Fatoumata Diawara, whose North American summer tour comes to a close in British Columbia this weekend, is the subject of a captivating feature profile on CNN's African Voices program. Diawara spoke with CNN for an in-depth discussion of her life, from her early days in Mali to an acting career that led to world travel and her career in music, as heard on her critically acclaimed debut album, Fatou, and her recent efforts in support of peace in Mali. You can watch the profile here.

Sam Amidon’s Nonesuch debut album, Bright Sunny South, released this spring to critical acclaim, will be released on vinyl on September 24 with a download of the album and a bonus vinyl 7” disc featuring two previously unreleased recordings; it is available to pre-order now in the Nonesuch Store. Amidon will tour North America throughout September including two nights at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City with Bill Frisell. 

Randy Newman will open the 2013–2014 season of free concerts from the Library of Congress in Washington, DC. His performance in the Thomas Jefferson Building's Coolidge Auditorium will take place on Saturday, October 5, followed by a conversation with the Music Division’s Mark Horowitz about the art of songwriting. Audra McDonald will spotlight songs from the Library’s American musical theater collections in her October 10 Coolidge Auditorium concert. Tickets will be available starting September 4.

Chris Thile was featured on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday yesterday. The mandolin virtuoso spoke with host Rachel Martin about his new album, Bach: Sonatas and Partitas, Vol. 1, on which he performs three Bach works written for solo violin. "There's the mandolin and then there's the mandolin when Chris Thile puts it to work," says Martin. "Chris Thile is stretching the limits of his instrument yet again, this time taking on Bach." Thile kicks off a US tour with his fellow Goat Rodeo Sessions musicians this week.

Kronos Quartet helped close out the opening day of the Outside Lands festival in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park on Friday night with a flourish: first performing with The National (pictured here with Bob Weir, who joined for a song), then returning to the stage for the closing act, Sir Paul McCartney, for his encore, a performance of "Yesterday." Rolling Stone reports the performance "moved virtually every single person in the field, including security guards and food vendors." Watch it here.

Stephen Sondheim was awarded the Edward MacDowell Medal in a public ceremony at The MacDowell Colony in Petersborough, New Hampshire, yesterday. Sondheim joins a notable list of past Medal recipients, including Robert Frost, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Leonard Bernstein; this marks the first time in the medal's history a luminary has been chosen from the realm of musical theatre. "I am not only humbled and privileged," says Sondheim, "I am astonished to be in the company." Writer Frank Rich, chairman of the medal selection committee, says: "No artist has made a larger contribution to this quintessential American art form in the modern era than Sondheim has, and no artist could be more deserving of this accolade."

Chris Thile stopped by the studios of New York public radio station WNYC to perform some music from his new album, Bach: Sonatas and Partitas, Vol. 1, on Soundcheck and talk with host John Schaefer about the album. "Chris Thile plays well with others," says the show. "But on his latest recording, Thile stands alone, translating the works of Bach—originally composed for solo violin—with exceptional precision on mandolin." Listen to the Soundcheck episode here.

Pianist Jeremy Denk makes his Australian debut with a performance at Newcastle City Hall on Monday, August 12, kicking off a two-week tour of the country with the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) led by conductor, artistic director, and lead violinist Richard Tognetti. The tour—featuring works by Bach, Ligeti, Ives, and Brahms—continues with performances in Adelaide and Perth, followed by several stops in Sydney, and rounds out with dates in Wollongong and Melbourne.

Place Kate-McGarrigle, the square named in honor of the late Canadian singer-songwriter in the Montreal borough of Outremont where she lived, was dedicated yesterday. The ceremony featured remarks from her children Rufus and Martha Wainwright, her sisters Anna and Jane McGarrigle, and city officials, as well as a musical performance. See a gallery of photos and watch the CBC report from the event here. The celebration continues with two concerts in Outremont tonight to benefit the Kate McGarrigle Foundation for sarcoma research.

Sam Amidon was the guest on NPR's World Cafe yesterday, talking with host David Dye and performing intimate takes on four songs off his new album. "On his fourth album, Bright Sunny South, Amidon draws from a variety of traditional folk material, weaving it into his own mesmerizing compositions," says the show. "With the help of [Thomas] Bartlett as a bandmate and producer, several tracks on the new album go beyond tradition to include free-jazz influences, as well as a cover of Tim McGraw's 'My Old Friend.'" Amidon is currently touring Europe and begins a month-long tour of North America in September.

Today marks the release of mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile new album, Bach: Sonatas and Partitas, Vol. 1, which comprises three works written for solo violin and was produced by Edgar Meyer. Thile was featured on PBS NewHour, which calls him "a mandolin virtuoso who defies musical boundaries"; watch the piece here. The Herald Scotland calls Thile "astonishing" and "skilled beyond any obvious deployment of the word virtuosic." Citing "Glenn Gould's sensational second recording of the Goldberg Variations" the Herald says "this album is worthy of a place on any shelf alongside that classic." Epoch Times gives the album four-and-a-half stars, explaining: "The playing goes from heavenly and sublime to technical and outstanding and never loses one’s concentration."

The life and music of Canadian singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle will be celebrated in a number of special events held in her hometown of Montreal this week. The Outremont neighborhood where McGarrigle lived will inaugurate Place Kate-McGarrigle in her honor Wednesday afternoon. Later that evening, the feature documentary capturing the 2011 NYC McGarrigle tribute concerts will be screened at the Théâtre Outremont, where, on Thursday, Kate's children, Rufus and Martha Wainwright, and her sisters Anna and Jane will host two tribute concerts with special guests to benefit the Kate McGarrigle Foundation for sarcoma research.