Jazz drummer Nate Smith arranges funky grooves, with strings attached

Plus, RM of BTS performs a Tiny Desk (home) concert.

View this email online Dec. 3, 2022 by Marissa Lorusso This week, we’re sharing a live performance from jazz drummer Nate Smith; plus, watch a Tiny Desk (home) concert from K-pop star RM. NPR Drummer Nate Smith is “a master of groove, modulation, odd time signatures,” as Jazz Night in America host Christian McBride puts it. “He’s that consummate professional that everyone wants to play with.” Jazz Night recently released a new episode about Smith, who has long been known as a top-notch drummer — but, in the past decade, has also emerged as an impressive bandleader and composer, too. Jazz Night’s episode dives into Smith’s whole musical life, from his time growing up in Chesapeake, Va., where — thanks to his father — George Benson, Grover Washington and Quincy Jones were all in heavy rotation, all the way up through his recent work with his sextet Kinfolk. And the Jazz Night team didn’t just talk to Smith — members of the crew also went to see him play. They recorded a concert at Crosstown Arts in Memphis, Tenn., where Smith played with Kinfolk and a string octet composed of members of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. I asked Jazz Night assistant producer Mitra Arthur to tell me a little bit about how it felt to film the show. “I’m a firm believer that strings make everything better, so the opportunity to film Nate Smith + Kinfolk with string accompaniment was a highlight of my year,” she told me. “It was hard to not get lost in the music while filming, especially during ‘Rambo: The Vigilante.’ I may or may not have shouted while watching that performance.” You can watch the whole concert on our site.  Newsletter continues after sponsor message More to read, watch and hear Failure was not an option when composer Tania Léon arrived in New York, a determined 24-year-old pianist from Cuba — and now, at nearly 80, she says some things haven't changed. León, who was named a Kennedy Center honoree this year, had a long, in-depth conversation with my colleague Tom Huizenga about her unplanned, unstoppable career. Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie died this week at age 79. Her soulful contralto helped define classics like "You Make Loving Fun," "Everywhere" and "Don't Stop." "She was truly one-of-a-kind, special and talented beyond measure," Fleetwood Mac said in a statement. This week, Alt.Latino’s Felix Contreras and Anamaria Sayre sat down with Linda Ronstadt, who recently released a new book, Feels Like Home: A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands, for a conversation about how Ronstadt came to fully embrace her Mexican heritage in her music. Songwriter Natalie Mering says that her fifth album as Weyes Blood, And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, was inspired by feelings of hyper-isolation, amplified by the forces of technology and capitalism. But to simply state those themes, writes critic Meaghan Garvey, doesn’t quite capture the thing that makes the record so special: the way it describes “an ecosystem of intimacy, in its power to redeem and to destroy.” This week, our friends at KUTX shared a video of Hermanos Gutiérrez performing a selection of tracks from its record El Bueno Y El Malo live in the station’s Studio 1A. Tiny Desk NPR Now that we're back to recording Tiny Desk concerts in the office, Tiny Desk (home) concerts mostly happen under special circumstances. But we made one such exception for K-pop superstar RM, a member of BTS whose debut solo album was released this week, who performed his set from South Korea in front of a very impressive Tiny Desk facsimile. Also this week: We shared a set of sweet dream pop songs from beabadoobee and a playful, fun-filled performance from The A’s (aka Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath and Daughter of Swords' Alexandra Sauser-Monnig). One More Thing Holiday shopping for all the jazz and classical fans in your life. Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to NPR Music emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy