Journal
- Tuesday, November 26, 2024
Composer Donnacha Dennehy, whose piece Land of Winter, performed by Alarm Will Sound and conductor Alan Pierson, was released earlier this month on Nonesuch, shares some insight on the work, which explores the subtleties of Ireland’s seasons via twelve connected sections representing the months of the year, in a new essay. "It is the varying quality of light that truly demarcates the seasons," he says, "from the shorter days of grey or piercing light in the winter to the warmer but mercurial light of summer days that at solstice stretch almost to midnight. I like this play between light and time, and it is the major inspiration behind the piece."
Journal Topics: Artist Essays, Artist News
- Friday, September 10, 2010
Steve Reich is composer-in-residence at the Numusic Festival in Stavanger, Norway ... The Black Keys continue tour with Kings of Leon ... Carolina Chocolate Drops play MA and NY ... Rhys Chatham plays Boomslang Fest ... Philip Glass talks at Philadelphia's Live Arts Fest ... Wanda Jackson plays Lexington ... The Low Anthem, Philip Selway, Wilco hit the End of the Road ... Punch Brothers are in Austin ... Sara Watkins closes out the Prairie Home Companion Summer Love Tour ... and more ...
Journal Topics: On Tour, Weekend EventsFriday, September 10, 2010As The Black Keys continue their tour with Kings of Leon on the East Coast this weekend, their music will be well represented at Sunday night's 2010 MTV Video Music Awards in Los Angeles. The video for "Tighten Up," off The Black Keys' album Brothers, has been nominated for Breakthrough Video. MTV says, while it's up against some heavy hitters, "it was the Black Keys' clip that made the biggest impression." Watch it here.
Journal Topics: Artist News, Video, TelevisionFriday, September 10, 2010The Low Anthem's summer tour of Europe comes to the end of the road as the band plays the End of the Road festival this weekend and a sold-out show with Iron and Wine at Union Chapel next week. Their next scheduled US date is with Josh Ritter in October. During their tour with The Avett Brothers earlier this year, the band was captured on stage and backstage at the Egyptian Room in Indianapolis for an 11-minute video you can watch here.
Thursday, September 9, 2010Third Man and Nonesuch Records announce the release of the new album from Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Wanda Jackson on January 25, 2011. The Party Ain’t Over, produced by her friend Jack White, is a retro modern collection of music that showcases Jackson, now in her seventh decade and sounding as wickedly charismatic as ever. Jackson, credited with being the first woman to ever record a rock and roll song, will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2010 Americana Music Awards in Nashville tonight.
Journal Topics: Album Release, Artist NewsThursday, September 9, 2010The Americana Music Festival & Conference kicked off yesterday in Nashville. The festival's capstone event, the Americana Honors & Awards show, takes place tonight at the famed Ryman Auditorium and will be streaming live online at NPR.org. The Carolina Chocolate Drops are up for Duo/Group of the Year and will perform; Emmylou Harris will perform as well, as will Wanda Jackson, who will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Artist NewsThursday, September 9, 2010On November 4, Punch Brothers and Steve Martin will perform together on The Late Show with David Letterman. Additional upcoming highlights include tour dates with the Dave Matthews Band and Dierks Bentley, as well as a special performance alongside T Bone Burnett at the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival. Moreover, Jon Brion, who produced Punch Brothers' new album, Antifogmatic, will play a special opening set at the band’s LA show in October.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Artist NewsThursday, September 9, 2010The video for "By Some Miracle," the opening track to Philip Selway's solo debut album, Familial, premiered on MySpace last week. It has now been posted to Selway's YouTube channel and can be seen here. The Miami New Times says of the video: "While it incorporates some Radiohead elements, we can't help but think the plot resembles a dark indie film: Filled with beautiful people, with psychological problems that aren't so pretty.
Journal Topics: VideoWednesday, September 8, 2010Nonesuch Records wishes to congratulate Punch Brothers' Noam Pikelny, who has been named the winner of the first annual Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Banjo and Bluegrass. "Noam is the extraordinary banjoist for the Punch Brothers," Martin said in announcing the award, "playing not only traditional bluegrass, but classical, rock and jazz oriented music. He is a player of unlimited range and astonishing precision"
Journal Topics: Artist NewsWednesday, September 8, 2010Rhys Chatham's A Crimson Grail is due out on Nonesuch next week, but Chicago audiences can celebrate early, as the Rhys Chatham Trio performs at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art tonight. The concert is named a Top Live Show by Time Out Chicago and a critics' choice of the Chicago Reader, which calls A Crimson Grail "gorgeous" and "monumental." Record Collector describes A Crimson Grail as "imaginative, bold and successful."
Journal Topics: Album Release, On TourWednesday, September 8, 2010Due to the death of a family member, The Black Keys are rescheduling their show at the Charlottesville Pavilion this Thursday, September 9, to Tuesday, September 14, and the September 14 show at the Orange Peel in Asheville, North Carolina, has been moved to Thursday, September 16. The band apologizes for this scheduling shift and any inconvenience it may cause. They thank their fans for their patience and understanding during this difficult time.
Journal Topics: On TourTuesday, September 7, 2010There is just one week to go before the release of Steve Reich's Double Sextet and 2x5. Until then, you can listen to the album streaming in its entirety as an NPR First Listen. "Reich's innovations across the decades seem to have been distilled and polished to a sheen not heard in his music before now," says NPR of Double Sextet. "[W]hat makes every new Reich recording an opportunity to uncover new mysteries is his continued willingness, as with the rock idiom of 2x5, to shift gears and change direction. He makes it easy to want to follow him on a wild, joyful ride."
Journal Topics: Artist News, WebTuesday, September 7, 2010Pat Metheny follows last spring's worldwide Orchestrion Tour with an additional 19 North American performance halls beginning October 1. He has performed shows to sold-out audiences in some of the world’s best-known halls, including two sold-out nights at New York City’s Town Hall. London’s Telegraph calls the show “a triumph,” while the Kansas City Star says, “Metheny’s Orchestrion is nothing short of spectacular ... Endlessly fascinating and visually dazzling.”
Journal Topics: On Tour, Artist News