In 2005, Nonesuch released The McGarrigle Christmas Hour, in which sisters Kate and Anna McGarrigle, their family—including Kate's children, Rufus Wainwright and Martha Wainwright—and honorary family members, like Emmylou Harris, celebrated the holidays in song. That same year saw the start of a holiday tradition of live Christmas shows starring McGarrigles, Wainwrights, and many friends. The music-making continues with Rufus and Martha Wainwright’s Christmas 101, three concerts in Oakland and Los Angeles this week, featuring appearances from Harris, Maria Muldaur, and Van Dyke Parks. Proceeds go to the Kate McGarrigle Fund, which is dedicated to research for a cure for sarcoma, a rare and deadly cancer from which Kate McGarrigle passed away in 2010. 

Emmylou Harris, Rodney Crowell play the Miracle on Music Row benefit in Nashville for Harris's Bonaparte's Retreat Dog Rescue ... The Black Keys join The Rolling Stones in Newark, telecast and streaming live ... John Adams's El Niño receives Canadian premiere ... Shawn Colvin closes out tour on East Coast ... Jeremy Denk joins San Diego Symphony ... The Barbican celebrates Philip Glass's 75th birthday ... Gidon Kremer joins National Orchestra of Belgium ... Mark Morris's The Hard Nut opens in Berkeley ... Jessica Lea Mayfield, David Mayfield conclude Sibling Rivalry Tour in their home town of Kent, Ohio ... Rokia Traore performs in Poland ... and more ...

London-based singer/songwriter Lianne La Havas returns to North America this spring for 18 headlining shows in cities including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Seattle, Chicago, and Nashville. Click here for tour dates; tickets go on sale December 14 unless otherwise noted. She appeared on NPR's World Cafe last Friday and recently performed her take on Jill Scott's "He Loves Me" for Yours Truly. The video for her Is Your Love Big Enough? album track "Lost & Found" has premiered in Centric's Hot 10; watch it here. 

The Black Keys will join The Rolling Stones on stage for the Stones' final “50 and Counting” concert, at The Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on Saturday, December 15. The special “One More Shot” event will be telecast live via pay-per-view and will also be available to stream online. Says Black Keys drummer Patrick Carney: “It’s an honor to be asked to play a tune with one of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time.”

The Black Keys kick off the UK leg of their fall European tour ... Carolina Chocolate Drops close out their 2012 tour in Tennessee ... Shawn Colvin heads South ... Richard Goode joins soprano Sarah Shafer in Philadelphia and NYC ... Gidon Kremer tours Germany ... Kronos Quartet plays All Tomorrow’s Parties ... Lianne La Havas closes out European fall tour in the Netherlands ... Jessica Lea Mayfield, David Mayfield take Sibling Rivalry Tour to North Carolina and Nashville ... Natalie Merchant performs in Newark ... Punch Brothers continue their US tour out West ... Sara Watkins closes out her West Coast in the Pacific Northwest ... and more ...

Following the success of their recent tour of the UK and Ireland, Shawn Colvin and Mary Chapin Carpenter will once again be setting out on tour together. These longtime friends will share the stage as an intimate duo, performing material spanning their vast catalogs as well as some of their favorite songs. The first handful of shows have been announced, starting February 21, 2013, in Charlotte, North Carolina. Colvin performs at the WFUV Holiday Cheer in New York City tonight, followed by a series of US headlining shows in the coming weeks.

The Black Keys take their European tour to France and Italy ... Bombino is in India ... Carolina Chocolate Drops kick off Southern tour in Atlanta ... Shawn Colvin plays in Texas ... Jeremy Denk joins Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in NYC ... Gidon Kremer makes three stops in Italy ... Lianne La Havas is in Zurich and Munich ... Jessica Lea Mayfield, David Mayfield launch Sibling Rivalry Tour ... Brad Mehldau Trio closes out European tour in Turkey ... Natalie Merchant performs on Long Island ... Punch Brothers play three shows in California ... Sara Watkins kicks off West Coast tour ... and more ...

Nataly Dawn will open for Ben Folds Five on the band's US tour in late January and early February 2013. She announced the news in her latest vlog post, which also notes that her forthcoming solo album, How I Knew Her, which had been slated for release on Nonesuch on January 22, 2013, is now due out on February 12. In the meantime, Dawn is offering five free downloads via her new Tumblr page, natalydawn.tumblr.com, including the album's opening track, "Araceli," and will release a number of new videos from the album in the coming months. Watch her latest vlog post here.

Nonesuch Records wishes everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving in the US and a fruitful Black Friday. (Not to mention a Happy Birthday to Dr. John and Björk.) Remember: CDs, LPs, and DVDs in the Nonesuch Store (excluding pre-orders) are currently 34% off the standard retail price as part of the store's anniversary sale. There are also some noteworthy performances in the coming days, including Richard Goode's trio of concerts with the Budapest Festival Orchestra; European tours from Lianne La Havas and the Brad Mehldau Trio; and Punch Brothers return to North America for the next leg of their tour.

Lianne La Havas closed out her US tour with sold-out shows in LA and San Francisco this weekend. Friday's concert at LA's Roxy Theatre was "a pitch-perfect performance," raves the Los Angeles Times. She "delivered on the promise of her soulful, mature debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough?," says the Times. "She was, to put it simply, fantastic ... a natural talent with boundless potential whose charisma is matched only by her musical prowess." La Havas performed on KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic Friday morning; watch her KCRW take on the album track "Forget" here.

Carolina Chocolate Drops tour Midwest, lead benefit for The Ark in Ann Arbor ... Laurie Anderson performs at Mills College ... Bombino tours France ... Shawn Colvin plays with Heart in Mississippi ... Donnacha Dennehy’s music opens HCMF ... Dr. John, Blind Boys of Alabama conclude US tour ... Richard Goode is in Glasgow ... Emmylou Harris closes out Australia, New Zealand tours ... James Farm plays Poland ... Gidon Kremer, Brad Mehldau Trio are in Germany ... Lianne La Havas closes US tour in California ... The Low Anthem leads Providence benefit ... Punch Brothers play Crossing Border fest ... Sara Watkins concludes tour with Jackson Browne ... Dawn Upshaw joins Boston Symphony Orchestra ... and more ...

Lianne La Havas brings her brief US tour to a close this weekend with sold-out shows at the Roxy in LA and Rickshaw Stop in San Francisco. La Havas stops by KCRW in LA today for an appearance on Morning Becomes Eclectic, which calls her "a stunning newcomer with a soulful voice and incredible depth and range." The Los Angeles Times says her debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough?, is "brimming with understated production, poetic lyrics and La Havas’ guitar-driven blend of soul, folk and jazz." Watch her performance on Conan from earlier this week here.