On With the Show « P.38 FAtoum At A DiAw Ar A Songlines magazine’s readers voted Mali’s Fatoumata Diawara the Best New Artist of 2012 — most likely for her hypnotic blend of Western jazz, funk and rock with Wassoulou musical traditions. Or maybe for her sensuous voice and understated, soulful arrangements. But those are not the only reasons to admire this singer. The 30-year-old, now based in Paris, sings for the rights and welfare of young Africans, particularly women. In fact, this month, Diawara is featured in a multiplatform project called “30 Songs/30 Days” in support of Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, inspired by a book of the same name by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. Diawara’s latest release is called Fatou. Pitchfork calls it “beguiling.” We call her not to be missed. Spaulding Auditorium, Hopkins center, September 29, 8 p.m. $23/30.
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Bor DEr mu Sic: DAViD HiDALgo AND mArc r iBot Border Music is a progressive collaboration between master guitarists David Hidalgo and Marc Ribot that revels in the unlikely intermingling of seemingly opposing cultural influences and sounds. The duo explores the nexus where East meets West, North meets South and urban chic coexists amiably alongside rural sensibility. Neither player is a stranger to border-hopping musical excursions. Hidalgo is the cofounding guitarist and vocalist of East LA mainstays Los Lobos and a member of the Latin Playboys, two bands that have long blurred the line, musically speaking, that runs along the Rio Grande. Meanwhile, Ribot, known since his days in groundbreaking jazz-punk band the Lounge Lizards, has played alongside musicians as varied as Tom Waits, Alison Krauss, Elton John, Cibo Matto and the Black Keys. You know, to name a few. Together, Hidalgo and Ribot craft an explosive, dynamic, Latin-flavored sound that is rooted in many styles and cultures but transcends any familiar definition. Except maybe one: melting pot. Flynn mainStage, January 26, 8 p.m. $15-36.
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This foursome is not the first to “reinvent” the string quartet, but listening to Brooklyn Rider, which has been called “stunningly imaginative,” could make you a true believer in messing with tradition. Since rising to renown in Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble, BR have performed with a broad spectrum of other artists, received accolades everywhere from public radio to the Huffington Post and earned a slew of awards. Brooklyn Rider derived their name from hometown Brooklyn, N.Y., and from the German pre-World War I artists’ collective Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Rider). That group’s wild, crossdisciplinary creativity inspires violinists Johnny Gandelsman and Colin Jacobsen, violist Nicholas Cords, and cellist Eric Jacobsen. The Los Angeles Times said about them, “The dazzling fingers-in-every-pie versatility that Brooklyn Rider exhibits is one of the wonders of contemporary music.” The Hop commissioned a piece from the group, Brooklyn Almanac, which includes compositions by jazz and indie-rock greats such as Bill Frisell and Deerhoof’s Greg Saunier. Its world premiere will celebrate the performing arts center’s 50th anniversary.
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FlynnSpace, November 10, 8 p.m. $25. Spaulding Auditorium, Hopkins center, January 18, 8 p.m. $25/33/40.