Two of the most memorable stars of the HBO series The Wire will be in Durham, North Carolina, this Friday to show their support and raise funds for the John Avery Boys & Girls Club there, reports the News & Observer. Andre Royo, who played Bubbles on the show, and Michael K. Williams, who played Omar Little, will discuss the important role the Club plays in the lives of so many young people.

Steve Reich's Daniel Variations was the featured album on last night's episode of WNYC's New Sounds. The title piece "justifiably has drawn a fair amount of attention and acclaim," says the show's host, John Schaefer. Daniel Variations, which the Sydney Morning Herald calls "a powerful composition," will receive its Australian premiere this Friday at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

On The Mande Variations, Toumani Diabaté has recorded his first solo kora album in two decades. Pitchfork gives it an 8.3 rating, calling it "the real thing, casually captivating from start to finish." It's also "haunting stuff ... in the awe inspired by hearing music this pure woven from the hands of a man."

"Few string quartets on the scene today are as intrepid as Kronos in the exploration of unconventional form and methods to extend the reach of a centuries-old instrumental configuration," says All About Jazz in its review of the Quartet’s latest release, Terry RIley's The Cusp of Magic. "Few composers possess a body of work defined by such a rich palette of references as Riley ... It's no surprise, then, that Kronos and Riley have collaborated so often and so well, with The Cusp of Magic providing further evidence of a truly rare musical symbiosis."

Steve Reich's latest album, Daniel Variations, receives four stars from The Guardian, whose Andrew Clements writes of the title piece: "From the very first uneasy chord it is very obviously a searching, serious piece and, I think, one of Reich's major statements." The album is now available in the Nonesuch Store with the exclusive bonus download, Dance Patterns.