Funk-worldbeat collective Club d’Elf comes to Deep Dive, joined by two special guests: John Medeski (MM&W) and Reeves Gabrels (The Cure, Tin Machine)! Grace Potter’s two solo shows are sold out at the Center for the Arts in Homer, which also will host the acclaimed South African vocal troupe Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Three area classical organizations present concerts this weekend, and Ithaca Underground offers another cool show with four eclectic bands.
Note: the events are listed below in chronological order, in two separate sections.
Also, NPR’s 2023 Tiny Desk Contest is now open for entries through March 13!!! Find out more here and here.
Let’s Dance
Ithaca singer-songwriter Magz1lla will showcase her distinctive electro-pop music that combines “ethereal dance beats with silvery vocals. Magz1lla fuses music that moves your feet with an introspective and often vulnerable narrative, which she refers to as ‘electro-pop tunes for the soul.’ She’ll be doing stripped down versions of her songs released and unreleased. Her debut single “Hush Hush” was released in October of 2022.”
When: 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Brookton’s Market
Cost: free; donations welcome
By Request
Local singer-songwriter Florencia Ulloa presents “Key Requests,” in which the show consists of requests from the audience. “Is there a song you love performed on the piano? Or better yet, a song you’ve always wanted to see someone perform on the piano? It’s your lucky day. If I can know it, I’ll play it. If I don’t, I perform by ear. I take requests from any genre, any timeframe. Come bring the house down!” OPpen to all ages.
When: 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Sacred Root Kava Bar and Tea Lounge
Cost: free; donation welcome
A Good Cause
Acclaimed Irish singer Karan Casey returns to Ithaca to perform a benefit concert for the Ithaca Catholic Worker, an organization whose mission is “welcoming and befriending marginalized people, advancing racial and economic justice, and speaking up for peace.”
Casey will be accompanied by fiddler Sheila Falls and guitarist Matt Heaton to perform songs from her deep repertoire as well as her just-released 12th record, “Nine Apples of Gold.”
When: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Community School of Music and Arts, 330 E. State St., Ithaca
Cost: $25-$35 sliding scale, available online here, at Mama Said Hand Pies in Press Bay Alley, and at the door
Read an interview with Karan Casey here!
Trio Grande
Local cello master Hank Roberts returns to spotlight his latest project, a trio that also includes drummer Ashley Ickes and keyboardist Chad Lieberman. “Over his nearly five-decade career, Hank Roberts has forged a compelling original voice as a cellist and composer, encompassing jazz influences, abstract improvisation, soulful folk melodies, intricate new-music compositions and vigorous rock songs. He is considered a major innovator as an improvisational cellist.”
Local trio Strong Maybe – Matthew Saccuccimorano, Mark Wienand Karlsen, and Chad Lieberman – will open the show, showcasing their “mostly improvised psychotic cartoon animal music.”
When: 8:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Deep Dive
Cost: $10-$15
Myth Makers
Local musician Angelo Peters (Big Mean Sound Machine, Swamp Kids, Dom Martyr) spotlights his latest project, Living Myths, “A Folk-Rock-Experimental from the heart and soul of the American experience.” He’ll be joined by Michael Schuler, Cooper Casterline, and Willie B on drums for this acoustic show. Check out the self-titled EP that came out in December here!
When: 5-8 p.m. Friday
Where: South Hill Cider
Cost: $10 at the door
Song Showcase
“The Ithaca Songwriting Challenge Showcase will feature local songwriters who participated in a weekly songwriting challenge. Participants wrote a song a week for six weeks.” Songwriters include Russ Posegate, Andy Adelewitz, Julia Jasnosz, Dustin Stuhr, Eric Banford, Timothy Weber, Adam Bauchner, Steve Mandl, Wil Burns, and Leah West. Local cowpunk favorites the 86ers also will perform, previewing songs from their forthcoming release.
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Sacred Root Kava Lounge & Tea Bar
Cost: small cover/donation
Harp Poetic
NYS Baroque continues its 34th season with “The Harp Speaks,” featuring “visions of Medieval women as seen through the music and poetry of Machaut and other harpists/composers.” Performers include Camila Parias, vocalist, Ged Owen, actor, Christa Patton, harp, Dongmyung Ahn, vielle, and Deborah Fox, lute.
“This concert, conceived and curated by harpist Christa Patton, explores the 14th-century world of chivalry through the music and poetry of Guillaume de Machaut, with additional music by Jacob Senleches, Pierre de Molins, Baude Cordier, and of course, Anonymous. The poem, known as the ‘Dit de la Harpe,’ was written by Machaut and explores the essential qualities of women as seen by the poet and the code of chivalry, but also likens those qualities to each string on the harp. Machaut was a poet and a composer/musician, but this poem is not very well known today. ‘The Harp Speaks’ gives voice to this poem through both words and music. The musical selections will amplify and illustrate the qualities discussed in the poem, such as Honesty, Truth, Pleasure, and Judgement. The poem is not without humor, and the music has many qualities such as quirky, rhythmic, complex, and beautifully melodic.”
When & Where: 7:30 p.m. Friday, First Unitarian Universalist, 109 Waring Road, Syracuse; 7:30 p.m. Saturday, First Unitarian Society, 306 N. Aurora St., Ithaca. Pre-concert talks start at 6:45 p.m.
Cost: $30 for adults, $10 for students and low-income, and are available online here and at the door
Global Village
Electrolyte is an eclectic trio from Central New York “that seeks to respectfully agitate evolving musical traditions from across the globe. Deeply rooted in jazz and prog rock, these three electro-acousticians are eager to do more, and sound vast with less. It consists of Ithacan Paul Merrill who plays a collection of quarter-tone brass instruments, keyboards, and effects; Rochesterian Peter Chwazik, master of the nine-string electric bass; and Denmark native and percussionist, Simon Bjarning. Together they perform, improvise, groove, distort and fuse Pan-American folk music and Euro art-rock with sensibilities from around the globe. Listeners are just as likely to hear imaginative renditions of Margret Bonds’ art songs and tunes by Ornette Coleman as they are to hear covers from British-Bahrainian composer Yazz Ahmed and folk music from Armenia or Denmark. This respect-all approach drives Electrolyte’s moxie and ads to their substantial body of original work.”
When: 8 p.m. Friday
Where: The Downstairs
Cost: $10
Country All Day, Y’all
Grist Iron Brewing will host its first Country Music Jamboree, featuring local favorites Janet Batch and the Four-Bangers (1-3 p.m.), Justin Raynor Duo (3-6 p.m.), and Axton Landing (6-9 p.m.). They’ll be followed by a Silent Disco at 9-11 p.m.
When: 1-11 p.m. Saturday
Where: Grist Iron Brewing
Cost: free; donations welcome
Engaging and Inspiring
The Cornell Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Guillaume Pirard, presents its annual Young Person’s Concert. The program will showcase the orchestra’s versatility and includes Beethoven’s Coriolan Overture, John Adams’ The Chairman Dances, and a world premiere by Cornell composer Laura Cetilia. Cornell Concerto Competition winner Brian Wang performs the first movement of Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2. This family concert will feature a pre-concert instrument petting zoo at 2:15 p.m. and curated musical examples during the concert targeted to engage and inspire younger audience members.
When: 3 p.m. Saturday (instrumental petting zoo at 2:15 p.m.)
Where: Bailey Hall, Cornell University
Cost: free and open to all
Mozart and More
The Cayuga Chamber Orchestra will present “Mozart and More,” featuring Stravinsky’s “Danses Concertantes,” traditional “Selections from Romani Folk Songs,” and Mozart’s “Sinfonia Concertante, K. 364.” Under the direction of Maestro Grant Cooper, “one of America’s finest concert artists, Paul Neubauer, teams up with rising star and CCO Concertmaster Christina Bouey for a virtuosic and passionate program with the orchestra.”
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday (pre-concert chat at 6:30)
Where: Ford Hall, Ithaca College
Cost: $10-$35, available online here and at the door
Getting Loopy
Ithaca loop artists Fusebox and Angie Beeler join forces “for a night of loops, beats, and vocal brilliance. Check out the latest evolution of local fave Angie Beeler, and the new ensemble featuring Julia Felice (The Whiskey Crisis), Josh Ross (Kitestring), and Harry Nichols (Noon Fifteen).”
When: 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: The Downstairs
Cost: $5; pay what you can
Underground Sounds
Ithaca Underground returns with its latest show, featuring the return of Richmond avant-rock quartet Dumb Waiter joined by punk-rock upstarts Pleasure Dome and microbes, mostly, plus local prog trio BRIAN! which released its fifth album last fall. Open to all ages; safe space.
When: 8-11 p.m. Saturday
Where: Sacred Root Kava Lounge & Tea Bar
Cost: $10
Read a recent interview with BRIAN! here!
Funk Fiends
Club d'Elf brings its 25th-anniversary tour to Ithaca, showcasing its “mesmerizing synthesis of Moroccan traditional music and electronic, dubbed-out funk. “Circling about bassist/composer Mike Rivard and drummer Dean Johnston, each Club d'Elf performance features a different line-up, drawn from a constellation of some of the most creative improvisers from the jazz, DJ, rock & world music scenes of Boston, NYC and beyond.” This Ithaca show will reunite the “classic Club d'Elf line up from 2002, which toured the South and recorded the album ‘Live: Athens GA 3/28/02.’ The core band on that tour – John Medeski, Mat Maneri, Mister Rourke, Mike Rivard, Brahim Fribgane & Eric Kalb – were joined for two shows in Georgia by guitarist Reeves Gabrels, then on a break from his gig with David Bowie,” and now on a break from his gig with The Cure.
The Comb Down Duo of Jon Petronzio (keyboards) and Ashley Ickes (drums) will open the show.
When: 9 p.m. Saturday
Where: Deep Dive
Cost: $32 in advance, available online here; $40 at the door
Dancing for Daylight
The Trumansburg Conservatory of Fine Arts will host a Community Dance Fundraiser with TOiVO to mark the beginning of Daylight Savings Time.
“Come and enjoy the biggest, best wooden dance floor in the Finger Lakes. All ages are welcome! TOiVO plays music that is good for dancing and good for listening! Refreshments will be available. Bring a partner or come alone! Wallflowers are welcome, too! TOiVO will play an eclectic mix of Scandinavian, Tex-Mex, Cajun, blues, honky-tonk, European, South American, and many original dance tunes. You’ll enjoy waltzes, tangos, two-steps, polkas, schottisches, hambos, foxtrots, and cheek-to-cheek.” The band includes Richard Koski, button accordion; Jason Koski, mandolin; Stefan Senders, banjo and triangle; Jim Reidy, guitar; Harley Campbell, upright bass; and Annie Campbell, snare drum.
When: 3-5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Trumansburg Conservatory of Fine Arts
Cost: $10 suggested donation; all proceeds will go to TCFA
Sign of Spring
The Finger Lakes Chamber Ensemble will present its spring chamber concert, featuring a program of Clara Schumann’s “Three Romances for Violin and Piano, Op. 22,” Gabriela Lena Frank’s “Snapshots for an Andean Album for Flute and Piano,” and Robert Schumann’s “Piano Quartet in E-flat, Op. 47” along with a world premiere of Snow Kim’s “Monologue for Solo Viola.” Performers include Janet Sung (violin), Roberta Crawford (viola), Heidi Hoffmann (cello), Molly Morkoski (piano), and Barry Crawford (flute).
When: 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: First Unitarian Church of Ithaca.
Cost: Adults $25; Seniors $20; College and High school students $10; Elementary and middle school students free when accompanied by a paying adult. Tickets are available online here and at the door.
Underground Jazz
ICU continues its monthly residency, as “jazz groups from Cornell University and Ithaca College join forces for a night of Jazz, jamming, and community on the second Sunday of February, March, and April with special guests.
When: 7-9 p.m. Sunday
Where: The Downstairs
Cost: donations welcome
Dashing Debut
“Calya Lea makes her downtown Ithaca debut, fresh off of the release of her new album ‘Consistently Inconsistent,’ accompanied by Joey Arcuri of Driftwood. The two have over a decade-long history of making music together and are excited to reunite onstage again. Join them for brand new originals and a timeless sound that will leave you wanting more!”
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday
Where: The Downstairs
Cost: free; donations welcome
Bach and Beyond
Cornell’s Midday Music for Organ series hosts Jeffrey Snedeker, who will perform “Out of the Depths,” with music by Bach, Mendelssohn, and 19th-century contemporaries. “An avid devotee of the organ across his life, Mendelssohn’s ‘Sonata in A Major, Op. 65 No. 3,’ with its stunning fugue on the chorale ‘Aus tiefer Not schrei ich zu Dir,’ is now a classic of the organ repertory. Snedeker takes this piece as the starting point for a survey of settings of this chorale, from Mendelssohn’s idol J. S. Bach to his 19th-century German contemporaries and beyond.”
When: 12:30 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Sage Chapel, Cornell
Cost: free and open to all
Harmonic Convergence
The legendary South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo will return to Central New York. For more than 60 years, the five-time Grammy Award winners have won fans around the world with its uplifting vocal harmonies, signature dance moves and charming onstage banter. In 1987, Paul Simon’s “Graceland” album introduced Ladysmith Black Mambazo to the world; the late former South African President Nelson Mandela designated the group “South Africa’s cultural ambassadors to the world,” a title the members carry with them with the highest honor along with their message of peace, love, and harmony.
When: 8 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Center for the Arts, Homer
Cost: $20-$45, available online here
Going Galactic
The Galactic Escort Service returns, this time every other Wednesday at Deep Dive, promising “another epic journey through sonic cosmology.” Core players include Tenzin Chopak, Emmett Scott, Michael Schuler, Josh Oxford, and Ashley Ickes, who create improvisations on a variety of instruments.
When: 9 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Deep Dive
Cost: $5
More Shows
Louiston returns to Atwater Vineyards at 5-8 p.m. Thursday
Richie Stearns’s Friends (Crystal and Scott Van Gaasbeck, Adam Gulliford, and Paul Koanui) will play old time tunes at South Hill Cider at 5-8 p.m. Thursday (Richie Stearns is out of town this week)
Pat and Don are at Cortland Beer Company at 6 p.m. Thursday
The Brewhouse Blues Jam returns to Hopshire Farm and Brewery at 6-8 p.m. Thursday
Scott B Adams hosts Open Mic Night at the Scale House Brewery at 6-9 p.m. Thursday
Benny T brings his Open Mic Posse to the Ridge in Lansing at 6:30 p.m. Thursday
Tom Shevory and Chris Bell are at Two Goats Brewing at 5-8 p.m. Friday
The Venissa Santí 4Tet is at Stone Bend Farm at 5:30-7:30 p.m. Friday
The Local Farmers Union returns to Hopshire Farm and Brewery at 6-8 p.m. Friday
Mark Nanni plays at Heuga’s Alpine in Tully at 6-9 p.m. Friday
Caleb Liber is at McGraw Box Brewing at 6-8 p.m. Friday
M3 is at Trax at Greek Peak in Cortland at 6-8 p.m. Friday
Steve Romer is at Homer Hops at 6-9 p.m. Friday
The Shylocks are at ONCO Fermentations in Tully at 7-9 p.m. Friday
Zack Knewstub, Harry Aceto, and Owen Erickson play at Seven Of Jazz Lounge at 7-10 p.m. Friday
Exit 11 are at Cortland Beer Company at 8 p.m. Friday
Cass and the Bailout Crew are at the Range at 9:30 p.m. Friday
Showtime returns to the Ithaca Ale House at 9:30 p.m. Friday
City Limits is at Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards at 1-4 p.m. Saturday
Prime Box is at Brookton’s Market at 1:30-5 p.m. Saturday
The Inner Crazy is at Treleaven Winery at 2-5 p.m. Saturday
Two Horse Johnson plays at Finger Lakes Distilling at 2 p.m. Saturday
Brian Francis is at Chateau Dusseau at 3-6 p.m. Saturday
Stratcat Willie and The Strays are at Two Goats Brewing at 5-8 p.m. Saturday
M3 is at McGraw Box Brewing at 5-8 p.m. Saturday
The Rollin’ Rust is at Summerhill Brewing at 5-8 p.m. Saturday
DJ Dijon returns to Hopshire Farm and Brewery for a Retro Dance Party at 6-8 p.m. Saturday
Butternut Creek Revival is at Homer Hops at 6-9 p.m. Saturday
Just Joe hosts Vinyl Night at ONCO Fermentations in Tully at 6-9 p.m. Saturday
Rachel Beverly is at Brewer’s Kitchen and Taproom at 6-8 p.m. Saturday
Logan Wannall is at the Hiawatha Inn in Truxton at 7-9 p.m. Saturday
Trick Shot are at Cortland Beer Company at 8 p.m. Saturday
Chasing Neon is at Brix in downtown Cortland at 9 p.m. Saturday ($10)
Oarlock and Making Strangers are at John Barleycorn Tavern in Owego at 9 p.m. Saturday
Marc Ryan is at the Sherwood Inn in Skaneateles at 4 p.m. Sunday
J. Schnitt is at Two Goats Brewing at 4-7 p.m. Sunday
Auburn Public Theatre hosts Open Mic Night at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays
The Westy hosts its new Open Mic Night at 9 p.m. Tuesdays
The Argos Grove trio plays jazz at Bar Argos at 5:30-7:30 p.m. Wednesdays
Sacred Root Kava Bar and Tea Lounge hosts its weekly Open Mic Night at 7 p.m. Wednesday
The Salsa Night Dance Party returns to the Range at 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays
Regional Shows
March 9, Quiet Riot and Hair Nation, The L, Horseheads
March 9, Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew “Remain in Light” tour, Empire Live, Albany
March 9, Nikki Glaser, State Theatre, Ithaca
March 9, Life of Agony, Empire Live, Albany
March 10, Canadian Brass, Corning Museum of Glass
March 10-11, Driftwood, Funk N Waffles, Syracuse
March 10, Adawagin Pratt with Symphoria, Smith Opera House, Geneva
March 10, Ichi-Bons and The Televisionaries, Lux Bar, Rochester
March 11, Guy Davis, Oswego Music Hall, Oswego
March 11, Thank You Scientist, Westcott Theater, Syracuse
March 11, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Main Street Armory, Rochester
March 11, America, Kodak Center, Rochester
March 11, Mark O’Connor, The Egg, Albany
March 11, David Wilcox, Greece Baptist Church, Rochester
March 11, Adam Ezra Group, Munson-Proctor-Williams Museum, Utica
March 11, Jeffrey Gaines, 443 Social Club, Syracuse
March 11, Wings: A Celtic Dance Celebration, Anderson Center, Binghamton
March 11, Robert Cray Band, Smith Opera House, Geneva
March 11, Parmalee, Kegs Canalside, Jordan
March 12, Jackson Stokes and Mattie Schell, The L, Horseheads
March 12, Dogs in a Pile, Buffalo Iron Works
March 12, David Cross, Asbury Hall at Babeville, Buffalo
March 13, Wishbone Ash, Sportsmens Tavern, Buffalo
March 13, Adam Ezra Group, 443 Social Club, Syracuse
March 13-14, Grace Potter, Center for the Arts, Homer (SOLD OUT!)
March 14, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, MVP Arena, Albany
March 14, Wishbone Ash, Fanatics Pub, Lima
March 14, Richard Lloyd Group and Thee Isolators, Mohawk Place, Buffalo
March 15, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Center for the Arts, Homer
March 15, Chasity Brown, 443 Social Club, Syracuse
March 15, Scott Bradlee’s Post-Modern Jukebox, Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, Troy
March 15, Dogs in a Pile, Water Street Music Hall, Rochester
March 15, Enter the Haggis, Buffalo Iron Works, Buffalo
March 15, Toto, The Egg, Albany
March 15, Michael Glabicki, Funk N Waffles, Syracuse
March 16, Jackson Stokes, Funk N Waffles, Syracuse
March 16, Dogs in a Pile and Haley Jane, Deep Dive, Ithaca
March 16, Journey and Toto, KeyBank Center, Buffalo
March 16, Enter the Haggis, Center for the Arts, Homer (SOLD OUT!)
March 16, Dervish, The Smith Opera House, Geneva
March 16, Grace Potter, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel
March 16, The Sea The Sea, 443 Social Club, Syracuse
March 17, Rani Arbo and daisy mayhem, May Memorial UU Society
March 17, Cooper Alan, The L, Horseheads
March 17, That Arena Rock Show, Del Lago Resort, Waterloo
March 17, Cold, Lost Horizon, Syracuse
March 17, Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble, 443 Social Club, Syracuse
March 17, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel
March 17, Red Devil Ryders, Lux Bar, Rochester
