Journal
- Friday, November 22, 2024
The Way Out of Easy, the first album from guitarist Jeff Parker and his long-running ETA IVtet—saxophonist Josh Johnson, bassist Anna Butterss, drummer Jay Bellerose—since their 2022 debut Mondays at the Enfield Tennis Academy, which Pitchfork named one of the Best Albums of the 2020s So Far, is out now on International Anthem / Nonesuch Records. Like that album, The Way Out of Easy comprises recordings from LA venue ETA, where Parker and the ensemble held a weekly residency for seven years. During that time, the ETA IVtet evolved from a band that played mostly standards into a group known for its transcendent, long-form journeys into innovative, groove-oriented improvised music. All four tracks on The Way Out of Easy come from a single night in 2023, providing an unfiltered view of the ensemble, fully in their element.
Journal Topics: Album Release, Artist News
- Monday, February 6, 2023
Rhiannon Giddens is on Speaking Soundly, a podcast in which host and MET Opera Principal Trumpet David Krauss talks with fellow performers about their creative process and lives as artists. “In addition to being expert in the music, you’re steeping in the history behind the music,” Krauss says. “And then you compose a song to capture that history and use it as a lens to focus in on what’s really happening in our society today. That’s a lot.” You can hear their conversation here.
Journal Topics: Artist News, PodcastSunday, February 5, 2023Congratulations to all the winners at tonight's Grammy Awards, including Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, whose debut album, Crooked Tree, won Best Bluegrass Album; Wilco, Best Historical Album (compilation producers Cheryl Pawelski & Jeff Tweedy and mastering engineer Bob Ludwig) and Best Album Notes (Bob Mehr) for the 20th anniversary super deluxe edition of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot; Taj Mahal & Ry Cooder, Best Traditional Blues Album for GET ON BOARD: The Songs of Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, with Joachim Cooder; and Caroline Shaw & Attacca Quartet, Best Chamber Music / Small Ensemble Performance for Evergreen.
Journal Topics:Friday, February 3, 2023Molly Tuttle was on NPR's All Things Considered as part of its series on first-time Grammy Award nominees. Tuttle is nominated for two Grammy Awards: Best New Artist and, with her band Golden Highway, Best Bluegrass Album for their debut album, Crooked Tree. She talks with host Ailsa Chang from the famed Station Inn in Nashville and performs the title track to the album. You can hear it here.
Journal Topics: Artist News, RadioFriday, February 3, 2023This Grammy Awards weekend, in which Nonesuch recordings are nominated for 15 awards, Best New Artist nominee Molly Tuttle performs at the MusiCares Persons of the Year tribute and The Black Keys DJ in LA. Sam Amidon joins Bonny Light Horseman in Leeds. Julia Bullock is in Miami. Jeremy Denk performs in NYC. Gabriel Kahane joins SF Symphony. Makaya McCraven performs In These Times in Nashville. Brad Mehldau is in Tokyo. Mandy Patinkin is in Wilmington. Joshua Redman joins Ambrose Akinmusire at SFJAZZ. Caroline Shaw and Sō Percussion perform Let the Soil Play Its Simple Part in Philadelphia and NYC. Chris Thile shares Laysongs in Grand Rapids.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Weekend EventsWednesday, February 1, 2023Thomas Adès’ Dante—a ballet score in three acts based on Dante Alighieri’s La Divina Commedia—was recorded by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and its Music & Artistic Director Gustavo Dudamel in concert at Disney Hall for the premiere recording, due April 21 on Nonesuch Records. Dante was first performed at the Royal Opera House as part of Wayne McGregor’s The Dante Project for the Royal Ballet, with the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House and with designs by visual artist Tacita Dean. “In any new shortlist of great ballet scores by Tchaikovsky, Stravinsky, Bartók, Ravel, Prokofiev, Britten, and Bernstein, Dante must newly be included for its musical invention alone,” exclaims the Los Angeles Times. “There is not a second in its 88 minutes that doesn’t delight. All of it is unexpected and wanted.” The collectable limited vinyl two-LP edition includes artwork by Dean and photography from the Royal Ballet’s performance.
Journal Topics: Album Release, Artist NewsWednesday, February 1, 2023Makaya McCraven was on NPR's World Cafe to talk with host Raina Douris about his new album, In These Times, and share two tracks from it—the title track and "The Calling"—performed live at his 2020 debut concert at Chicago's Symphony Center. You can hear their conversation and the performances here.
Journal Topics: Artist News, RadioWednesday, February 1, 2023Yo-Yo Ma has partnered with Knoxville-based arts nonprofit Big Ears for the multi-faceted concert “Our Common Nature: An Appalachian Celebration,” with musical guests Rhiannon Giddens, Chris Thile, and Edgar Meyer, on Friday, May 26, at World’s Fair Park in Knoxville, TN. In addition, Thile and Giddens will each perform a concert, May 25 and May 27, respectively, at Knoxville's Bijou Theatre. Conceived and curated by Ma, the World’s Fair Park celebration will include musicians, storytellers, and poets from throughout the Appalachian region, and will be the culmination of a week-long series of cultural experiences and conversations that lift the myriad voices of Appalachia—Indigenous, European, Latinx, Black, and beyond.
Journal Topics: Artist News, On TourTuesday, January 31, 2023Rachael & Vilray are on The Vinyl District’s Radar podcast to discuss their new album, I Love a Love Song!. “There is an intrinsic grandeur to the Great American Songbook that we can all appreciate,” says host Evan Toth. “However, the Great American Songbook must always be accepting new entries and if we had to suggest some additions from our time, from this year, Rachael and Vilray should be at the top of our list.” You can hear their conversation here.
Journal Topics: Artist News, Podcast, RadioMonday, January 30, 2023Best New Artist Grammy Award nominee Molly Tuttle and her band Golden Highway—fiddler Bronwyn Keith-Hynes, mandolinist Dominick Leslie, bassist Shelby Means, and banjo player Kyle Tuttle—have released their take on last year’s Best New Artist winner Olivia Rodrigo’s hit “good 4 u” and a new recording of “Dooley’s Farm,” a song from their debut album, Crooked Tree, a Best Bluegrass Album Grammy nominee, for the Spotify Singles series. You can hear them here, exclusively on Spotify.
Journal Topics: Artist NewsMonday, January 30, 2023"There are times when we find ourselves isolated and alone, or in reflection and solitude," Julia Bullock writes in the liner notes to her solo debut album, Walking in the Dark. "There are other times when we choose to connect to further understand each other, which provides us with an opportunity to share our evolving identities—maybe even better discern how to communicate. And who knows ... if our intentions are translated well enough and are clearly in focus, it may lead to some moments of illumination." You can read her note here.
Journal Topics: Artist EssaysFriday, January 27, 2023John Adams leads the LA Phil, Julia Bullock, and others in performances of his opera Girls of the Golden West at Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA. Kronos Quartet performs at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall and in Saratoga Springs. Brad Mehldau's quintet is at Village Vanguard in NYC through Sunday. Mandy Patinkin is at Strathmore in Bethesda. Cécile McLorin Salvant is in California, at the Mondavi Center in Davis and Bing Concert Hall in Stanford. The Black Keys DJ in NYC.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Weekend EventsThursday, January 26, 2023Cécile McLorin Salvant’s new album, Mélusine, is due March 24 on Nonesuch; vinyl is due May 19. Mélusine is a mix of five originals and interpretations of nine songs, dating as far back as the 12th century, mostly sung in French along with Occitan, English, and Haitian Kreyòl. They tell the folk tale of Mélusine, a woman who turns into a half-snake each Saturday after a childhood curse by her mother. The track “D’un feu secret,” Michel Lambert’s 1660 air de cour, is available today, along with an animated video by Amanda Bonaiuto that may be seen here.
Journal Topics: Album Release, Artist News, Video