Joe Ehrbar

Thunderous explosions, erupting into brilliant showers of fire, light and color, isn't that what the Fourth of July is all about? This year, dozens of fireworks shows will light up the skies of Eastern Washington and North Idaho. Here are some: Spokane's American Music Festival Goodbye Neighbor Days. Hello American Music Festival. This event makes its debut at Riverfront Park Thursday through Sunday. It's a music festival will be punctuated by fireworks Thursday. The fireworks start at 9:45 p.m. (See Thursday's IN Life section for a full preview of the festival.)

Connoisseur Concerts has appointed an artistic director for its summer outdoor concert series, which starts in July. Verne Windham, KPBX's classical music director, will be the artistic guide for the series of concerts highlighting the works of Mozart. The Connoisseur Concerts take place July 23 and 24 at Manito Park, on the lawn just east of Duncan Gardens. The series continues and closes Aug. 2 with "Family Mozart," which will be held outdoors at the Fort Wright Mukogawa Institute.

Tara Pittenger, in her straw hat, cheered on her daughter's team at last year's Hoopfest. This year, be prepared for crowds, fun and plenty of all-around action as nearly 4,000 teams compete on more than 250 courts while bands, vendors and contests share the downtown arena. Photo by Sandra Bancroft-Billings/The Spokesman-Review

The Refreshments plays Outback Jack's on Monday.

Somewhere there lies a world where endless amounts of mouthwatering microbrew come rushing from golden taps and pour into glasses with the grace of a waterfall's crest. This world would be surrounded by the scenic outdoors of North Idaho, with the sun hanging brightly in the summer sky.

1. Jack and Sue White enjoy a spin in the "Funster" on a sunny Friday afternoon. "By 5 or 6, I knew all of the makes on the street," says White of his early love of cars. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review 2. "The Funster" is the third street rod the Whites have owned.

A Lipizzan performs a difficult maneuver.

To coincide with Coeur d'Alene's Art on the Green each year, the festival conducts a series of art workshops at North Idaho College. Art on the Green's Summer Art Institute begins July 29. The classes encompass most everything, from drawing to fiction writing, and are geared toward people of all skill levels.

If you've dropped into either Four Thousand Holes or Vinyl Garage, you've probably seen the display advertising a compilation album called "Wood Panel Pacer with Mags" on the Spokane label Too Many Records. The vinyl-only album features 76 bands on one LP and 24 bands on a 7-inch, adding up to whopping 100 songs from 100 bands. Most songs aren't more than 30 seconds long. Whew. The album - the perfect record for music fans with attention deficit disorder - includes contributions from punk bands across the country and globe, including nine local bands (Cause, the Flies, the Fumes, Big Comb, the Panics, Lupus, the Sissies, the Kegel Muscles and the Crudlers). It also contains songs by Las Vegas' Leap Frog Society and Los Angeles' Tito O'Tito Band; both of which play Ichabod's North with Fatty Lumpkin Saturday.

Dozens of cowboys from here and yonder will wrestle with the bulls Friday and Saturday at the Bull Bash at Kelly's Rodeo Arena (behind Kelly's Grand Ole Opry) in State Line, Idaho. No, we don't mean the NBA champion Chicago Bulls. We're talking real bulls! The two-day event, which commands a purse of $11,000, will feature saddle-bronc riding, bareback riding and bull riding. Plus, there will be a "Wild Ride" in which saddle-bronc riders will attempt to pull off the "wildest," "corniest" and "most ridiculous" ride. That event will carry a separate purse.

On Saturday, the Spokane Folklore Society will sponsor its annual Lady of the Lake Summer Dance at the Moran Prairie Grange, Palouse Highway and 60th. The contra dance coincides with the Lake Summer Music and Dance Week, which starts Sunday. The workshop is sold out, but the dance isn't and is open to the public. It begins at 8 p.m. Cajun band Balfa Toujours will perform Saturday night. The Louisiana-based quartet has toured the United States and Europe several times. Band leader Christina Balfa is the daughter of notable Cajun artist Dewey Balfa.

Hopefully, we'll be part of the next wave that brings back traditional country music," says singer Wylie Gustafson. His band performs Friday night.

Because of scheduling conflicts, Everclear has canceled its two Northwest concert appearances, including its June 28 date at The Gorge Amphitheater. Everclear called off the two concerts because it will be headlining two major radio festivals in Portland and Seattle later in the summer. The show was not canceled due to poor ticket sales, according to Everclear's publicist, Donna Salazar.

Ann Marie Yasinitsky, a Washington State University music instructor and flutist, was the recipient of a Artist Trust GAP Grant to fund her upcoming CD recording project entitled "Intuition." On the disc, Yasinitsky will interpret standard flute works, including Debussy's "Syrinx." The CD will also feature pieces composed for Yasinitsky by Los Angeles composer Brent Pierce, and Gregory Yasinitsky, her husband and fellow WSU faculty member. Artist Trust is a non-profit organization that nurtures the arts in Washington state through grants.

Burnin' Chicago plays Thudpucker's on Sunday.

Four Piece Suit will bring its surf-jazz sound to the Mars Hotel tonight. Photo by Brian Corbett/John Mahoney

1. Two combines collide in last summer's Combine Demolition Derby in Lind. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

The Sundogs' very danceable music is a blend of Cajun, zydeco, rock, blues, country and folk.

When notable Providence, R.I., indie group small factory closed down, two of its former time-clock-punchers, drummer-vocalist Phoebe Summersquash and guitarist-vocalist Alex Kemp, moved to New York and founded an equally as impressive band, the Godrays. The Godrays play the Northern Corner (Third and Washington) on Wednesday with Blood Blue. How new are the Godrays? The band's debut album, "Songs for TV Stars," doesn't even come out until June 25. The only recorded material available with the Godrays' musical stamp is a limited-edition double 7-inch vinyl release called "T.V. Stars with No Arms."

Theatre Ballet of Spokane has appointed a new artistic director for its 1996-97 season. Margaret Goodner, a longtime supporter of ballet in Spokane, has assumed the post of artistic leader for the upcoming season, commencing with the New Year's Eve program "Ballet and Bubbly" at The Met. Goodner has performed with several notable ballet companies, including the Connecticut Ballet, the Boston Ballet and the National Ballet of Ireland.

Robyn Miller "Myst" original soundtrack - Cyan CD With the enormous popularity of the CD-ROM game Myst, it's not surprising to see a soundtrack of music from the game released on disc. Robyn Miller, who conceived the mystical adventure game with his brother Rand two years ago, has taken all of the instrumentals he composed for Myst's six levels and released it as an album.

Jess Hawk Oakenstar is a musical sponge who has absorbed a diverse assortment of styles. She plays country. She plays folk. She plays rock. She plays world music. And the singer-guitarist often employs all of those in just one song. Oakenstar plays Espresso Delizioso tonight from 8:30 to 10:30.

Sister Machine Gun is at Outback Jack's.

Some dogs have been ticked off by David Letterman and his "Late Show." The talk-show host's "Stupid Pet Tricks" segment usually depicts dogs performing such ludicrous stunts as climbing ladders with open cans of soda in their mouth, shooting baskets with their snouts or barreling down slides with monkeys (literally) on their backs. The canines competing at the Pedigree Grand Prix of Dog Agility regional championships Saturday and Sunday at the Spokane Sport Horse Farm, 10710 S. Sherman, don't want to be associated with "Stupid Pet Tricks."