The 31st edition of Mumbai Sanskriti festival will feature Indian classical music stalwarts including vocalist Shubha Mudgal and santoor player Rahul Sharma with an aim to create awareness about the city’s cultural heritage.
The classical music festival, organised by the Indian Heritage Society, will be held at Mumbai’s iconic Town Hall (Asiatic Library) on January 14-15.
The first day of the festival will see performance by santoor maestro Sharma with Pt Bhawani Shankar on pakhawaj and Pt Mukundraj Deo on tabla. ”Music reaches the soul and the heart and beyond barriers. It has a metaphysical appeal. It gives me immense pleasure to perform at the festival and for IHS for such a cause, at an exemplary sight as the Town Hall. This performance will be special for me as IHS will pay tribute to my father and guru Padma Vibhusan Late Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. This will not only reach the ears of the audience but touch their hearts,” Sharma said. On the second day, Mudgal will perform with tabla player Pt Aneesh Pradhan and harmonium player Pt Sudhir Nayak. ”Festivals such as IHS’s Mumbai Sanskriti create awareness among people about their culture and heritage. The effort that IHS is taking is highly appreciated, and I feel privileged to be a part of the festival this year. I sincerely hope that people are inspired and become aware about the rich cultural past and pass it on to future generations,” Mudgal said.
The festival has returned to its physical form after a gap of two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A digital music festival was organised last year from inside the prestigious Convocation Hall of Mumbai University last year with flute maestro Pt Hariprasad Chaurasia performing some soulful renditions.
(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Country Music Jam is held each Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. at the North Buena Vista Civic Association, 2039 Orange Drive, Holiday.
Donation are $3.
Food and drinks are also available for a donation. All donations go to the community center.
The music selection is country to light rock. New musicians are encouraged to join. For more information, call 727-534-8649.
Each Monday at 7 p.m. is the Monday Music Jam at Beacon Square Civic Association, 3741 Bradford Drive, Holiday. Meals are available from 6 to 7 p.m., as supplies last. Proceeds go to the association. For information, call 727-807-7007.
The writer (at the back playing guitar) joins a group of music enthusiasts at Independence Square to form an alliance that believes that music heals
It all started with a wish to reach out to a world that seems to be slipping away.
After three years of Covid and lockdowns, followed by the nightmare of a crashed economy and political mayhem, everybody’s in need of help, sympathy and a degree of comfort.
But it’s hard to reach out to people in the streets. There’s a lot of mistrust. In a broken society, no one has much faith in anyone or anything.
But music is a great healer. On Christmas day, I decided to reach out to a bleak world by playing music in a public space.
I planned to go alone, but a friend volunteered to accompany me and also take a few photographs. We selected Vihara Maha Devi Park as our venue. There wasn’t the usual holiday crowd; the lack of public transport, fuel prices and cost of living inducing most people to remain home. But it was a beautiful evening and the park and the Town Hall were nicely lit.
The goal was to open a direct communication between me and the fascinating world of music and people who create marvelous sounds with all kinds of instruments, to go beyond being a listener or fan to a more proactive role as a musician
For me, it was a big psychological breakthrough as well. As an adult learner of music, I had to work very hard towards my goal of becoming a musician, and I started with the violin, a difficult instrument.
The goal was to open a direct communication between me and the fascinating world of music and people who create marvellous sounds with all kinds of instruments, to go beyond being a listener or fan to a more proactive role as a musician.
But there was an acute fear of playing for an audience. Playing for yourself at home is one thing. I remember venturing out long ago and then panic setting in.
But there comes a time when you know it’s now or never. Either it happens now or it won’t happen, ever. On Christmas day, I gathered enough nerve to venture out, and it wasn’t the same old world of complacent securities, or comfortable illusions covering up latent insecurities, that I stepped into.
But the sun sets without being overwhelmed by humanity’s myriad problems. On a good day, global warming notwithstanding, it will set a great stage for us to step out and do our thing. To go out and reach out, being comforted by the fact that you still have enough resources to offer the world a little listening pleasure.
I took the violin because it can be heard above the din of motor traffic. I played a few short pieces – Hymn for Joy from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Greensleeves and my own composition.
I was there for just half an hour, but it made a world of difference to me. A few walkers and even a motorcyclist stopped to listen. I wasn’t asking anyone for a favour. But I was doing one for myself; in terms of self confidence and self esteem.
Musicians don’t need to retire. My age group was among the worst affected by the pandemic; leading to depression and suicide. Things only got worse last year. But, if you can play any instrument, you still have a great resource. You can go out and play, and disseminate your music via social media. You don’t need to be famous or have a band or a contract. As for antiquated laws, the police often turn a blind eye to a solitary musician on the street. Or you can go to a police station and obtain permission.
The violin sounds beautiful in the dusky light. But any instrument played well can transport us to other, better, worlds. That’s the power of music.
The same night, a friend asked me to come and play near All Saints Church, Colombo 08, after the midnight mass. As I waited on the pavement, a group of policemen came to check me.
They said people inside were alarmed that a stranger with a black case was waiting outside. After checking my ID, and once I explained why I was there, they relaxed a bit, but asked me to leave.
“Go home, have a drink and have a good night’s sleep without wasting your time,” a senior policeman told me. It was a stark reminder of the times we live in. I forgot that church audiences have been traumatised by the 2019 Easter bombings.
Nothing has been resolved, but we need to move on. The healing power of music can help. The responses to my Face Book post that night was overwhelming and surprised me. There are many people out there so pleased that you have reached out to the world with a little music making in these difficult times.
One thing leads to another. Iqbal Mohomed, driving force behind the Guitar Festival who has done more than anyone else to promote free music in Sri Lanka, called and said he was performing with others at the Independence Square on the first of January by singing Guantanamera and other songs. I decided to join them. True to his political beliefs, he was celebrating Cuba’s national day as well. I don’t engage in politics, but I believe in the power and pleasure of music. Shakespeare has said a lot about music – ‘If music be the food of love, play on’, and ‘the earth has music for those willing to listen.’ He must have been a big music fan.
Iqbal was there with his wife Gayathri Gananathapillai, and old friend Rohan Silva. Gayathri plays guitar as well as flute, while Rohan can sing and play harmonica. Iqbal brought along his piano accordion.
Again, the dusky weather was lovely as we sat between the two ponds and played. The repertoire included Guantanamera and Bob Dylan’s Where Have All the Flowers Gone, Russian and Latin American folk songs and Iqbal’s own soulful orginal ballad dedicated to national hero Monaravila Keppetipola.
The crowd wasn’t large, but we had an attentive audience. A Malaysian visitor strode over to inquire about Gayathri’s Andean flute. He said there is a similar instrument in Malaysia and Indonesia. Music can get strangers talking. That’s the power of music.
Now we plan to get together again at the same venue on February fourth. Music is addictive. I think it’s the best thing one can get addicted to. As Bob Marley said, when music hits you, you don’t feel the pain.
This week, a potential landmark case in the music industry was filed against Universal Music Group for allegedly withholding over $750 million of royalties from its artists over streams. Meanwhile, in Fulton County, a recording artist who was included in a gang indictment using his lyrics as evidence will face the legal fight of his life later this month, while his record label lies in ruins as a result.
It’s clear that, when the law crosses paths with the business of making and selling music, the course of one or the other can shift dramatically. In response to Young Thug’s case above, several states have introduced bills protecting artists’ freedom of speech whose lives and livelihoods can be wrecked by overeager prosecutors looking to score political points. Meanwhile, if Black Sheep’s class action suit against UMG proceeds, it could change the way streaming profits are shared with musicians, effecting broad-ranging changes in the way labels do business.
There have been plenty of other court cases that defined the course of the music industry. Some were copyright fights that caused new rules to be adopted — whether formally or informally — about how artists use and credit past works. Others are legal fights between artists and their labels, which prompted the latter to work out new types of deals in efforts to protect profits and attract savvier recording partners. And at least one seemed to be about artists and labels against the oncoming seismic shift caused by new technology. Here are ten of the court cases that defined the music industry.
1944 — Olivia de Havilland vs. Warner Bros. Pictures
One of the court cases that had the biggest impact on the recording industry wasn’t even about music. In 1944, actress Olivia de Havilland sued Warner Bros. Pictures after the term of her seven-year contract with the studio expired. However, much like with record contracts today, back then, actors signed to studios for a certain number of “pictures” over the course of a given term, and if they didn’t deliver, they couldn’t leave.
However, de Havilland argued that this was a violation of California labor law and that seven years means seven years. The courts agreed, forcing WB to release her; since then, numerous recording artists have used the same statute to end contracts they deem unfair, from Courtney Love and Metallica to Luther Vandross and most recently, HER. Even Kanye cited the rule during his feud with EMI and Roc-A-Fella, although a 1980s amendment allows labels to sue artists for damages if they don’t deliver the full number of contracted albums — even after seven years.
1960s — Chuck Berry vs. The Beach Boys
When the California rock band The Beach Boys basically plagiarized Chuck Berry’s 1958 “Sweet Little Sixteen” to create their 1963 hit “Surfin’ USA” (an event that was parodied in the 2006 adaptation of Dreamgirls), they inadvertently kicked off what nearly became the first copyright lawsuit in recording industry history. Although a lawsuit was never actually filed, all the royalties for “Surfin’ USA” go to Berry’s publisher Arc Music after the Beach Boys’ manager Murray Wilson struck a deal.
1990 — Queen vs. Vanilla Ice
This infamous case wound up being settled out of court, but it also laid the groundwork for future cases in which older artists expressed resentment for hip-hop’s proclivity for sampling their past hits. In 1990, upstart white rapper Vanilla Ice lifted the bassline from Queen’s 1981 song “Under Pressure.” The resulting single, “Ice Ice Baby,” became a monster hit and was hugely profitable, despite its later reputation as a novelty song.
However, the British band wasn’t too happy about it and sued Vanilla Ice over the song. Years later, it was revealed that the rapper paid for part of the publishing rights for “Under Pressure,” while giving credit to the original writers. Although he claims he bought the rights from the band outright, they refuted it, saying that a profit-sharing agreement was reached.
1990 — Roy Orbison vs. 2 Live Crew
Another landmark case revolving around the use of sampling in hip-hop, this one went all the way to the Supreme Court before all was said and done, and laid down some ground rules about how sampling can work. After requesting the rights for Roy Orbison’s “Oh Pretty Woman” and being denied, the group went ahead and released their parody track, “Pretty Woman” anyway in 1989. 2 Live Crew argued that their version constituted “fair use” which allows for parody.
After going through a federal district court and an appeals court, the Supreme Court ruled that 2 Live’s “Pretty Woman” does fall under fair use. However, not many artists have tried to use this defense in the years since — in part because parody tracks have fallen out of favor in hip-hop (although Weird Al is still cranking them out) and in part, because no one really wants the headache.
1990 — 2 Live Crew vs. Decency
Poor Uncle Luke. The 2 Live Crew spent a massive part of their early career battling legal enemies when they should have been enjoying the sort of debauchery that defined much of their creative output. In this case, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office had issued an edict that any stores selling 2 Live’s 1989 album As Nasty As They Wanna Be would face arrest on the grounds of obscenity. 2 Live fought back, filing suit in federal district court. Although an initial judge agreed with the Sheriff, an appeals court overturned the ruling, and the Supreme Court backed it up by refusing to hear a second appeal. Despite the raunchy material, the appeals court decided that the music itself had artistic value and that the band being “nasty” wasn’t enough to ban them outright.
1994 — Tupac Goes To Prison
This was impactful less as a matter of how it changed the rules of the game and more as how it changed the substance — even if indirectly. When Tupac was sentenced to 18 months in prison on rape charges (he eventually served just eight), he became something of a folk hero to a fanbase that felt he was railroaded by a racist system, emerging from prison more popular than ever. This set a precarious precedent in hip-hop, but it also helped to solidify what the genre looked like and represented. “Thug life” more or less became the default expression of the art form and Tupac became its avatar.
So many artists now have at least a little of his DNA in their flow, business moves, and public personas and this was arguably the start of his iconic status. After his prison stint, fans were so ravenous for new music that his final two albums, released during and after his sentence, both went No. 1 after he’d previously only managed to peak at No. 24. We certainly see echoes of that in artists such as 21 Savage and the support for Young Thug.
1994 — Prince Vs. Warner
Also in 1994, Prince waged his infamous one-man war on his label, Warner, for control over his music. By now, you’ve undoubtedly heard of how he changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol in an attempt to free himself from his contract, or how he wrote “Slave” on his face to protest his inability to release music how and when he wanted under those contract terms. Ever since then, artists have spoken out about how they disagree with label practices — whether they’re practical or not — and ownership of their creative output, and any number of them, from Kanye to Megan Thee Stallion to New Jersey rapper Russ, have taken the Prince route to freeing themselves from the constraints of the major system.
2000 — Metallica vs. Napster
The first case of an artist suing a peer-to-peer file-sharing company, Metallica’s victory over Napster not only effectively ended Napster’s reign over the distribution of music, it basically opened the door for the whole streaming era in which we currently find ourselves. P2P sharing was never effectively ended, but it was forced underground, eventually evolving into the download sites that fueled the so-called “blog era.” It also demonstrated the viability of digital distribution, first in the form of .mp3s, and later, as streams, as fans had demonstrated that they were willing to adopt the new technology in lieu of only purchasing physical media.
2000s — MusicNet and PressPlay
Of course, the above transition wasn’t quite as smooth as that sentence may have made it out to be. In the early 2000s, the labels’ early attempts to get into the music-streaming game, MusicNet and PressPlay, weren’t quite as user-friendly as Spotify and Tidal would later turn out to be. But that wasn’t the only problem. The US Justice Department investigated the apps for antitrust violations, suspecting that the labels were suppressing competition and inflating the price of downloads.
Once iTunes hit the scene, though, the labels closed up shop on MusicNet and PressPlay, instead shifting their business models from trying to dominate the streaming space with their own propriety platforms in favor of partnering with tech companies who could do the concept justice.
2014 — Marvin Gaye Estate vs. Robin Thicke & Pharrell Williams
In a case that changed the standards for just what constitutes copyright infringement, the estate of Marvin Gaye alleged that Robin Thicke’s Pharrell-produced hit “Blurred Lines” illegally reproduced Gaye’s 1977 soul staple “Got To Give It Up.” A court agreed that, even without direct plagiarism of sheet music or lyrics, the later song certainly reproduces a lot of the sound of the original — enough that $5.3 million and 50 percent of all future royalties of the song were awarded to the Gaye estate.
This opened the door (and a couple of windows) for all kinds of copyright cases, with everyone from upstart rappers to established producers alleging plagiarism for even the slightest similarities in tone, style, lyrics, or instrumentation. And while a significant portion of those is getting chucked out, they’re likely to keep coming until another ruling draws firmer boundaries around what’s protected and what isn’t.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
MINOT, N.D (KMOT) – “The Weekend Song” is one of many tunes that Risha Allen wrote to serve as a creative outlet for her students.
“She’s a great singer and her favorite shop is the boot barn,” said Alissa Drain, a third grader.
Risha started writing music in fourth grade.
“I haven’t written any yet, but I’m thinking of doing some,” said Logan Russell, a third grader.
The second-year music teacher said as a child she felt a ton of frustration while she was learned how to play the piano. She said she had great teachers, but it took a while to click. Now, she’s taking the opportunity to teach music the way she would’ve wanted.
“It’s alright if you don’t get it. We’ll back up and learn it again. We’ll learn this five or six different ways,” said Allen.
And she posts some of it on TikTok.
Recording bite-sized teaching hacks and classroom passion started small at first, allowing friends and family to see videos.
Now she has more than 200,000 followers on TikTok. A Roosevelt Elementary fifth grader said he was surprised.
“I didn’t think she was going to be this famous, you know what I mean?” said Aiden Laducer, a fifth grader.
Risha said her followers largely consists of teachers, parents, principals, and students.
One of her students said Ms. Allen composes songs based on ideas from all her classes.
“She’s made kitchen utensil songs, rare fruit songs, a frosty frogs songs,” said Juliauna Zahn-Guess, a fifth grader.
Risha said she’s glad she made the decision to switch to music after teaching English for 13 years prior.
“I love teaching English it was a great career too, but this, this is a dream career for me,” said Allen
Risha continues to make her own songs and will soon release another single.
Govee, a Philips Hue and Nanoleaf competitor with a wide range of smart bulbs, LED strips, and light panels, has big plans for AI in the coming year, the company announced at CES in Las Vegas.
At CES 2023, Govee is showing off an AI system-on-chip that powers CogniGlow, an AI-enabled algorithm for real-time lighting effects that the manufacturer says can perform up to 14.4 trillion calculations per second.
Also at CES, Govee confirmed that it will officially support Matter, starting with one of its upcoming LED light strips.
Govee says it plans to use its AI-powered CogniGlow algorithm in ambient lighting products that sync their lights with both images and music.
Govee’s first AI- and CogniGlow-packing device will be its AI Gaming Sync Box Kit, a gaming-focused alternative to Philips Hue’s Play HDMI Sync Box.
Aimed primarily at PC gamers, the AI Gaming Sync Box Kit is a departure from Govee’s Envisual TV light strips, which use mounted cameras to sync their lights with the images on TV screens.
A rectangular black box with three HDMI inputs and a single HDMI output, the AI Gaming Sync Box Kit supports up to 4K resolution (including Dolby Vision and HDR10+) with “highly accurate” color and less than 16 milliseconds of latency for its synced lighting effects.
At 1080p resolution, the device supports a silky smooth 240Hz refresh rate for passthrough video. At 2K resolution, the maximum refresh rate dips to 144Hz, while you can expect a 60Hz refresh rate for 4K video.
With help from the CogniGlow algorithm, the AI Gaming Sync Box Kit can perform real-time, on-device analysis of the colors, images, and text being piped through its HDMI inputs, and then transmits its “lighting signals” to connected smart lights via Bluetooth. The kit will ship with a light strip and a pair of thin vertical light bars that are designed to flank your PC screen.
Besides syncing the colors on your display, the AI Gaming Sync Box can deliver more than 30 “customized” lighting effects for specific games. League of Legends, Apex Legends, and Valorant will be the first three games that get customized lighting effects, with more to follow, Govee said.
Gaming isn’t the only application for Govee’s AI chip and CogniGlow, with the company noting that the algorithm is capable of identifying a dozen genres of music and then matching the tunes with complementary lighting effects.
Govee plans on showing off a prototype CogniGlow-powered device aimed at music syncing at its CES booth this week, the company said, while additional products equipped with its AI and CogniGlow tech should arrive starting in the second quarter of this year.
Separately, Govee announced at CES that it will support Matter, the new smart home standard that promises to ensure that different smart devices can be connected and controlled across a wide range of ecosystems, including Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s HomeKit, and Google Home.
A two-meter version of the Govee LED Strop Light M1 slated to launch in 2023 will be the first Govee product to support Matter, the company said, with more to come in the “near future.”
I can’t help myself: Taking stock of the arts calendar, again and again, I find it hard to limit these lists to just 10 recommendations. But it’s a good problem to have, and — with many knocks on wood — a far cry from last year’s winter guide, when the omicron variant swept many venues’ gig calendars clean.
Below, our guide to the season’s can’t-miss shows in the city and ‘burbs:
A string sing at Northwestern: Bassist Xavier Foley was not just a MusicNOW highlight but a Symphony Center highlight when he performed at November’s “Common Ground” program. On Jan. 6, Foley joins the Calidore String Quartet to kick off the annual Winter Chamber Music Festival. As in previous years, the headlines tilt toward string quartets: The Isidore (Jan. 13), New Orford (Jan. 15) and Jupiter (Jan. 22) quartets are also among this year’s visiting artists. Jan 6-22, Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston; tickets are $30 at music.northwestern.edu
Symphonic seekers: If orchestral works by living composers are your thing, Chicagoland’s regional ensembles have a better batting average than the big guys at 220 S. Michigan. This winter, the Chicago Philharmonic and the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra present an impressive run of local and world premieres, even by their own adventurous yardstick. On Jan. 14, the Chicago Philharmonic and guitar titan Sharon Isbin perform the North American premiere of Tan Dun’s guitar concerto “Yi2″; the program also features cellist Joshua Roman in Tan’s Crouching Tiger concerto and a commission by resident composer Reinaldo Moya. The Illinois Philharmonic’s Feb. 25 concert spotlights a new work by its own composer-in-residence Jonathan Cziner and cellist Inbal Segev plays the Midwest premiere of “Human Archipelago” by pianist-composer Vijay Iyer, among the commissionees for her ambitious “20 for 2020″ recording project. Then, on March 11, the IPO premieres Augusta Read Thomas’ new setting of Gwendolyn Brooks poems.
“Tan Dun: Yi2 and Crouching Tiger Concerto,” 7:30 p.m. Jan. 14, Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph St.; tickets are $35-$75 at chicagophilharmonic.org
“Iyer & Sibelius,” 7:30 p.m. Feb. 25; “Debussy, Ravel & Thomas,” 3 p.m. March 11. Ozinga Chapel at Trinity Christian College, 6601 W. College Drive, Palos Heights; tickets are $10-$74 at ipomusic.org/2022-23season
Tenor Juan Diego Flórez will be in concert at Symphony Center in Chicago at the end of January 2023. (Anthony Robert La Penna/Chicago Tribune)
Opera stars, in recital: Met Live in HD who? In a single week, you can catch solo engagements by both tenor Juan Diego Flórez and mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, no opera glasses required — the former at Symphony Center, the latter at Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville.
Symphony Center Presents: Juan Diego Flórez, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31, Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave., tickets are $39-$150 at cso.org
Denyce Graves at North Central College, 3 p.m. Feb. 5, Wentz Concert Hall, 171 E. Chicago Ave., Naperville, tickets are $55-$65 at finearts.northcentralcollege.edu
New operas ‘R us: Chicago Opera Theater is a prolific commissioner of new work, and it keeps up that streak with Justine F. Chen and David Simpatico’s biographical “Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing” in March. On the other hand, Lyric Opera last commissioned a new opera in 2015 — Jimmy López Bellido and Nilo Cruz’s “Bel Canto” — and even that world premiere had been Lyric’s first in decades. Lyric doubly breaks that drought this season, first with “The Factotum,” which reimagines “The Barber of Seville” in a Black South Side barbershop. Will Liverman of “Fire Shut Up In My Bones” stars, but he also dons a new hat (or maybe a fresh fade?) for “Factotum”: that of composer/creator, alongside his longtime pal DJ King Rico. Lyric follows that up a month later with “Proximity,” three mini-operas by no less luminous composerly lights than John Luther Adams, Daniel Bernard Roumain and Caroline Shaw.
“Life and Death(s) of Alan Turing,” 7:30 p.m. March 23 and 3 p.m. March 25,Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph St.; tickets $25-$165 at chicagooperatheater.org
“The Factotum,” Feb. 3-12, Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph St.; tickets are $35-$125 at lyricopera.org. “Proximity,” March 24-April 8, Lyric Opera House, 20 N. Wacker Drive; tickets are $40-$330 at lyricopera.org
Mavis Staples performs at the Chicago Blues Festival at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago, on June 10, 2018. (Nuccio DiNuzzo / Chicago Tribune)
Bard of the blues: Any chance to catch Mavis Staples live is a drop-what-you’re-doing affair. So, clear your calendar for Feb. 4, when this homegrown icon headlines Symphony Center. Opening for her is singer-songwriter Celisse, who, in addition to performing her own music, has supported acts like Mariah Carey, Lizzo, Kesha and Melissa Etheridge. 8 p.m. Feb. 4, Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave.; tickets are $40-$199 at cso.org
A Finnish phenom takes Chicago:Klaus Mäkelä made a sensational podium debut with the CSO last season, leaving eddies of music director buzz in his wake. This time, the 26-year-old Orchestre de Paris and Oslo Philharmonic honcho comes toting Mahler 5 and a U.S. premiere by “Bel Canto” composer Jimmy López Bellido, a Sibelius Academy alum whose music Mäkelä has enthusiastically championed. Feb. 16-18 at Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave., tickets are $45-$350 at cso.org
An uncommon connection between man and instrument: For once, it’s not a cliché to say the sarod runs in Amjad Ali Khan’s blood. His family is credited with reinventing the instrument as we know it today, a fretless lute that’s a core melodic voice in Hindustani music; his sons, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash, are the latest in seven generations of sarodiyas. Khan himself revolutionized sarod playing with his unusual left hand technique and pyrotechnic virtuosity, which will be on full display in this concert with his sons. 3 p.m. Feb. 5, Logan Center Performance Hall, 915 E. 60th St., tickets are $20-$30 at chicagopresents.uchicago.edu
Melissa Aldana performs during the 2018 Thelonious Monk Institute Of Jazz International Piano Competition at the Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater on Dec. 3, 2018, in Washington, DC. (Paul Morigi / AFP-Getty)
A new sax guard swings through town: This winter, we play host to quartets led by Melissa Aldana and Immanuel Wilkins, young saxophonists who released some of the most essential jazz albums of 2022. Aldana’s “12 Stars” less draws your attention than commands it, priming listeners’ expectations before feinting into a new direction entirely; Wilkins’s “The 7th Hand” is a feat of un-self-conscious spiritualism and precocious musicianship.
Sounds too infrequently heard: The holidays come but once a year, but for lovers of music thought-provoking and new, the annual Frequency Festival blows Christmas out of the water. Whereas previous years have been wholly eclectic, the 2023 fest largely coalesces around some recurring themes. For one, guitarist-composers take pride of place — Bill Orcutt, Eli Winter (both Feb. 21 at Constellation) and Julia Reidy (Feb. 23 at the University of Chicago’s Renaissance Society) — though the three’s approaches to the instrument couldn’t be more different. Then, violinist Silvia Tarozzi and cellist Judith Hamann headline two back-to-back days of the festival, realizing French composer Pascale Criton’s three “Sounding Limits” compositions together (Feb. 25 at Constellation) and playing solo sets (Feb. 25 at Corbett vs. Dempsey). Chicago’s own a.pe.ri.od.ic and Ensemble Dal Niente (Feb. 24 and 26 at Constellation, respectively) also headline. Various venues. Times, ticket prices and more details available soon at frequencyfestival-chicago.com
Anti-jazzers of a certain age: Ask members of Snarky Puppy what kind of music they play, and they’ll likely offer some variation of their Instagram bio: “We are a band of musicians playing music on instruments.” But the collective’s approach to improvisation and the architecture of their songs has drawn a dedicated fan base of jazzheads since their star rose in the early 2010s. They tour Chicago in support of their most recent album, “Empire Central.” Show 8 p.m., doors 7 p.m., March 31, Riviera Theatre, 4746 N. Racine Ave.; tickets are $40-$175 at jamusa.com
Hannah Edgar is a freelance writer.
The Rubin Institute for Music Criticism helps fund our classical music coverage. The Chicago Tribune maintains editorial control over assignments and content.
Chase Rice hates cowboys like you hate a rival football team. It’s game recognizing game.
On Friday (Jan. 6), Rice revealed “I Hate Cowboys,” one of two songs that make up the title of his I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go to Hell album (Feb. 10). The new music video is nothing short of a tribute to cowboys — heck, he even worked with Cheyenne Frontier Days to grab the most captivating footage.
If the clip proves anything it’s that Rice doesn’t hate cowboys — he probably even wishes he was one. Several known rodeo stars ride bulls and broncs between shots of Rice walking around the ring, singing his song. If you look close enough, you’ll even spot Chris LeDoux.
Rice’s lyric explains that he hates cowboys because they’re always stealing his girl and he can’t do much to stop it. The power ballad is personal without feeling like the singer has ripped out a page from his diary. It’s almost amusing to hear him shrug his shoulders at some of the most iconic parts of that lifestyle.
“I hate cowboys / They think they’re scared of nothing / They run their mouths about bulls buckin’ / But eight seconds ain’t that long / I wish they’d stay their a– at home,” he sings to close verse one.
Across what Rice is calling his most authentic record yet, he strips away layers of production that often covered up what he was trying to say. The result — at least as we’ve heard it so far — has been a more dynamic mix of songs and styles.
“There’s no tracks anymore. I’m done with the track world. That was a phase of my life and it’s in the past,” he told Taste of Country to close 2022.
To introduce the song, Rice appeared on Good Morning America and explained why he chose a photo of his father for the album’s cover. As host Michael Strahan (a former football player for the New York Giants) introduced the song, the studio snickered.
“I hate Cowboys too, but it’s a different kind,” he says, referring to the rival Dallas Cowboys.
“Key West & Colorado,” “Way Down Yonder” and “If I Were Rock & Roll” are three more songs from I Hate Cowboys & All Dogs Go to Hell that Rice has already shared. He says to expect a heavy dose of the new music when he begins his Way Down Yonder Tour in March.
50 Classic Country Artists Today’s Fans Should Know
Today’s country music stars owe a debt of gratitude to the legends who formed and cultivated the genre, starting in the early 20th century. These 50 classic country artists remain relevant today. Some developed a style that’s emulated on today’s country radio. Others set a bar for vocal talent or songwriting skill.
This list of 50 influential classic country artists features country music singers who started their careers before 1990. It’s ranked by each artist’s current influence on the country music format today, not individual, lifelong impact. Tell us where we got it right or wrong on Twitter.
Richard Crandell was a uniquely talented acoustic guitarist who passed largely under the radar, but rose to some prominence when his song Rebecca was covered by the great Leo Kottke. Sadly, Crandell passed away in October 2022, a fact that went largely unreported at the time.
It will come as little surprise to most of our readers to hear that the music industry is not a meritocracy and that fame is rarely directly proportional to talent. As such, Guitar World would like to take a moment to remember a player who deserved more spotlight than he received in his lifetime.
Crandell was born in 1943 and picked up the guitar in his childhood. Like many acoustic guitar players of the era, he had something of a musical revelation when he discovered the music of American primitive icon John Fahey, a player he would later support.
The guitarist spent the first decades of his life on the East Coast, initially settling down into a job and a marriage in Buffalo, New York. However, it proved unsustainable and Crandell decided to devote himself more fully to his music – a period of change that led to a move to the West Coast and the dissolution of his marriage.
Crandell’s travels led to him finding a home – and space to play – in Eugene, Oregon and eventually, to a gig with folk songwriter and activist Mimi Farina. It was in this context that Leo Kottke first encountered Crandell. The latter performed his composition, Rebecca, for Kottke, who was impressed enough that he covered the song on his 1975 album, Chewing Pine.
In 1980, Crandell was given the chance to commit his own version of Rebecca to tape on his first album, In The Flower Of Our Youth. The album was released as a limited run via Cutthroat Records and failed to make much of a commercial impact, but has since become considered one of the American primitive movement’s great acoustic records.
It is a rich, complex and perfectly-paced showcase: confident and un-showy in its raw execution, yet deeply melodic and never prone to the listless meanderings that are sometimes (unfortunately) associated with the movement.
Despite the lukewarm commercial reception, the guitarist was unabashed in his commitment to music making and recorded Oregon Hill – a duet with friend and fellow guitarist Bill Bartels – in 1983, and a handful of further albums across his career.
In The Flower Of Our Youth was reissued on CD (via Sound Advice) and vinyl (via Tompkins Square) in 2007 and 2008, respectively – proving that appreciation of Crandell’s talent had never faded. He followed it in 2016 with Then And Now – a collection of scattered but nonetheless magical compositions gathered from a 25 year period.
He also featured several times on Tompkins Square’s influential Imaginational Anthems (opens in new tab) compilations – a series that has included work from Michael Chapman, Ryley Walker, John Fahey and Steve Gunn.
In a cruel twist of fate, Crandell was diagnosed in his later years with Essential tremor, a chronic condition that caused him to suffer involuntary movements in his hands and arms, and made playing the guitar very challenging.
Remarkably, a chance discovery of the mbira – AKA the thumb piano – following a tour bus clean-out (Crandell had been driving the vehicle) saw the guitarist find a new lease of life, musically.
Two albums of mbira compositions followed in the late 00s – Mbira Magic and Spring Steel – both of which were recorded in collaboration with Brazilian-born percussionist Cyro Baptista and, by his own admission, brought him more recognition than he had ever received as a guitar player.
“I used to not think I was quite good enough, or I didn’t realize how special what I was doing was,” Crandell told NPR (opens in new tab) in 2009.
“I just kind of took it for granted. So now I’ve got this other gift of the mbira, and being able to do something with that… My mission is to calm the world with this music.”
It is a sentiment with which it is hard to find argument. RIP Richard Crandell.
Philly indie four-piece Highnoon is getting 2023 underway with a dazzling new studio recording of “Are You With Me,” a favorite of their live sets from over the past year. Heard previously in their 2022 Key Studio Session, the bright and brisk song builds and blooms in step with classic alt pop artists like The Sundays, as frontperson Kennedy Freeman meditates on how a person can have a confounding presence (even in their absence).
The song officially hits streaming services on Monday, but today we’ve got an early listen and look at Highnoon’s music video for “Are You With Me.” Directed Lucy Soutter, it intercuts footage of the band performing with scenes of a cosmic picnic on Belmont Plateau where Freeman and their bandmates dig their hands into brightly-colored cakes and veggie trays. Accented with 3D animation Matt Michaud, the video follows Freeman on a journey through a dreamscape of magical realism, ending along a river and a window into another part of the world.
“‘Are You With Me’ is the most thoroughly I’ve ever been able to see one of my ideas through,” Freeman tells us over email. “Working with my friends Danny Murillo to produce the song and Lucy Soutter to create the video has been such a challenging and wonderful experience. The song came to me while I was playing guitar in my bedroom during a time when I was feeling most inspired by pop music. It’s been a privilege to be able to give a song enough time and effort to sound so big, emotive, and cathartic. I loved filming the video with my band and I love playing it with them even more.”
You can see Highnoon play it live this Wednesday, January 11th, when they perform at Johnny Brenda’s alongside Kississippi and Julian; tickets and more information on the show can be found at WXPN’s Concerts and Events page.
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