Ry Cooder, Sharon White, Ricky Skaggs bring their tour to the Midwest … Jeremy Denk joins Kansas City Symphony for Beethoven's "Emperor" … Rhiannon Giddens joins Transatlantic Sessions at Glasgow's Celtic Connections … Kronos Quartet gives world premiere of My Lai in Chicago … Joshua Redman closes out Midwest run with Umphrey’s McGee … Chris Thile guest hosts A Prairie Home Companion with special guests Punch Brothers … and more …

The line-up for the 2016 MusicNOW Festival in Cincinnati has been announced, and among the performers are Kronos Quartet, Punch Brothers, Chris Thile, and Sam Amidon. The three-day festival, founded by artistic director Bryce Dessner, will take place March 18–20. Kronos Quartet will join the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra for performances at Cincinnati's Music Hall the first two nights of the festival, performing works by Julia Wolfe and Terry Riley. Chris Thile closes out Friday night's program with a solo set and joins his fellow Punch Brothers to close out the weekend at the Cincinnati Masonic Center Auditorium on Sunday with Sam Amidon.

Rhiannon Giddens performed a special set as part of BBC Radio 2's live coverage from Glasgow's Celtic Connections festival: "Last Kind Words" from her album Tomorrow Is My Turn; "Mouth Music," from her new EP, Factory Girl, and the new song called "Come Love Come." Watch the set here. She plays her own Celtic Connections show tonight, then joins Transatlantic Sessions for two nights at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall and a five-concert tour of the UK. Giddens performs on BBC One TV's Andrew Marr Show this Sunday morning.

Carnegie Hall has announced that Steve Reich will hold the Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair for the 2016–2017 season. His residency includes an all-Reich 80th birthday celebration, a Kronos Quartet concert, a performance of his Tehillim, and Three Generations, a multi-event, Reich-curated exploration of the changing direction of concert music from the mid-20th century to the present, including works by and discussions with Reich, John Adams, Nico Muhly, and more. Watch a video previewing the events here.

The Barbican Centre in London has announced a year-long festival to celebrate the music of composers Steve Reich and Philip Glass, as they turn 80, and John Adams, as he turns 70, during its 2016–17 season. The series, Reich, Glass, Adams: the Sounds that Changed America, begins with a weekend of Reich's music on November 5, 2016; Adams is celebrated in a series of concerts of some of his major works from December 2016 to April 2017, featuring the composer also as a conductor; and Glass is celebrated January 27–29, 2017. Tickets go on sale online to Barbican Members Plus starting Monday, February 1 and the general public on February 10. 

The Arcs have announced the next leg of their North American tour, starting in Vancouver on April 11, with shows in Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Pomona, Denver, Lawrence, St. Louis, Austin, New Orleans, and two sets at Coachella. The Arcs' NPR Tiny Desk Concert—the show's 500th!—featuring three songs from their debut album, Yours, Dreamily, is now available. The band is "a bundle of talent," says host Boilen. Watch it here.

Chris Thile co-hosts public radio's A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor … John Adams's Saxophone Concerto is performed by the St. Louis Symphony and saxophonist Timothy McAllister ... Rhiannon Giddens plays Berlin and Amsterdam … Joshua Redman joins WDR Big Band in Germany ... and more ...

Guitarist and singer Michael Daves celebrates the February 26 release of his double album Orchids and Violence with a series of live performances in NYC at Rockwood Music Hall, Knitting Factory Brooklyn, and The Bell House, March 3–5. The album comprises bluegrass and electric versions of mostly old-time material. In the first set each show, Daves will present the bluegrass material with Noam Pikelny on banjo, Brittany Haas on fiddle, Jake Jolliff on mandolin, Larry Cook on bass, and Jen Larson on harmony vocals. The second set will feature the electric material with Daves joined by experimental rock drummer Kid Millions and electric bassist Jessi Carter.

Rhiannon Giddens kicks off her 2016 tour with three weeks in Europe, starting at Handelsbeurs in Gent, Belgium, tonight. The tour continues with stops in Cologne, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Paris, before heading to the UK for Celtic Connections in Glasgow. She then joins artists from both sides of the Atlantic for the Transatlantic Sessions tour across the UK, including a sold-out show at London's Royal Festival Hall. Giddens returns to the US in February to perform Swimming in Dark Waters: Other Voices of the American Experience with Leyla McCalla and Bhi Bhiman in several cities, and takes her solo tour to Japan and Australia in March.

The line-up for the 2016 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, aka Jazz Fest, has been announced, and included among this year's performers are Rhiannon Giddens (April 24) and Punch Brothers (May 1). Jazz Fest runs over seven days across two weekends, April 22–24 and April 28–May 1. The festival will pay tribute to one of the Crescent City's favorite sons, Allen Toussaint, hosted by the Allen Toussaint Band with special guests.

Joshua Redman's six-night residency with Still Dreaming at NYC's Jazz Standard runs through the weekend … Timo Andres premieres new work in Washington, DC … Olivia Chaney performs at Celtic Connections in Glasgow … Jeremy Denk is in California for three concerts with San Diego Symphony … Richard Goode plays solo piano in France … Audra McDonald gives two rare performances in London … and more …

Composer Louis Andriessen's six decades of music-making will be celebrated at the Barbican Centre in London with Andriessen: M is for Man, Music & Mystery, a series of concerts, held in Barbican Hall and at Milton Court Concert Hall, February 9–13, 2016. The series features performances of works by Andriessen, including La Commedia, De Stijl, and Rosa's Horses, as well as a conversation with the composer about his life and music.