Kronos Quartet, Alim Qasimov Ensemble perform from Floodplain in Paris ... Laurie Anderson brings Delusion to Berkeley ... Carolina Chocolate Drops stop at Oberlin's Spring Folkfest ... Shawn Colvin plays the Birchmere ... Bill Frisell continues Village Vanguard residency ... Richard Goode begins Europe tour, as do Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau; Randy Newman continues his, while Rokia Traoré closes hers ... Pat Metheny hits his hometown ... and more ...
This Mother's Day weekend, Kronos Quartet kicks off two weeks of concerts in Europe with a performance at the Stadttheater in Fürth, Germany, tonight, featuring works from its latest Nonesuch release, Floodplain, among others.
On Sunday, Kronos will be joined by the Alim Qasimov Ensemble, which performs on Floodplain, for a concert at the Théatre de la Ville in Paris. On the first half of the program, Kronos performs two pieces by Azeri composer Franghiz Ali-Zadeh, off the album Mugam Sayagi, followed by a set from the Alim Qasimov Ensemble. Following the intermission, the groups come together to perform.
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While Kronos is away from its Bay Area home base, Laurie Anderson continues performances of her latest piece, Delusion, in the region, following Wednesday's event at Stanford, with two nights at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley, tonight and tomorrow. The San Francisco Chronicle described Delusion as "one story, quip or rumination after another, to comic, provocative and deeply touching effect ... As much as Anderson's beguiling presence and creative mastery, it's the tension between its playful and somber sides that gives Delusion its poignant weight."
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The Black Keys' latest Nonesuch release, Brothers, isn't out for another week-plus, but the Uptown Nightclub in Oakland, California, is hosting an exclusive early Listening Party, with various free giveaways on tap. The bands is not scheduled to appear, but there are free tickets to see their September 29 concert in Oakland up for grabs. The event also includes a first listen to The Dead Weather's latest, Sea of Cowards.
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Carolina Chocolate Drops continue the Midwest swing of their spring tour with a show at the Acorn Theater in Three Oakes, Michigan, tonight, and a stop at Oberlin College in Ohio for the school's Spring Folkfest on Saturday.
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Shawn Colvin plays the Birchmere in Alexandria, Virginia, outside DC tonight, and heads up to the Avalon Theatre in Easton, Maryland, for a show on Saturday.
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Bill Frisell continues his two-week residency at the Village Vanguard in New York City, playing multiple sets over three more nights with the Bill Frisell Trio, featuring Eyvind Kang on violin and Rudy Royston on drums. On Tuesday, the lineup switches to the 858 Quartet, with Kang still on board and cellist Hank Roberts and violinist Jenny Scheinman coming in for the week.
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Richard Goode begins a three-week tour of Europe with a recital for the Brighton Festival at Glyndebourne in Lewes, England, this Sunday. He performs works by Byrd, Bach, Chopin, and Schubert.
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Joshua Redman and Brad Mehldau begin the European leg of their duo tour at the Konserthus in Stavanger, Norway, tonight. Next up are two shows in Italy, at the Rome Auditorium Saturday and the Teatro Comunale Città in Vicenza on Sunday.
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Pat Metheny brings his Orchestrion tour to his childhood turf of Kansas City, Missouri, when he plays the Uptown Theater tonight. There's one more night in Missouri on Saturday, at the Touhill Performing Arts Center in St. Louis, followed by a Sunday night show at the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch previews Saturday's show with a look behind the Orchestrion, the instruments and the music. Writer Calvin Wilson describes Metheny as "that rare performer who has achieved crossover success without sacrificing artistic credibility" and says his "latest release may be his boldest yet."
Time Out Chicago says of the Orchestrion album: "Simply put, the famed jazz guitarist has raised the bar for inventiveness, which says a lot for a career stretching over three decades." Reviewer Areif Sless-Kitain describes the album's songs as "simmering."
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Randy Newman continues his European tour with a show at the Grand Canal Theatre in Dublin tonight and one at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels on Sunday.
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Fernando Otero plays two nights at the Teatro San Martin in Buenos Aires tonight and tomorrow.
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Rokia Traoré concludes her UK tour with opener Sweet Billy Pilgrim at the Warwick Arts Centre in Coventry tonight. Later this summer, she's due to play the North Sea Jazz Festival in Rotterdam July 10 and the Cambridge Folk Festival August 1.
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Sara Watkins's June 2009 appearance on NPR's Mountain Stage will be re-broadcast this weekend on NPR stations across the country. To find the show on a station near you, visit mountainstage.org.
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