When Youssou N'Dour performed in upstate New York in 1994, he did so before a crowd of more than 150,000 at Woodstock ’94. This Sunday night, he’ll return to the region to play before a slightly more intimate, though likely no less enthusiastic crowd, at the Kingston, NY, Ulster Performing Arts Center. But as the town’s Daily Freeman reports, at least a few reminders of the spirit and sound of the original event at Yasgur's Farm in 1969 remain. The Washington Post recognizes Youssou as “the greatest contemporary singer from Senegal and possibly all of Africa," and of his new album, Rokku Mi Rokka (Give and Take): “the album's sound is intricate, indigenous and characteristically exhilarating.”

"Three-Way," the first song off the upcoming Magnetic Fields album Distortion, makes its Stereogum premiere today. You can hear it on stereogum.com now. The album is due out on Nonesuch January 15, 2008, with a US tour to follow.

Variety adds There Will Be Blood to its "Contenders" list for likely and deserving Oscar nominees. Citing Paul Thomas Anderson's past cinematic successes, Boogie Nights and Magnolia, Variety says that while the director has moved on from the "big tapestry" of those films, "he matches it here—and then some—with the big portrait."

Best known for his contribution to the soundtrack for the 2003 Italian Job remake starring Mark Wahlberg, Brazilian-born DJ Amon Tobin talks to The Moscow Times about a surprising array of influences, from Ennio Morricone to Grandmaster Flash, and about his latest record, Foley Room, on which he looked to Kronos Quartet to record new tracks he could sample. Moscow readers can listen for the Kronos samples at Tobin's show tonight at Ikra. 

Tim Burton sat down with MTV News for an exclusive interview last night just before giving a Lincoln Center audience a sneak peek at three scenes from his upcoming film, Sweeney Todd. Nonesuch will release the film's soundtrack on December 18, and there'll be plenty to hear: As MTV.com reports, "It is the music that carries this film." And just to be sure, the site's headline reads, "Johnny Depp's Voice Steals the Bloody Show."

Daily News Los Angeles recently spoke with Caetano Veloso, whom the paper calls "one of the most respected Portuguese-language poets in the world," in advance of a rare Southern California appearance last night in Pasadena. He plays tomorrow night in Santa Cruz.

This week's Bay Windows reviews the new DVD release of Absolute Wilson, the 2006 documentary about visionary theater director Robert Wilson—"a wonderful introduction to Wilson’s fascinating life and work ... and a must-see for theater buffs." Featured in the film are Wilson collaborators David Byrne and Philip Glass, each of whom worked with the director on his 1984 multi-act piece the CIVIL warS. Resulting from that project were Glass's music for its "Rome Section," A Tree Is Best Measured When It Is Down, and Byrne's Knee Plays, which Nonesuch reissued last week on CD. 

Last month, the San Francisco Jazz Festival was the site of the world premiere of Glenn Kotche's Anomaly, which the composer performed together with Kronos Quartet. This month, two more Nonesuch artists join the festival's 25th anniversary celebration, when Caetano Veloso performs at the Nob Hill Masonic Center this Saturday, November 17, and Youssou N'Dour hits the stage for the festival's closing night, Friday, November 30.

The national tour of Sweeney Todd, based on the 2005 Broadway production recorded by Nonesuch, has joined forces with the studios releasing the Tim Burton–directed film version starring Johnny Depp for a special sweepstakes, reports Playbill.com. Prizes include a private screening of the film for the winner and 50 of his or her closest friends and copies of the Broadway cast recording. This follows an announcement of a contest by the film companies and MySpace to meet Johnny Depp at a global premiere of the film. 

Last night, at Lincoln Center's Rose Theater, director Tim Burton unveiled scenes from his upcoming film adaptation of Sweeney Todd, starring Johnny Depp, and as the cheering audience could attest, this Sweeney can sing. As part of the Film Society at Lincoln Center's special event, "An Evening with Tim Burton: Cinema's Demon Barber," the filmmaker was interviewed by the Society's program director, Richard Peña, who had collected a number of unforgettable scenes from some of Burton's most iconic films.

Tonight kicks off the University of Wisconsin–Madison Dance Program's Fall Faculty Dance Concert, which runs through Saturday, November 17. The event will feature works by faculty choreographers, including the premiere of Professor Li Chiao-Ping's Turnaround, set to the third movement of Steve Reich's Different Trains, "After the War." The new dance piece was created for students and, according to the Madison Daily Page, "takes snapshot looks at a community left to rebuild itself." It will also represent the University at a regional dance festival to be held in Madison in March 2008.

David Byrne's artwork graces the cover of the November issue of Poetry magazine. The issue features works by Heather McHugh, Elfriede Jelinek, and, more unexpectedly, powerhouse vocalist Neko Case. The cover art is called "Chairs," 2004–2006.