Tom Fedor/The Gazette Ramon, of Frederick, plays the Dobro® during Monday night's WHAP! session at Jennifer's.

WHAP! - or a Weekly Happening with Audience Participation ­ is the brain child of local musician James Wagner, better known on stage as Shortbread.

The concert series is held in downtown Frederick at different venues on different nights and gives local musicians an opportunity to play and get paid for it in a laid back coffee house blend of musical showcase.

Every show is two hours in duration with each performer doing a 15-minute set.

Tips are collected and shared among musicians, who in many other venues are not paid to entertain.

Audiences have an opportunity to fill out a response card from which musicians can obtain constructive feedback about their performances.

As one player put it, "It's kinda like 'American Idol' for us, without the embarrassment!"

Versatile singer and guitarist, Tomy Wright explained the value of a WHAP! experience from the performance side.

"WHAP! provides one more opportunity in the Frederick community to showcase a very talented collection of eclectic local musical performers and poets," he said.

"But what sets WHAP! apart is that the audience can actually provide written comments and constructive criticism on 3x5 inch cards to the performers."

"The tips and verbal comments are nice to get, but reading people's reaction to my three songs, which are new to many of them, tells me there was a connection made with complete strangers who were willing to listen to what I had to say and play," Wright continued. "So I look at WHAP! as a source for new fans who might not go to the other venues in Frederick or [throughout] the region to hear me. Ultimately, I want them to come to my full concerts and buy my CD... But in the meantime, I'll be very pleased for them to tell their friends to come back to WHAP!"

Dale Angleberger also plays guitar and sings at WHAP!

His solo act is full of original songs of a humorous nature. Audience favorites include "Not With My Daughter," based on an e-mail joke about the father who created an application to date his daughter. He also gets several requests for "Pizza Delivery Boy," a song which explores a grown man's desire to deliver pizzas, if only for the license to drive fast on purpose.

"The more you get the audience involved in your performance, the better time everyone has," Angleberger said.

Kevin Delmolino has been greatly influenced by the music of John Denver, the Beatles, James Taylor, Jimmy Buffett and Simon and Garfunkel. His original tunes capture some of the feelings and flavors of his favorite music. He found out about WHAP! at another open mic night and warmed to the concept of audience feedback.

"Nobody wants the bar scene," he said. "As a musician, this is more intimate and more interactive."

WHAP! features a changing cast of musicians and a variety of venues. They can be found at Jennifer's Restaurant on Mondays. Thursday nights are reserved at the Mudd Puddle and Sunday night shows, featuring slightly longer sets for the musicians, are held at Frederick's Friends Meetinghouse.

WHAP!

When: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Mondays and 7-9 p.m. Thursdays and Sundays

Where: Jennifer's Restaurant, 207 West Patrick St. (Monday); Mudd Puddle, 124 South Carroll St. (Thursday) and Friends Meeting House, 723 North Market St. (Sunday)

For information: 301-682-4836