big ears 2024

April 12, 2024

Seen this year at the Big Ears Festival: Henry Threadgill’s Very Very Circus (repertory band); Mary Halvorson Amaryllis; Tyondai Braxton; Jlin; Unwound; Trevor Dunn’s Trio Convulsant Extra; Claire Rousay; Ikue Mori / Fred Frith; Kristin Hersh; Brad Mehldau; Tomeka Reid; Bitchin’ Bajas; Carl Craig; Min Xiao Fen; Colleen; Myra Melford Fire & Water; Colin Stetson; Beth Orton; JG Thirlwell & Ensemble; Bar Italia; Shabaka; Ches Smith’s Laugh Ash; Matt Mitchell; Void Patrol; KMRU; John Paul Jones / Thurston Moore (*not seen due to delays); André 3000

Big Ears Festival, 2020

March 30, 2022

Knoxville, TN March 24-27

As opposed to most of the drawings below, the sketches from this event were made live, in pencil, rather than in ink and after-the-fact from photographs I took.

Kronos Quartet; So Percussion˚; Tomeka Reid & Nikky Finney; Black Monument Ensemble; Fennesz; MSSV˚; Low˚; Kris Davis & Julian Lage (talk); Craig Taborn Trio; Claire Rousay; Kris Davis Diatom Ribbons; Sons of Kemet˚; Ensemble dal Niente with Ken Vandermark; Kim Gordon˚; Ben Lamar Gay, Damon Locks & Angel Bat Dawid (talk); Brian Marsella Trio; Ches Smith / We All Break; Yasmin Williams; Sarah Davachi; Ben Lamar Gay; Circuit des Yeux; Annette Peacock; Dead Rider˚; Sarah Davachi; Hanif Abdurraqib (talk); Bill Frisell Trio; Sudan Archives˚; John Zorn New Masada

˚-not pictured.

Big Ears Festival, 2019

December 10, 2021

Knoxville, TN

Rachel Grimes; Joan la Barbara; YoshimiO / Ibarra / Lowe; Mercury Rev; Lonnie Holley with Messthetics; Larry Grenadier; Harold Budd + Nief Norf; Evan Parker Trance Map; The Comet Is Coming; Absînt (Berne + Frisell); Spiritualized; Jlin; Fire!; Nate Wooley; Amirtha Kidambi and the Elder Ones; Kayhan Kalhor; This Is Not This Heat; Jon Mueller; Abstract Black; Bill Frisell (livescore to Bill Morrisson); Sons of Kemet; Alvin Lucier & Ever Present Orchestra; Nik Bärtsch’s Ronin; Arvo Pärt’s Passio performed by the St. John’s Episcopal Choir; Sun of Goldfinger; Art Ensemble of Chicago + guests

Joan al Barbara

Comet Is Coming

Amirtha Kidambi and Elder Ones

Alvin Lucier

Big Ears Festival, 2018

August 11, 2018

Knoxville TN
Roscoe Mitchell; Cyro Baptista's Vira Locos; Ikue Mori; Rocket Science; Milford Graves; Arto Lindsay; Jenny Sheinman's Mischief & Mayhem; Medeski Martin & Wood; The Thing; Gas; Kid Koala; Rushes Ensemble performing Michael Gordon; Evan Parker Electro-acoustic Ensemble; Yuka Honda; Sonus Ensemble; Laurel Halo featuring Eli Keszler; Kelly Lee Owens; Four Tet; Tyshawn Sorey; Suuns; Kieren Hebden & Mats Gustafsson; Bangs; Nief Norf performing Steve Reich

Roscoe Mitchell