It's Bonnaroo weekend! AfroCubism, Punch Brothers, Sara Watkins will be there to perform; Punch Brothers' set will be webcast live on YouTube ... John Adams's Nixon in China makes San Francisco Opera debut ... Timothy Andres makes London debut ... Carolina Chocolate Drops play free Pittsburgh festival ... Dr. John joins Gov't Mule in Charlotte, Iron & Wine at Ravinia ... Philip Glass's Einstein on the Beach is at Toronto's Luminato Festival ... The Low Anthem heads to the UK ... Audra McDonald performs at the Tonys ... Natalie Merchant joins Cincinnati Pops ... Allen Toussaint celebrates New Orleans at Wolf Trap's Louisiana Swap Romp ... and more ...

Shawn Colvin was the guest on NPR's The Diane Rehm Show, discussing her new album, All Fall Down, and her memoir, Diamond in the Rough, and performing a few songs. "I kept working on the songwriting and then I finally figured it out," Colvin says of her early career. "I figured out my voice, my talent, things I wanted to say and, you know, I figured it out." She gives a free concert at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia, broadcast live on WXPN, today at noon.

John Adams's first opera, Nixon in China, makes its San Francisco Opera debut tonight at the War Memorial Opera House, the opening night of the Opera's Summer Season and the first of seven performances of Adams's piece. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the landmark work and the 40th anniversary of Nixon's visit to China. Watch a preview video here. Also this weekend, Adams's latest opera, A Flowering Tree, will be performed by the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra with the three principals who originated their roles.

Timothy Andres makes his London debut at Wigmore Hall tonight with a concert that marks the opening of the venue’s latest summer Late Night Series. The solo recital—a Time Out London Critics' Choice—includes Andres’s own music and works by Ted Hearne, Ingram Marshall, Brahms, and Schumann. He will discuss the concert and perform live on BBC Radio 3's In Tune this afternoon and was the subject of a Daily Telegraph "New Faces" piece.

AfroCubism—the group behind the long-awaited collaboration between Cuban and Malian musicians originally meant to take place when the Buena Vista Social Club was born—launches a whirlwind, four-stop North American tour at Bonnaroo tomorrow, followed by a free show in New York City for Celebrate Brooklyn! on Saturday, a Sunday night show at Raleigh's North Carolina Museum of Art, and free set at Toronto's Luminato Festival with Fatoumata Diawara on Tuesday.

Ry Cooder’s Election Special, due out August 21, is a wake-up call as the US heads into the 2012 fall election season. "'Wasting Away in Margaritaville' was a good song in its day," says Cooder, "but we need a different kind of a song now if we’re going to make headway against the likes of Charlie and Dave." On Election Special, which he produced, Cooder plays mandolin, guitar, and bass and wrote all of the songs, co-writing one with Joachim Cooder, who plays drums on the record. Stay tuned for an exclusive Nonesuch Store pre-order offer to come.

Shawn Colvin marked the release of her new album, All Fall Down, and memoir, Diamond in the Rough, with her first-ever book reading / performance at Barnes & Noble in NYC; she'll do the same in LA on Monday, before Tuesday's concert at the El Rey. Colvin appears on NPR's Diane Rehm Show tomorrow. The New York Daily News says the music on All Fall Down is "delivered with agile vocals and finely woven folk-rock melodies." The Boston Globe says the new book is full of "humor, remorse, and gratitude ... Colvin illuminates the magical blend of craft and happenstance that leads to powerful music."

Amadou & Mariam's new album, Folila, is an Editors' Pick in the Washington Post, which dubs it the "best place to complete a degree in world music." The album track "Baro," featuring French singer Bertrand Cantat, has been named Today's Top Tune at KCRW, which says Amadou & Mariam "remain true to their roots. The husband and wife team prove that melding popular and traditional music only creates a richer tapestry." The duo will tour North America this summer.

The Black Keys performed a special rendition of their hit single “Gold on the Ceiling,” at the 2012 MTV Movie Awards last night in honor of the actor/musician Johnny Depp, who joined the band on guitar for the performance before receiving the MTV Generation Award, the MTV Movie Awards' highest honor, from Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Joe Perry. Watch The Black Keys / Jonny Depp performance of "Gold on the Ceiling" below.

Steve Reich will join the Bang on a Can All-Stars on their European tour next month, with concerts at Cité de la Musique in Paris and at the Bloc festival in London, featuring an all-Reich program. Reich spoke with the folks at Bloc for an illuminating video feature about his influences—including Ghanaian drumming and Balinese gamelan—with illustrative examples and archival performance footage of his own work. Watch the video here.

Shawn Colvin's new album, All Fall Down, is out this week. To mark the occasion, AOL Music is streaming the album in full all week, and to kick off the celebration, Colvin is performing a special album-release concert at City Winery in New York City tonight, joined onstage by album producer Buddy Miller and bassist Viktor Krauss. The show will be broadcast live on WFUV in New York, online at wfuv.org. The Daily Telegraph calls All Fall Down as "an assured and imaginative album ... the assembled cast of musicians is superb."

The Black Keys perform a special rendition of “Gold on the Ceiling” in honor of Johnny Depp at the MTV Movie Awards ... John Adams's new oratorio continues its premiere with LA Phil ... Laurie Anderson brings Dirtday! to Slovenia ... Timothy Andres hosts the Shaw Concert in NYC ... Billy Bragg, Lianne La Havas play London's Apple Cart Festival ... Carolina Chocolate Drops, Sara Watkins play Appel Farm and Mountain Jam fests ... Jeremy Denk duets in Chicago ... Dr. John launches US tour ... Emmylou Harris is in Texas ... James Farm is at Blue Note Tokyo ... Kronos Quartet plays Reich in Stockholm ... k.d. lang makes Spoleto debut ... The Low Anthem opens for Feist ... Jessica Lea Mayfield, Punch Brothers are at Appalachian Uprising ... and more ...