Kronos Quartet, Philip Glass perform his Dracula score in Germany ... Alarm Will Sound are in residence at Mizzou New Music Fest ... Laurie Anderson brings Homeland to The Birchmere ...  Ben Folds guests with Utah Symphony ... Marlboro Music opens under Richard Goode's artistic direction ... Gidon Kremer's Lockenhaus Fest concludes ... The Low Anthem, Allen Toussaint play Green River Festival ... Audra McDonald debuts at Tanglewood ... Natalie Merchant continues at Town Hall ... Punch Brothers tour Michigan ... Joshua Redman's Double Trio tours Europe ... and more ...

News of the engagement of Bristol Palin (Sarah Palin's daughter) and Levi Johnston comes on the heels of the forthcoming Nonesuch release of the Ben Folds and Nick Hornby album Lonely Avenue, featuring the track "Levi Johnston's Blues," which Folds and Hornby were inspired to write after the young couple's introduction to the world at the 2008 Republican National Convention. The Huffington Post calls Lonely Avenue "one of the most interesting collaborations of the year." Listen to the album track and read the lyrics here.

The new film I Am Love, featuring the music of John Adams, has now opened in movie theaters across the US, with still more to be added in the coming weeks. The Huffington Post says that wonderful as it is, what "was truly powerful was the music used in the film." The Arts Desk calls the soundtrack album "an excellent single CD introduction to one of our greatest modern composers," complete with "impulsive, inventive and melodically rich post-systems gems."

Alarm Will Sound is the resident ensemble of the inaugural Mizzou New Music Summer Festival, taking place all this week at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. The school’s Mizzou New Music Institute selected eight composers from around the world to participate in workshops and master classes and have their work premiered by Alarm Will Sound in the festival's culminating concert this Sunday.

Laurie Anderson created an unforgettable four minutes of late-night television when she performed "Only an Expert," from her album Homeland, on Late Night with David Letterman last night, adding new references to the BP oil disaster. At the song's end, Letterman exclaims: "Exactly. That's exactly what I was thinking." The performance is featured on The Daily Beast's Video Cheat Sheet. BlogCritics says: "If there's one CD so far this year that's a must buy—Homeland is it."

Natalie Merchant continues the first week of her summer tour with two nights at The Town Hall in New York City. The Hartford Courant, reviewing Tuesday's show, says Merchant's "distinct voice remains an instrument of power and beauty." She and her band can be heard performing on the latest episode of NPR's eTown, her first appearance on the show in a decade. The Washington Post's Express Night Out calls Merchant's Nonesuch debut album, Leave Your Sleep, "her most ambitious effort to date."

The Low Anthem kicks off its summer tour this weekend, starting three weeks of shows along the US East Coast, from Virginia to Vermont. Following a Sunday set at the Green River Festival in Massachusetts, the Providence-based quartet heads back to its hometown to headline a benefit concert for Congressional candidate David Segal. The band returns to Rhode Island at the end of month to perform on the Newport Folk Festival's Main Stage.

Laurie Anderson performs the song "Only an Expert," off her new album, Homeland, on the Late Show with David Letterman tonight. She will sign copies of the album at New York's Other Music shop next week. AnOther magazine calls Homeland "art of the highest order; daring and poetic it speaks truth where other important artists of the day have not, and, ultimately, shows us that Anderson is still at the top of her spy game."

The Carolina Chocolate Drops perform a free concert at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland this evening, launching the Hall's Summer in the City series of free concerts. Fans outside of Cleveland can enjoy a bit of the band's live sound tonight as well, as Seattle radio station KEXP airs an in-studio performance the trio recorded during their recent tour stop in the Pacific Northwest.

Laurie Anderson brings the music of Homeland back home to New York City. Anderson performs a song from the album on the Late Show with David Letterman Wednesday night. The Washington Post picks her concert at The Birchmere this Friday as the must-attend concert this week. Interview says "Anderson proves that time has only sharpened her critical eye," calling Homeland "harrowing and hilarious ... a gift of perspective."

Genuine Negro Jig, the Nonesuch debut album from the Carolina Chocolate Drops, is now available on 140-gram vinyl, with the complete album included on CD. Nonesuch Store orders also include instant downloads of all the album tracks as MP3s, plus seven exclusive live bonus MP3s. The band's recent appearance on PBS's Tavis Smiley show is now online. Next up on tour is a free show at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Ben Folds and Nick Hornby appeared on BBC Radio 4's Today show, the station's flagship news and current affairs program, this morning. They discussed their songwriting collaboration, which resulted in the forthcoming Nonesuch album Lonely Avenue. The BBC describes it as "a series of short stories on subjects ranging from awkward relationships to the isolating process of writing itself."