Results tagged “concert”

              

The Walkmen provided some glimpses of the future on Tuesday night, playing a 17-song set to a pretty-full-but-not-sold-out 9:30 Club. However, if Tuesday's set served a as an indicator as to the band's songwriting direction, then they haven't quite made their mind up yet. The word "boozy" has been used to describe the band's sound in the past, but "boozy" only buys you a finite line of credit. The band's most recent work has showcased multiple divergent influences. 2006's A Hundred Miles Off brought in horns and a bit of punk rock, while 2008's You & Me brought a more soulful sound, making singer Hamilton Leithauser sound like an age-old indie-rock crooner.

A mere forty-five and a half years after the Beatles made their first American concert appearance at the Washington Coliseum on 3nd and M Streets NE, Paul McCartney is making his way back to town -- except tonight, the venue can fit nearly 100,000 people, is located in Landover, and tickets most certainly did not cost two dollars. My, how things change. Anyway, tonight's show should be a good reminder, traffic-wise, for local drivers in advance of the upcoming Redskins season: one should expect quite a bit of volume on the Beltway for some time before and after the concert, obviously. Those looking to avoid such vehicular unpleasantness should take Metro, although prepare yourself for delays due to track maintenance. Hey, at least by using public transportation you can bide your time by counting the number of "1976 Wings Over the World Tour" shirts in your immediate vicinity.

A reminder for those of you with plans to attend tonight's big Elton John and Billy Joel double bill at Nationals Park (or anyone traveling on the Green Line, for that matter): Metro will be providing extended rail service to reduce congestion after the show, but there will not be any Circulator buses or shuttle service from RFK Stadium, as there normally is for Nationals games. Thinking about driving to the first concert at the new ballpark? As Post reporter Robert Thomson says, "Don't think about parking on the street near the stadium unless you really know where you are and what you're doing." It seems like this one's going to be quite the transportation nightmare, so pack your patience if you're heading down.

Bruuuuutal. TicketsNow.com, the resale company owned by Ticketmaster, oversold the upcoming Bruce Springsteen concert at the Verizon Center, WTOP's Mark Segraves reports. The company is in the middle of contacting customers who thought they had awesome seats to the show and letting them know that their dream night with the Boss won't come true. TicketsNow is giving refunds, and some customers are also being offered free tickets in the nosebleed section. The concert is set for Monday, May 18; only the D.C. Springsteen show reportedly saw the overselling problem.

With the controversy surrounding Rev. Rick Warren's inaugural invocation, the LGBT blogosphere lit up when the Presidential Inaugural Committe announced that the openly gay Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson would open Sunday's inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial. But those watching the live event and the subsequent repeat on HBO didn't get to see the invocation. Some who actually attended the event also reported that they couldn't hear the invocation at all. Episcopal Cafe has a transcript of Robinson's invocation.

You already know about the big names performing at Sunday afternoon's inaugural concert at the Lincoln Memorial. Beyoncé, Garth Brooks, Bruce Springsteen and U2, to name a few. A local group can also be added to that stellar lineup.

The rumors were true: the Presidential Inaugural Committee has released the list of confirmed performers for what's being called We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial, scheduled to air on HBO on Sunday, January 18 from 7-9 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. There's no set start time for the concert itself yet, just a note that it will be taped on Sunday afternoon. (NB: We've updated this paragraph to clarify the concert schedule).

We love to pick apart our ranking in the multitude of lists on which our fair city appears. A new one came out today: StubHub, the online ticket marketplace, has compiled a list of the 20 "Most Rockin'" cities in America for 2008, based on summer ticket sales. Out of 90 cities in the ticket sellers' database, D.C. came in 18th. Not too bad, we suppose, and all the cities that came in ahead of us are pretty major markets. With the exception, perhaps, of Richmond, of which the story has this to say:

Richmond, Virginia took the biggest leap in this year's rankings moving up from number 17 in 2007 to number 9 in 2008. The live concert ticket market in the area was bolstered by performances from Jimmy Buffett, Radiohead, Bruce Springsteen, Jonas Brothers and Dave Matthews Band -- the majority of which took place at Nissan Pavilion. Many fans from surrounding areas traveled to Richmond to see these bands since they did not schedule performances in Washington, D.C.

       

The F Yeah Tour began as a music, comedy, and arts fest held in L.A. every summer, and this year it's going on tour, on a bus run by vegetable oil. Seven bands, mostly sharing a cut-and-paste DIY sensibility, played at the Black Cat last night: DCist fave Dan Deacon, Matt and Kim, The Death Set, Team Robespierre, Monotonix, Mannequin Men, and comedian Josh Fadem. The event also featured a table with voter registration, information about Burma, zines and graphic novels. Before it was over, the crowd was carrying drummers and drums, running around in circles, and moving through a snake made out of their outstretched arms.

The local music community has come together several times over the past year and a half to support Callum Robbins, the son of local music mainstay J. Robbins and Janet Morgan. Cal was diagnosed with a genetic motor neuron disease called Type 1 SMA, or Spinal Muscular Atrophy. As explained on the DeSoto records page supporting Cal,

The disease affects the brain's ability to communicate with the voluntary muscles that are used for activities such as crawling, walking, head and neck control, breathing, and swallowing. Type 1 SMA is usually fatal; most Type 1 babies will die before their second birthday. Those infants who survive into childhood are in for a long road of occupational therapy, wheelchairs, and assistive devices. Despite years of work on its treatment and "ongoing promising research," it has no cure.

Cal is doing very well for the moment. J., like any proud parent, is always relating stories of amazing things Cal does and how resilient he has been throughout his young life. According to the literature on SMA, a huge milestone for an afflicted child is his or her second birthday. The mortality rate is very high prior to that time, so the fact that Cal has passed that age is a huge deal. However, even during relative "good times" life with SMA is extremely difficult due to the limited mobility it creates, the need for constant assistance supervision for the child, and the amount of physical therapy involved to keep the child's muscle strength and motor skills from declining. This is why doing a benefit show like the one on Friday can actually make a difference, because the day to day cost of care for a child like Cal really piles on top the normal expenses any family must endure. Every little bit friends can do to help offset that expense helps Cal lead a healthier and happier life.

Things continue to look up for the future of the Fort Reno Summer Concert Series, as well as for general safety concerns in the neighborhood surrounding Fort Reno Park. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released official soil sampling results today which confirmed preliminary results that show arsenic levels in the park are well below what is considered safe.

WTOP has the scoop on the latest from the Fort Reno Park arsenic saga. Officials have said that early testing from 13 soil samples at Fort Reno Park, Wilson High School and Alice Deal Middle School show a reading of 10 parts per million -- far below the up to 1,100 parts per million a U.S. Geological Survey finding that closed the park last week. Safe levels of arsenic are listed as 43 parts per million by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Potentially terrible news for local music fans: The Going Out Gurus are reporting that Fort Reno Park, the site of D.C.'s beloved outdoor summer concert series, has been closed indefinitely after United States Geological Survey satellite imaging reports found high levels of arsenic in the soil there. We've since heard from readers who said they saw the park service today in the process of putting a fence around the entire park to ensure no one enters it.

Today, Radiohead kicks off its In Rainbows world tour in West Palm Beach, Florida, which means that D.C.-area fans are mere days away from getting their fix.

It only took three hours for the five alarm fire in a Mt. Pleasant apartment building to displace roughly 200 tenants. It didn't take much longer for Ryan Wakeman and Chris DeWitt to come up with a way to help. Under the moniker "The Queen of the Water Dolphins", Wakeman and DeWitt organized a benefit concert to raise donations for victims of the fire.

Once again, the Pollstar Concert Industry Awards nomination list shows that D.C.'s no small potatoes when it comes to touring music. Like last year, the 9:30 Club is nominated for Nightclub of the Year, Wolf Trap's Filene Center is nominated for the Red Rocks small outdoor venue award, and Birchmere's Michael Jawarek is nominated for Nightclub Talent Buyer of the Year. There are a few new additions to our area's nods too.

At this point in December, holiday concerts and Handel's Messiah have completely hijacked the classical music schedule. Here are a few other events, not all of which avoid the spirit of the season. After this post, the Classical Music Agenda will take its end-of-the-year hiatus, to return in the New Year.

It's December, which means that much of the classical music concert schedule is devoted to some holiday that apparently occurs near the end of the month. Consult our Holiday Concert Agenda and our Handel's Messiah Agenda, if that is the sort of thing that interests you. Let's try to keep the regular agenda free of that stuff. There is plenty to talk about without it. VOICES: >> The annual residency of the Kirov Opera, the...

FRIDAY: >>Great quadruple bill comes to the Rock and Roll Hotel: Three Stars alums Jukebox the Ghost (pictured right) and tour diarists These United States join DCist fave Ra Ra Riot and Sam Champion. All that for the low, low price of $10 before, $12 at the door. Show 9 p.m. >> The Black Cat once again hosts Cryfest, everyone's favorite dance party that pits The Smiths vs. The Cure, brought to you by DJs...

Most of this week looks sleepy as far as classical music goes. However, by the end of the week, there will be three events, all of which are high on our December list and all happening simultaneously. How to choose? SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY: >> Wagnerian tenor Ben Heppner is scheduled to give a recital on Sunday afternoon (December 2, 5:30 p.m.) at Baltimore's Shriver Hall. It will be Heppner's first appearance in Baltimore and his...

MONDAY >> The Library of Congress Mary Pickford Theatre in the James Madison Building kicks off 5 weeks worth of free Monday night rock and pop films with a rare showing of the 1966 documentary, The Big T.N.T. Show. David "Man from Uncle" McCallum hosts Ray Charles, Petula Clark, the Lovin' Spoonful, Bo Diddley, Joan Baez, the Ronettes, Roger Miller, the Byrds, Donovan, the Seeds, the Modern Folk Quartet, and Ike and Tina Turner taped...

As Washington Performing Arts Society President Neale Perl pointed out, Monday evening's recital at the Kennedy Center was cellist Yo-Yo Ma's 23rd appearance sponsored by the organization. WPAS returns again and again to someone like Ma, not only because one can be reasonably assured that he will deliver a fine recital but also because he can sell out a space like the Concert Hall, even though it is arguably too large for the sort of...

If you are looking for a musical way to celebrate Veterans Day, the Washington Chorus will perform its annual Tribute and Reflection concert this afternoon (November 11, 3 p.m.), in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall (tickets: $15 to $55). Their program includes Joseph Haydn's martial Mass in Time of War. Although there are not that many classical music concerts in the early part of the week, the schedule for next weekend is about as full...

MONDAY >> Performing as Phosphorescent, Matthew Houck (right) dropped his latest effort, Pride, at the end of last month. Reviews for the album have been glowing for the Southern-bred multi-instrumentalist. He’ll be making an appearance at the Black Cat with the help of his touring band. 9 p.m., $10. >> With an album titled Heavy Deavy Skull Lover, you’d be right to guess that The Warlocks aren’t exactly members of a pep squad. Still, their...

Your classical music schedule will be busy for the next two or three weeks, through Thanksgiving, and you have the chance to hear almost as much for free as you do buying tickets. BIG GUNS: >> Emmanuel Pahud is one of the leading flutists of the younger generation. He will be in Washington this week, beginning with a recital with his regular pianist collaborator, Eric Le Sage, at the Phillips Collection on Wednesday (November 7,...

This is going to be an excellent week for serious listeners of classical music, with several major events headlining the agenda and some other good concerts on the sidelines. In the spotlight are a piano recital, a visiting orchestra, Russian music, and possibly the greatest opera ever composed. HEADLINES: >> Pianist Murray Perahia had to cancel his 2006 recital for Washington Performing Arts Society, because of renewed pain from a finger injury in the 1990s...

As they did in 2006, the Cleveland Orchestra came to the Kennedy Center Concert Hall on Monday night for a concert sponsored by the Washington Performing Arts Society. After Washington, they will play a three-concert series at Carnegie Hall and then leave for an extended European tour. The Clevelanders were once arguably America's best orchestra and were always classed among the Big Five symphonic ensembles in the country, a placement that more and more people...

Last week's battle of the orchestras may be eclipsed by this week's. Besides the local symphonic ensembles, there are some visitors in the ring, too. The common theme is the piano concerti of Johannes Brahms, both of them disarmingly beautiful pieces, and here is how we call it. THE ORCHESTRAS >> The week starts strong with the Cleveland Orchestra on Monday (October 15, 8 p.m.) in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. Washington Performing Arts Society...

Written by DCist contributor Angela Olson. Ballet Folklórico de México finishes an engagement at George Mason University Center for the Arts Concert Hall today. The Mexico City based dance company has long been a must see for travelers attracted by their colorful and energetic performances. The dancing exemplifies the spirit of Mexico, and the company puts on a great show for all ages. With six foot tall headdresses, carnival costumes and a live Mariachi band,...

The high point of this week in classical music is surely the Lieder recital by the superlative German baritone Christian Gerhaher and his regular pianist collaborator, Gerold Huber, sponsored by the Vocal Arts Society at the Embassy of Austria (October 11, 7:30 p.m.). Gerhaher's most recent Lieder recording is a knockout, and his program for Thursday night is devoted entirely to songs by Robert Schumann. THE SYMPHONY: >> Riccardo Chailly brings his La Scala Philharmonic...