For Immediate Release
Contact:
Adam Klein, 617-504-6156, [email protected]
Celebrity Series of Boston Announces Line-Up for
Stave Sessions 2017
5 Nights of Cross-Pollinated Music by Brilliant Contemporary
Musicians, with Little Use for Labels or Rules
November 21, 2016 Boston, MA -- The Celebrity Series of Boston has announced the line-up for the
3rd annual Stave Sessions, a unique music series that showcases the innovative, the experimental,
and the collaborative approaches of emerging artists. The 2017 Stave Sessions will take place
March 21-25, 2017.
Stave Sessions highlight contemporary musicians often early in their careers who take diverse
approaches to their music, integrating musical training and non-conforming styles to deliver
performances that defy standard labels. Shows take place at 160 Mass Ave., a unique and intimate
venue located on the Berklee College of Music campus where floor-to-ceiling windows offer
concertgoers an urban backdrop with views of the city and an upscale, cabaret vibe.
“At Celebrity Series of Boston, we look for ways to showcase and support emerging artists,” said
Gary Dunning, President and Executive Director. “Stave Sessions allows us to do this, bringing
together artists who are doing unique work, often building on classical, conservatory training to
create works that defy expectations. Each show is an exceptional experience that you won’t want to
miss.”
In the first two years, Stave Sessions artists included Roomful of Teeth, Brooklyn Rider, Gabriel
Kahane, Kneebody + Daedelus, My Brightest Diamond, Sam Amidon and others. Featured
performances for the 2017 series include:

yMusic Tuesday, March 21, 2017
Comprised of six musicians (string trio, flute, clarinet, and trumpet), yMusic commission
from and collaborate with many of the era’s most compelling creators of pop and classical
music including Chris Thile, Nico Muhly, Ben Folds, José Gonzalez, and Andrew Norman,
among many others.

Melissa Aldana Trio Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Rising tenor sax star Melissa Aldana, the first woman to win the Thelonious Monk
International Jazz Saxophone competition, makes no secret about being inspired by Sonny
Rollins: like Sonny in the late 50s, she fronts a piano-less trio (Pablo Menares on bass,
Jochen Rueckert on drums). But she’s coming into her own as an artist: her 2016 record
“Back Home” was widely praised.

Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society Thursday, March 23, 2017
Darcy James Argue and his 18-piece big band have been celebrated for their “slashing fury
and awesome full-ensemble precision” (The New York City Jazz Record) and “brilliant
soundscapes” (Globe and Mail). The Society led the Big Band Category in DownBeat
Magazine’s Critics Poll in 2015 and their recordings have earned GRAMMY and JUNO Award
nominations. The set will include songs from the Society’s new recording, Real Enemies,
among other selections.

TIGUE and Innov Gnawa, Friday, March 24, 2017
TIGUE is a percussion trio using members’ conservatory training and eclectic influences to
create music that sits at the intersection of contemporary music and art rock. Innov Gnawa
performs Moroccan gnawa music: hypnotic Islamic liturgical chants with plucked string and
percussive instrumentation. Together, they explore traditional and modern approaches to
trance.

Blonde Redhead featuring ACME, Saturday, March 25, 2017
Formed by Japanese lead singer and guitarist Kazu Makino and Italian twin brothers
Amedeo (guitar/vocals) and Simone Pace (drums), Blonde Redhead have built their
decades-long career as a driving creative force on the indie music scene. They will perform
their seminal 2004 album Misery is a Butterfly in its entirety featuring ACME: American
Contemporary Music Ensemble. NPR called ACME “contemporary music dynamos,” and The
New York Times described their performances as “vital,” “brilliant,” and “electrifying.”
Doors for all sessions open at 7:30 p.m. Performances will begin at 8:30 p.m. Tickets for each show
are $25 / $10 student and a week-long pass is available for the first 40 tickets for $50. Student
tickets are available online or at the Berklee Performance Center box office. Prices are subject to
change. Tickets are on sale now at www.stavesessions.org.
Stave Sessions is sponsored by Susan and Michael Thonis, and Margaret Eagle and Eli Rapoport.
Additional support is provided by Carliss Baldwin and Randolph Hawthorne, Yukiko Ueno and Eran
Egozy, Debra and Michael Raizman, and Marylen Sternweiler.
ABOUT CELEBRITY SERIES OF BOSTON
Celebrity Series of Boston was founded in 1938 by pianist and impresario Aaron Richmond. Over the course
of its 78-year history, Celebrity Series has presented an array of the world’s greatest performing artists,
including Sergei Rachmaninoff, Arturo Toscanini, Ignace Paderewski, Artur Rubenstein, Vladimir Horowitz,
Glenn Gould, Fritz Kreisler, Jascha Heifetz, Isaac Stern, Andrés Segovia, Kirsten Flagstad, Marian Anderson,
Luciano Pavarotti, Béla Bartók, Igor Stravinsky, Martha Graham, Ballet Russe De Monte Carlo, Mikhail
Baryshnikov, Mstislav Rostropovich, and the New York City Opera Company.
The Celebrity Series has been bringing the very best performers–from orchestras and chamber ensembles,
vocal and piano music, to dance companies, jazz, and more–to Boston’s major concert halls for 78 years. The
Celebrity Series of Boston believes in the power of excellence and innovation in the performing arts to enrich
life experiences, transform lives and build better communities. Through its education initiatives, the Celebrity
Series seeks to build a community of Greater Boston where the performing arts are a valued, lifelong, shared
experience–on stages, in schools, at home– everywhere.
The Celebrity Series of Boston, Inc. receives generous support from Amy & Joshua Boger, Leslie & Howard
Appleby, the Boston Cultural Council, The Boston Foundation, the Stephanie L. Brown Foundation,
Charlesbank Capital Partners LLC, the Susanne Marcus Collins Foundation, Deloitte LLP, Donna & Mike Egan,
Foley & Lardner LLP, Gabor Garai & Susan Pravda, David & Harriet Griesinger, Zachary Haroutunian and the
Garbis & Arminé Barsoumian Charitable Foundation, the Charles and Cerise Jacobs Charitable Foundation,
Paul L. King, the Massachusetts Cultural Council, Joseph McNay, the National Endowment for the Arts, the
New England Foundation for the Arts, Eleanor & Frank Pao, The Peabody Foundation, PTC, the Cynthia and
John S. Reed Foundation, the Royal Little Family Foundation, the Stifler Family Foundation, Mr. and Mrs.
Henri A. Termeer, Michael and Susan Thonis, Tufts Health Plan, Sanjay & Sangeeta Verma, Nancy Richmond
Winsten, Anonymous, and many others.
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