John Adams's new piece Absolute Jest was given its world premiere in a concert by the St. Lawrence String Quartet and the San Francisco Symphony, led by Michael Tilson Thomas, at Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco last night. There are two encore presentations of the program, which also includes works by Feldman and Varèse and Mason Bates's Mass Transmission, at the Hall tonight and Saturday. Absolute Jest is based on fragments of scherzos from Beethoven’s String Quartets.

"John Adams' Absolute Jest is a work of terrific imagination and out-of-the-gate energy," says San Jose Mercury News music critic Richard Scheinin in his review of last night's premiere. The work "fascinates," he writes. "Some of its most enchanted moments merge Beethovenian jubilance with driving folkloric rhythms reminiscent of Stravinsky." Read the concert review at mercurynews.com.

The concerts are part of the month-long American Mavericks Festival, which, this weekend, also includes a free American Orchestra Forum with Adams and Bates Saturday afternoon (streaming live online at sfcv.org starting at 1:30 PM PT) and a Sunday concert at Davies Symphony Hall by Meredith Monk and members of the SFS featuring Steve Reich's Music for Pieces of Wood and the world premiere of Monk's Realm Variations. Tilson Thomas, the San Francisco Symphony, and the St. Lawrence String Quartet next take the American Mavericks Festival to Chicago, Ann Arbor, and NYC.

This weekend's American Mavericks Festival events in New York include two free Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concerts Sunday afternoon: violinist Jennifer Koh and pianist Reiko Uchido performing Adams's Road Movies at the Brooklyn Central Library (selected as today's Gig Alert from NPR member station WNYC), and Alarm Will Sound doing Cage at the Abrons Arts Center. 

John Adams's first opera, 1987's Nixon in China received its Lyric Opera debut with performances at the Muriel Kauffman Theatre in Kansas City last Saturday and Wednesday. It was the first of four Lyric Opera performances, with two additional performances tonight and Sunday afternoon. The production is directed by Michael Cavanagh, who helmed the Canadian premiere at the Vancouver Opera for the 2010 Cultural Olympiad, and performed by the Kansas City Symphony and a cast featuring baritone James Maddalena as President Nixon. Maddalena originated the role in 1987 and can be heard on the Nonesuch Records original cast recording of the opera, which was reissued last year for the Metropolitan Opera premiere of Nixon in China, in which Maddalena also starred.

"The Lyric Opera’s production of Nixon in China is, in a word, stunning," raves Kansas City Star reviewer Robert Trussell. "Thanks to John Adams’ pulsating score ... combined with splendid performances by exceptional soloists, innovative staging and a jaw-dropping physical production, this show is one for the books ... Indeed, this is a singular aural and visual experience from the word go."

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The Black Keys continue their North American tour with special guests Arctic Monkeys, playing at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse (formerly Conseco Fieldhouse) in Indianapolis, Indiana, tonight, and at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Sunday. The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach spoke with the Indianapolis Star about tonight’s concert; their new album, El Camino; and the forthcoming Dr. John album, Locked Down, which Auerbach produced. Read the article at indystar.com.

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As noted earlier today in the Nonesuch Journal, Philip Glass and Robert Wilson's Einstein on the Beach, which was first produced in Avignon, France, in 1976, returns to France with performances at the Opéra Berlioz / Le Corum in Montpellier tonight, Saturday, and Sunday, launching an international tour that will head next to Italy, London, Toronto, Brooklyn, Berkeley, Mexico City, Amsterdam, and Hong Kong.

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Richard Goode performs at Shriver Hall in Baltimore, Maryland, on Sunday. The program features works by Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin.

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Kronos Quartet continues the West Coast premiere performances of its piece Fragile at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum in San Francisco, a collaboration with dancers/artists Eiko & Koma, tonight and Saturday, following opening night last night. The work, half stage piece and half installation, is a reflection on the fragility of human existence. The performance lasts four hours, and viewers are invited to experience it from multiple viewpoints and to stay for as long or short a period as they choose.

The Washington Post, reviewing the world premiere of Fragile last month, describes a “lively soundscape” and concludes: "Fragile is interesting to the ear and the visual stays with you for a long time after you leave.”

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The Low Anthem joins legendary Irish band The Chieftains for a special St. Patrick’s Day concert at Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium on Saturday. The two groups were musical guests on The Late Show with David Letterman on Tuesday (watch here), and can be heard in concert at NPR member station WGBH at wgbh.org.

As noted earlier today in the Nonesuch Journal, The Low Anthem joined Bruce Springsteen, members of Arcade Fire, Tom Morello, Alejandro Escovedo, and others on stage for SXSW at The Moody Theater in Austin, Texas, last night for a powerful and moving rendition of Woody Guthrie's classic tune "This Land Is Your Land." Watch it here.

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The Brad Mehldau Trio, featuring bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Jeff Ballard, continues its tour through Europe, making two stops in France this weekend: at Le Lieu Unique in Nantes tonight and Théâtre de Caen on Saturday. The Trio’s new album, Ode, was released this week in the UK and is due out Tuesday in North America. It is available for pre-order now in the Nonesuch Store with an instant download of the title track.

Ode has already been met with critical acclaim from both the US and the UK, called one of the best jazz recordings of the year so far by the Chicago Tribune. The Guardian gives the album four stars and says: "It bears a lot of replaying."

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Randy Newman continues his tour through Europe, playing at Vaerket in Randers, Denmark, tonight, and at Jahrhunderthalle in Bochum, Germany, on Sunday.

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Punch Brothers end their three-day stay at SXSW in Austin, Texas, with two shows today, taking to the WFUV Day Stage on the second floor of the Austin Convention Center first for the official Radio Day Stage showcase. At 4:30 PM the band heads over to The Stage on Sixth for their final set, presented by Sennheiser and Paste magazine.

You can listen to the band's SXSW performance at Austin's Four Seasons hotel for KUT Live from earlier this week at kut.org.

After a day’s respite from all the musical festivities at SXSW, Chris Thile heads over to the Galapagos Art Space in Brooklyn, New York, on Sunday to join Orpheus Chamber Orchestra for a performance of traditional fiddle tunes interspersed with selections from John Adams’s John's Book of Alleged Dances. The evening concludes with Copland’s Appalachian Spring Suite in its original version for 13 players.

Thile and Orpheus head next to Easton, Pennsylvania, to perform his Mandolin Concerto at Lafayette College next week and then to Carnegie Hall next Saturday. Thile will discuss the performances with WWFM this Saturday afternoon at 3 PM.