Fountains Ahoy

The final part of this week’s proGram was finding its way up and up.

Für Elise- Jon Batiste
Madeline- Jeffery Broussard & The Nighttime Syndicate
Ooh Poo Pah Do- Delfeayo Marsalis & Uptown Jazz Orchestra


I Promise To Listen- Marquis Hill Ft. Manasseh
Zero Gravity In The 12th Dimension- Wayne Shorter (live)
Smilin’ Through- Wayne Shorter (Live)


Lions Heart 2- Ben Goldberg, Todd Sickafoose & Scott Amendola
***pre-recorded conversation with Scott Amendola***
Self Evident- Ben Goldberg, Todd Sickafoose & Scott Amendola


When the Time is Right- Javon Jackson & Nikki Giovanni
Farrar Konam- Liraz & Adrian Younge
Atlas- Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad

Into The Wind

The middle part of the proGram was inside the waves that moved the airs.

Sacrifice- Yaryu

Serial Killer- Sunflower Bean
German Camp- Crash Harmony
Strong Forever- Blitz Vega Ft. Johnny Marr


Morphine Drip- The Fleshtones
Fly The Astral Plane- The Chesterfield Kings
Whisky Dreams Bourbon Schemes- The Chesterfield Kings


Del Mondo Strangewich- lespecial
***pre-recorded Conversation with Luke Bemand of lespecial***
Enter Sandstorm- lespecial


Radio Ronza- Afro Celt Sound System
Melancaholic- Sonova
Neptune Rings- Sonova


Dr. Groove (Somethin’s Burnin’ Down)- King Pari

Listen To The Movement

The first past of this week’s proGram was out in the talls with ears up.

Holding out for You- Marcus Trummer
Cheap Fantastical Takedown- Blitzen Trapper
Sell, Steal or Die- Sugar Brown


The Czar- Bruce Katz Band (Live)
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed- Bruce Katz Band (Live)
Brawler Theme- Howlin Rain
Down A Drain- Howlin Rain


Late Too Early- Danny Bell and His Disappointments
Sickening Elixir- Jake Blanchard
Morphine Boogie- Jake Blanchard
Feel- Plastic Crimewave Syndicate


Up the Creek- Yaryu

Here To There: Goldberg Sickafoose Amendola

For friend of the proGram, Scott Amendola, the drum kit isn’t so much an instrument as a musical portal. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist & capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Scott applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings. His closest musical associates include guitarists Charlie Hunter, Nels Cline, & Jeff Parker, Hammond B-3 organist Wil Blades, violinist Jenny Scheinman, saxophonist Phillip Greenlief, clarinetist Ben Goldberg, bassists Trevor Dunn, & Todd Sickafoose, all players who have each forged a singular path within and beyond the realm of jazz. While rooted in the San Francisco Bay Area scene, Scott has woven a dense & far-reaching web of bandstand relationships that tie him to influential artists in jazz, blues, rock and new music. A potent creative catalyst, the Berkeley-based drummer is the nexus for a disparate community of musicians stretching from Los Angeles and Seattle to Chicago and New York. Whatever the context, Amendola possesses a gift for twisting musical genres in unexpected directions. Over a career spanning more than 3 decades, he has forged deep ties across the country, and throughout the world. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist, and capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Mr. Amendola applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings.

Ben Goldberg played jazz on the saxophone and classical music on the clarinet. While getting a B.A. in music from the University of California at Santa Cruz, studied clarinet with Rosario Mazzeo, the dean of 20th century clarinet teachers. Mr. Goldberg started playing and studying klezmer music, which has a virtuosic clarinet tradition. He pondered how to use the clarinet in jazz & improvised music as he was getting tired of the search for “authenticity” through note-for-note reconstructions of old recordings. In Sweden he met Ziya Aytekin, a traditional zurna player from the Caucasus and felt/heard how much his music had in common with, for example, the late work of John Coltrane. He wondered if he could use klezmer music to explore this connection between the traditional and the “avant-garde.” One day he got together with some cats with whom he’d often played traditional klezmer music with and he suggested they take a familiar tune and cut loose on it to see where it might go. The result was exhilarating and had a powerful, lasting effect on him. It was his first taste of music as a transformative, liberating force. This was the beginning of his creative musical path; in the years since then, Mr. Goldberg continued to work with and cultivate the musical forces that were present at that time – research, education, musical fundamentals, diligence, attention to detail, and a relentless pursuit of truth.

Todd Sickafoose is a Tony & Grammy award-winning composer, producer, arranger, orchestrator, bandleader & double bassist. He has performed on hundreds of recordings, toured internationally, appeared at music venues/festivals from Carnegie Hall to New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, and played on national television & radio programs including the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with Conan O’Brien, The Artists Den, & NPR’s Mountain Stage. He is known known as a musical cross-breeder who stretches across genres. In 2004, he began performing/recording in a duo format with folk poet, activist & cultural icon Ani DiFranco. Their relationship has developed for nearly 2 decades and have made 7 albums, 2 concert DVDs, and performed over 1000 shows together. In 2007, he began working on Anaïs Mitchell’s folk opera, ‘Hadestown’, as arranger/orchestrator & music producer. After years of development and regional productions, the show opened at the Walter Kerr Theater on Broadway in 2019 and won 8 Tony Awards, including Best Musical & Best Orchestrations for Mr. Sickafoose and collaborator Michael Chorney. He produced the Hadestown Original Broadway Cast Recording which won a 2019 Grammy for Best Musical Theater Recording. ‘Hadestown’ continues to run both on Broadway and a North American Tour. Straddling the worlds of folk, indie rock, jazz & chamber music, his own band Tiny Resistors has performed at the North Sea Jazz Festival, Stern Grove Festival, Angel City Jazz Festival and been featured on many “Best-Of” lists including the Village Voice & JazzTimes. Writing for Tiny Resistors, he recently composed Bear Proof, a long-form chamber jazz hybrid commissioned by the Doris Duke Foundation.

I had the chance to catch up with Scott ahead of the November 9th record release event here in Madison at the North Street Cabaret. We get into how much he enjoys coming to Madison and specifically playing a spot that has an audience that’s there for it! I have to dsay, it does me/us good to know how welcoming some of our hometown haunts are to people doing the hard work out there of traveling and sharing their art. We get into the new record of course. On ‘Here to There’, Ben Goldberg, Todd Sickafoose, & Scott Amendola play music inspired by the bridges of Thelonious Monk compositions. We dissect one of the tracks that really called me into it. We will hear things off this record for sure, other things (including anything new one of these minds may have brought to the team before the show) and improv. Scott and I also compare/contra=st this project to another recent project with the group SticklerPhonics and I think there’s more room for more projects of Scott’s to come to Madison and play with us.

Photo by Lenny Gonzales

Luke Of lespecial with a lehanG

lespecial is redefining the term “power trio”. They sound & feel more like a heavy Prog-tronic Power Trio. The multi-instrumentalists from Connecticut continue to push the boundaries of what a three-piece band is capable of both live and in the studio with their their latest full-length album that dropped Autumn 2023, “Odd Times”. The band’s signature blend of “heavy future groove” combines headbanging metal riffage & surgical rhythmic precision with bone shaking 808s, sub synths and ethereal vocal stylings for a dance floor that welcomes moshing, dancing and hip swaying alike. Listeners are taken on a journey to the musical netherworld through esoteric soundscapes punctuated by raw, primal power. Odd Times, lespecial’s darkest and heaviest record to date, is an enigmatic and compelling musical project that explores the ever-changing nature of time amidst isolation. With heavy riffs, tribal drumming, and hints of levity, it’s a captivating journey crafted in collaboration with Havok‘s David Sanchez. An intriguing blend of old-school metal and modern djent-inspired riffage awaits in this haunting sonic experience.

Band Members:

Luke Bemand – Bass, Synth, Percussion, Vocals
Jonathan Grusauskas – Guitar, Synth, Sampler, Percussion, Vocals
Rory Dolan – Drums, Sampler, Percussion, Vocals

I had the chance to hanG out with Luke before this party rolls into Madison on November 8th at the Majestic. We got into what this tour and this event with Doom Flamingo is shaping up to be, including some of the special treats for not only your ears from lespecial, but prepare your eyes for some serios effects/lights. We go deep into their latest full-length mentioned above ‘Odd Times’ and how for me as a listeners, the heaviness of it came at a time when that rawness was needed, so we got into how if felt to create it, working with David and it felt like they too really got to enjoy being back together in the same space working as this is a band meant to be in a live setting creating the moods and supporting the grooves. We also talk a little bit about the conclusion of legetaway V, what this festival errr retreat err hang out, yes all of this, is all about. Sounds like a place to be a part of for the cool kids for sure. I have listened to this band for a few years and I just really enjoy the space within their music to invite others in and we get into one of those artists, the incomparable and friend of this program, Mike Dillion. We get into what kind of energy he brings, a project they created together and the coolness of playing with some like Mike that he grew up listening to and learning from since kidhood.

Hazy Leaves Glow

The final part of the proGram this week had people shaking their heads and bodies.

Intro to Liza- Delfeayo Marsalis & Uptown Jazz Orchestra (live)
Lil Liza Jane- Delfeayo Marsalis & Uptown Jazz Orchestra (live)
Blues Waltz- Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (live)


Blues for D.P.- Wayne Escoffery
Have You Heard- Javon Jackson & Nikki Giovanni
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing- Javon Jackson & Nikki Giovanni


Zero Gravity – Unbound- Wayne Shorter
Zero Gravity In The 11th Dimension- Wayne Shorter
Step On Step (Smoke Break)- Marquis Hill Ft. Manasseh
Enter the Stargate- Marquis Hill

Broiled Or Baked

The middle part of the proGram was cookin’ with it.

Uaná Eté- Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad Ft. Joyce & Tutty Moreno
Moreno- The Midnight Hour
Snake Stance- Nasheet Waits


No Clue- Robeone
Voodoo Vortex Part 1- Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius


The Cape- Jenny Scheinman Ft. Bill Frisell & Nels Cline
***pre-recorded conversation with Jenny Scheinman***
The Sea Also Rises- Jenny Scheinman Ft. Carmen Staaf
Shutdown Stomp- Jenny Scheinman Ft. Bill Frisell & Julian Lage


Greenish Tents- Thumbscrew
We The People- Jeff Lederer Kirk Knuffke Bob Stewart Matt Wilson w/Curtis Hasselbring
Buttigieg VS. Saunders- Jeff Lederer Kirk Knuffke Bob Stewart Matt Wilson w/Curtis Hasselbring


Little Footsteps- Kris Davis Trio
Five Suns- Patricia Brennan Septet
Joy- Younee (live)

With A Little Extra Burst

The first part of this week’s proGram just exploded off the board.

Malamu- Yasmin Williams Ft. Marcus Gilmore & Immanuel Wilkins

Jack In The Box- Harlem Lake
All Tore Up- Guitar Jack Wargo
Serves Me Right To Suffer- JD Simo & Luther Dickinson
Come On- JD Simo & Luther Dickinson
Mr. Boogie’s Back in Town- Mitch Woods
BK’s Broiler- Bruce Katz Band (Live)


Life Is What You Make It- James Biscuit Rouse Ft. Vernon Reid
Stuck in the Mud- Thee Sacred Souls
Getting It Going- OJT
Loose Space- OJT


Emi Aluta- Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 Ft. Sampa the Great

Someone Asked Me How I’ve Been- Jonah Yano
Europinion- Sonova
Shadow Boxer- Peder
Surely Not Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting- Peder

All Species Parade by Jenny Scheinman

Jenny Scheinman, acclaimed violinist & composer, for many years a stalwart of the New York jazz and creative music scenes, returned to her native Humboldt County, California in 2012. There she has continued her artistic evolution. For years, Scheinman nursed the idea of a musical homage to Humboldt, in particular the area known as the Lost Coast, a remote, earthquake and mudslide-prone region of coastal northern California, where she was raised. She considered the project from many angles. She wrote a song cycle based on the “crusty characters” from her hometown and sketched out a surrealist multimedia project based on the county’s namesake, Alexander Von Humboldt. She collaborated with filmmaker Ai Aiwane on a video installation about the Mattole River (Cojo Come Home) and immersed herself in the sounds & cultural history of the region, with hopes of conjuring, in music, the extraordinary diversity of life in the Pacific Northwest. Her epic new release, All Species Parade, is the result of these meditations. The all-original program is brought to life over the course of a double album, by pianist Carmen Staaf, guitar icons Bill Frisell, Nels Cline, & Julian Lage, and the revered rhythm team of bassist Tony Scherr & drummer Kenny Wollesen. It was recorded by Eli Crews, mixed by Tucker Martine, and mastered by Greg Calbi. Though ‘All Species Parade’ offers a brimming 72 minutes of music, it only contains 10 songs, several of which are over 11 minutes long, and 3 of which (“Jaroujiji,” “The Sea Also Rises” & “All Species Parade”) comprise an Ellington-inspired suite that clocks in at 20 minutes. This long-form approach is a departure for Scheinman, whose 10 previous albums tend toward a more concise, song-like aesthetic. Jenny’s playing is radiant, soulful, stamped with jazz vernacular and old-time fiddling tradition and anchored by her superb lyrical poise & masterful technique. In addition to her extensive work in jazz & improvised music with Jason Moran, Brian Blade, Ron Miles, Allison Miller, Vinicius Cantuaria and many more, she has toured and recorded with songwriting legends such as Lucinda Williams, Bruce Cockburn, Robbie Fulks, Rodney Crowell, Lou Reed, Ani DiFranco & Joni Mitchell. She is featured on the original cast recording of Anais Mitchell’s hit musical Hadestown, and has written several feature length movie scores, including the forthcoming Avenue Of The Giants.

I had the opportunity to catch up with Jenny on release day of this epic tale, ‘All Species’ Parade’ out now on Royal Potato Family and I quickly shared just how this album made me feel (Mycelium or yourcelium?). We got pretty deep into the how this album came together from the garden to the table, including dissecting a track or two and certainly getting into the involvement of that 3 headed guitar monster. Jenny has 2 friends of the program, Mr. Julian Lage & Mr. Bill Frisell as well as Nels Cline on this album, all have a place and reason to share the story as it goes down. We touch on just how and why the song length on this album increased for a few of the tunes, and what memory/comment did she old with her that kept her ear/mind open for just the moment to let things spill over. The album is an incredible story that as a listener, I found myself being welcomed in and not truly wanting to leave until I soaked it all in, thought about it and then wanted to share.

photo by: Kory Thibeault

In Formations

The final part of this week’s program was a honking line of forward, on!

On the Move- Chromeo Ft. Cannons
Göç Mevsimi- Peki Momés
Names in the Sky- The Secret Garden Ft. Jo Wallace
Somethin’ Somethin’- King Pari


Black Saba- The Arab Blues
**pre-recorded conversation with Karim & Rami of The Arab Blues**
Fakarouny- The Arab Blues
Sweet Munyati- The Arab Blues


C’mon Every Beatbox- Smoke and Mirrors Sound System Ft. Zoe Devlin
Rid Them (Piper Street Sound RMX)- Piper Street Sound
Exodus- Novalima
The Lockdown Reel- Afro Celt Sound System


Sufi Habibi- Karavan Sarai

On The Streets

The middle part of this week’s proGram had a chance to get out on that town.

I Put a Spell on You- Samantha Fish (Live)
Gang Woman- The Zac Schulze Gang
Halo- Eddie 9V
Take Time to Taste It- Devon Allman
Sahara- Devon Allman


Bus Stop- King Llama
Orange Was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk- Thumbscrew


I Feel It- The Allergies
Sunrise- The Baker Brothers Ft. Hannah Williams


Them Changes- James Biscuit Rouse
***pre-recorded conversation with Biscuit Rouse***
Down By The River- James Biscuit Rouse


Not Fade Away- Grateful Brass Ft. Erin Honeywell LIVE Guild Theater 2​/​13​/​24
Big Tuba- Hot 8 Brass Band

In The Breeze

The first portion of this week’s proGram was getting a little help finding the wind beneath itself.

Spying By The Numbers- Librarians with Hickeys
Always- The Coward Brothers


3:35 AM- Mississippi MacDonald
Long, Lean, and Lanky- Mitch Woods
Sold Gold Cadillac- Mitch Woods
Street People- JD Simo & Luther Dickinson
Right Down There- JD Simo & Luther Dickinson


Soul Theme- Jimmy Carpenter
Grizzle n’ Bone- Tas Cru (live)
Tush- Joe Flip (live)


Concrete Blues- Randy Lee Riviere
Mojo Thief- Kat Riggins & Her Blues Revival
Don’t Feel So God Today- Bruce Katz Band (live)

Biscuit & Buddy from James BISCUIT Rouse

James “Biscuit” Rouse, a native of Philadelphia, is a highly sought-after drummer with a remarkable track record. Not only has he showcased his drumming prowess, but he has also served as the musical director for renowned artists such as Miss Lauryn Hill, Vivian Green, & Syleena Johnson. Biscuit’s musical journey has encompassed a diverse range of genres, from collaborating on House music projects with producer Kenny “Dope” Gonzales to touring alongside notable figures such as Living Colour, Ashanti, Kelis, Nile Rodgers, Vernon Reid, & the Screaming Headless Torsos. Biscuit has also proven himself as a skilled producer & songwriter, collaborating with a multitude of exceptional artists. Noteworthy among these collaborations is his work with the award-winning Haitian producer and film scorer Jerry Wonda (of Fugees fame). Biscuit’s collaboration with the rising artist “The Violin Diva” resulted in the production of the enchanting track “Bethlehem,” featured in the 2022 film “Miracle Before Christmas.” Biscuit is now preparing to release his debut album “Buddy and Biscuit”, which celebrated its worldwide release in the Autumn-time of 2024 on German funk/jazz label Leopard Records, part of Broken Silence Distribution. For this release, Rouse has taken the repertoire from Buddy Miles, re-imagined it in his own style and created the first ever Buddy Miles Tribute Album. It features songs that are Buddy’s classics such as “Life is What You Make It” and the Neil Young penned song “Down by the River”, which Buddy made popular. Biscuit chose to make this project because George ‘Buddy’ Miles has inspired him as a musician. ‘Buddy’ is the blueprint for what Biscuit is as a musician & musical director. The Tribute album is very timely, as the underrated soul funk legend is finally being recognized and was inducted into the R&B Hall of Fame on Sunday, October 6th at a ceremony where Biscuit will accept the award on the family’s behalf with an acceptance speech.

I had the honor of chatting it up with Biscuit to get a little deeper into the way this album came toGether. I had no idea that we’d get into talking about family to the program, Mr. Greg Tate of our Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber family, and how his words are part of this journey. We dive into a couple of the tracks that it turns out where the first to be worked through, “Down By The River” and “Them Changes”, both of which show off a foundation that is recognized but a new groove to enhance that feeling of nostalgia. Vernon Reid‘s part in this is a fun story that sounds like the way it would go and just what was one of the best things Biscuit picked up by working and creating with friend of the program David FUZE Fiuczynski. It was words that I think we all need to hear at some time in our lives. Frankly speaking, I do believe THIS is one of the hottest album of 2024 and I sure hope all the right ears get to it to recognize it.

The Arab Blues Present Saba

The Arab Blues traces a trajectory between tradition and innovation, embodying the call of tradition and the response of the diaspora. The synthesis Rami & Karim create is an auditory expression of not only the power & persistence of tradition but equally the validity of its transformation under the unique cultural conditions they inhabit. The basis of their work is the Turath, the canon of classical Arab compositions & improvisational techniques. This rich heritage consists of melodic & rhythmic exposition and instrumental interaction at countless levels of depth. They interpret these forms in the context of the sounds of the contemporary North American metropole. In this project, the equally lush traditions of Blues & Jazz in Chicago provide the context of how the two approach and assimilate the Turath. This marriage of forms is fruitful because of the emotional range of the Blues and the improvisational flexibility and ingenuity of Jazz. The Arab Blues was developed by Lebanese-Egyptian oud & guitar player Rami Gabriel through a research fellowship at the Center for Black Music Research, 2 Illinois Artist grants, and a decade of experience as a jazz and blues musician in Chicago. Native Egyptian percussionist Karim Nagi, a 2-time beneficiary of the Doris Duke Building Bridges grant for Muslim Artists, a TEDx speaker, and accomplished teacher completes this duo with his energetic & lyrical rhythms on Riqq, Tublah and alternatively assembled drum-set. Chicago inspires this duo to amplify & expand the sound of their Arab folk traditions – discovering the trajectory of their community’s music; the future of their past sound. They are participating in this city’s musical possibilities by celebrating and embodying the potential of the immigrant experience. On their debut full-length album, Saba, The Arab Blues growl & romp their way through original Arabic themes & arrangements in the blues traditions of Chicago, Mississippi, & Mali. Drawing from their acoustic & electric repertoire, the album reflects the anger, protest, and dislocation of our cultural moment. In the hands of The Arab Blues, traditional forms such as the Sama’i (‘Sama’i Kurd guitari’) and Levantine folk music (‘Golan’) are transformed into electrifying journeys. On Saba, an Egyptian and a Lebanese musician make a definitive statement of their sound crafted in Chicago. Forged in the diaspora, this sound bellows freedom, longing, & defiance.

I was very excited to get to spend a little time with Karim & Rami ahead of The Arab Blues October 17th album release event in Madison at the North Street Cabaret. We dive deep into the new album, dissecting a few tracks and not only how they came toGether to form the songs, but the true, human feelings within these tracks that at times smack you right in the face. We talk about humanity, trying to get a solid footing as a group steeped in a traditional music whose people have been vilified in the U.S.. So much of this music and these feeling resonated with me form the moment I hit play, I could FEEL this music and the emotions that clearly went into creating it. There is talk about the influences of both Black Sabbath & Led Zeppelin, where they recently found themselves rocking the same stage the mighty Zep first played. They are in the middle of the Ven Diagram where tradition holds hands with the possibilities of the future and some heavy grooves to help wake people up and open their senses. This show..This album..These people!

An Orb In Time

Final part of this week’s proGram lit the ways.

Break G4S I. The Machine- Ize Trio Ft. John Patitucci
Elemeno I. Be A kid!- Ize Trio Ft. John Patitucci
A Hearty Breakfast- Ryuichi Sakamoto
Beyond Reason- Ryuichi Sakamoto
The Seed And The Sower- Ryuichi Sakamoto


Letters: Pt. 2 (Aftermath)- ARKAI
Milonga Hermética- Dario Acosta Teich Ft. Timna Comedi & Eleanor Dubinsky
Improvisation No. 4 / Les Cinq Doigts, No. 5- Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli


WindBeast- Taka Nawashiro
Merry-Go-Round of Life- Plínio Fernandes
Guachi Guaro- Dred Scott Trio Ft. Tom Beckham
First Steps- Kris Davis Trio Ft. Johnathan Blake & Robert Hurst
Los Otros (The Other Side)- Patricia Brennan Septet


Ball and Chain- M. Azanyah and Mausiki Scales & The Common Ground Collective

Off The Grounds

The middle part of this week’s proGram was a cheery of a find.

Major- Mulatu Astatke And Hoodna Orchestra
Sultan Umnaru’s Trip- Mamman Sani & Tropikal Camel
Little Rays of Sunshine- Sharif Galal


Heaven’s Bad Day- Manu Chao Ft. Willie Nelson
No Hiding Place- Jake Blount & Mali Obomsawin Ft. Sidy Maiga
Issa- Songhoy Blues


Galope- LUIZGA & Edgar Valente
Ay, Ay, Ay- Locomondo w/Amparo Sanchez
Revolução dos cocos- Nomade Orquestra


Ya Dirati- Wishamalii, Ne’mat Battah & Kari Ikonen
Ya Gaus Ya Meeran- Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
Sri Valli- Arun Ramamurthy Trio


**pre-recorded conversation with Maestro Chitravina Ravikiran**

Voodoo Dolls (Version for String Quartet)- Apollo Chamber Players
3 Zweistimmige Lieder, Op. 43: No. 1, Wenn ich ein Vöglein wär- Barbican Quartet (Arr. for String Quartet by Christoph Slenczka)
Pizzicato Polka- ZRI (Arr. by ZRI for Ensemble)

Choices Are There

The first part of this week’s proGram is pretty clear to me.

Sweet Feelin’- Gregg Allman Band (Uncle Sam’s, Hull, MA, 7/1/1983)
You Gotta Make it Through the World- Devon Allman
Trouble- The Mystery Lights
Together Lost- The Mystery Lights


Feast- SPRINTS

greenarrowradio promo- Jade MacRae
Shots Fired- Jade MacRae
Music Maker- Cliff Beach
Anyone In Love- Jalen Ngonda
Loved Up- Joel Sarakula


Sand Castle Head Hunter- The Headhunters
Carlitros- Todd Clouser & JT Bates Ft. John Medeski
Chaser- Calibro 35
Lunedi Cinema- Calibro 35 Ft. Marco Castello

OVK Bach Melharmony Festival 2024

The 2-day Twin Composer Festival in Madison on Oct 19-20 will showcase the works of two trailblazing composers Oottukkadu Venkata Kavi (OVK) from India, who lived from 1700-1765 and his no less illustrious Western contemporary Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750). This Entertainment Extravaganza seeks to not only raise appreciation for the contributions of these two great composers but also aims to raise funds for Planet Symphony for Environment’s Collective Micro Climate Action Movement (CMCAM) initiatives such as Roof & Land Greening and Rainwater Management across the world. The festival will feature concerts by icons of Western & Eastern cultures, dance & theater performances as well as Emerging Artists’ shows. The jewel in the crown will be the Melody, Harmony & Melharmony concert on Oct 20th at 4PM in the Oakwood Auditorium featuring ace Carnatic Violinist V V Subrahmanyam and his son V V S Murari, Chitravina N Ravikiran, the inventor of Melharmony, Apollo Chamber Players (a popular String Quintet from Houston), the iconic Mrdangam player Prof Trichy Sankaran and renowned percussionists Patri Sathish Kumar & K V Gopalakrishnan. Band students of Memorial High School will also present a composition of Maestro Ravikiran arranged by Ben Jaeger, Band Director of Memorial High School. The festival will felicitate Maestros Trichy Sankaran & VV Subrahmanyam with Lifetime Achievement Awards and honour Apollo Chamber Players for their distinguished contributions. Art Patrons Dr C M Venkatachalam & Shekar Viswanathan get special awards for supporting and promoting music, dance and culture in North America. Talent promotion: An important highlight of the event is morning to night concerts on the opening day by emerging talents from WI, IL, MN, NJ, WA, NY, NE, CA and other states as well as from India with eminent artistes such as Bhargavi Balasubramanian, Krithika Natarajan and Rajeev Mukundan. The second day starts off with a musical on the “Life of Oottukkadu Venkata Kavi” by a Chicago based team led by C Ranganathan followed by short recitals by various students of Meenakshi Ganesan’s Kalaanjali Dance Company. The festival will culminate in a choral rendition of select compositions of OVK by artists of North American Melodic Ensemble.

I had the complete honor of speaking with Maestro Chitravina N Ravikiran ahead of this incredible event. We got into a little nbit about what Melharmony is and how it will be showcased. Maestro Ravikiran did a wonderful job filling us in on each performer and their background and the energy they will provide during these unique performances. Each artist heading to Madison for this festival is/are a master(s) in the subject field, and toGether, they will work to open minds, history books and the blinds to a successful path forward thinking about each other and the planet we all reside upon. Not only will the music be uplifting, spontaneous and downright a one of a kind offering, this type of scene would not be complete without the focus on our planet and the initiatives we as individuals can do our small part with to help cool the planet’s warming, ease Mother Nature’s aches and provide stability to a world spinning with daily turmoil that we just cannot wait for other’s to act on. All the information you need on the festival is here including dates/time/location etc. I look forward to seeing you at the main event with your open minds and thirty earholes.

Corey Harris & Cedric Watson: True Blues

Corey Harris & Cedric Watson: True Blues

Millennium Stage at The Kennedy Center

Hosted by friends of the proGram, Corey Harris, a MacArthur Grant recipient, and featuring renowned Creole/blues musician & friend of the proGram, Cedric Watson, True Blues chronicles the extraordinary living culture of the blues in an evening of music and conversation.

Corey Harris was featured in Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: A Musical Journey, which followed Harris on a roots journey to West Africa. Cedric Watson has an apparently bottomless repertoire of songs at his fingertips; he plays everything from forgotten Creole French melodies and obscure Dennis McGee reels to more modern Cajun and Zydeco songs. Unlike many of his contemporaries, he is also a prolific songwriter, writing almost all of his songs on his double row Hohner accordion. Watson’s songs channel his diverse ancestry (African, French, Native American, and Spanish) to create his own brand of sounds.

Blues is at the center of their artistry, and the blues takes center stage in True Blues, the concert.