Music is an international language and it reaches out to all people. This fact is illustrated in the faces of the musicians of Voices of the Village, who are opening the series of four concerts in Arlington’s Music in the Park in Legion Park on Thursday nights in August.

The musicians are adults with a variety of different abilities. They are clients of Village Community Services, an Arlington-based nonprofit that was developed to provide for their special needs.

The band, Voices of the Village, directed by Jon Dalgarn, is an interactive performance ensemble that promotes the inclusion of people in the community with disabilities through the enjoyment of music. They jam weekly on Fridays at Arlington United Church and have performed at various special events in recent years.

A professional musician and owner of Out of the Ashes, Dalgarn leads the ensemble of 16 musicians on guitar and vocals playing top 40 golden oldies.

An accomplished saxophone player, James Jennings frequently volunteers to play with the band at gigs, where the audience is invited to join in using percussive instruments supplied by the band.

Voices of the Village members are also advocates for others who have disabilities. Along with their weekly Friday music jam sessions they also enjoy a monthly Evening with the Arts event at Arlington’s Catholic church.

Voices of the Village is funded, in part, by the Washington State Arts Commission, National Endowment for the Arts, Fred Meyer Fund, VCS’s Parent Fund, and individual donations.

For information see the Web site at www.villagecommunitysvcs.org.