The Thile Solo Bach Tour - Live, Fall of 2013

[BradKlein]

The tour is about to begin, and since the thread Thile Bach CD has Landed, is heading toward 300 posts long, I think it's worth starting a new thread to record folks' impressions of the live solo tour as it happens.



I attended a run-through concert in NYC under a strict 'no reviews' policy, to give Chris a chance to warm up for the shows to come. Last night, you could almost see him thinking out loud, as he figures out how to tour solo, supporting a CD of Bach violin works, while walking the line between 'recital' and 'show'. The mix of songs and tunes, sonatas and partitas, really worked for the 150 or so patrons last night. Even the bartenders hushed their drink shaking during the b-minor partita. Played in its entirety to a rapt and silent club.

[Dave LaBoone]

I got my tickets in the mail yesterday to his show in Louisville - I can't wait!!

[2Sharp]

Wife got 3rd row center tickets for the Seattle show next week and she is taking me!; can't wait either!

[Wolfboy]

I'll be catching him at the Music Center at Strathmore in Rockville, MD on October 30th...and I'm beyond honored that I've been asked to lead a mandolin workshop there on the 26th in conjunction with that concert. (Gulp.) "Crossover Techniques for Bach, Bluegrass and Beyond"...gonna be fun. Hope to see some Cafe-ers there.

[aphillips]

I have my alarm set for the minute the Santa Barbara tickets go on sale!!!! But it's not until February.....

[Justus True Waldron]

I'm going to see him in October at the Saint Rose Massry center in Albany. I've seen him with Punch Brothers and Michael Daves a few times now, including last weekend down in Brooklyn, but I'm looking forward to the classical thing. My sister just started going to Saint Rose so she's getting tickets and coming, as well as my dad who's an alum there. They both seem oddly excited to hear some mandolin music - should be a good time!

[Jim Garber]

I have my tickets for the Zankel Hall concert in NYC on 10/22. Looking fwd to a great night.

[Mandomax]

I have my tickets for 11/1 Gainesville, FL at University Auditorium. I have front row, dead front center seats. I have played this venue before, and the acoustics are amazing. beyond pumped for this

[John Hill]

I got my tickets in the mail yesterday to his show in Louisville - I can't wait!!

Me too. Bomhard Theater is a great concert hall. Looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see the turnout for a solo mandolin concert.

[BradKlein]

I'm really hoping that the tour produces some notable attention from the classical music critics, those that are left in the shrinking world of journalism (I'm no critic). At the pre-launch show, Chris played into a single AT4033 and, true to his word in the Mandolin Cafe interview, used the minimum amplification. Toward the back of that small room, I could clearly hear a mix of acoustic and amplified sound - maybe 60:40%? At first I thought it would be too quiet for the venue, but the ear adjusts, and it encouraged a very quiet and attentive audience. Little visible cell phone use and no ringtones, even with no announcements beforehand. The occasional still photo. One flash. It's as if folks really wanted to listen!

Thile seems to be putting real effort into cracking this nut. It looks so easy for him, one can wrongly assume that it's somehow a casual thing for him. But I've seen him and Michael Daves find the quietest spot they can before a show, and really concentrate on getting their heads in the right place. He says that we'll finish up the Cafe interview once he's had time to 'get settled' into the tour. Looking forward to it.

[JEStanek]

My daughter and I will see him in Philly in mid October. We're both pretty stoked.

Jamie

PS. I like using stoked for a classical concert.

[jefflester]

The mix of songs and tunes, sonatas and partitas, really worked for the 150 or so patrons last night.

So I'm curious about "songs and tunes." I've been wondering if this tour would be a strictly classical/Bach show or primarily a classical/Bach show with some other material as well. I've seen Chris plenty of times as a solo act at Largo (and he is a great solo performer) where he did do Bach for large chunks of the show, at one show he did the entire Dm Partita (with each movement distributed throughout the show) and at another the full Gm Sonata (opening the show with 2 movements then closing the show with the other 2). The 15 minutes of the chaconne of the Dm Partita (without music in front of him) was quite a feat.

[Larry S Sherman]

I'll be at the October show at Saint Rose Massry center in Albany as well.

Justus...we should meet at some point. My wife and I are front row center for this one, so feel free to say "Hi" if you're nearby.

Larry

[Jim Garber]

Brad, what hall was that pre-launch concert? Zankel is nice and small (I think 599 seats) so I wonder if he will use a mic or not. I would think the show would get a NY Times review. Whether or not they assign a "classical" critic to do so is hard to say.

[Paul Busman]

I'll be at the October show at Saint Rose Massry center in Albany as well.

Justus...we should meet at some point. My wife and I are front row center for this one, so feel free to say "Hi" if you're nearby.

Larry

Ditto for me. Look for a short guy with his red headed wife, row F.
BTW-- I was thinking of bringing my mando case for an autograph. Would that be too gauche?

[Brandon Flynn]

I'm jealous of everyone who gets to see this. I was hoping someone in Texas would want him there but no schedule as of yet. With my luck it'll be in Dallas and I'll have to make a hard financial decision...

[emitfo]

I get to hear him Oct 14 at the 925 seat Southern Theater in Columbus Ohio. I suppose Mr. Monroe would say that ain't no part of nothin' but I think it's great! I've got Row H seat(s)1 & 3, right on the aisle. I did hear that the balcony may have the best sound and if it's not sold out I'll cruise up there to give it a listen.

[JAK]

I'd like to have what I think Chris must have = a photographic memory (musical)?

[brunello97]

We scored some tickets (late) for Mr. Thile's show here at Rackham auditorium in Ann Arbor in mid October. A really great room.

Kind of Slim Pickens on the seats so I anticipate a good crowd. I plan to post a separate note here as the date approaches to see about visiting with some MC folks there.

Mick

[golfcourseguy]

I saw the first of the shows at the Rockwood Music Hall this week. I was fortunate enough to be sitting about 5 feet away and got to hear the extraordinary sounds he produced, unamplified . The dynamic range he is capable of is breathtaking.
The partitas served as the framework for the evening. Each would be followed by a the couple of vocal numbers,
pulling from the Punch Brothers, Goat Rodeo, and collaboration with Brad Mehldau as well as a song from the Civil War (The skirmish, not the group). These provided the audience a break from the "intense listening" and his narrations were filled with good humor and personal insights. His encore was a tune he was working on/writing that afternoon. He said he had started it a few years ago and had deemed it "too silly" to continue, until that afternoon. His mandolin playing is part of the lyrical hook, and I don't want to spoil the moment.
It was an unforgettable experience.

[BradKlein]

His encore was a tune he was working on/writing that afternoon. He said he had started it a few years ago and had deemed it "too silly" to continue, until that afternoon. His mandolin playing is part of the lyrical hook, and I don't want to spoil the moment.

Admirable restraint! No 'spoilers' here at the Cafe.

[Beanzy]

This is where I get to see him on Nov 8th
St Lukes London (LSO home)

[2Sharp]

Tour Stop Number One:
It is hard to find words that adequately convey Chris Thile’s spectacular performance in Seattle last night. Chris’s interpretations of Bach are masterful and technically stunning. The ‘wine label’ description might be angelic and energetic mandolin with overtones of harpsichord. He seemed to captivate the roughly thousand appreciative listeners and during the sonatas and partitas the hall was silent; devoid of the usual muffled rustling and coughing. The audience became fully engaged as Chris moved in other musical directions. His melodic and rhythmic mandolin virtuosity along with his voice and clever transitions made it an exciting journey; part recital, part show as noted by Brad Klein.

Combined with his casual audience banter Chris did more than share a personal story. He offered a musical glimpse into the joy and sorrow of his creative, and occasionally tortured, soul. While the performance probably did not satisfy the expectations of some genre-experts, the MacArthur Foundation was right; he is a genius. It was one of my most exciting and magical live musical experiences (which at the risk of dating myself spans Yo-Yo Ma to New Grass Revival to the Beatles.)

So I loved it: Those of you who have tickets are in for a real treat!

[DSDarr]

I was at last night's show and have to say that it surpassed my expectations as well.... from the ridiculous to the sublime, he had it pretty well dialed it. Wow!

-David

[Tom Sanderson]

November 1 in Gainesville for me.