Maryland artist Bennard Perlman has been painting for sixty years. A retrospective of his work will soon be on display at The Gallery at MCAC.

• We’ll meet Baltimore artist Bennard Perlman, who’s been painting waterfront scenes here in Maryland and across the world for the past sixty years
• We’ll listen as music and poetry combine in celestial fashion when the Baltimore Choral Arts Society prepares for a special performance of The Verdi Requiem
• We’ll spend some time with Eastern Shore resident (and champion muskrat skinner) Rhonda Aaron
• And we’ll talk with museum curator Chris Gilbert about a new (and noisy) installation at the Baltimore Museum of Art: Sound Politics

This evening, Towson High School plays host to a Jazz Extravaganza featuring the Towson University Faculty Jazz Ensemble and special guest Armenian born jazz pianist Vardon Ovsepian. You’ll also get to hear the world premiere of a commissioned work for jazz ensemble and concert band. You can reserve your tickets by calling 410 218 5871, and, best of all, the concert is a fundraiser for Towson High School’s music department.

This weekend the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players bring their multi-media family affair to the Theatre Project. The Trachtenburgs are a real family; Dad plays guitar and keyboards and sings, 11 year old daughter Rachel plays drums and sings, and Mom operates the slide projector. The family composes pop songs based on the images on slides they collect at yard sales and thrift stores. For ticket information and show times call the Theatre Project at 410 752 8558

Our cool friends who know these things tell us the 80’s are back, and what better proof than the fact that Duran Duran is playing at the Patriot Center this weekend? The Maryland Institute College of Art will do its part to keep the spirit of 80s alive by welcoming Jeff Koons, one of the most controversial and intriguing artists to emerge during that decade, to speak at the Brown Center at noon on Monday. Call 410 225 2300 or visit www.mica.edu to find out more.

And finally, now that spring has truly arrived, why not immerse yourself in nature with a visit to Ladew Topiary Gardens in Monkton. The lavish 22-acre garden officially opens for the 2005 season on Saturday with the promise of early spring blossoms, hundreds of topiary forms, thousands of frogs in the ponds, and plenty of fresh air. Fork information call 410 557 9466 or visit www.ladewgardens.com