"It takes a songwriter such as Sam Phillips to depart from the routine expectations set by the last 50-plus years of pop music," says the Chicago Tribune, and at the start of her fall tour this past weekend at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music, "she detoured into German cabaret, French chansons and a waltz, as well as lightly tracing elements of American gospel and blues." As the area Sun-Times paper, Southtown Star, reports, she delivered "a masterful performance that was enchanting from beginning to end" for a "superb show."

Congratulations to k.d. lang, who was inducted into the Canadian Walk of Fame this past Saturday night in a gala ceremony held at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto. Among the other honorees were actor Michael J. Fox, director James Cameron, and the comedy group The Kids in the Hall. Fellow Canadian singer/songwriter Ron Sexsmith introduced k.d., who received a standing ovation.

John Adams's Son of Chamber Symphony receives its Scandinavian premiere in Finland ... Laurie Anderson's Homeland plays Sao Paolo, Brazil ... The Black Keys make two stops in Wisconsin ... Bill Frisell continues his two-week Village Vanguard run with Paul Motian, Joe Lovano ... Youssou N'Dour celebrates Toronto Film Fest screening with free concert ... Nicholas Payton joins Christian McBride, Mark Whitfield at NYC's Jazz Standard ... Sam Phillips begins two-week tour with two nights at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music ... Punch Brothers tour the Midwest ... Steve Reich's music featured in Detroit's music marathon Strange New Music II and Klangspuren 08 festival in Schwaz, Austria ... Wilco members take time for solo projects ... and more ...

Nicholas Payton joins bassist Christian McBride and guitarist Mark Whitfield at New York's Jazz Standard for 12 sets over five nights, beginning tonight. JamBase compares the trumpeter to Miles Davis and John Coltrane, but asserts that, on his Nonesuch debut, Into the Blue, "ultimately Payton has a style and mood all his own." Jazz.com sees the album as evidence of "an ample comfort zone with a trumpet continuum spanning Armstrong to Don Cherry, at the service of a conceptual sensibility that embraces the Hot Five and Weather Report in equal measure."

Mandy Patinkin opens the Classic Stage Company's 2008–09 season tonight, starring as Prospero in William Shakespeare's The Tempest. The company's artistic director, Brian Kulick, directs the production, which will run for a limited engagement, through October 12. Patinkin spoke with the Poughkeepsie Journal about the role and some of the other memorable ones from his career, naming as two favorites Inigo Montoya from the film The Princess Bride and Georges Seurat in Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George.

"Adams's searingly introspective autobiography reveals the workings of a brilliant musical mind responsible for some of contemporary America's most inventive and original music." So says Publishers Weekly in its recommendation of John Adams's forthcoming memoir, Hallelujah Junction: Composing an American Life. The Philadelphia Inquirer asserts that Adams's newest opera, The Flowering Tree, due out on Nonesuch this month, "commands attention musically and dramatically as handily as Verdi," part of minimalism's having "found a range of expression undreamed-of 30 years ago."

Randy Newman's Harps and Angels has already garnered acclaim from critics across North America and Europe, and new praise now comes from The Australian, which calls him "the crown prince" of his musical form, the new album "testimony to his craft," and its songs "so vibrant, musically and lyrically, ... that his catalogue would seem incomplete without them." All About Jazz says the new album shows that Randy "just keeps on getting better," and Paste calls him "one of America’s most important songwriters," while Slate credits the "uproarious" song "Korean Parents" with offering "a more enjoyable way forward" in the highly charged discussion of satire and race.

Sam Phillips begins her two-week tour of the US, with songs from her new album, Don't Do Anything, at the end of this week, beginning with two nights in Chicago. To catch a glimpse of Sam on stage, go to nonesuch.com/media for a video of her performing The Magnetic Fields tune "Underwear" at L.A.'s new Largo. The album is now available in the UK, with the Sunday Times, Scottish Daily Express, and Q magazine each giving it four stars, and The Sun giving it four-and-a-half stars, calling Sam "a talent who has stayed true to herself" and her tunes "first class."

Glenn Kotche joins Kronos Quartet at the Ravinia Festival's Martin Theatre in Highland Park Wednesday night for the Chicago premiere of Anomaly, a piece he wrote for the Quartet. Also included on the program from Kronos are a number of Chicago premieres, including that of John Adams's Fellow Traveler. The Chicago Sun-Times recommends the event, calling the Kotche-Kronos pairing "a collaboration waiting to happen," given the group's ever-adventurous search for new works outside the typical string-quartet mold and the drummer's own diverse musical interests.

Bill Frisell joins drummer Paul Motian and saxophonist Joe Lovano for a rare two-week stint at New York's Village Vanguard beginning tonight. New York Times jazz critic Nate Chinen describes them as "a blue-chip trio that’s shadowy, slippery and as open-ended as a koan," and says, "There’s no better place to see them than at the Village Vanguard." You can listen to Wednesday night's set as it unfolds live, on NPR station WBGO, Jazz88 FM, for the new series Live at the Village Vanguard.

Laurie Anderson brings Homeland to South America ... The Black Keys play the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul and Bumbershoot in Seattle ... Philip Glass discusses creativity and collaboration in Brazil ... Youssou N'Dour takes documentary to Telluride Festival ... Fernando Otero explores Tango After Piazzolla with Paquito D'Rivera in Moab ... Punch Brothers play three shows out West ... Joshua Redman joins Joy of Jazz in Johannesburg ... Laura Veirs solos at the Festival de musique émergente in Québec ... Wilco close summer tour at County Laios, Ireland's Electric Picnic ... and more ...

Youssou N'Dour: I Bring What I Love, a new film documenting the making of Egypt, Youssou's seminal 2004 musical exploration of Islam, makes its Telluride Film Festival debut this weekend. While the schedule of screenings remains hush-hush until the proceedings begin tomorrow, it's safe to assume that Youssou will be involved in the festivities. The film examines the critical and public response to the album at home in Senegal, and abroad, where it garnered a Grammy Award. The following week, the film will be screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, where Youssou will also perform in a free concert.