Updates
ELLNORA Featured in Relix Magazine
[11.22.11] Back in May, Relix.com scooped the story on ELLNORA's 2011 lineup. A quick flip to page 15 in the "Soundcheck" section for the December edition of Relix Magazine reveals John Ephland's take on The Great Flood, Marc Ribot, mixed media, and all things ELLNORA.
TONY RICE PERFORMANCE AT ELLNORA CANCELED AND STEVE DAWSON AND SPECIAL GUESTS SET TO JOIN LINEUP
[9.8.11] The Tony Rice Unit, scheduled to perform a free concert on Friday, September 9, at noon, has canceled its appearance due to a recent death in the Rice family.
David Spelman, artistic advisor to the festival, stated that "all of us at Krannert Center are deeply saddened by this news and join fans and friends all over the world in supporting the Rice family during this time."
Taking up the reins in the noon-hour concert slot will be "string virtuoso" Steve Dawson, an artist Spelman notes has been on the ELLNORA wish list for some time (Acoustic Guitar). "We are so fortunate that Steve was available on such short notice and are thrilled to welcome him into the festival." As a solo player and with violinist Jesse Zubot in the duo Zubot and Dawson, Steve Dawson has earned a reputation as an "indefatigable musician, songwriter and maestro of all things strung and fretted" (Ottawa Xpress).
His self-made label Black Hen Music has taken him into the studio as a producer for Jenny Whiteley, The Sojourners, and guitar festival axe masters Bill Frisell, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, the North Mississippi Allstars, and Bob Brozman on a tribute album to the Mississippi Sheiks. A grant to study pedal steel with Greg Leisz resulted in 2008's Telescope, a probing of textures and sounds with layers of country, folk, jazz, hip-hop, western, funk, and rock. Nightshade, his latest release, pairs brooding lap steel licks with volatile picking for a scalding eloquence.
For his FREE, Friday, September 9, noon-hour ELLNORA debut, Dawson will be joined by several as-yet-to-be-named special guests, most likely including a few faces familiar to those eagerly anticipating this year's festival.
Family Friendly and Free at ELLNORA
[8.31.11] ELLNORA 2011 will be home to nearly 30 events, almost half of which will be specially delivered free of charge. From intimate concerts with classical artists to lobby jam sessions, there's an affordable experience to match every guitar craving. Krannert Center's 1.4-acre lobby is a great place for audiences of all ages to mix and mingle, and it offers parents handy access to restrooms, drinking fountains, and Intermezzo cafe for quick snacks or a nutritious meal between performances.
After the rush of the $5 Opening Night Party—which has complimentary, kid-friendly hair braiding, temporary tattoos, and guitar pick jewelry making—make plans to return on Friday, September 9, for free concerts at noon, 4pm, and 5pm featuring The Tony Rice Unit, Luther Dickinson and Alvin Youngblood Hart, and Chris Thile and Michael Daves.
For the youngest concert-goers in your life, Dan Zanes and Friends will team up with the East Central Illinois Youth Orchestra for a noontime concert on Saturday, September 10, that's just $12 for adults and $5 for kids. It will be followed by a FREE lobby show at Stage 5 with the Homebrew Ukulele Union and students from Mary Anne Jusko's fifth grade class at Robeson Elementary School, who will play original music on homemade instruments. Saturday's lineup will also feature a free lively acoustic set from Rory Block and Cindy Cashdollar at 5:45pm.
Opening Night Party Launches ELLNORA
[8.29.11] The parking is free at the Opening Night Party on Thursday, September 8, and when you move through the garage corridors to the sounds of acoustic and electric six-strings all around you, you'll sense that this is going to be an extraordinary evening. Once you emerge into the effervescing Lobby to join the throngs of all ages, you'll know it's true: ELLNORA is starting!
Toshi Reagon and BIGLovely ignite the evening in front of the Great Hall with high-octane, earthy, funk-stoked rock before the energy shifts to Stage 5 for the sophisticated, spiraling African riffs of Malian bluesman Vieux Farka Touré. Daniel Lanois—the brilliant, visionary guitarist and producer who festival goers will remember from the 2005 lineup—winds things up with his group Black Dub—a thrilling, soulful mix of dub, reggae, blues, and rock featuring the young phenom Trixie Whitley and one of the greatest drummers alive, Brian Blade.
Be sure to head out to the Amphitheatre throughout the evening for two sparkling acoustic sets from the Russ Barenberg Trio and a bevy of tasty temptations from Marble Slab Creamery, Shanghai 1938, Rosati's, Mas Amigos, the Great Harvest Bread Company, Hickory River, Siam Terrace/My Thai, and Mirsung. Back indoors, visit the ELLNORA Studio Store to preview eDream's visual effects for The Great Flood, pick up an ELLNORA t-shirt, and marvel at the guitar-inspired artwork, custom amps, and vintage six-string beauties—or just let loose in the Lobby with temporary tattoos, guitar pick hair extensions from H2O Studio, jewelry making, and guitar sculptures that you can help complete.
It's the Opening Night Party at ELLNORA: find yourself here! Get in for just $5 on Thursday, September 8, at 6pm.
SCHEDULE CHANGES
[8.29.11] The Sonic Garden will now host Redhooker on Friday at 10pm and Noveller on Saturday at 10pm.
Head inside to the ELLNORA Studio Store—not outside in the Sonic Garden—for live free video of the Taj Mahal Trio playing with the Carolina Chocolate Drops and Alvin Youngblood Hart on Friday at 9pm, and be there again on Saturday at 10pm to catch live free video of Robert Randolph and the Family Band with Luther Dickinson.
The Delta Kings Set the Stage for Local Guitar Heroes Night
[8.22.11] Local axe slammers lay down the groove for ELLNORA's unmistakable style in a FREE rocking celebration of CU's music scene. Hosted by The Delta Kings, this scorching warm-up includes some of the community's finest six-string practitioners, particularly those known for original sets. Kayla Brown, Lou DiBello, Kathy Harden and Andy Baylor: The Diva and The Dude, Tim Donaldson, Ryan Groff, Jim Hewitt, David Howie, Michael Van Holten, Robin Musson, and My New Guilty Pleasure, with backing vocals by Rena Day, Robin Musson, Mike Van Holten, and Jenny Forshey Carpenter, will delve into at least three group numbers to pay tribute to the late George Harrison—a man who contributed greatly to the worldwide popularity of the guitar.
Krannert Center Senior Associate Director Rebecca McBride shared that "it's really no surprise that ELLNORA emerged from the roots of Champaign-Urbana's rich music scene. During the 1960s while Krannert Center was being built, this community was already a hotbed of cultural and artistic activity. From the Red Lion to the Channing-Murray Foundation to Nature's Table, local music abounded, with many CU-founded groups like REO Speedwagon, Champaign, Starcastle, and Head East going on to national success. In the decades since, folks like Captain Rat and the Blind Rivets, Dan Fogelberg, Emerald City, The One-Eyed Jacks, The Last Gentlemen, the No Secret Band, and of course The Delta Kings have kept audiences fired up for too many nights to remember. Local Heroes Night celebrates this grand tradition by bringing together guitarists from across genres and generations for a rock and roll throw down sure to strike a note with every CU music lover."
Get ready for ELLNORA with Local Heroes Night at 5pm on Tuesday, September 6.
Visionary Guitarist Adrian Belew Reflects on Work with Zappa and Bowie and Champaign-Urbana Life in ELLNORA Keynote Address
[8.18.11] With unorthodox, experimental sonics and layered, refined melodies, Adrian Belew forged a musical pathway of progressive alternative rock that led to gigs with King Crimson, the Talking Heads, David Bowie, and Nine Inch Nails and convinced Frank Zappa that "Belew reinvented the electric guitar."
At ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival, this groundbreaking artist will discuss his life in music, the incubation of his sound while living in Champaign-Urbana, and the nature of artistic exploration in a keynote address on Friday, September 9, 2011, at 3pm. "Living in CU was a very creative time for me," says Belew. "I loved being in a community based on education and youth, and to perform at Krannert Center, a place that has always been synonymous with excellence, will be a pleasure."
Belew will also present a FREE open-air performance of his newest solo show, Painting with Guitar, on Saturday, September 10, at 8:30pm in the Center's outdoor Amphitheatre, and the movie "e" for Orchestra featuring Adrian's original composition can be viewed at The Art Theater on Wednesday, September 7, at 7:30pm along with the film Circo with score by Calexico. Belew will be present for a brief Q&A following the film.
SCHEDULE UPDATES AND ADDITIONS
[8.18.11] The festival keeps growing, and as we're adding events, we're moving others around to get everything packed into the weekend. Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos will now begin at 10:30pm on Friday. Redhooker will start at 10:30pm in the Sonic Garden on Friday. To wrap it up in the Sonic Garden, Noveller will play at 11:30pm on Saturday.
In addition to a space for lounging and dining, the Sonic Garden is now your destination for free viewing of all concerts held in the indoor theatres. Flat-screen TVs will stream live video of Lee Ranaldo and Marc Ribot performing their film scores, the Taj Mahal Trio with the Carolina Chocolate Drops and Alvin Youngblood Hart, Dan Zanes and Friends with special guest the East Central Illinois Youth Orchestra, The Great Flood, Sharon Isbin, Calexico, Richard Thompson and My Brightest Diamond, and Robert Randolph and the Family Band with guest Luther Dickinson.
Free Events Added
[7.26.11] On September 6 at 5pm, ELLNORA gets a jump start with a celebration of Champaign-Urbana's music scene. Hosted by The Delta Kings, this warm-up to the festival includes guests Kayla Brown, Rena Day, Lou DiBello, Tim Donaldson, and Ryan Groff.
Physicians and physical therapy team members from Carle Occupational and Environmental Medicine will offer tips to keep axe players shredding for years. In an interactive session on September 9 at 2pm, join in stretches and strengthening exercises and learn about dexterity, hearing protection, common ailments, and ergonomics.
On September 10 at noon, Luther Dickinson will read from the memoirs written by his late father, Jim Dickinson, that will be published soon. Jim was a well-respected musician in Memphis during the 1960s and 1970s who fronted Mudboy and The Neutrons and joined the Dixie Flyers. He's best known for collaborations with Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones and his years as a record producer.
The uke joins the six-string honorees at ELLNORA when the Homebrew Ukulele Union jams at Stage 5 at 1pm on September 10 with students from Mary Anne Jusko's fifth grade class at Robeson Elementary School. A course taught by Matthew Thibeault at the University of Illinois is the origin of the Homebrew Ukulele Union, which features homemade instruments and original music.
TWO FREE SHOWS ADDED
[6.16.11] Outdoor space on September 9 and 10 transforms into ELLNORA's Sonic Garden, a casual atmosphere for mingling, eating, and soaking in the free sounds of Redhooker and Noveller.
On September 9, Redhooker's instrumental post-rock will combine live performance with sounds captured using Max/MSP software. Guitarist and composer Stephen Griesgraber engages the software with a foot pedal, and the randomized snippets allow the performers to respond to what they've just played. Griesgraber, best know for his work with Slow Six, composes "contemplative reveries" laced with welcoming melodies, counterpoint, and hope (The New York Times).
Noveller takes over the Sonic Garden on September 10 with shredding, feedback, pedals, and distortion in "an orchestra of one" (NPR). Sarah Lipstate, a filmmaker and guitarist with Parts and Labor and Rhys Chatham's Guitar Army, crafts "evocative sound-artistry so detailed and multifaceted that it seems to be alive" (TimeOut New York). Her loops, drones, and noise interlink with precise picking and sounds evoked through scissors or an electric bow.
Both free shows begin at 10pm. Seating is available under tents or in the Amphitheatre.
CHRIS THILE AND MICHAEL DAVES AND NEWGRASS PIONEER TONY RICE BRING MULTIGENERATIONAL BLUEGRASS TO THE MIX OF 10 FREE SHOWS AT KRANNERT CENTER'S ELLNORA | THE GUITAR FESTIVAL
[6.7.11] Tony Rice and Chris Thile and Michael Daves are among the artists to perform free shows at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center in Urbana, IL, September 8-10, 2011. Tony Rice's nimble, progressive sound has earned 10 International Bluegrass Music Association Awards as well as a Grammy Award, and collaborations with Ricky Skaggs, ELLNORA alum Jerry Douglas, and Central Illinois native Alison Krauss have solidified his place in the pantheon of bluegrass giants. "If bluegrass has a guitar god, it's Tony Rice, who has left a generation of aspiring guitarists trying to duplicate his clean, speedy, otherworldly sound" (New Yorker).
Mandolin virtuoso Chris Thile (of Punch Brothers) and bluegrass guitarist Michael Daves will perform at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival 2011. The duo recently released the impassioned collaboration/conversation Sleep with One Eye Open, an album feverishly recorded over four days in Jack White's Third Man studio in Nashville that features 16 traditional tunes by legends like The Monroe Brothers, The Louvin Brothers, Jimmy Martin, and Flatt and Scruggs. Thile explains, "Mandolin and guitar and two male voices—it's such a good sound. It was important for us to get that brother duet thing, but with this Lower East Side punk energy. One of the most enjoyable things about this experience was to underline the slightly delinquent side of bluegrass."
Chris Thile and Michael Daves and The Tony Rice Unit will perform in Krannert Center's intimate yet grand 1.5-acre Lobby, grounded with Indonesian teak floors, flanked by massive Carrera marble walls, and capable of holding an audience of several thousand. Other ELLNORA artists featured in FREE shows are Artist-in-Residence Luther Dickinson and Grammy Award winner Alvin Youngblood Hart, The Sheryl Bailey 3, the Beijing Guitar Duo, Rory Block and Cindy Cashdollar, Adrian Belew, Kevin Breit's Folkalarm, Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos, and flamenco artist Marija Temo.
More details on Chris Thile and Michael Daves, Tony Rice, and all of the free shows at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center (September 8-10, 2011) will be released on June 15, 2011.
LEE RANALDO AND MARC RIBOT MEET CHARLIE CHAPLIN AND BUSTER KEATON AT ELLNORA | THE GUITAR FESTIVAL
[5.31.11] Sonic Youth's Lee Ranaldo will perform the world premiere of his solo guitar score for Buster Keaton's 1922 silent film Cops at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center in Urbana, Illinois, on September 9, 2011.
Ranaldo's score was commissioned by Krannert Center and will feature the solo guitar playing of this American musician/record producer/visual artist who's best known as a co-founder of Sonic Youth. Rolling Stone ranked Ranaldo as #33 of its 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time, describing his music as "his own language of strange and blissful guitar noise."
Style-morphing icon Marc Ribot, who has lent his mercurial guitar sounds to collaborations with Robert Plant, Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, and John Zorn, will share the bill, performing his score to Charlie Chaplin's The Kid, which was commissioned by the New York Guitar Festival. The opening titles to Chaplin's 1921 masterpiece describe the story as "a picture with a smile, and perhaps a tear," and the film is notable for its bittersweet combination of comedy and drama. Ribot returns to the festival later that evening for a set featuring his band Los Cubanos Postizos.
Other artists appearing at ELLNORA include Calexico, My Brightest Diamond, Richard Thompson, Daniel Lanois' Black Dub, Sharon Isbin, Taj Mahal, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Adrian Belew, Robert Randolph, The Tony Rice Unit, Cindy Cashdollar, and many more.
More details on these film projects, the world premiere of Bill Frisell and Bill Morrison's The Great Flood, and ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center (September 8-10, 2011) will be released on June 15, 2011.
BILL FRISELL + BILL MORRISON COLLABORATE ON MULTIMEDIA WORK TO PREMIERE AT ELLNORA | THE GUITAR FESTIVAL
[5.24.11] Grammy Award-winning guitarist and composer Bill Frisell and experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison have collaborated to create The Great Flood, a 75-minute multimedia work of original music and film that will have its world premiere at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center in Urbana, Illinois, on September 10, 2011.
Inspired by the 1927 Mississippi River floods—the most destructive floods in American history—Morrison and Frisell have created a stirring, contemporary perspective on this natural disaster and the ensuing transformation of American society and music. In the spring of 1927, the Mississippi River broke out of its banks in 145 places and inundated 27,000 square miles to a depth of up to 30 feet. Part of its enduring legacy was the mass exodus of displaced sharecroppers. Musically, the Great Migration of rural southern blacks to Northern cities saw the Delta Blues electrified and reinterpreted as the Chicago blues, rhythm and blues, and rock and roll. Frisell's wide-ranging musical palette, heard in his more than 30 recordings, will draw on American roots music but, as always, will be refracted through his own highly personal musical vision. View footage of The Great Flood while it's in progress.
ELLNORA's artistic advisor, David Spelman, notes that "it's exciting to have Bill Frisell return to the festival with a project commissioned by Krannert Center. We've presented several world premieres since launching the festival in 2005, including Phil Kline's large sound installation World on a String and The Long Count, a multimedia work from The National's Bryce and Aaron Dessner. Our programming philosophy stems from Krannert Center's commitment to fostering the art of the future while celebrating the many rich cultural and aesthetic legacies of the past. The Great Flood is a project that perfectly reflects this philosophy."
Other artists appearing at ELLNORA include Calexico, My Brightest Diamond, Richard Thompson, Daniel Lanois' Black Dub, Sharon Isbin, Taj Mahal, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Adrian Belew, Robert Randolph, The Tony Rice Unit, Cindy Cashdollar, and many more.
More details on The Great Flood and ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center (September 8-10, 2011) will be released on June 15, 2011.
The Great Flood was commissioned by Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (world premiere); Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University; Carnegie Hall; Symphony Center Presents, Chicago; and Hopkins Center, Dartmouth College.
The Great Flood was commissioned through Meet The Composer's Commissioning Music/USA program, which is made possible by generous support from the Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, the Ford Foundation, the Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and the Helen F. Whitaker Fund.
Additional support made possible by USA Projects, an online initiative of United States Artists.
THE BLACK CROWES/NORTH MISSISSIPPI ALLSTARS GUITARIST LUTHER DICKINSON NAMED ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE AT ELLNORA | THE GUITAR FESTIVAL
[5.17.11] Luther Dickinson, one of Rolling Stone's "new guitar gods," has been selected to serve as artist-in-residence at ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center in Urbana, Illinois, September 8-10, 2011.
Raised in the cradle of American roots music, Luther Dickinson is the son of the late Memphis/Mississippi musician and record producer Jim Dickinson. Luther emerged on the national scene in the mid-90s when Grammy nods began for the North Mississippi Allstars (a collaboration between Luther, his brother Cody, and Chris Chew). In 2007, he was tapped to join The Black Crowes, making his recording debut on its 2008 album, Warpaint, while continuing to work with the Allstars and other artists including John Hiatt, Lucinda Williams, Mavis Staples, and Jon Spencer.
At ELLNORA, Luther's role will include reading from his late father's soon-to-be-published memoirs, musically collaborating with Grammy Award winner Alvin Youngblood Hart and pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph, and participating in other as-yet-to-be-announced programs during the three-day festival.
Other artists appearing at ELLNORA include Calexico, My Brightest Diamond, Richard Thompson, Daniel Lanois' Black Dub, Marc Ribot, Sharon Isbin, Taj Mahal, the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Adrian Belew, and many more.
David Spelman, the festival's artistic advisor, notes that "Luther Dickinson is a festival alum. His electrifying 2007 performance with the North Mississippi Allstars included a surprise appearance by Jake Cinninger of Umphrey's McGee and is one of those moments people are still talking about. As we began thinking about an artist-in-residence position, Luther was a natural choice. We're over the moon that he accepted our invitation."
More details on Luther Dickinson's involvement in ELLNORA | The Guitar Festival at Krannert Center (September 8-10, 2011) will be released on June 15, 2011.