By Seth Rogovoy
Photo Above: Trombone Shorty by Emily Butler Photography
Ben Folds
Mahaiwe, Great Barrington
Friday, June 5
Piano-playing pop-rock singer-songwriter Ben Folds first broke through in the mid-’90s with his group Ben Folds Five. While grungy guitars ruled the airwaves, Folds harked back to the likes of Elton John, Billy Joel, and Paul McCartney with his embrace of sophisticated melody, literate storytelling, and sociocultural critiques, as heard especially on his album “Rockin’ the Suburbs.”
mahaiwe.org
Itay Dayan
The Foundry, West Stockbridge
Thursday, June 11
Israeli-born, Boston-based clarinetist Itay Dayan brings his band and his highly stylized approach to klezmer—the celebratory music of Eastern European, Yiddish-speaking Jewry—to The Foundry. Dayan’s distinctive aesthetic blends traditional sounds with contemporary influences, including Middle Eastern pop, jazz, and electro-psychedelic touches. Dayan is equally skilled at exploring klezmer’s more poignant, reflective aspects as he is playing dance music rooted in Old World weddings and 20th-century swing. He also integrates his comedic sense into his performance, as can be seen in the video from his recent single, “Moomia.”
thefoundryws.com
The Bad Plus
The Egg, Albany, NY
Tuesday, June 23
After 27 years, The Bad Plus is saying farewell with this year’s tour. The group became famous for blurring the lines between avant-garde jazz, indie rock, and pop. They are perhaps best known for their “deconstructionist” approach to rock covers—taking songs by artists like Nirvana, Blondie, Radiohead, and Aphex Twin and reimagining them with complex rhythms and startlingly original improvisational structures. While rooted in jazz, they draw heavily from 20th-century classical music, prog-rock, and folk. Their sound is often described as “loud” or “heavy” jazz, characterized by Dave King’s powerful, rock-influenced drumming.
theegg.org
BEATrio: Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda & Antonio Sánchez
Mahaiwe, Great Barrington
Saturday, June 27
In BEATrio, multiple Grammy Award-winning banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck joins forces with an unlikely instrumental lineup featuring Columbian harpist Edmar Castañeda and percussionist Antonio Sánchez to perform a genre-defying blend of jazz, bluegrass, Latin rhythms, and global folk traditions. Even those who do not usually favor banjo or harp cannot remain immune to the allure of the trio’s innovative textures and styles—and its healthy sense of humor and playfulness.
mahaiwe.org
Cécile McLorin Salvant
Saratoga Jazz Festival, SPAC, Saratoga Springs, NY
Saturday, June 27
Cécile McLorin Salvant, the hottest jazz singer on the contemporary scene, with three Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album to her credit—as well as a MacArthur “Genius” Grant and a victory in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition—may not even be a jazz singer. Salvant’s work is “a deliberate tapestry of baroque, vaudeville, blues, and French folk traditions.” Her performances are already legendary, noted for their dramatic weight—she often embodies characters within her songs, making each piece feel like a miniature play. And she’s even recorded songs by Kate Bush and Sting.
spac.org
The Klezmatics
Yidstock: The Festival of New Yiddish Music, Yiddish Book Center, Amherst
Thursday-Sunday, July 9-12
This year’s Yidstock Festival culminates on Sunday night with a special 40th anniversary concert by the Klezmatics, who almost singlehandedly dragged klezmer kicking and screaming into the modern era. The group takes the fundamentals of Old World music and combines it with elements of rock, jazz, funk, reggae, folk, and world music, making it speak the particular language and accent of its time. The four-day festival also includes performances by Eleanor Reissa, Frank London’s Klezmer Brass Allstars, rising star Riki Rose, and legendary Yiddish singer Ethel Raim in a new and unique program featuring the Socalled Band.
yiddishbookcenter.org
Richard Thompson
Levon Helm Studios, Woodstock, NY
Friday-Saturday, July 10-11
A brilliant songwriter, deft guitarist, and consummate entertainer, the iconic British folk-rock legend Richard Thompson is a must-see. Combining intensity and humor, Thompson is that rare performer who can deliver songs you’ve never heard before and make them instant favorites.
levonhelm.com
Ziggy Marley and Trombone Shorty
Tanglewood, Lenox
Tuesday, July 14
Nine-time Grammy Award winner and humanitarian activist Ziggy Marley extends his father’s reggae legacy to new frontiers, fusing its traditional sound with other genres, modern sounds, and new recording techniques. Marley’s latest album, “Brightside,” features “Many Mourn for Bob,” the first time Ziggy has written an original song specifically dedicated to his father’s legacy, featuring a collaboration with his brother Stephen Marley and including archival recordings of Bob Marley’s voice.
A Grammy Award-winning NOLA icon, Trombone Shorty is often credited with bringing the brass band tradition of New Orleans into the mainstream. He has developed a signature style he calls “Supafunkrock”—a high-energy fusion of jazz, funk, soul, and rock.
bso.org/tanglewood
Lucy Dacus
MASS MoCA, North Adams
Thursday, July 23
For the last decade, indie-rock singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus has been winning fans with her hypnotic, moody sounds and her deep, rich alto vocals. Recently, Dacus has favored a chamber-pop approach, integrating violins, cellos, and harps into her sonic mix. Dacus is also known as one-third of the Grammy Award-winning indie supergroup boygenius, alongside Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers.
massmoca.org
Branford Marsalis Quartet
Mahaiwe, Great Barrington
Friday, July 24
Saxophonist Branford Marsalis is one of the most influential, revered, and wide-ranging figures in contemporary music, such that he has three separate bios on his website: one each for his work in jazz, classical, and as a composer. The NEA Jazz Master, Grammy Award winner, and Tony and Emmy Award nominee is equally at home performing concertos with symphony orchestras and sitting in with members of the Grateful Dead, but the core of his musical universe remains the Branford Marsalis Quartet, founded in 1986. After more than three decades of existence with minimal personnel changes, this celebrated ensemble is revered for its uncompromising interpretation of a kaleidoscopic range of both original compositions and jazz and popular classics.
mahaiwe.org
Vance Gilbert
Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Goshen, CT
Friday, July 24-Sunday, July 26
Vance Gilbert, the multitalented, virtuoso new-folk singer-songwriter who is funny enough to be a standup comedian, brings his brilliant songcraft, poignant portraits, political commentary, and wit to the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival. Other performers at this year’s festival include The Slambovian Circus of Dreams, Susan Werner, Eileen Ivers, Nerissa & Katryna Nields, Pamela Means, and Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience, among others.
falconridgefolk.com
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit
Tanglewood, Lenox
Tuesday, July 28
Americana singer-songwriter Jason Isbell makes his Tanglewood debut with his band, the 400 Unit. Since his stint with Drive-By Truckers, the six-time Grammy Award winner has been hailed for his literary approach to Americana that blends the grit of country-rock with the precision of a short-story writer.
The Grammy Award-winning opening act Patty Griffin is known for her extraordinary vocal range and a lyrical style that creates vivid emotional portraits. Her work is so respected that it has been covered by an incredible roster of artists, including Emmylou Harris, Joan Baez, the Chicks, Linda Ronstadt, and soul legend Solomon Burke.
bso.org/tanglewood
Bang on a Can LOUD Weekend
MASS MoCA, North Adams
Thursday-Saturday, July 30-August 1
Just as Tanglewood features the music of minimalist godfather Philip Glass this summer, so too does Bang on a Can in its three-day LOUD Weekend festival. The Bang on a Can All-Stars will perform a brand-new arrangement of the iconic Philip Glass album “Glassworks” in its entirety. (Expect Glass to be the subject of even more concerts next year, when he turns 90.)
Eliza Bagg and Mantra Percussion premiere Annie Gosfield’s one-act chamber opera “Emma”—exploring the radical vision, ideals, and enduring legacy of Emma Goldman, one of the most legendary and influential social activists in U.S. history. Other composers being celebrated include Martin Bresnick, Raven Chacon, David Lang, Ken Thomson, Shelley Washington, Julia Wolfe, and Michael Gordon.
massmoca.org
Laurie Anderson
Ozawa Hall, Tanglewood, Lenox
“Amelia,” Thursday, Aug. 13; “The Republic of Love” with Sexmob, Sunday, Aug. 16
Over the course of two days in mid-August, Tanglewood presents a mini-Laurie Anderson festival, featuring works composed and performed by the artist whose name is synonymous with performance art. “Amelia,” featuring text from Amelia Earhart’s pilot’s log from her last trip around the world, sees Anderson on vocals, violin, and electronics backed by members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra plus guest violinist Martha Mooke.
“The Republic of Love,” an evening of music and storytelling, reflects on America’s and Anderson’s past and present. Reexamining Anderson works such as “Big Science” and “Language Is a Virus,” and weaving in the words of Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, John Cage, Gertrude Stein, and others, Anderson—joined by the genre-defying ensemble Sexmob and other special guests—creates a concert that is provocative, intimate, and ultimately a celebration of artistic freedom. Anderson also curates Lou Reed Drone, a drone-based sonic experience utilizing guitars from her late husband Lou Reed’s collection, on Sunday, Aug. 16.
bso.org/tanglewood
Lucy Kaplansky
Guthrie Center, Great Barrington
Saturday, Aug. 22
Lucy Kaplansky is a cornerstone of the contemporary folk scene, known for her crystalline voice, impeccable harmony work, and a career path that is as unique as her confessional songwriting. After becoming a fixture in the 1980’s Greenwich Village folk scene—performing alongside peers like Shawn Colvin and Suzanne Vega—she walked away from a burgeoning music career to pursue academics. She earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Yeshiva University and established a private practice in New York City. It wasn’t until the early 1990s that Colvin finally convinced her to return to the studio. She produced Kaplansky’s debut album, “The Tide” (1994), which prompted her to close her practice and return to music full-time. Her music blends folk, country, and pop, often characterized by intimacy, emotional intelligence, and a knack for making the personal feel universal.
guthriecenter.org
Judy Collins
Tanglewood, Lenox
Sunday, Aug. 30
Judy Collins has performed at Tanglewood 11 times since her first concert at the venue in 1968, and this summer’s Sweet Judy Blue Eyes: Farewell Tour offers a final chance to experience her timeless voice and storytelling live. From Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now” to Stephen Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns,” Collins has created some of the most iconic recordings by the best songwriters since the 1960s, when she helped bring the talents of Randy Newman, Leonard Cohen, and Bob Dylan to the masses. Joining the folk-pop-art singer are co-stars Mary Chapin Carpenter and Rosanne Cash, joined by special guest Amanda Shires, winner of the 2017 Emerging Artist of the Year prize from the Americana Music Association.
bso.org/tanglewood
