NORTH ATTLEBORO - The cultural council will sponsor a series of nine concerts at the gazebo in front of town hall this summer and is looking for financial help from local residents and businesses.

"North Attleboro is one of the few communities in this area that does not have an ongoing outdoor summer concert series and these types of family events would be a wonderful opportunity to bring our community together for enjoyable music in a beautiful setting," said Robert Deschene, chairman of the cultural council.

The concerts will be held at the bandstand in veteran's park, which is located in front of town hall.

The concerts will be on Tuesday evenings from July 1 to Aug. 26 from 7 to 9 p.m. The music will be in a wide variety of styles, including pop, folk, jazz, classical, international, Dixieland and swing. The nine concerts, which will be free to the public, will kick off with an old-fashioned Fourth of July bandstand concert on July 1. Food concessions and children's activities will also be available.

Free transportation will be made available by the cultural council from the town's senior housing. More than 450 local businesses have been contacted and asked for a contribution - even small amounts of money will help.

So far, generous contributions have been received from the Downtown Associates of North Attleboro, Bedard Realty, Dyer-Lake Charitable Foundation, Blue Hill Plumbing and Heating, The Sun Chronicle, The Free Press and Island Oasis.

Any profits raised through the concert series will be used to establish a scholarship program for high school seniors interested in pursuing an arts-related education.

Because the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the North Attleboro Cultural Council are public charitable agencies, all contributions are tax deductible to the donor under Internal Revenue code 170.

The names of all contributing friends, who make a donation of $25 to $50; patrons, who make a donation of $50 to $200; and co-sponsors, who make a donation of more than $200, will be listed in all concert series advertising and promotional materials, in scholarship application brochures and on signs at the concert venue. Contributions for the concert series can be mailed to the North Attleboro Cultural Council, P.O. Box 61, North Attleboro, MA 02761.