Rhiannon Giddens has unveiled a recording of "Freedom Highway," the song written by Pops Staples and recorded by the Staple Singers in 1965, from her forthcoming album, due in early 2017. She is joined on the song by Bhi Bhiman. You can hear it here. "I am a daughter of the South; of the white working class, of the black working class; of the Democrat, and the Republican; of the gay, and the straight; and I can tell you one thing—we are far more alike than we are different," says Giddens. "We cannot let hate divide us; we cannot let ignorance diminish us; we cannot let those whose greed fills their every waking hour take our country from us. They can't take U.S. from US—unless we let them ... Let's walk down Freedom Highway together."

Confessions, a collaboration between the acclaimed American composer Nico Muhly and the Faroese singer/songwriter Teitur, is now available on vinyl on Nonesuch in the US and Canada, following its recent digital and CD release; the vinyl is due worldwide on December 2. The lyrics, inspired by or culled from video and commentary the pair found on YouTube, are simple, matter-of-fact, fragmentary, funny, and strange, yet they attain a dignity paired with the gorgeous and expressive music.

Lake Street Dive plays Iceland Airwaves, begins UK, Ireland tour … John Adams’s Scheherazade.2 performed in Zurich with Leila Josefowicz … Laurie Anderson gives talks in NYC, Miami … Tyondai Braxton concludes tour in The Hague, Glasgow … Jeremy Denk plays upstate New York ... Rhiannon Giddens sings at the Opry at the Ryman … Junun tour launches in London, Turin … Kronos Quartet is in Iceland, Lithuania … Conor Oberst plays Nashville … Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau tour Europe … Steve Reich at 80 is celebrated in London … The Staves play Wisconsin … Rokia Traoré tours Canada … and more …

In the 2016–17 season, the Barbican celebrates milestone birthdays of composers Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and John Adams. The series, Reich, Glass, Adams: the Sounds That Changed America, begins with two days celebrating Reich, who recently turned 80, and his music this weekend, featuring Barbican Associate Ensemble Britten Sinfonia and the London Symphony Orchestra. Among the pieces performed over several programs this weekend are Three Tales, Different Trains, Electric Counterpoint, City Life, Drumming, New York Counterpoint, You Are (Variations), Daniel Variations, The Desert Music, the European premiere of Pulse.

Composer/musician Shye Ben Tzur, guitarist Jonny Greenwood, and the Rajasthan Express, who came together in Jodhpur, India, last year to record the album Junun, reunite to perform the album on tour in the UK and Europe. The concerts begin with a performance at The Troxy in London on Friday, as part of the Illuminations festival, which also includes a free, weeklong exhibit of artwork and films from the recording of album at the Omeara Gallery in London starting today. The European tour continues with concerts in Turin, Lausanne, Milan, Rome, and Berlin, before concluding at Le Guess Who? Festival in the Netherlands.

The Staves, who kick off a tour of Minnesota and Wisconsin tonight, have announced a new tour across North America in February and March. The shows begins in Seattle on February 16, followed by stops along the West Coast in Vancouver, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego; then into Arizona and Texas; down South to New Orleans, Birmingham, Nashville, Louisville; and up North to Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Brooklyn, Boston, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto. Fan pre-sale begins this Wednesday; general on sale begins Friday, November 4.

Rhiannon Giddens took part in the TED conference in February of this year. She joined the Silk Road Ensemble to perform "St. James Infirmary," a traditional tune made famous by Louis Armstrong and which Allen Toussaint recorded for his Nonesuch debut album, The Bright Mississippi. You can watch Giddens and the Silk Road Ensemble's take on the tune below. 

The results of the 80th Annual DownBeat Readers Poll have been announced, and the winner for Guitarist of the Year is once again Pat Metheny. Metheny released two albums on Nonesuch this year: The Unity Sessions, which the Times of London called "brilliant," and Cuong Vu Trio Meets Pat Metheny, which All About Jazz called "a complete success." "The results of this year’s poll illustrate a respect for tradition as well as an enthusiastic openness to innovation," said DownBeat Editor Bobby Reed.

Rhiannon Giddens, who could be seen on PBS on Friday performing in Bill Murray's Mark Train Prize ceremony, will perform at Alice Tully Hall in NYC on May 13, 2017, for Lincoln Center's American Songbook series. The series returns with 16 concerts in The Appel Room in February and March, then moves to Alice Tully Hall, where Giddens gives the season-closing concert. She performed in The Appel Room for the series with Carolina Chocolate Drops in 2011 and with the Swimming in Dark Waters concert in 2016.

Damon Albarn Studio 13 has remixed Rokia Traoré’s song "Sé Dan," from her album Né So (Home), which was released on Nonesuch this past February. You can hear the song here. The remix comes as Traoré performs at Le Trianon in Paris tonight and begins a brief North American tour at Symphony Space in NYC this Sunday. The tour then heads to the West Coast for a show at SFJAZZ in San Francisco, three concerts in Canada, and a final stop at Triple Door in Seattle.

The Metropolitan Opera's performance of Alban Berg's Lulu is now available on Blu-ray and DVD together in one package from Nonesuch Records. The Met's new production, directed by acclaimed South African visual artist William Kentridge, premiered in 2015 and starred Marlis Petersen in her final performances as Lulu, a role she has made "hers and almost hers alone" (Opera News) in ten different productions over eighteen years. The New York Times called it "a stunning and searing production." The production will be presented at English National Opera in November.

Rokia Traoré performs in Paris, begins North American tour in NYC … John Adams’s Nixon in China is performed by Royal Swedish Opera … Tyondai Braxton tours Europe … Michael Daves plays Brooklyn Bluegrass Bash … Jeremy Denk performs with St. Louis Symphony … Rhiannon Giddens plays for Bill Murray's Mark Twain Prize ceremony on PBS … Richard Goode gives solo recital in Colorado … Mariza is at SFJAZZ … Chris Thile hosts A Prairie Home Companion in Saint Paul … and more …