Andy Frasco and the U.N. make their Ithaca debut, and Cornell kicks off a Beethoven celebration. Plus, two local cinemas will host music-related screenings this week!
Ready to Rumble
Andy Frasco and the U.N. will make their Ithaca debut – the California-based band, blends blues, rock and jazz influences into a powerful sound. Their latest album is “Change of Pace,” which was produced by Widespread Panic’s Dave Schools. Find out more at andyfrasco.com. Big Something will round out the lineup for what is being billed as “Royal Rumble 2020,” with Kyle Ayers emceeing the night.
When: 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: The Haunt
Cost: $12-$15
Blues News
Blues Night returns to downtown Ithaca, with the Blue Rangers joined by special guests throughout the night.
When: 6 p.m. Tuesday
Where: The Range
Cost: no cover
Celtic Sounds
Members of Traonach host this weekly Irish jam session, which features traditional tunes and plenty of special guests.
When: 7-9 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Argos Inn
Cost: free; donations welcome
Crossing Generations
The weekly Intergenerational Irish Music Session continues its two-year run, welcoming players and listeners of ages to enjoy a variety of traditional Irish tunes.
When: 7-9:30 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Sacred Root Kava Lounge & Tea Bar
Cost: free
Three of a Kind
Jazz trio Argos Grove – Ithaca College faculty members Nicholas Walker (bass), Greg Evans (drums), and Andrew Carroll (piano) – continue the celebrated Wednesday happy hour community music tradition initiated by i3° at Bar Argos. The trio’s repertoire ranges from Duke Ellington and Stevie Wonder to the Beatles, Disney, swing, funk and bossa nova.
When: 5-7 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Argos Inn
Cost: free; donations welcome
Voices Raised
Cornell Cinema will screen the recently restored gospel documentary “Say Amen, Somebody,” one of the most acclaimed music documentaries of all time and unseen in theaters for nearly 30 years – late film critic Roger Ebert hailed it as “One of the most joyful movies I’ve ever seen.” The screening will be preceded by a short performance by Cornell's Baraka Kwa Wimbo A Capella Gospel Ensemble.
When: 6:45 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Willard Straight Hall Theatre, Cornell University
Cost:
Soul Soldiers
Powerhouse vocalist Danielle Ponder will continue her weekly residency at the Range. This week’s edition will feature Rochester’s Lost Wax Collective joining her for a night of neo-soul tunes; they’ll open with their own set, and then back Ponder on the closing set.
When: 10 p.m. Wednesday
Cost: $5
Whole Lotta Love
The Ithaca New Music Collective will present “With Love, From INMC”; the program will spotlight “newly composed works about love gained, love lost, and the reminder that all you need is love,” with pieces by Jonathan Dove, Josh Oxford, Kaija Saariaho, Jake Walsh, Alison Wahl, and others.
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday
Where: Carriage House Café Hayloft
Cost: $10 for students, $20 for others
Sandpaper Sounds
The Cornell Experimental Music Ensemble will play a marathon show, tackling Dutch composer Antoine Beuger’s 1994 work, “first music for marcia hafif”; it’s a nine-hour piece in which a number of performers play extremely quiet sounds exercising minimum pressure on sandpaper. Visitors are welcome to enter and leave at any time during the performance.
When: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University
Cost: free
Beethoven, Beloved
The Cornell University Department of Music will kick off “I Heart Beethoven,” a celebration of the composer’s 250th birthday. Running Thursday-Sunday, the celebration will feature explorations of his piano works corresponding to the musical ideas of fugues, variations, and improvisation. The first concert will feature Andy Sheng, who will perform Schumann’s “Fantasie in C Major, Op. 17.” The piece was written to support fundraising efforts to erect a Beethoven monument in his birthplace of Bonn, Germany and was dedicated to Franz Liszt. See the rest of the schedule at music.cornell.edu.
When: 12:30 p.m. Thursday
Where: Lincoln Hall, Room B20
Cost: free
Bon Ton Roulet
Rosie Newton and Paul Martin of Rose and the Bros will be joined by a few friends for Zydeco Night, which also feature a variety of food for purchase.
When: 5-7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Main Street Market, Trumansburg
Cost: free; donations welcome
Sci-Fi Sounds
Cinemapolis will screen “Wetware,” a new sci-fi feature film by director Jay Craven (“Where the Rivers Flow North,” “Stranger in the Kingdom,” “Disappearances,” “Northern Borders,” and many others. Ithaca musicians Jeff Claus and Judy Hyman (The Horse Flies, Boy With A Fish) created the full score for the film, as well as the musical mixes. Hyman, Claus and Craven will appear at Thursday’s event to discuss the film, which also features contributions from other Ithacans: source music by Billy Cote and Mary Lorson (of Madder Rose) and Bronwen Exter, piano by Jessica Caporizzo and Xak Bjerken, cello by Elizabeth Simkin, and engineering of live piano by Alex Perialas and Mike Caporizzo.
When: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Cinemapolis
Cost: $7-$10.50
Power of Three
The Canaan Institute in Brooktondale continues its series of cool house concerts with Kalos, the trio of Ryan McKasson on fiddle, Jeremiah McLane on accordion, and Eric McDonald on guitar. Learn more at kalosband.com. The 7 p.m. show will be followed by a jam session. Requested donation is $20 at the door; RSVP to bit.ly/cinst-rsvp for directions and to reserve your seat at this private venue. Visit cinst.org for details.
When: 7 p.m. Thursday
Where: Canaan Institute, Brooktondale
Cost: $20 requested donation at the door
Love Funk
The biweekly Funk Night returns, with Dean’s Kids – Dan Keller, Owen Erickson, Hayden Frank, Max Shuhan and Archer Cowen – hosting the “Pre-Valentine’s Day Love Affair.”
When: 10 p.m. Thursday
Where: The Range
Cost: $5