There’s nothing like trying new things and breaking a sweat to inspire a bit of romance, or at least a whole lot of fun. So get dressed up and bring your friends or perhaps a date to Chicago Swing Dance Society’s Valentine’s Day Dance, complete with a live band, music, food, and drinks. Don’t know how to do swing dance? Don’t worry. The evening kicks off with an hour long lesson at 8 p.m. before the rest of the evening and open dancing begins in earnest at 9 p.m. Who knows, maybe you’ll decide to pick up one of their dance lesson sessions next quarter!

Friday, February 13, Ida Noyes Hall, third floor theatre, $5 for students or $8 unaffiliated with the university

Is your valentine really a big fan of folk music? If you answered yes to this question you should check out the Folklore Society’s annual Folk Festival! Featuring performers from various genres spanning bluegrass to blues. Performers include, but are not limited to The Buckstankle Boys, John Lilly, and Mississippi Gabe Carter.  Along with numerous performances, the festival will feature free workshops that are open to all. The  Folk Festival will take place in Mandel Hall and will run from February 13th to February 16th. Admission to the performances ranges from $10 to $30.

February 13–16, Mandel Hall, $10 to $30 

This weekend, the UChicago Department of Music and KMP Artists will present A Musical Theater Valentine with Mark & Anne Burnell, the latest in Logan Center’s ongoing Sunday Song Styles series. With a program including both fin de siècle parlor music and grand Broadway duets, the Burnells will present classics from the American popular canon. Whether February 14th for you means Valentine’s Day with your date or Pal-entine’s Day with a showtune-belting partner-in-crime, this concert is sure to delight.

Sunday, February 15, 2015 at 4:00 p.m., Logan Center, Performance Penthouse 901. Event is free with a UCID, $15 general admission.

Any Valentines Day celebration wouldn’t be complete without a great love song. To highlight some of these great songs of the past, Hyde Park Records will be hosting a meet and greet with ’70s soul singers Michael Henderson, Jean Carn, and Norman Connors on Valentine’s Day. The three, who collaborated on the 1975 hit “Valentine Love,” were popular during the mid-70s for their midtempo love songs and ballads. While none of them attained lasting mainstream success, they each had multiple songs make the top 40 on the R&B charts including “You are my Starship” by Connors and Henderson and “Don’t Let It Go to Your Head” by Carn.

Saturday, February 14, 2015, 2:00–7:00 p.m., Hyde Park Records