Gentlemen’s Quartet set to make sophistication fun March 24
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 months, 4 weeks AGO
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | March 10, 2026 12:52 PM
MOSES LAKE — The Gentlemen’s Quartet – plus a lady – will take the stage March 24 at the Wallenstien Theater. The concert is sponsored by the Central Basin Community Concert Association.
“They’re excellent musicians,” said CBCCA Board Member Carla McKean. “They add their own flair to some classical, some modern, but all music that you’ve heard before, but with their own flair to it.
The Gentlemen’s Quartet turns new corners with well-known classical and popular music, as when they fuse the classic John Legend son “All of Me” music by Chopin, Elgar, Ed Sheeran and Michael Nyman.
The quartet consists of David Shenton, piano and violin; Peter Sachon, cello and mandocello; Matt Scharfglass, guitar and bass; and Benjamin Saporito, drums and percussion. Between them, the musicians have performed more than 10,000 shows, according to their promotional materials, on Broadway, in London’s West End and with musicians as varied as Vanessa Williams, Paul McCartney and Dee Snyder, as well as major symphony orchestras and at festivals around the world.
“They’ve performed at Carnegie Hall, they’ve performed on Broadway, they’ve performed in Europe … They’ve run the full gamut,” McKean said.
Joining the gents will be vocalist Erin Shields. A graduate of the Indiana University School of Music, Shields also studied voice in Vienna, Austria, according to the group’s promotional materials. She started her professional career at age 17 when she sang the National Anthem for Michael Jordan and The Chicago Bulls. Since then, she’s performed leading roles for many reputable music festivals, opera companies and orchestras.
In addition to their concert at the Wallenstien Theater, the Gentlemen’s Quartet will give a presentation at Moses Lake High School, McKean said.
“We’re always excited about (musicians) being able to generate musical enthusiasm among young people,” she said.
Tickets are available at the CBCCA website, communityconcertsml.com. The cost is $30 for adults and $10 for students, with special rates for families and music students and teachers.
“(This is) a very high level of musicianship we’re bringing to Moses Lake,” McKean said. “People who come can expect a really tight, professional show.”
Gentlemen’s Quartet
7 p.m. March 24
Big Bend Community College
Wallenstien Theater
6989 College Parkway NE
Joining the Gentlemen’s Quartet March 24 will be guest vocalist Erin Shields.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.