American Acoustic with Chris Thile June 22 25, 2016

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1 Press Release FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 31, 2016 The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announces programming for American Acoustic with Chris Thile June 22 25, 2016 featuring Chris Thile, Michael Daves, Gabriel Kahane, Julian Lage, Merrill Garbus, Punch Brothers, Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, and I m With Her (WASHINGTON) The Kennedy Center announced today the schedule and artist lineup for American Acoustic with Chris Thile, a four-day festival curated by virtuoso mandolinist, singer, and composer Chris Thile. The newly announced performances feature collaborations between Thile and other master performers, focusing on the idea that tradition is innovation that lasts. Through a handful of concerts in venues across the Center, American Acoustic with Chris Thile showcases groundbreaking musicians and their unparalleled artistry, as well as the diverse styles prevalent in today s creative landscape. Tickets for these events go on sale to Kennedy Center Members on Monday, April 4, 2016 and to the general public on Thursday, April 7, Chris Thile a musician of extraordinary accomplishment and wide-ranging talent, as comfortable in the symphony hall as at an outdoor bluegrass festival takes audiences on a musical journey rooted in creativity, collaboration, and the value of challenging convention. For the festival s opening on June 22, Thile shares the stage with singer/guitarist Michael Daves his bluegrass duo partner and counterpart on the critically acclaimed, Grammy Award nominated 2011 album, Sleep with One Eye Open. The following evening will see Thile alongside composer/singer-songwriter Gabriel Kahane, guitarist Julian Lage, and vocalist Merrill Garbus, in a special performance featuring each artist s original compositions as well as joint material. Both of these events will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the intimacy of the Terrace Theater. ~ more ~

2 The festival s marquee concert takes place on June 24 at 8 p.m. in the Concert Hall and features an all-star lineup of some of Thile s frequent collaborators and closest friends, including his bandmates in the acoustic quintet Punch Brothers, trailblazing banjo player Béla Fleck, celebrated bassist Edgar Meyer, and the trio I m With Her, which comprises Americana singersongwriters and multi-instrumentalists Sara Watkins, Aoife O Donovan, and Sarah Jarosz. The festival culminates on June 25 with a performance and Q&A session led by Thile and designed for younger audiences. This event takes place at 12 p.m. in the Family Theater. Extending the festival s accessibility and reach to a wider audience, Thile will also lead three educational events that are free and open to the general public a late-night jam session on June 23 and two performance workshops on June 25. These events feature the participation of festival artists and fellow musicians, including Punch Brothers, Aoife O Donovan, and Sarah Jarosz. Known to international audiences as a founding member of the popular and acclaimed bands Punch Brothers and Nickel Creek, Grammy Award winner Chris Thile has also garnered praise for his wide-ranging collaborations and recordings that span from Bach to bluegrass. The celebrated mandolin player, singer, and composer received a 2012 MacArthur Fellowship, recognizing his exceptional talent and continued creative work, and in support of his career and contributions to the world of American music. Thile is credited with creating a distinctly American canon for the mandolin and a new musical aesthetic for performers and audiences alike. His evolutionary approach to composition assimilates elements from myriad musical traditions, pushing and expanding the reach of American music as a whole. Next fall, Thile assumes a new role: host of American Public Media s popular and long-running radio program A Prairie Home Companion, for which he was hand-picked by the beloved outgoing original host, Garrison Keillor. TICKET INFORMATION Tickets for performances as part of American Acoustic with Chris Thile go on sale to Kennedy Center Members on Monday, April 4, 2016 and to the general public on Thursday, April 7, Tickets will be available for purchase in person at the Kennedy Center Box Office, by calling InstantCharge at (202) , and through the Kennedy Center website at A listing of festival events follows. 2

3 AMERICAN ACOUSTIC WITH CHRIS THILE American Acoustic: Chris Thile & Michael Daves Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Terrace Theater Tickets $35 Chris Thile and guitarist Michael Daves first met in 2005 in New York s West Village where they both regularly played at a weekly late-night bluegrass jam. In 2011, their collaborative recording, Sleep with One Eye Open, received a Grammy nomination for Best Bluegrass Album. In this performance, Thile and Daves meet again for a downtown Manhattan-style romp through the bluegrass music canon. American Acoustic: Chris Thile, Gabriel Kahane, Julian Lage, & Merrill Garbus Thursday, June 23, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. Kennedy Center Terrace Theater Tickets $39 Chris Thile brings an eclectic, diverse group of musicians singer-songwriter and composer Gabriel Kahane, jazz/folk guitarist Julian Lage, and vocalist and leader of the band Tune-Yards, Merrill Garbus for a program of musical surprises in the Terrace Theater that features each artist playing some of his or her own material and accompanying each other throughout the show. American Acoustic: Evening Jam Session Thursday, June 23, 2016 at 9:30 p.m. Join Thile and a group of festival performers for a jam session of bluegrass, folk, and more. American Acoustic: Punch Brothers, Béla Fleck and Edgar Meyer, and I m With Her Friday, June 24, 2016 at 8 p.m. Kennedy Center Concert Hall Tickets: $25-$79 This blockbuster show in the Concert Hall features an all-star lineup of some of Thile s closest musical friends and frequent collaborators. The acoustic quintet Punch Brothers, which Thile founded a decade ago, also includes guitarist Chris Eldridge, bassist Paul Kowert, banjoist Noam Pikelny, and fiddle player Gabe Witcher. World-renowned banjoist Béla Fleck and bassist/composer Edgar Meyer perform as a duo. The Americana acoustic trio I m With Her comprises singer-songwriter and fiddler Sara Watkins (a Nickel Creek co-founder), singersongwriter Aoife O Donovan, and singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Sarah Jarosz. American Acoustic: Family Show with Chris Thile Saturday, June 25, 2016 at 12 p.m. Kennedy Center Family Theater Tickets $20 3

4 In a matinee show in the Family Theater geared toward young people, Thile plays a solo set full of traditional and original music while also answering questions from the audience. This is your chance to get up-close-and-personal with the virtuoso musician. American Acoustic: How to Play with Others Saturday, June 25, 2016 at 4 p.m. Chris Thile and his Punch Brothers bandmates lead a workshop on instrumental collaboration. This event is free and open to the general public. American Acoustic: How to Sing with Others Saturday, June 25, 2016 at 6 p.m. Singer-songwriters Aoife O Donovan and Sarah Jarosz join Thile for an open master class and workshop on vocal and string performance. Part of the daily Millennium Stage series, this event is free and open to the public. FUNDING CREDITS American Acoustic with Chris Thile, a program of Arts Across America, is made possible through the extraordinary generosity of the Charles E. Smith Family Foundation. The Millennium Stage is brought to you by Target and The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation. The Millennium Stage was created and underwritten by James A. Johnson and Maxine Isaacs to make the performing arts accessible to everyone in fulfillment of the Kennedy Center's mission to its community and the nation. Additional funding for the Millennium Stage is provided by Bernstein Family Foundation, The Isadore and Bertha Gudelsky Family Foundation, Inc., The Meredith Foundation, The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, Dr. Deborah Rose and Dr. Jan A.J. Stolwijk, U.S. Department of Education, and the Millennium Stage Endowment Fund. The Millennium Stage Endowment Fund was made possible by James A. Johnson and Maxine Isaacs, Fannie Mae Foundation, the Kimsey Endowment, Gilbert and Jaylee Mead, Mortgage Bankers Association of America and other anonymous gifts to secure the future of the Millennium Stage. Kennedy Center education and related artistic programming is made possible through the generosity of the National Committee for the Performing Arts and the President s Advisory Committee on the Arts. 4

5 For more information about the Kennedy Center visit Discover the Kennedy Center on social media: # # # PRESS CONTACT TICKETS AND INFORMATION Camille Cintrón Devlin (202) ; (800) (202) ccdevlin@kennedy-center.org 5

Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival Announces 2013 Artist Lineup

Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival in Oak Hill, NY. Photo by Wm. Moogan. Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival Announces 2013 Artist Lineup Contact: Mary Burdette, Assistant Director Phone: 603.677.2178 Email: burdette@greyfoxbluegrass.com