I don't know exactly what the deal is. The music offerings are a little skimpy this week in the last gasp of May before the full-on summer season really gets underway with lots of sweating in parking lots with plastic cups of cheap beer, getting soiled with barbecue sauce and listening to high-octane roots music. First an education item: Going head to head with GTCC's Larry Gatlin School of Entertainment Technology in Jamestown, Winston-Salem State University is rolling out a new degree track called "the bachelor of science in music business with emphasis on sound recording technology." If you see yourself as the next Pharell Williams, this one's for you.

The perfect Piedmont spring seems to have dented the volume of live music offerings of late. The cold and wet season when cabin fever funneled restless Triadians into the bars and music halls is long gone, and the summer festival season is just getting started. Though choices are more limited than usual this week, that's not to say there isn't something going on to suit every ear, from big-ticket R&B and local folk to scrappy rock and roll and offbeat touring bands. We may as well start with Kris Ferris, a local songwriter and guitar player, who serenades the office lunch crowd at Center City Park in Greensboro on Wednesday.

Steve Williard and Chuck Folds from Rubberband play a free, acoustic lunchtime gig at Center City Park in Greensboro on Wednesday, a signifier of the perfect spring Piedmont weather and a prod to ease up on hectic professional schedules. And on Wednesday Endless Mic rocks their All New Super Exclusive Al Gore Bongwater Club Mixtape Volume One long-player at the Blind Tiger in Greensboro.

Hold onto your hats: Several festivals and Greensboro heritage commemorations are cross-promoting events. There's a feast at hand. On Wednesday, vocal ensemble Bel Canto Co. holds its second day of auditions at the UNCG School of Music. E-mail Jeffrey Carlson at jcarlson@belcantocompany.com for more information.

Blues guitarist Sean Costello died suddenly on April 15. He was scheduled to perform at the Carolina Blues Festival in Greensboro on May 3. Festival organizers say they are seeking a replacement. Musician, storyteller, television host, historian and entertainer David Holt speaks in Room 130 at UNCG's Moore Nursing Building at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, and Hammer No More the Fingers, Silence the Sky and Hot Politics play a benefit for Greensboro-based Exhibit A for Africa across town at Solaris on the same day. Also on Wednesday, catch folk raconteurs Bruce Piephoff and Logie Meachum at the Greenhill Center for North Carolina Art in Greensboro, or check out Mae, the Honorary Title, Far Less and Layden at Greene Street if your tastes run more towards loud guitars with a pop sheen.

The Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival of Music & Dance in Chatham County this weekend draws ample talent from across the state, putting to work such notables as Bruce Piephoff, Holy Ghost Tent Revival and the Mantras. As a fringe benefit, a handful of out-of-town acts are picking up additional gigs in quality venues around the Triad; they include Chris Barron, Paleface, Scythian and Sol'Jibe.

WFDD-3, a digital station affiliated with Winston-Salem's 88.5 WFDD FM, has launched from Wake Forest University. The new digital station features roots, traditional and folk music. To listen to the new WFDD-3, the classical-formatted WFDD-2 or the digital version of the FM station, visit wfdd.org/listen.php. Joe Buck Yourself, formerly of the Legendary Shack Shakers and sometime upright bass player for Hank Williams III, brings his "one-man evil hillbilly punk band" to the Garage in Winston-Salem for a special midnight show on Wednesday.

The Radials have been on a tear recently, and good fortune threatens to overtake the pathos of their sad and twisted honky-tonk universe. Stephen Corbett and Shawn Patch, respectively the band's singer and electric guitar player, began composing songs together last year, attracting the exquisite steel talents of relocated Ohioan Tom Beardslee and, subsequently, the rhythm section of Rodney Owen and Aaron Cummings. They've been in the studio with Doug Williams, who put himself on the map by recording the Avett Brothers, and have practically wrapped their debut album. They recently played their first all-acoustic set over the airwaves on 90.9 WQFS. They're opening for their friends the Carter Brothers, a Nashville act with local roots, at the Blind Tiger for the 4th of July holiday.

It was a difficult decision to make at first — to choose amongst all the shows going on this evening. The Chapel Hill scene seemed to be flooded with live music on Thursday night. The Cave, the Nightlight, Local 506… the list goes on, and most all of my friends were at the Russian Circles “experience” down the street.

Jimmie’s Chicken Shack — Fail On Cue “Some motha lovas don’t know when to quit. I figured it out, I don’t want in. So I just decided to be the man that I’ve always been,” and thank goodness for that. It’s summertime, the prime time for reggae-alternative, mischief-mixed tunes.