The band’s 2024 debut, Warm Wisdom, received high praise, with New York Times jazz critic Hank Shteamer listing it among his top debuts of 2024, as well as landing a spot on Bandcamp’s Best of Jazz for September 2024. Since then, Vieira-Branco has joined Rob Mazurek’s Exploding Star Orchestra and the Chad Taylor Quintet, the former of which released the album Smokeshifter, featuring three pieces penned by the vibraphonist. The core trio of Bark Culture was also heavily involved in Rob Mazurek’s score for Kelly Reichardt’s 2025 film The Mastermind.Opening performance by cellist Holden Bitner.

DONATE TO OTS

Please sign up to our email list to stay informed about upcoming Outside the Spotlight shows!

Home
OUR NEXT SHOW
Contact Us
E-Mail Signup

Coming Soon...

OTS #249 - Jon Mueller w/ Zeus, Again

September 30, 2026
Venue TBA
Show starts at 7 p.m.

DONATE TO OTS

Please sign up for our e-mail list to stay up-to-date on all Outside the Spotlight shows!

Home
OUR NEXT SHOW
COMING SOON
E-Mail Signup

Contact Us

Do you have a group that would like to perform at an OTS event?
Would you like more information?
Have questions?

Home
OUR NEXT SHOW
COMING SOON
Contact Us

(function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';fnames[1]='FNAME';ftypes[1]='text';fnames[2]='LNAME';ftypes[2]='text';fnames[3]='ADDRESS';ftypes[3]='address';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true);

Thanks to everyone who contributed to our 2025-2026 giving campaign!

For 23 years OTS has been an all-volunteer organization devoted to bringing out-of-this-world performances to Central Kentucky. Our performances are held in unconventional spaces, designed to be uniquely memorable. We have featured improvising artists from all over the world, multiple MacArthur fellows, and legends from the jazz and free-improv community.

Your donations help us to continue supporting independent artists while making performances available to all.

This year we have a new option to donate monthly! Please consider making a recurring donation which greatly helps us budget throughout the year. We have several tiers of support and your donation allows us to pay musicians a fair wage without the necessity of a cover charge. Our new fundraising platform allows you to donate through card, Venmo, Apple Pay, and Google Pay, or if you're old-fashioned we still accept cash or check.