Big Ears Festival

[kh1958]

10 hours ago, medjuck said:

I have tickets, I have a hotel room: God willing and the creek don't rise (a serious concern where I live), I'll be there. (Tho I don't have airline tickets yet).

Awesome!

[kh1958]

I'm not familiar with the Ghost Train Orchestra, but I note that their program at Big Ears will consist of compositions of Moondog.

[kh1958]

Big Ears on Facebook: An exciting new wave of announcements is on the way—including new artist additions, expanded programs and features, and even a new venue or two. We’re also releasing the daily schedule and putting Single-Day Passes on sale earlier than usual to help everyone prepare for the upcoming David Byrne and Robert Plant on-sales. Stay tuned for updates!

[randyhersom]

Zeena Parkins, Ned Rothenberg and Tomas Fujiwara are the jazziest of the new adds

[kh1958]

More artists coming next week, I believe.

[kh1958]

The day by day lineup is posted on the website.

[kh1958]

The hourly schedule has been posted since last week.

[randyhersom]

I shared the FOMO acronym with a fellow attendee this year and he suggested it should be GOMO. 

Not fear of missing out but guarantee of missing out.

seeing Wild Up perform Julius Eastman's Femenine means missing Ches Smith with Mary Halvorson

seeing Pat Metheny means missing William Hooker with Charles Burnham.

seeing both means only seeing half of Tyshawn Sorey.

Tim Berne or Masada?

Marilyn Crispell, Petra Haden or Ned Rothenberg?

Jeff Parker, Marc Ribot or Caroline Shaw?

Mary Halvorson or Richard Thompson?

Dave Dougles with James Brandon Lewis or Chicago Underground Duo?

As usual, missed second choices would be a pretty good festival by themselves.

[kh1958]

I noticed that as well; of the acts on my list to see, there are lots that are scheduled simultaneously or overlapping.

[BFrank]

On 11/26/2025 at 5:43 PM, randyhersom said:

I shared the FOMO acronym with a fellow attendee this year and he suggested it should be GOMO. 

Not fear of missing out but guarantee of missing out.

seeing Wild Up perform Julius Eastman's Femenine means missing Ches Smith with Mary Halvorson

seeing Pat Metheny means missing William Hooker with Charles Burnham.

seeing both means only seeing half of Tyshawn Sorey.

Tim Berne or Masada?

Marilyn Crispell, Petra Haden or Ned Rothenberg?

Jeff Parker, Marc Ribot or Caroline Shaw?

Mary Halvorson or Richard Thompson?

Dave Dougles with James Brandon Lewis or Chicago Underground Duo?

As usual, missed second choices would be a pretty good festival by themselves.

Some things I take into consideration: A lot of these artists are there nearly every year, so I might lower their priority. But it doesn't make missing them any less painful [Ches Smith, Mary Halvorson, Tyshawn Sorey, Zorn, Ribot, Caroline Shaw, James Brandon Lewis]

And of course scheduling logistics can make a difference (Bijou to the Mill & Mine is a long trek)

 

[kh1958]

Boston’s The Either/Orchestra is back in time to celebrate its 40th Anniversary and we’re celebrating with two concerts at Big Ears 2026. The ten-piece E/O will be joined by legendary Ethiopian vocalist Teshome Mitiku and younger gen vocalist Munit Mesfin for a dive into their Ethiopian songbook, including selections from their new release éthiopiques 32: Nalbandian the Ethiopian as well as 2005’s éthiopiques 20: Live in Addis.

[BFrank]

I noticed that Fri-Sat at the Bijou is "all Zorn, all the time"

[kh1958]

8 hours ago, BFrank said:

I noticed that Fri-Sat at the Bijou is "all Zorn, all the time"

Yes, it's kind of annoying, as that is my favorite festival venue. I have a couple of his concerts on my tentative schedule but in general I'm pretty lukewarm on him.

Edited December 19, 2025 by kh1958

[Jason Bivins]

Last time there was a ton of Zorn, I talked to a few folks who were there basically only for his stuff. Maybe this is to make it easier on their tootsies?

[kh1958]

22 hours ago, Jason Bivins said:

Last time there was a ton of Zorn, I talked to a few folks who were there basically only for his stuff. Maybe this is to make it easier on their tootsies?

Yes, protect tootsies and massage Zorn's ego

Edited December 20, 2025 by kh1958

[BFrank]

13 hours ago, kh1958 said:

Yes, protect tootsies and massage Zorn's ego

With him, the wide range of styles he composes for and/or plays make it understandable to give him a lot of room. But I am surprised that they're doing it for the second year in a row.

First time all at one venue, as far as I know.

[kh1958]

Big Ears adds 8 hours of Indian classical music programming to the Festival in 2026. As I was able to catch only one Indian classical music concert in 2026, this is a banquet for a starving man:

Ragamala, which translates to “garland of ragas,” comes to Big Ears Festival as an immersive eight-hour presentation of South Asian classical music, offering a rare opportunity to experience Indian classical ragas as they are traditionally intended—performed at specific times of day rather than within standard concert formats.

 

Conceived as a “festival within a festival,” Ragamala draws from both of India’s great classical traditions: Hindustani music of the North and Carnatic music of the South, each with its own distinctive styles, forms, and instrumentation. The extended format allows artists to explore rarely performed ragas and subtle improvisations seldom heard in conventional evening concerts.

 

Featuring revered masters alongside exceptional younger artists, Ragamala invites listeners—devoted and new alike—into a deep, time-based immersion in one of the world’s oldest living musical traditions, presented with patience, care, and reverence.

 

RAGAMALA AT BIG EARS

Kunal Gunjal & Praveen Narayan

HINDUSTANI MORNING RAGA SET

Saraswathi Ranganathan, Swaminathan Selvaganesh, and Praveen Narayan

CARNATIC RAGAS

Selvaganesh Vinayakram

CARNATIC RHYTHMS ENSEMBLE & SOLOS W/ SWAMINATHAN SELVAGANESH AND PRAVEEN NARAYAN

Purbayan Chatterjee & Nitin Mitta

HINDUSTANI RAGAS

L. Shankar

CARNATIC RAGAS

[BFrank]

6 hours ago, kh1958 said:

Big Ears adds 8 hours of Indian classical music programming to the Festival in 2026. As I was able to catch only one Indian classical music concert in 2026, this is a banquet for a starving man:

 

Ragamala, which translates to “garland of ragas,” comes to Big Ears Festival as an immersive eight-hour presentation of South Asian classical music, offering a rare opportunity to experience Indian classical ragas as they are traditionally intended—performed at specific times of day rather than within standard concert formats.

 

Conceived as a “festival within a festival,” Ragamala draws from both of India’s great classical traditions: Hindustani music of the North and Carnatic music of the South, each with its own distinctive styles, forms, and instrumentation. The extended format allows artists to explore rarely performed ragas and subtle improvisations seldom heard in conventional evening concerts.

 

Featuring revered masters alongside exceptional younger artists, Ragamala invites listeners—devoted and new alike—into a deep, time-based immersion in one of the world’s oldest living musical traditions, presented with patience, care, and reverence.

 

RAGAMALA AT BIG EARS

Kunal Gunjal & Praveen Narayan

HINDUSTANI MORNING RAGA SET

Saraswathi Ranganathan, Swaminathan Selvaganesh, and Praveen Narayan

CARNATIC RAGAS

Selvaganesh Vinayakram

CARNATIC RHYTHMS ENSEMBLE & SOLOS W/ SWAMINATHAN SELVAGANESH AND PRAVEEN NARAYAN

Purbayan Chatterjee & Nitin Mitta

HINDUSTANI RAGAS

L. Shankar

CARNATIC RAGAS

Apparently it's going to be in that "new" venue, which is an old Greyhound Bus station near the Mill & Mine