Chris Thile
Fresh from Laysongs, his first truly solo album, Chris Thile, founding member of the Punch Brothers and Nickel Creek, continues to transcend his bluegrass roots.
Thile is a MacArthur Fellow and Grammy Award-winning mandolinist, singer, songwriter, and according to The Guardian, 'that rare being: an all-round musician who can settle into any style, from bluegrass to classical.'
With his broad outlook, Thile creates a distinctly American canon and a new musical aesthetic for performers and audiences alike, giving the listener 'one joyous arc, with the linear melody and vertical harmony blurring into a single web of gossamer beauty' (New York Times).
Most recently, Thile recorded Laysongs, out on Nonesuch. The album is his first truly solo album: just Thile, his voice, and his mandolin, on new recordings of six original songs and three covers, all of which contextualise and banter with his ideas about spirituality.
Recorded in a converted upstate New York church during the pandemic, Laysongs’ centrepiece is the three-part ‘Salt (in the Wounds) of the Earth’, which was inspired by CS Lewis’ The Screwtape Letters.
Sam Amidon, another great Nonesuch artist, opens the show. His albums The Following Mountain and Sam Amidon brought the fresh energy and layered textures of folk to life.
Amidon has developed his own strong style as a singer and multi-instrumentalist through reworkings of traditional songs, original material and collaborations with jazz mavericks such as Bill Frisell.
‘Nowhere has master mandolinist Thile’s formidable mastery been more fully realised than on Laysongs. An intimate gaze into the soul of a preternaturally gifted musician.’
‘As always, Thile's playing is an unpredictable delight, ranging from furious strumming to pointillistic fusillades, and at times his eight-string rings like a church bell.’
'One of the most extraordinarily gifted musicians on planet Earth. The mandolinist, musician, singer, songwriter, educator, and possessor of one of the purest falsetto voices I’ve ever heard. I don’t know how you would describe this music, but I certainly know if you are a jazz lover, and lover of deeply complex and beautiful music, you’re going to love this.'
Need to know
Under-14s should be accompanied by an adult.
Dates & times
Price
- Standard entryFrom £25*
- Concessions25%**
* Excludes £3.50 booking fee.
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** Limited availability. Read about concessions.
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Queen Elizabeth Hall
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