NYS Music 202​0

Tag: Streaming

  • Rob Mathes to hold online Holiday Concert Dec. 23

    Because of the pandemic, it seemed impossible for Rob Mathes to hold his annual holiday this year. The concert also took a hiatus in 2019 so that Mathes could work with Sting on his musical The Last Ship. Mathes and a generous team have worked to make sure that the 26th concert will take place this December. 

    Rob Mathes

    “The thought of yet another gap year for our annual Holiday concert in 2020 was depressing, but seemingly unavoidable,” said Mathes in a recent press release. “Then a few angels in the form of Deborah and Chuck Royce and Jane and Mike Peak arrived just in time. They agreed to put up some small honorariums for the musicians and crew so we could perform and film a concert with no audience and then stream it for free.” Everyone involved will practice social distancing to ensure safety.

    The concert will be taped at the First Congressional Church of Old Greenwich in Connecticut and hosted by Reverend Patrick Collins and Minister of Music Craig Scott Symons. Accompanied by a choir of Saints & Friends, Mathes and his band will play an hour of free music available for anyone. 

    The band will have Shawn Pelton on Percussion, Zev Katz on Acoustic Bass, Andy Snitzer on Tenor Sax, and Vaneese Thomas and James “D-Train” Williams on vocals. The hour-long show of audience favorites will hopefully bring Christmas cheer to everyone in this pandemic. Emmy winner Bob Conover will film and Grammy winner Rory Young will record and mix the concert. 

    Photo by Lisa Meloni.

    With great political unrest and a national health crisis, with it being very difficult, if not downright dangerous, to get in a room with family and friends this season, a love offering of music is being made possible!

    Rob Mathes

    The concert will air at 8PM on Wednesday, December 23 on Mathes’ YouTube channel. If you can’t make it then, the concert will be up online until New Year’s Day. It is free, but Mathes encourages audiences to donate to one of his favorite charities: Through the Eyes of Children.

    The charity, which Mathes has been supporting since 2003, is a nonprofit that teaches photography to vulnerable children. It allows these children not only to learn about art and photography, but to document their own lives and share their voices.

    Despite the pandemic’s difficulty, his Holiday Concert is not Mathes’ first project of this year. He produced and arranged five songs for the David Lynch Foundation’s Meditate America benefit which feature Graham Nash, Sting, Jim James, Kesha, Angelique Kidjo, Larkin Poe, and Elvis Costello. The socially-distant recorded tracks include a Gospel Choir, String and Horn sections and Rhythm Section featuring Steve Jordan on Drums, (Keith Richards, John Mayer, Sheryl Crow, Neville Brothers) and Larry Campbell on Guitars (Bob Dylan, Levon Helm).

    Rob Mathes

    Rob Mathes also directed the first live streamed show at the Kennedy Center post pandemic with Renee Fleming and Vanessa Williams. He has collaborated with producer Jake Sinclair on a Weezer record, and Sting and Italian pop star Zucchero on Sting’s 2021 song “September.” He also orchestrated and conducted the music for the upcoming movie musical In the Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda, and is currently in pre-production on a record with singer-songwriter Pete Muller. 

    Additionally, Mathes played a role in Robert Plant and Jimmy Page getting full copyright over “Stairway to Heaven.” Led Zepplin and its lawyers asked Mathes to join the team as a music expert because of his arrangement of the song in 2012.

    Catch the concert on Wednesday, December 23 at 8 on YouTube, and keep up with Rob Mathes on his Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

  • Lucinda Williams cranks her Jukebox and Shares New Music

    Lucinda Williams‘ latest endeavor, Lu’s Juke Box, is a six-episode series that will feature a themed set of songs, arranged by Williams herself. The in-studio performances are mostly full-band and will also feature a new song that fits each episode’s theme. 

    In the midst of the pandemic, the series of songs and stories will benefit struggling independent music venues. A percentage of each ticket will go directly to the venue. These venues had encouraged and helped her throughout her career and wanted to return the favor. “My hope for this project is that we’ll be able to help as many venues as we can,” Williams says. “They’re our homes, as artists. We have to take care of them, for the sake of live music to come.”

    Lucinda Williams

    Lucinda Williams is an award winning, respected singer/songwriter, and is about to set upon a musical journey consisting of multiple genres.) Over the course of her career, she released fourteen remarkable albums, received three Grammy awards, and countless accolades, including Time’s Songwriter of the Year of 2001.

    Lucinda Williams

    The performance is tracked live by Grammy award-winning producer, Ray Kennedy, and captured in HD video by Neighborhoods Apart Productions (John Prine, Jason Isbell). You can stream the episodes individually or view the ticket bundles offered. Digital audio downloads, CD, and vinyl pre-orders, are available for purchase. For more information, please visit the website for schedule and ticketing information.

  • Interview: Brooklyn’s Francis Aud Releases FONKY Single

    Brooklyn electro-pop funk artist Francis Aud recently released his newest single “Take Me Home,” blending bittersweet lyrics with an upbeat and unique electric funk. 

    Francis Aud

    Francis Aud started out as a retro-soul artist and released his debut EP Tender Things in July 2017. Since then, his music has evolved into what he calls ‘FONK,’ his own original blend of electro-pop and funk. This refreshing mix gives his music personality and makes his sound memorable. Francis tells NYS Music:

    My biggest inspirations are Al Green, Marvin Gaye, and Sam Cooke. From listening to those guys, I then found Jackie Wilson, James Brown, and then followed the thread of musicians they influenced all the way up to contemporary pop artists like Bruno Mars and Parcels.

    Francis Aud

    What he listened to as a child has been “carried in his psyche,” and he says that listening to “super romantic Spanish crooner music or The Commodores” all the time as a kid still influences his own writing style today. “I almost exclusively write about love, relationships, and desire and I still try to phrase the lines I sing like how a crooner would…old habits die hard I guess!” He’s been releasing several FONKY singles since 2018 in preparation for a bigger release in the future.

    “Take Me Home” looks back on a past relationship with bittersweet nostalgia. “When it comes to lyric-writing,” Francis says, “I’m always trying my best not to write lyrics that aren’t devoid of meaning (if that makes sense.) I think lots of the time when people hear the words ‘pop music’ their mind immediately jumps to this idea of extremely surface level and superficial lyrics that come from lazily relying on overused tropes and clichés. I think good pop music doesn’t have to be devoid of a deeper meaning and there’s lots of proof around me of that.” 

    Francis Aud
    Photo courtesy of Amanda Blide

    Despite its somewhat sad message, the single is in no way a downer. It’s upbeat and dancey. “That comes from my shameless love of 80’s music,” the artist admits. “I seriously, positively, TRULY, love music from the 80’s, especially the movie soundtracks where the arrangements were super over the top and used cheesy keyboard sounds on everything. Because that music makes me happy, I think it’d be worth exploring the juxtaposition between that music and the lyrics and I’m just lucky to call it a success!” The 80’s vibes in “Take Me Home” are clear, but with an original and modern spin that is lacking in some other “cheesy” pop. 

    Francis Aud’s music and website both shine with his positivity and humor. “I don’t think I can ever remember a time where I wasn’t blatantly making terrible dad jokes and puns,” he says about his ever-present humor. “In terms of positivity,” he notes, “I think it comes from both my parents and also comes with the territory of being a musician. With my parents being immigrants and coming to this NYC during the really rough 80s’-90’s, they had to work their asses off to make things happen and they had to have an optimism that things would work out. I think I naturally picked up on that. ALSO, when it comes to being an artist, you almost have to force train yourself to become more positive on a daily basis because there really is no guarantee that your art will be heard or even enjoyed.”

    Despite the global halt brought by the Coronavirus, Francis has been keeping busy working on music: “I’ve been spending most of the quarantine teaching myself more about music production and trying my best to ‘level up’ my home recording set-up,” and “I’ve been working with more getting more comfortable using synthesizers and more of the electronic aspects of music production,” he says, as he can’t record in a full studio with a band right now due to the quarantine. “Aside from that, I’m always trying to hone my writing and working to finding that distinct balance between saying something meaningful and being catchy.” 

    Stream or buy “Take Me Home,” and check out Francis Aud’s other music on his website, Soundcloud, or Spotify. Francis also has a side project where he releases original indie-folk music under the name “stella.”

  • Broadway Buskers Concert Series Returns Virtually

    The Times Square Alliance’s annual Broadway Buskers concert series will pick up again virtually this year starting on July 21 and stream every Tuesday at 7pm until October 27. 

    broadway buskers

    Since its start in 2018, Broadway Buskers has brought Broadway actors and composers’ original work to NYC by hosting live performances in Times Square times so that audience members and Broadway workers could watch before heading to a show. While in-person concerts are out, theatre fans can still watch these weekly concerts to experience the talent the Broadway community has to offer. 

    Tons of familiar faces will be featured over the coming weeks: Rachel Potter (The Addams Family, Evita, Wicked) and Heath Saunders (The Great Comet, Alice By Heart, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert) on July 21, Melissa Li & Kit Yan (Interstate, MISS STEP, Cancelled) and Ben Wexler (Washington Square, 2019 Jonathan Larson Grant Winner) on July 28, Lauren Elder (Mary and Max, Hair, Side Show) and James Harkness (Ain’t Too Proud, Beautiful, Chicago) on August 4, Joey Contreras (Love Me, Love Me Not, Break from the Line, Joyride) and Tamika Lawrence (Caroline, or Change, If/Then, Come From Away) on August 11, and additional performers to be announced. The concerts will be streamed every Tuesday at 7PM until October 27. 

    Ben Cameron returns as the curator and host, and for the second year, the Musical Theatre Factory (MTF) co-curates with queer, trans, and BIPOC artists from the MTF community. While the concerts are free, viewers are encouraged to donate to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS’ COVID-19 Emergency Assistance Fund and the Broadway Advocacy Coalition. 

    Watch the Broadway Buskers concerts on Tuesdays at 7PM from July 21-October 27 at TSQ.org/BroadwayBuskers or on Facebook.

    Broadway Buskers

    Tune in on August 4th at 7pm ET for Lauren Elder (Mary and Max, Hair, Side Show) James Harkness (Ain’t Too Proud, Beautiful, Chicago) and Nathan Salstone (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child OBC)

    and on August 11th at 7pm ET for Joey Contreras (Love Me, Love Me Not, Break from the Line, Joyride), and Tamika Lawrence (Caroline, or Change, If/Then, Come From Away).

    The August 18th performance will feature a Next to Normal  mini-reunion with performances from both Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer.

    Looking ahead to September, Adam Pascal, Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist‘s Alice Lee, and more, will take the virtual stage in September.

    Broadway Buskers continues Tuesday evenings at 7pm ET through October 27 at Additional performers will be announced at a later date.

  • PBS Airs Broadway Shows to Keep Theatre Alive

    As a part of their Broadway at Home series, PBS will be bringing theatre to people at home by broadcasting She Loves Me, Present Laughter, In the Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams, Much Ado About Nothing, and The King and I on a weekly basis starting July 24 and ending August 21. 

    broadway PBS
    Photo by Joan Marcus.

    Since the Broadway shutdown was extended to 2021, many are still finding ways to keep theatre alive. Following the Disney Plus release of Hamilton, on Fridays this summer, PBS will broadcast some past Broadway favorites. She Loves Me will kick the series off on July 24 at 9PM ET. The musical features Tony award winner Laura Benanti and Tony nominee Zachary Levi. This 2016 revival of the 1963 show was the first ever Broadway show to be livestreamed. The next week, Noel Coward’s Present Laughter will air July 31 at 9PM ET. This comedy follows a self-obsessed actor as he deals with women who want him, crazed playwrights, twists, and his impending mid-life crisis. 

    On August 7 at 9, PBS will broadcast In the Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams. The film documents the stories of composer and lyricist Lin-Manuel Miranda and the cast of In the Heights as they prepare for their opening night in 2008. It is about the difficulty of going out and achieving dreams when all odds are stacked against you. Although writing a show about a mainly Hispanic neighborhood in NYC may have been risky, it certainly paid off. In the Heights took home 4 Tonys, including Best Musical and Best Score of a Musical.  Its film adaptation will be released summer 2021.

    For the first time, PBS will show a Shakespeare in the Park show–Much Ado About Nothing from 2019. Danielle Brooks and Grantham Coleman star in this Shakespeare comedy directed by Tony winner Kenny Leon and choreographed by Tony nominee Camille A. Brown. Much Ado About Nothing will air on August 14 at 9. 

    Danielle Brooks and Grantham Coleman. Photo by Joan Marcus.

    PBS wraps the series up on August 21 at 9 with Rogers and Hammerstein’s The King and I. The 2015 revival of this 1951 classic won the Tony for Best Musical Revival. This production was recorded during its 2018 run and stars Tony award winners Ruthie Ann Miles and Kelli O’Hara, who won for this performance as Mrs. Anna in The King and I in 2015. 

    The shows will also be available for streaming on all station-branded PBS platforms, and all PBS station members will be able to watch the shows on Passport. Check your local PBS station for more information. 

  • Ben Folds Sums Up this Year with Single “2020”

    In response to the first six months of this “rollercoaster year,” Ben Folds has written a new single “2020.”

    The song expresses Folds’ take on 2020. “We seem to be currently reliving and cramming a number of historically tumultuous years into one,” he says. “For a moment it was all about the 1918 pandemic. Then we began seeing hints of the Great Depression before flipping the calendar forward to the Civil Rights protests of the 1960’s. Running beneath this is the feeling that we’re in the Cold War, while seeing elements that brought us to the Civil War rearing their head, making us wonder if we’ve learned a damn thing at all.”

    At the start of this year, Folds was on an orchestral tour of Australia. However, it was cancelled due to the pandemic, and is set to continue in 2021 along with his US tour. Since quarantine, Folds has been working on his next album, the sequel to his 2019 New York Times best selling memoir A Dream About Lightning Bugs, and other new creative projects.

    Folds notes that the current sense of accelerated time is not only “personally disorienting,” but “also artistically disorienting.” The single is about that, how so much seems to happen each day that topics can be “out of date or even inappropriate by noon.” “2020” touches on the fact that this year seems like several past years crammed into one.

    Despite today’s stress, Folds optimistically hopes for a better 2021 to come. “2020” is available for streaming now.