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ASCAP Foundation Crowns Its 2026 Class Of Morton Gould Young Composer Award Winners

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A new generation of concert music has its spotlight. The ASCAP Foundation, led by President Paul Williams, has named the recipients of the 2026 ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Awards, the program that encourages talented young creators of concert music between the ages of 13 and 30.

Williams called it a joy to recognize the honorees, pointing to the artistry and dedication that signal a bright future for the form. Executive Director Patricia Leonard framed the support of emerging composers as central to the Foundation’s mission, thanking the judges and funders who help champion these talents at a pivotal moment in their careers.

The pedigree of the award speaks for itself. Past recipients have gone on to major honors, including 2026 Pulitzer Prize in Music winner Gabriela Lena Frank, and former Pulitzer winners Michael Abels, Jennifer Higdon, David Lang, Melinda Wagner, and Julia Wolfe.

The 2026 winners are Zixuan Chen of Baltimore, Sophia Kunxu Dou of New York, Bobby Ge of Princeton, Jacob Harrison of Los Angeles, Oswald Huỳnh of Rome, Maya Miro Johnson of New Haven, Kai Kubota-Enright of Brooklyn, Jacky Jiaqi Liu of New York, Daniel Lubin of New York, Matthew Huang Mailman of Evanston, Aaron Nichols of New York, Paul Novak of Chicago, Luca Pasquini of New York, Sofía Rocha of Providence, Cyrano Jett Rosentrater of New York, Dylan Tyree of Los Angeles, and Vincent Zhang of New York.

Honorable Mentions went to Benjamin Coble, Oliver Dubon, Henry Golden, Cem Güven, Patrick Holcomb, Isaiah Saranow, and Jason Zhang. Oswald Huỳnh earned an additional distinction, the 2026 Leo Kaplan Award, created in memory of the attorney who served as ASCAP Special Distribution Advisor and funded by the Kaplan Family. This year’s judging panel featured composers David Biedenbender, Anthony Cheung, Loren Loiacono, Brian Raphael Nabors, Nina Shekhar, and Ileana Perez Velázquez.

The program carries a storied history. It was established in 1979 with funding from The ASCAP Foundation Jack and Amy Norworth Fund, named for the writer of standards like “Shine On Harvest Moon” and “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.” Additional support comes from the Irving Caesar Fund (Caesar wrote “Tea for Two” and “Swanee”) and the Joseph and Rosalie Meyer Fund (Meyer composed “If You Knew Susie” and several Broadway shows).

The awards took on their current name after the 1996 death of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Morton Gould, honoring his lifelong commitment to young creators. A child prodigy who had his first composition published by G. Schirmer at age 6, Gould served as President of both ASCAP and The ASCAP Foundation from 1986 to 1994.

Jazz Maestro Vince Guaraldi’s ‘Great Pumpkin’ Score Returns For Its 60th Anniversary

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60 years on, Linus is still waiting in that pumpkin patch. Craft Recordings is marking the 60th anniversary of the beloved PEANUTS Halloween special ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ with a full vinyl reissue of Vince Guaraldi’s 1966 jazz score, arriving August 7 and available to pre-order now.

The centerpiece is a striking 45 RPM zoetrope LP, animating scenes from the special on each side as it spins, paired with a new essay from Sean Mendelson. The collection gathers Guaraldi’s complete soundtrack alongside a selection of rare outtakes, following its first official release in 2018 and a 2022 expansion drawn from newly discovered master tapes.

Collectors get plenty to chase. An Orange 4-inch Tiny Vinyl arrives at Target on July 17, with “The Great Pumpkin Waltz” on Side A and “Graveyard Theme” on Side B. Pumpkin-shaped pressings follow August 21 in exclusive colorways: Electric Pumpkin Patch (Barnes & Noble), Pumpkin Spice (Walmart), Ghost White (Target), and Candy Corn (Craft Recordings), plus the fan-favorite Orange Pumpkin pressing returning to major retailers.

The music itself remains the draw. The score turns on the sophisticated, evocative “The Great Pumpkin Waltz,” inspired by Linus’ unshakable faith in the mysterious gourd, and reaches from the eerie “Breathless” to the playful “The Red Baron.” The evergreen “Charlie Brown Theme” and the instantly recognizable “Linus and Lucy” anchor the set. Guaraldi’s writing here is warm, witty, and quietly masterful, jazz that generations of kids absorbed before they knew the word.

The sessions marked a turning point. Recorded just weeks before the October airdate at Desilu’s Gower Street Studio in Hollywood, the special brought in seasoned composer and conductor John Scott Trotter, best known for three decades as Bing Crosby’s music director. Trotter helped shape Guaraldi’s ideas into tight, TV-friendly cues. The composer’s trio (bassist Monty Budwig and drummer Colin Bailey) was joined by Mannie Klein on trumpet, John Gray on guitar, and Ronald Lang on woodwinds, lending warm autumnal texture to the score.

Guaraldi’s mark on the franchise is hard to overstate. PEANUTS historian Derrick Bang noted that the composer established the franchise’s whole musical personality with this third outing, setting the groove every later special would follow. Lee Mendelson, the producer who first recruited Guaraldi, contributes an introductory note written before his passing in 2019.

The special itself was a phenomenon. ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ debuted October 27, 1966, capturing a staggering 49 percent audience share and earning an Emmy nomination, though unlike ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ it never got a companion soundtrack at the time. Guaraldi went on to score 15 PEANUTS specials before his death in 1976, leaving behind themes that became touchstones of American culture.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Tracklist:

Side A:

  1. Linus and Lucy
  2. Graveyard Theme
  3. Snoopy and the Leaf/Frieda (With the Naturally Curly Hair)
  4. The Great Pumpkin Waltz
  5. Linus and Lucy (Reprise)
  6. Charlie Brown Theme/Charlie Brown Theme (Minor Theme)/Graveyard Theme (Reprise)
  7. The Great Pumpkin Waltz (Reprise)
  8. The Red Baron/Military Drum March
  9. The Great Pumpkin Waltz (2nd Reprise)/The Great Pumpkin Waltz (3rd Reprise)
  10. Graveyard Theme (Trick or Treat) (2nd Reprise)
  11. Fanfare/Breathless/Graveyard Theme (Trick or Treat) (3rd Reprise)
  12. Charlie Brown Theme (Reprise)

Side B:

  1. Breathless (2nd Reprise)
  2. It’s a Long Way to Tipperary/There’s a Long, Long Trail A-Winding/Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit Bag/Roses of Picardy
  3. Graveyard Theme (Trick or Treat) (4th Reprise)
  4. Linus and Lucy (2nd Reprise)/Linus and Lucy (3rd Reprise)
  5. Charlie Brown Theme (2nd Reprise)
  6. Linus and Lucy (Alternate Take 1)
  7. Graveyard Theme (Alternate Take 1)
  8. Charlie Brown Theme (Alternate Reprise Take 1)
  9. Linus and Lucy (Alternate Take 2)
  10. The Great Pumpkin Waltz (Alternate Take 2)
  11. Linus and Lucy (Alternate Reprise Take 1)
  12. Charlie Brown Theme (Alternate Reprise Take 2)

Genre-Smashing Experimentalists Nu Jazz Detonate Their Second Album ‘Un Jazz’

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Nu Jazz are building something gloriously unhinged. The experimental New York six-piece have announced their second studio album and label debut, ‘Un Jazz’, out July 24 via Orange Milk, alongside lead single “369.” The record sits at the underground crossroads of free jazz, hardcore, and electronic music. Listen here.

The band sum up the album with one wild image: “Woodstock ’99 at Montreux Jazz Festival.” It’s a fragmented mash of genres and maximalist noise, what they call wartime music for the digital trench, aimed squarely at the power structures eroding democracy, individuality, and independent thought. That ambition comes through loud.

Lead single “369” makes the case immediately. The track plays out as a jagged waltz, moving between simmering lows and frenetic peaks with righteous anger and total abandon. It pulls the group’s inciting sound into focus, a restless distillation of everything they’ve been working toward and a badge of their perennial outsider status.

The lineup reads like a who’s who of the underground. Danny Orlowski (Deli Girls) hurls blown-out screams in lockstep with Ryan Easter (WRENS), whose blistering 16th-note runs and synth-like effects reimagine what a trumpet can do. Ben Shirken (29 Speedway, Ex Wiish) builds churning worlds from modular synths and jagged samples, while Adam Turay’s (The Narcotix) riffs weave and bloom. Kevin Eichenberger (CGI Jesus) anchors the low end with deft bass and compositional instinct, and John Bemis (Murderpact) brings a rhythmic palette of swing, breakbeat, and hardcore. Their individual projects have drawn notice from Pitchfork, Bandcamp Daily, Artforum, The FADER, Dazed, Resident Advisor, and The New York Times.

The road work runs deep too. Since forming in 2022, the band have sharpened their sound across rooms like Pioneer Works, Public Records, Long Play Festival, Cafe Oto, Trauma Bar und Kino, Jazz Is Dead, and Hyperreality Festival. ‘Un Jazz’ captures that convergence at full strength, an indefatigable spirit slashed against a timeline bleaker than any fictional dystopia.

Un Jazz Tracklist:

  1. “Return of the Rant”
  2. “In My City”
  3. “Sublimation”
  4. “369”
  5. “Vaporization”
  6. “Rearview”
  7. “Who Do You Work For?”
  8. “Recombination”
  9. “I(V)”
  10. “Civil War”

Shows:

July 24 @ The Compound – Baltimore, MD

July 25 @ Nightclub 101 – New York, NY (w/ OHYUNG, Matt Bent & Jon Starks)

Aaron Sorkin Takes On The Facebook Whistleblower Saga In ‘The Social Reckoning’

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Aaron Sorkin is heading back inside the machine. The official teaser trailer has arrived for his new dramatic thriller, a companion piece to the hit film ‘The Social Network’, landing exclusively in theatres October 9, 2026. Sorkin writes and directs.

The screenplay is built from one of the decade’s biggest media stories. It’s based on the events behind the Wall Street Journal’s explosive exposé ‘The Facebook Files’, tracing the true story of how Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison), a young Facebook engineer, brings her case to Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White). Together they set off on a dangerous path that ends up exposing the social network’s most closely guarded secrets.

The cast runs deep. Alongside Madison and White, the ensemble features Wunmi Mosaku, Betty Gilpin, and Billy Magnussen, with Bill Burr and Jeremy Strong rounding out the lineup. It’s a stacked roster for a story built on high-stakes conversations, exactly the terrain Sorkin commands better than anyone.

The production team carries serious weight too. Todd Black, Peter Rice, Sorkin, and Stuart Besser produce, with executive producers Lauren Lohman, Roger McNamee, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Broderick Johnson, and Andrew A. Kosove. The film is currently unrated by the Motion Picture Association.

CIMA And MusicOntario Launch LIVE Music Toronto To Champion The City’s Indie Venues

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Toronto’s grassroots music scene just got a unified voice. The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA), in partnership with MusicOntario, has launched LIVE Music Toronto, a new industry collective built to represent and strengthen the city’s independent and grassroots live music sector. The launch arrives ahead of the CIMA and MusicOntario annual summer day party during NXNE.

The collective serves Toronto’s independent venues, festivals, promoters, and presenters across both for-profit and non-profit sectors. It gives them a shared voice on local policy, resources, and the long-term survival of the rooms where artists develop and audiences connect. The local focus complements the national work of the Canadian Live Music Association and mirrors proven models like Les SMAQ in Quebec, the Music Venue Trust in the UK, and NIVA in the United States.

CIMA President and CEO Andrew Cash frames a strong local scene as the foundation for the whole ecosystem. He notes that the new LIVE Music Toronto membership tier connects independents to each other and bridges them to CIMA’s broader community of labels, managers, publishers, and artists.

The people running these rooms see the difference already. Shaun Bowring, who operates The Garrison and The Baby G and runs promoters Transmit Presents, points to how Toronto’s venues mobilized during the pandemic to win a property tax exemption, and calls the formal launch fantastic. Camille Neirynck-Guerrero, programmer of Queen West hub DROM Taberna and its non-profit arm in•summer, says membership has already expanded both her community and her access to resources, simply by connecting her with neighbours across the city.

The numbers behind the scene are serious. The City of Toronto’s 2020 Re:Venues study estimated that the city’s venues generate $850 million in annual economic impact and support the equivalent of 10,500 full-time jobs. The Canadian Live Music Association’s Hear and Now report found that Canada’s live music industry contributed more than $10 billion to the national economy in 2023.

MusicOntario Executive Director Emy Stantcheva points to live music as something that animates the city day and night, creating jobs, driving tourism and hospitality, and standing as a core feature of any world-class metropolis. LIVE Music Toronto exists to advocate for the independents behind those figures.

Membership is open to independent, grassroots venues, promoters, presenters, and festivals that are Canadian-owned and controlled, operating in Toronto, working outside the major institutional ecosystem, and not run by any level of government. Supported by the City of Toronto’s Music Office, the initiative grew out of extensive groundwork by CIMA, MusicOntario, and writer Jonathan Bunce, founder of non-profit Wavelength Music and co-author of the study Reimagining Music Venues. That work included consultations, focus groups, and a year-end townhall at The Garrison. More than 40 venues and presenters have already signed on as founding members, with more to come through the year. Global ticketing platform Tixr, a longtime CIMA partner, is providing financial support to fund outreach and onboarding over the next year.

Art-Rock Duo Mick Harvey And Amanda Acevedo Conjure A Storm On ‘Psychedelia In White’

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Mick Harvey and Amanda Acevedo are stepping deeper into their own world. The Australian-Mexican duo have shared the video for new single “Perfect Storm” and announced their new album ‘Psychedelia in White’, arriving September 4 via Mute. The single and video are out now.

The 10-track record was recorded mostly in Australia and mixed in Chile by Alain Johannes. It lands on white vinyl, CD, and digital, and a run of live dates follows: a UK and European tour with Mercury Rev, plus headline shows in Sweden and Norway, closing at The 100 Club in London on November 4.

‘Psychedelia in White’ is the pair’s third album together, following ‘Phantasmagoria in Blue’. Where their debut and second release ‘Golden Mirrors (The Uncovered Sessions Vol. 1)’ leaned on reinterpretations, this one carries seven tracks of original material. The duo revisit themes from their debut, mythology, love, hope, loss, and mysticism, with a shift in musical style and an overarching idea about finding a safe space inside the chaos of the outside world.

“Perfect Storm” sets the tone with woozy, tripped-out psychedelia, Acevedo’s evocative vocals riding a maelstrom of layered guitar and synthesizer washes. The track sounds genuinely immersive, the kind of song that pulls you fully under. She wrote the lyrics after Canadian musician Peter McNestry (who runs the project Pink Elephants) sent her an early instrumental, describing the result as a statement of confidence and playfulness shot through with a dark, stormy feeling. The two built it through file exchanges, and Harvey later layered in guitars, sound effects, and backing vocals.

The album marks a real leap in the duo’s songwriting. It picks up the folklore threads of their debut tracks “Medusa” and “Atlantis” and runs them through playful turns, including “Song for Aurora,” an ode to Marc Bolan stuffed with T-Rex references. Three reinterpretations sit among the originals: a new take on PJ Harvey’s “Slow-Motion-Movie-Star” (which Mick had recorded for his 2007 album ‘Two of Diamonds’), plus translations of Silvio Rodríguez’s “Sueño Con Serpientes” and Jose Maria Cano and Mecano’s “Bride of the Sea.”

The partnership has roots worth knowing. Acevedo met Harvey years ago in Mexico City while he was touring with PJ Harvey, though the current project didn’t ignite until 2021. In the five years since that first meeting, they’ve put out two albums and toured widely across Europe and Australia, and this kaleidoscopic third record pushes the journey further still.

Tour:

UK / Europe tour with Mercury Rev

Headline shows in Sweden and Norway

November 4 – London, UK at The 100 Club

Natanya Hits The Road For Her First Headline Run, The Attitude Tour

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Natanya is stepping out on her own for the first time. The London-based artist is celebrating last week’s release of her new single “Candyland!” by launching her very first headline tour, a run that spans Europe, the UK, and North America. It’s a real milestone moment for an artist building fast.

The Attitude Tour covers 11 dates and kicks off October 22 in Paris, France at Les Etoiles. From there the European and UK leg rolls through Cologne, Amsterdam, London, and Manchester, hitting intimate rooms built for a close connection with the crowd.

Then she crosses the pond. The North American leg opens November 3 in Toronto at Drake Underground, followed by Boston, New York City, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, before wrapping November 12 in San Francisco at Popscene at Brick & Mortar. These are the kind of tight, sweaty club shows that turn early fans into lifers.

Artist presale begins Wednesday, June 10, with general on-sale Friday, June 12.

The Attitude Tour Dates:

October 22 – Paris, FR at Les Etoiles

October 23 – Cologne, DE at Yuca Club

October 26 – Amsterdam, NL at Bitterzoet

October 27 – London, UK at The Garage

October 28 – Manchester, UK at YES Pink Room

November 3 – Toronto, ON at Drake Underground

November 5 – Boston, MA at The Red Room at Cafe 939

November 6 – New York, NY at Baby’s All Right

November 7 – Washington, DC at Songbyrd Music House

November 9 – Chicago, IL at Schubas

November 12 – San Francisco, CA at Popscene at Brick & Mortar

Video: The Killers Light Up Lollapalooza Chicago In 2017

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The Killers turned Chicago’s Grant Park into one giant singalong at Lollapalooza on August 4, 2017, delivering a masterclass in stadium rock built on indie grit, new wave synths, and pop anthemics. Frontman Brandon Flowers worked the massive crowd through a setlist stacked with staples, “Mr. Brightside,” “Somebody Told Me,” and “When You Were Young,” then tipped his hat to his influences with covers of Muse’s “Starlight” and The Smashing Pumpkins’ “Disarm.” It stands as proof of why the Las Vegas natives remain one of the most reliable and exhilarating live acts of their generation.


Texas Country Hitmaker Hayden Haddock Strikes A Match On “I’ll Bring The Matches”

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Hayden Haddock has found a way to make a breakup feel like a celebration. The independent Texas country artist has announced his new single “I’ll Bring The Matches,” out Friday, July 10, 2026. Written by Jacob Boyd and Dan Hutson and tracked at the historic Rosewood Studios in Tyler, Texas under producer Drew Hall, the song taps the juke joint and barroom saloon tradition that runs through the Texas scene.

The track has real swagger. It opens on a rockabilly guitar riff, settles into a classic country instrumental bed, and lets a flirtatious fiddle dance through the arrangement. Haddock’s vocals sit right at the center, traditional in spirit and modern in delivery. It’s the kind of honky-tonk cut that earns its place on a Texas dancefloor.

The storyline keeps things cheeky. Haddock plays a narrator with hopeful intentions, coaxing his love interest to walk away from Mr. Wrong so the two of them can light their own fire. He describes it as a feel-good breakup anthem that trades tears for a matchstick, nodding to the mischief of The Chicks’ “Goodbye Earl” and the flirtatious lean of Brooks & Dunn’s “We’ll Burn That Bridge.”

The release rides a strong run of momentum. “I’ll Bring The Matches” follows his March single “Heaven On Horseback,” and Haddock’s catalogue has pulled more than 7 million cumulative streams. His songs have landed on Spotify’s “Texas Music Now” and “Texas Music Rewind,” Apple Music’s “Don’t Mess With Texas,” and Amazon Music’s “Texas Forever.”

His story keeps building fast. The Texas A&M graduate broke through in 2018 off a video shot in his college dorm and has since grown into a genuine road warrior, playing close to 100 dates a year and opening for Randall King, Steve Wariner, Kevin Fowler, Casey Donahew, Roger Creager, and Jon Wolfe. He was named New Male Vocalist of the Year at the 2021 Texas Regional Radio Music Awards, has charted six tracks on Texas radio with three reaching the Top 10, and scored his first number 1 on the Texas Country Music Chart in 2025 with “Front Porch In The Rain.”

Rocky Mountain Hitmaker Ian Munsick Charts The Peaks On ‘The Mountain Goat’

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Ian Munsick is heading for the summit. The Wyoming native, one of modern country’s only true Rocky Mountain voices, has announced his fourth studio album ‘The Mountain Goat’, arriving August 21 via West to the Rest Records and Triple Tigers Records. He shared the news with fans at his fan club party during CMA Fest on Saturday, June 6.

Munsick built this one with his hands all over it. He co-produced alongside Jeremy Spillman and Mike Robinson, and played nine different instruments across the record: acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, mandolin, banjo, harmonica, piano, bouzouki, and kazoo, plus background vocals and programming. The sound he describes leans on folky textures, steel guitar, and plenty of fiddle.

His vision for the album is rooted in place. Munsick frames the songs as a dedication to the land and the people who live with it, not on it, a horseback ride through pastures and prairies, past the timberline, up to the peak. He wants melodies that haunt you and lyrics that carry you straight into the West that fuels him.

The rollout is already moving. His single “Love Is Blind” keeps climbing country radio, and the next song, “World War III,” drops this Friday, June 12, from the 15-track album. Five direct-to-consumer fan packs are up for pre-order on his store, including an exclusive autographed zoetrope vinyl.

The live celebration spans the Mountain Time zone. The Road to The Mountain Goat runs through Nevada, Colorado (including the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheatre), New Mexico, Texas, South Dakota, and Utah. The official album release show lands August 22 at Deer Valley Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater in Park City, Utah, part of the Deer Valley Concert Series. Munsick calls Utah a crowd that shows up and sings every word, and he’s bringing 15 new songs for them to learn.

There’s a brick-and-mortar chapter too. Munsick is partnering with The Landmark Hotel & Casino to open the Ian Munsick Cowboy Bar & Western Grill in Deadwood, SD, on September 18. The Landmark, built between 1894 and 1920, is Deadwood’s largest historic structure at roughly 35,000 square feet, and the bar will occupy over 2,600 of them, with old-school country decor and two stages, one indoors and one out.

The Mountain Goat Tracklist:

  1. Mountain Goat
  2. Geronimo
  3. My Montana
  4. Legends of the Fall Interlude
  5. Made Me A Man
  6. Blue Roan
  7. Love Is Blind
  8. Medicine Man
  9. Cutthroat World
  10. Mountain Goat Reprise
  11. Palomino Eyes
  12. Earn Your Spurs
  13. The Girl I Left Behind
  14. World War III
  15. Winter In Wyoming

2026 The Road to The Mountain Goat Tour Dates:

August 21 – Minden, NV @ TJ’s Corral Outdoor

August 22 – Park City, UT @ Deer Valley Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater

August 25 – Morrison, CO @ Red Rocks Amphitheatre

August 28 – Pueblo, CO @ Colorado State Fair

September 11 – San Angelo, TX @ Black Buck Amphitheater

September 12 – Albuquerque, NM @ New Mexico State Fair

September 18 – Deadwood, SD @ Deadwood Jam