First up is internationally acclaimed singer-songwriter, Jose Gonzalez, in concert tomorrow night at the Mandela Hall.

With his crystal-clear singing voice and vibrant, classically-inspired playing, Gonzalez performs music that is both beautiful and simple.

His current album, In Our Nature, is set to follow the success of his double platinum debut album, Veneer.

- Next door, at the Elmwood Hall tomorrow night is a performance of a new musical commission called Islands by composers Luke Daniels and Donald Grant.

Daniels on button accordion and Grant on fiddle join fellow musicians Jenna Reid (fiddle) and Tiarnan Duinnchinn (uilleann pipes) and others for this new piece of folk music which looks at the shared cultural traditions between the music of Scotland, Ireland and Northumberland.

Drawing on oral traditions that are both historical and contemporary, the project explores the distinctive expressions and shared sources from these islands.

- On Monday, the Elmwood Hall also plays host to Grammy-winning jazz/blues great, Mose Allison, who counts Van Morrison and Elvis Costello among his fans.

- The following night, multi-Grammy award-winning gospel legends, The Blind Boys of Alabama, are set to take to the stage of the Grand Opera House, supported by Irish/Argentinean duo, Dunne and Hernandez.

Formed many years ago, The Blind Boys of Alabama pre-date Elvis, Little Richard and Al Green yet, even in their 70s, they are still at the top of the gospel charts.

In recent years, The Blind Boys have proven themselves masters of bringing out the most spiritual aspects of mainstream music, while at the same time recording moving renditions of songs by everyone from Tom Waits to Prince.

- Outside of Festival, I am very excited about the quick return of top Canadian band, The Paperboys, to both the Real Music Club at the Errigle Inn on Thursday and to the Bronte Music Club next Friday, following knock-out performances at both venues earlier in the year.

The most common description of this Celtic/folk/acoustic/Latin/alt. country/pop/roots band has been: "They're hard to describe. They're just really, really good and there's nobody else like them." Make sure you don't miss them.

- Former guitarist with both Canned Heat and John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, Walter Trout, joins his current band, The Radicals, at the Spring & Airbrake tonight to prove why he has become one of the greatest interpreters of the blues/rock genre of music, while top-drawer English singer-songwriter, Stephen Fretwell, will be performing a slightly quieter set next door at the Limelight.

- Other gigs worth a visit include: Brian Houston at Lisburn's Island Arts centre tomorrow; a free trad gig at the Copper Kettle Music Club in Enniskillen's Higher Bridges Gallery tomorrow; and Dennis Locorriere at the Waterfront Hall on Monday.