Devendra Banhart and Rokia Traoré kick off the Barbican's month-long celebration of Nonesuch at 50 ... The Black Keys are on Later ... with Jools Holland, perform for Radio Eins in Berlin ... Bombino is in Austin ... David Byrne, Joshua Redman celebrate William Onyeabor at BAM ... Jeremy Denk joins São Paulo Symphony ... Dr. John is fêted in an all-star tribute concert including Allen Toussaint ... Kronos Quartet performs in Poland ... Pat Metheny Unity Group tours Scandinavia ... Nickel Creek takes tour to DC ... 

Natalie Merchant brings the music of her album Leave Your Sleep to Carnegie Hall for a Family Concert ... Alarm Will Sound performs Donnacha Dennehy’s Grá agus Bás in Carnegie's Zankel Hall ... Bombino tours Louisiana ... Carolina Chocolate Drops tour South ... Jeremy Denk joins Steven Isserlis at 92nd Street Y ... Dr. John plays Perth with Aaron Neville ... Richard Goode joins Chicago Symphony Orchestra ... Brad Mehldau Trio heads to Canada ... Pat Metheny Unity Group kicks off European tour in the Baltics ... Nickel Creek rounds out Southern leg of US tour ... and more ... 

Stanford Live has announced its 2014–15 season, and featured among the performers taking the stage at Bing Concert Hall are a number of artists familiar to readers of the Nonesuch Journal: Chris Thile & Edgar Meyer, Toumani Diabaté & Sidiki Diabaté, Emmylou Harris, Kronos Quartet, and Brad Mehldau Trio, as well as the world premiere of a new piece by John Adams and a celebration of the work of Stephen Sondheim.

LA Philharmonic gives West Coast premiere of Louis Andriessen’s De Materie at Disney Hall, performs Philip Glass’s the CIVIL warS ... Devendra Banhart, Iron and Wine, Dr. John all tour Australia in and around Byron Bay Bluesfest ... Bombino plays Tulsa, returns to Coachella ... Jeremy Denk joins Nashville Symphony Orchestra for Beethoven ... Brad Mehldau Trio is in Chicago and Kansas City ... Nickel Creek gives two sold-out shows in Nashville ... and more ...

Nickel Creek—Chris Thile, Sara Watkins, and Sean Watkins—officially reunited for the first time since its 2007 self-described "indefinite hiatus" for the release of its new album, A Dotted Line, on Nonesuch Records earlier this month and for a spring and summer tour that kicks off at the Alabama Theatre in Birmingham tonight. The tour's special guests include The Secret Sisters through May, Josh Ritter, and Sarah Jarosz.

Nonesuch Records is set to release Natalie Merchant’s new self-titled album on May 6. In support of the new album, the multi-platinum singer will embark on a 16-date US summer tour, making stops along the East Coast and into the Midwest. A fan pre-sale begins on Wednesday, followed by general on sale. Nonesuch Store pre-orders of the new album, Merchant's first recording of entirely original songs in 13 years, include an instant download of the track "Ladybird."

Devendra Banhart launches a four-concert tour of Australia with a performance at the Factory Theatre outside Sydney Wednesday night, followed by a show at the Prince Bandroom outside Melbourne Thursday, and two sets at the 25th annual Byron Bay Bluesfest (pictured) this Saturday and Monday. The weekend's sets mark Banhart's Bluesfest debut. Also performing at the festival are Iron and Wine and Dr. John. In May, Banhart joins Rokia Traoré to kick off the Barbican's month-long celebration of Nonesuch at 50.

John Adams leads LA Phil in three concerts of contemporary works, including his own Naive and Sentimental Music ... Sam Amidon is in Belgium ... Bombino is a "must-see" (Rolling Stone) at Coachella ... Carolina Chocolate Drops tour New England ... Shawn Colvin is in Northeast ... Jeremy Denk plays Peoples’ Symphony Concert in NYC ... Fatoumata Diawara tours the US ... Dr. John plays two Louisiana festivals ... Richard Goode joins Toronto Symphony Orchestra ... Emmylou Harris takes Wrecking Ball to DC, NYC, Boston ... Kronos Quartet plays San Fran's Switchboard Music Fest ... Brad Mehldau Trio tours South ... Natalie Merchant sings in New Hampshire ... Joshua Redman is in Austin ... Rokia Traoré tours France ... and more ...

The Barbican's Contemporary Music Podcast offers a taste of what's to come in the Barbican's marathon weekend, Explorations: The Sound of Nonesuch Records, and wider Nonesuch celebration in May. The latest edition of the podcast is devoted to these events, featuring interviews with Nonesuch Records President Bob Hurwitz, Carolina Chocolate Drops' Rhiannon Giddens, and composer/pianist Timo Andres. "Musical visionaries and true pioneers have been recorded by the label in the last 50 years," says the Barbican, "and here we celebrate their legacy, their free spirit and what's still to come." Listen to the podcast here.

Nickel Creek's new album, A Dotted Line, debuted at #7 on the Billboard 200, the band's highest chart position to date! It's been a busy week for the group, with performances on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, WNYC's Soundcheck, CBS This Morning Saturday, and A Prairie Home Companion. Nickel Creek, which begins its first US tour in seven years next week, has announced a new batch of tour dates for this summer. A limited pre-sale for most of the newly announced dates begins Wednesday, April 9, at 10 AM local time.

Nickel Creek performs on CBS This Morning Saturday and A Prairie Home Companion live from NYC ... Bombino, Fatoumata Diawara play Savannah Music Festival ... Carolina Chocolate Drops tour Northeast ... Shawn Colvin plays two nights outside Chicago ... Jeremy Denk makes Tucson Symphony debut ... Emmylou Harris takes Wrecking Ball to San Francisco ... Kronos Quartet premiere multimedia work at Berkeley ... Brad Mehldau Trio tour out West ... Joshua Redman is in Albuquerque ... Rokia Traoré tours France ... and more ...

Bombino kicks off the latest leg of his world tour with two sets at the Savannah Music Festival in Georgia, tonight, alongside Fatoumata Diawara. His month-long North American tour heads next to the TransAtlantic Festival in Miami, out West and back down South, including festival sets at Coachella, New Orleans JazzFest, and more. Bombino also plays a number of European and North American festivals this summer.