August 1, 2008:

WNYC's Soundcheck radio program of July 30th featured an interview with Lloyd Whitesell, author of the recently published book "The Music of Joni Mitchell." As the program introduction states, "Joni became a vastly influential singer-songwriter by combining a deep, personal style with the sounds of pop, jazz, and the avant-garde. On this show, Lloyd reveals some of the hidden aspects of her creativity." Download the podcast here.  (li)

July 9, 2008:

Lloyd Whitesell's long-awaited book entitled "The Music of Joni Mitchell" is finally available (click graphic for more information). Whitesell presents a thorough exploration of Mitchell's musical style, sound, and structure in order to evaluate her songs from a musicological perspective. His analyses are conceived within a holistic framework that takes account of poetic nuance, cultural reference, and stylistic evolution over a long, adventurous career.

Mitchell's songs represent a complex, meticulously crafted body of work. The Music of Joni Mitchell offers a comprehensive survey of her output, with many discussions of individual songs, organized by topic rather than chronology. Individual chapters each explore a different aspect of her craft, such as poetic voice, harmony, melody, and large-scale form. A separate chapter is devoted to the central theme of personal freedom, as expressed through diverse symbolic registers of the journey quest, bohemianism, creative license, and spiritual liberation.

Previous accounts of Mitchell's songwriting have tended to favor her poetic vision, expansive verse structures, and riveting vocal delivery. Whitesell fills out this account with special attention to musical technique, showing how such traits as complex or conflicting sonorities, dualities of harmonic mode, dialectical tensions of texture and register, intricately layered instrumental figuration, and a variable vocal persona are all essential to her distinctive identity as a songwriter. The Music of Joni Mitchell develops a set of conceptual tools geared specifically to Mitchell's songs, in order to demonstrate the extent of her technical innovation in the pop song genre, to give an account of the formal sophistication and rhetorical power characterizing her work as a whole, and to provide grounds for the recognition of her intellectual stature as a composer within her chosen field.  (li)

July 2, 2008:

On August 14, 2008 at 7:30 pm Strathmore Hall (Washington DC area) presents A TRIBUTE TO JONI MITCHELL in the Music Center at Strathmore. This will be the 5th Strathmore tribute show produced by Bandhouse Gigs, showcasing an amazing array of D.C. based talent to honor an esteemed musical artist. Previous Strathmore Summer Concert Series finales have paid tribute to the music of Nils Lofgren in 2004, The Band (2005), and Neil Young (2006). All were held on the Strathmore lawn and each drew crowds in excess of 4,000. In 2007 the show moved inside to the state of the art 1,970 seat Music Center for a sold out show paying tribute to the music of Bob Dylan.

This year's Tribute to Joni Mitchell will celebrate one of the most heralded songwriters and artists in popular music. Over the course of her remarkable 40+ year career, Joni Mitchell has explored and expanded the boundaries of folk, rock, pop, and jazz, crafting classics including Both Sides Now, Woodstock, & Help Me. Joni Mitchell has recorded more than 25 albums and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Her music continues to influence several generations of artists and fans.

Almost 50 area performers will be participating in the tribute, including popular veterans like Mary Ann Redmond, Jon Carroll, Naked Blue, and John Jennings (Mary Chapin Carpenter) ; respected artists such as Carey Creed, Chaise Lounge, Esther Haynes, Deeme Katson, Cal Everett, One Horse Town, and Diane Rosenthal; and electrifying new talents Luke Brindley, Laura Burhenn (Georgie James), LEA, Margot MacDonald, and Chelsea Lee. Other musicians performing in the show include current Eagles guitarist Steuart Smith (who recorded with Joni Mitchell on 'Turbulent Indigo'), drummers Timm Biery and Andy Hamburger, bassists Scott Ambush (Spyro Gyra) & Scott Giambusso, guitarists Dan Hovey and Keith Grimes (Eva Cassady), saxophonists Al Williams & Wayne Sulc, conguero Cesar Vanegas, and keyboardists Bill Starks, John Hurd, and Daniel Brindley.

Bandhouse Gigs is comprised of Ronnie Newmyer, Chuck Sullivan, David Sless, and Danny Schwartz. Newmyer and Sullivan are veteran musicians, Schwartz is a musician and ace audio engineer, and Sless has spent more than 33 years coordinating and stage managing live events and mixing sound at a variety of area venues.

The tribute series began in 2004 when Strathmore and WAMA partnered to present the Washington Timeline Concert Series, a yearlong event recognizing nationally acclaimed D.C. based musicians. Newmyer and Sullivan were asked to organize a tribute concert to honor guitarist Nils Lofgren as a finale to the series. That wildly successful effort has evolved into a popular annual event that serves to showcase the diverse and richly talented music scene in the D.C. area. Strathmore, under the guidance of artistic director Shelley Brown, has collaborated with Bandhouse Gigs to put together these unique and inspiring shows that cap off each Summer Concert Series.

For more information on Bandhouse Gigs contact: Ronnie Newmyer   (li)

June 11, 2008:

Even as her work is being exhibited in Toronto, Canada this week, Joni will be traveling to Ireland in July, bringing her Green Flag Song art exhibit for the Arts Festival in Galway.  (bm)

June 3, 2008:

Good news for Joni's many fans in The Netherlands and surrounding areas...Dutch singer Charlie Dée will be touring with her band for a Joni Tribute. Check her website for dates and locations, and enjoy!  (bm)

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