Considered by Rolling Stone to be the biggest pop star from Mali, guitarist and composer Habib Koité has been called the biggest pop star in West Africa. He’ll perform at City Winery in Manhattan on Sunday, November 13, presented by World Music Institute.
Hailing from the musically prolific West African nation of Mali, Habib Koité is a modern-day troubadour descended from a noble line of griots, from whom he inherited his passion for music. His grandfather played the kamele n’goni – a traditional string instrument associated with the legendary hunters from the Wassoulou region of Mali.
Koité is perhaps best known for his danssa doso, a unique blend of local rhythms with traditional hunter’s music, and often plays his guitar on open strings in the style of a n’goni. His latest studio album Kharifa, released in 2019, was recorded in Bamako and is rich with the musical traditions and instruments of his country.
Founded in 1985 as a not-for-profit, World Music Institute (WMI) has served as one of the leading presenters of world music and dance within the United States. WMI is committed to presenting the best in traditional and contemporary music and dance from around the world with the goal of inspiring wonder for the world’s rich cultural traditions, promoting awareness and appreciation and encouraging cross-cultural dialog and exchange. WMI presents at venues throughout the city and depends on both public and private funding to accomplish its mission.
The show on November 13 starts at 8pm, with doors at 6pm. Tickets are $30-45, available here.
Caffe Lena will present the third annual TrueSongs concert on Sunday, November 12th at 8pm, highlighting local lives changed for the better by Capital Region non-profits. The concert features previously untold redemption stories involving a local non-profit organization, each will be told in words and songs at Caffe Lena.
A young woman builds her life back after a stroke, two friends start a music shop in Haiti. A daughter finds peace and fulfillment in her final days with her mother, and a woman moves forward after homelessness. Each of these previously untold redemption stories involves a local non-profit organization, and each will be told in words and songs at Caffe Lena.
TrueSongs was created in 2019 by the Saratoga Springs music venue Caffe Lena to show how arts and social service organizations can work together to create a healthy, whole community. Now in its third year, TrueSongs will give five community members the chance to share their personal story with a live audience.
Each storyteller has been working with a songwriter who will follow the story with a compelling new song meant to bring out the emotional heart of the experience.
“We proudly partner with schools, churches and community centers throughout Haiti,” said Bill Cole, owner of Cole’s Woodwind Shop and founder of the non-profit Horns for Haiti. “The resilience of the Haitian people and their love of music has made it possible to implement projects during a very difficult time in this third world country. We’re providing musical instruments and supplies to hundreds of school children and also mentoring young entrepreneurs in starting their own sustainable businesses in the music industry.”
The TrueSongs Lyrics of Life concert will take place on Sunday, November 12th at 8p.m. at Caffe Lena. Tickets bought in advance are $20 to the general public and $10 for students. Tickets bought at the door are $22 for the general public. Likewise, $5 student rush tickets will be sold at the door with valid ID. The concert will also be available to live stream for free on Caffe Lena’s YouTube channel. For more information and to purchase advance tickets, click the link here.
The Rock and Roll Playhouse, a family concert series, has announced a nationwide run of shows for Halloween weekend, with four happening in NY.
Running from Saturday, October 29 to Sunday, October 30, the classic rock-themed series will feature 18 shows cross country.
As for NY’s concerts, day one will include a Tom Petty tribute show at Garcia’s at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, and a “New Orleans Funk & Soul” themed Halloween party at Brooklyn’s Industry City featuring Black Tie Brass. The doors of Garcia’s will open at 1:30 p.m. before music begins at 2, while Industry City’s show will run from 1 to 2.
On day two for the Playhouse, Brooklyn Bowl will open its doors for a “Halloween Spectacular” show at 11 a.m. before music starts at noon, and City Winery Hudson Valley in Montgomery will open its doors for its own Halloween-themed concert at 10:30 a.m. before music also starts at noon.
The Rock and Roll Playhouse was founded in 2013 at the Brooklyn Bowl by Amy Striem, a NJ-based youth educator, and Peter Shapiro, co-owner of the Brooklyn Bowl and owner of the Capitol Theatre. Since its beginning, the program has held performances in over 42 venues across 30 cities for its core audience of children under 10.
List of Weekend Shows:
October 29:
Bluebird Theater – Phish (Denver, CO)
Pour House – Phish (Charleston, SC)
Garcia’s – Tom Petty (Port Chester, NY)
Sevier Park – David Bowie (Nashville, TN)
Industry City – New Orleans Funk & Soul (Brooklyn, NY)
October 30:
Brooklyn Bowl New York – Halloween Spooktacular (Brooklyn, NY)
Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia – Prince (Philadelphia, PA)
Last Concert Cafe – Grateful Dead (Houston, TX)
Portland House of Music – Phish (Portland, ME)
The Espee – Grateful Dead (San Antonio,TX)
The Grey Eagle – Grateful Dead (Asheville, NC)
Thalia Hall – Phish (Chicago, IL)
Mission Theater (AM Show) – Grateful Dead (Portland, OR)
Mission Theater (PM Show) – Grateful Dead (Portland, OR)
City Winery Hudson Valley – Halloween Spooktacular (Hudson Valley, NY)
The Water Street Hall-O-Ween show will take place on Friday, October 28, featuring local and regional Rochester bands have the opportunity to perform on the Hall stage, performing as another band. There will also be a haunted house in The Club, curated by Casey Arthur, as well as a costume contest.
poster by Sadie May
Water Street Music Hall is located alongside the Genesee River and has been Rochester’s premier music venue since 1999. With more than 20 years of shows with artists from Ashanti to St. Vincent, we look forward to continuing our mission of bringing the finest musical acts to the ROC.
The lineup of bands and their musical costumes includes:
Branford Marsalis continues to thrill audiences around the world while racking up achievements across diverse musical platforms, even after four decades in the international spotlight. From his initial recognition as a young jazz lion, he has expanded his vision as an instrumentalist, composer, bandleader and educator, crossing stylistic boundaries while maintaining an unwavering creative integrity.
In the process, he has become an avatar of contemporary artistic excellence winning three Grammy Awards, a Tony nomination for his work as a composer on Broadway, a citation by the National Endowment for the Arts as Jazz Master, and a 2021 Primetime EMMY nomination for the score he composed for the Tulsa Burning documentary.
Wynton Marsalis preview 0115
Tickets for Music Hall Members are now on-sale, while single tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, October 28th, at 10am via phone, (518) 273-0038, in person, or online at www.troymusichall.org. Tickets for Branford Marsalis are available at the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall Box Office, 30 Second Street, Troy, Monday through Friday 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. More information on the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall and upcoming programs is available on the website at TroyMusicHall.org.
Music has been an integral part of the moviegoing experience ever since the Lumière Brothers screened the first silent shorts with musical accompaniment in Paris in 1895. Today, Upstate Films is continuing the tradition of celebrating film and music together at its theaters in Rhinebeck and Saugerties and many other locations via its traveling Hudson Valley Picture Show.
From musicals to documentaries and biopics to staging live performances before and to complement silent film screenings, Upstate Films is putting a uniquely creative touch to the fusion of music and moviegoing.
The venture launched in 1972 as a single-screen, not-for-profit cinema in Rhinebeck. In 2010, it added to its footprint by leasing Woodstock’s Tinker Street Cinema for a decade. With its departure from Tinker Street in 2020, Upstate Films moved on to an even grander space, The Orpheum Theater in Saugerties. This new acquisition was forged by Upstate Films’ newly appointed co-executive directors, the creative team of Jason Silverman and Paul Sturtz.
“The Orpheum Theater is a true classic,” says Katie Cokinos, Senior Programmer for Upstate Films. “It opened in 1908 as a vaudeville theater and has a big, beautiful stage which is ideal for live events. We’ve had everything from staged readings of plays to poetry and book events and, of course, a bounty of live music. That’s not only here, but also at our Rhinebeck location and throughout the area with our Hudson Valley Picture Show.”
Launched in Spring 2021, The Hudson Valley Picture Show is a traveling film experience, one that is often staged “al fresco” at some of the region’s most bucolic backdrops. With the purchase of a state-of-the-art outdoor screening system including a 24-foot screen, an ultra-bright projector and a powerful sound system, Upstate Films has popped up at venues like Olana, Kingston’s Old Dutch Church, Catskills Community Theater and many more.
“Our Hudson Valley Picture Show events always incorporate a live music component,” says Jason Silverman. “My co-director Paul and I really love music. And since we are new to the area, we thought this would be great way for us to not only get to know but showcase the unparalleled wealth of musical talent that call the Hudson Valley home.
“Over the course of the past two years, we’ve probably had 40 acts performing in our theaters and Hudson Valley Picture Show,” continues Silverman. “We’ve had everyone from jazz greats like Bill Ware and local legends like Simi Stone to up-and-coming younger bands and solo artists as well as a revival of the John Street Jam, a long-running singer-songwriter event in Saugerties that was without a home for a few years. ”
On Friday, October 28, Upstate Films’ Hudson Valley Picture Show will present a screening of the 1920 horror classic, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, with live musical accompaniment by The Anvil Orchestra. Founded by Roger Clark Miller (Mission of Burma) and Terry Donahue more than 30 years. The event will take place at The Community Theater in Catskill, New York.
“The marriage of silent film and live musical accompaniment is something we’ve been exploring since we reopened The Orpheum in November 2021,” adds Silverman. “Our opening weekend actually featured a screening of Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr. with a live score by pianist Barbara Lee. It was something that not only pleased adults but kids as well. We look forward to doing more of it in the future.”
Upstate Films and its Hudson Valley Picture Show have also boasted screenings of many of the best music documentaries. The list includes the Prince-focused Sign of the Times, the recent Bowie doc Moonage Daydream and Anonymous Club, a critically-acclaimed profile of enigmatic singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett.
Barry’s book is a ‘fly on the wall” account of the final chapter of Helm’s life and the scene that grew up around his legendary, star-studded home concerts, the Midnight Rambles. These weekly events were a way for Helm to both recover from bankruptcy and battle against throat cancer, something that had robbed him of his legendary voice for a time. Barry spent years just hanging and recording conversations with Helm, both in his home and on the road. The book, which took the writer 14 years to complete, may provide the truest look into the spirit of this legendary American music-maker and his triumphant final turn with the Grammy-Award winning album, Dirt Farmer, before his passing in April 2012.
Barry was joined at the sell-out event by Barbara O’Brien, who served as Helm’s manager during this final chapter, and Radio Woodstock’s amiable morning host Greg Gattine. The trio provided many humorous and heartfelt anecdotes about their time with Helm, providing unique insight into both his music and his life in Woodstock. The event was co-sponsored by Inquiring Minds Books in Saugerties which, in this writer’s estimation, has the largest selection of music biographies and histories to be found in the Hudson Valley. For more information on Barry’s book, visit rockrollramble.com.
Silverman continues: “We think of ourselves as a cultural center, something that is about film, of course, but also about the other arts that flourish here in the Hudson Valley. We pay every musician who plays here too, which is important. There are many ways to use a theater and music is just one. But it’s one that is a true cornerstone of Hudson Valley culture, one, as with Helm’s story, can have a lasting, worldwide impact.”
Upstate Films will mark the holidays with two additional musical events. Woodstock-based singer/songwriter Chris Maxwell will be teaming with Holly Miranda and Ambrosia Parsley on a quirky holiday musical/variety show, The Great Big Christmas Show. Slated for December 11 at The Orpheum Theater, it will include tune created by the trio for their 2016 holiday CD, Catskill Christmas. Also upcoming in a holiday themed rock-and-roll performance by the youngsters at Woodstock’s own rock school, The Rock Academy, at The Orpheum on December 4 at noon.
Ithaca’s Orchestra, the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, will open its 46th season on Saturday, October 29. The opening night for the orchestra’s 2022-2023 will feature acclaimed pianist Max Levinson.
The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra was founded in 1976, but has come a long way since. In the past decade alone, the CCO added a Youth Orchestra and a Diversity Career Fellowship program, which creates opportunities for college-aged musicians in underserved communities. Each CCO Season promises an orchestral series, chamber music series, holiday concert and free family concerts. This season will see five orchestral concerts and three chamber music concerts in the next months. In November, March and June, be on the lookout for the CCO’s family concert and storytime programs, as well as shows from the Youth Orchestra.
Max Levinson will play Mendelssohn’s “Fingal’s Cave,” Respighi’s “The Birds,” and finish with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5: “Emperor.” Levinson is a highly awarded musician — he was the first American to win First Prize at the Guardian Dublin International Piano competition, he won the Avery Fisher Career Grant, and has been praised in such esteemed papers as the Boston Globe.
Levinson comes to the CCO under new Interim Music Director Grant Cooper. This is Cooper’s first season with the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra, he is also a Visiting Professor and conductor at Ithaca College.
Opening night begins at 7:30 on October 29 in Ford Hall at Ithaca College. Tickets are $10-$30 and can be purchased here.
moequeous, the supergroup featuring members of two influential jam bands who got their starts in the Queen City of Buffalo, will reunite for the second time ever at Buffalo’s Town Ballroom on Saturday, October 29.
The musicians joining forces for this evening of music include moe. guitarist Al Schnier and drummer Vinnie Amico, alongside Aqueous’ guitarist Mike Gantzer, bassist Evan McPhaden and drummer Rob Houk.
It’s a cool full circle thing to intertwine the AQ and moe. worlds so directly-Both bands have history at Town Ballroom and share strong roots being from Buffalo, too. There’s something really connective about that, and I’ve always felt a unique kinship and chemistry when making music or even just hanging with those guys. Much of AQ’s early inspiration came from seeing moe. too, so that should tell you just how truly special this will be!
Mike Gantzer
The Halloween show marks the second performance of the group, the first time featuring Aqueous’ Dave Loss, all of whom joined forces for a set in 2017.
We love our boys in AQ almost as much as we love Buffalo! Last time we all got together for a moe.queous throw down, it was such an awesome amalgamation of our two bands, and we knew it was something we should definitely do more often. And this time it’s perfect – in Buffalo, Halloween weekend, Bills vs. Packers, Town Ballroom!! It doesn’t get much better than this (unless of course, Josh Allen is sitting in).
Al Schnier
Just added earlier in the day, a family friendly Soundcheck Costume Party with moe. and Aqueous will be held from 4:15-6pm, with entry to benefit the American Cancer Society while giving kids a chance to dance to your favorite music!
Entry passes will be first come, first served. Attendees must be from the same household. A majority of the entry passes will go to families able to donate $100 or more. The remaining entry passes will go to families able to donate below $100. The entry request link will go live on October 25 at 4:00 pm EST. Those awarded entry will have 60 minutes to make their donation using the provided link or their entry will be released to the next family, so watch your inbox!
Entry requests can be made here. Entry passes to the family friendly Soundcheck Costume Party does not include the moe.queous evening show. You do not need tickets to the moe.queous evening show to attend this event.
Tickets for moequeous are on sale now. Find tickets here.
NNAMDÏ, the genre bending rapper, singer and producer from Chicago will be coming to the East coast on Friday, October 28 to play Baby’s All Right in Brooklyn. The rapper has been releasing music since 2013, but his latest record is some of his most technical yet.
“Dedication,” track nine on NNAMDÏ’s newest album Please Have A Seat, contains a myriad of influence and originality. The song starts out with squeaky sounds, like two balloons rubbing against each other, in a “Thug Tears” by JPEGMAFIA type of avant garde, deconstructed beat. Then it breaks down into a Tierra Whack-esque perky r&b beat, which NNAMDÏ sing-raps over in a simple monotonous sound. But not even a minute later the song explodes, with layered melodies that evoke Kanye’s gospel choirs. By the time the song ends, with sparkly electric ad-libs and harmonious voices chanting, “It’s dedication,” I can barely remember how it started.
These hops from genre to genre are performed absolutely seamlessly; you don’t even realize it has happened by the time it is over. It’s that consistent inconsistency that defines NNAMDÏ himself; in his songs, performances and personality.
NNAMDÏ came up in the Chicago DIY scene but he broke into the mainstream in 2020 with his eclectic album BRAT. His previous albums had a rep for being weird and inaccessible, so in this album NNAMDÏ set out to make a “hummable” album, hoping to reach a wider audience.
I consciously wanted to make more communal things, some things that bring people together rather than alienate them — even though I love music that is dissonant and jarring and sometimes off in different ways.
NNAMDÏ, as told to FADER.
In the next months, NNAMDÏ is heading on a tour across the US that will finish in London and Berlin. He’ll be at Baby’s All Right in Brooklyn on October 29, click here for tickets. On October 30, he’ll be doing a Q&A and record signing at Rough Trade NYC.
NNAMDÏ Tour Dates
October 18 – Davenport, IA – The Raccoon Motel
October 19 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th St. Entry
October 20 – Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club
October 22 – Chicago, IL – Metro
October 24 – Cleveland, OH – Mahall’s
October 25 – Toronto, ON – The Garrison
October 26 – Montreal, QC – Diving Bell Social Club
October 27 – Johnson, VT – Northern Vermont University
Blue Note New York has partnered with The Basie Presents for the Pat Metheny Side-Eye Show at the Beacon Theatre on Saturday, June 24.
The 20-time GRAMMY Award winning guitarist and composer will perform during the 2023 Blue Note Jazz Festival, marking the first time Metheny has played in New York since his Sony Hall run in 2019.
Side-Eye is Metheny’s trio project that features the guitarist performing alongside a rotating cast of young, envelope-pushing players. This edition of Side-Eye features Chris Fishman (keyboards, piano) and drummer Joe Dyson.
Pat Metheny’s Side Eye project embodies the very best in jazz, so it’s fitting that this show at the Beacon Theatre next June will be part of the storied Blue Note Jazz Festival. By virtue of its namesake, the Count Basie Center for the Arts and its off site promotion arm, The Basie Presents, is honored to be working with the Blue Note team and Mr. Metheny himself in bringing this concert to another one of our region’s storied performance venues.
Izzy Sackowitz, COO, Count Basie Center for the Arts
Pat Metheny’s versatility is almost without peer on any instrument. Over the years, he has performed with artists as diverse as Steve Reich to Ornette Coleman to Herbie Hancock to Jim Hall to Milton Nascimento to David Bowie. Metheny’s body of work includes compositions for solo guitar, small ensembles, electric and acoustic instruments, large orchestras, and ballet pieces, with settings ranging from modern jazz to rock to classical. As well as being an accomplished musician, Metheny has also participated in the academic arena as a music educator. He has also been a true musical pioneer in the realm of electronic music, and was one of the very first jazz musicians to treat the synthesizer as a serious musical instrument. It is one thing to attain popularity as a musician, but it is another to receive the kind of acclaim Metheny has garnered from critics and peers.
Blue Note New York will announce their annual New York City jazz festival in Spring 2023. Tickets for Pat Metheny at the Beacon Theatre are now on sale.
