LEWISTON — Since July 1, the spotlight has been on the dancers of the Bates Dance Festival. On Tuesday evening, Aug. 2, the center of attention will shift to the internationally acclaimed musicians who have collaborated with and provided accompaniment for performers, students, choreographers and educators participating in the festival, continuing through Aug. 13.

Most of the musicians are multi-instrumentalists and their music ranges from playful to thoughtful and profound. The concert’s program includes original and improvisational works in musical styles from around the world.

“These musicians are all master dance accompanists,” Festival Director Laura Faure said. Most have been at Bates throughout the festival’s schedule of classes and performances.

“Knowing how to play for dance is a unique talent,” Faure said. “The music is an incredibly important component of dance.”

“They love coming here and playing for their friends and the students. This annual Musicians’ Concert is the night when we get to highlight them,” she said.

For the first time, the annual Musicians’ Concert will take place at the Franco-American Heritage Center, 46 Cedar St., beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Rajesh Bhandari, an exceptional tabla player, began studying this popular percussion instrument of India age 9. Playing it involves the skilled use of fingers and palms to produce a wide range of sounds from a small drum and a somewhat larger one.

In 2009, Bhandari did a six-day workshop and performance with master tabla player Ustad Zakir Hussain at Carnegie Hall.

Bhandari has served as an accompanist for the New World School of the Arts in Miami and at Rutgers University, The Martha Graham School and Peridance in New York. He is developing his own world fusion group, the Rajesh Bhandari Project.

Glen Fittin, an expert on frame drums, has also been a percussionist, rehearsal accompanist and workshop presenter for the Broadway production “The Lion King.” He has been in the show’s cast since 1998 and he has been a musician-in-residence at the Bates Dance Festival since 2004.

Now in his 12th year with the festival, Jesse Manno is a composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist and teacher based in Boulder, Colo.

Albert Mathias is an award-winning composer and performer who has created music for movement in San Francisco since 1991. His work encompasses accompaniment, composition and sound design for dance and theater, CD and film, and solo performances.

Terrence Karn has been a dancer, global musician, dance and music instructor, and composer for more than 40 years. He performs with and is co-director of Gypsy Dance Theater and has played music with Greg Harbar’s Gypsies, Moodafaruka and his own collaborative world music ensemble, Global Grooves.

Peter Jones is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and improviser who has been an active musician in dance for more than 20 years. He has created numerous scores for choreographers. He has released seven CDs of music on his own recording label, Joneschord Music, and is musical director for the dance program at Mount Holyoke College.

Carl Landa a full-time accompanist at Skidmore College, plays piano, synthesizer, percussion and hammered dulcimer, and has composed scores for dance, video, film and television.

Pianist and brass player Michael Wall, a recording artist and frequent collaborator with choreographers, is a principal in the company ASIMPLESOUND, which produces music and resources for dance, film and other media. He works full time in the department of dance at Ohio State University.

For the first time, the annual Musicians’ Concert will take place at the Franco-American Heritage Center, 46 Cedar St., beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Founded in 1982 at Bates College, the Bates Dance Festival brings together an international community of contemporary dance choreographers, performers, educators and students in a cooperative community to study, perform and create new work.

Tickets are $12, $6 for students and seniors. For tickets, call 786-6161 between 1 and 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or visit www.batestickets.com. For more details on the festival, visit www.batesdancefestival.org.

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