Stanford Live has canceled all performances through May 15, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the shows. Although it may not be quite the same as sitting in a venue, Stanford Live is bringing many of their canceled performers to your home with their 2020 digital season. We fully endorse Stanford Live’s advice: “Pour yourself your favorite beverage—no protective lids required—and enjoy the show.”
Included below is a selection of Stanford Live’s digital offerings; their full options can be found on their website.
Concerts and More
Sounds of Cuba: Bobi Céspedes
Gladys “Bobi” Céspedes has been at the forefront of representing and promoting Cuban music in the Bay Area and the United States for over 40 years. Boldly celebrating the strength acquired through her rich familial and cultural legacy, Bobi pays tribute to the forces that sustain her music and nourish her spirit. See her perform two songs, “Obatala” and “Rezos,” in this recording of a 2014 show at Mills College in Oakland. Mills College-8 minutes
Van-Anh Vanessa Vo
While Vân Ánh (Vanessa) Võ is one of Vietnam’s most celebrated traditional artists, she revels in the freedom she’s found in the various musical styles surrounding her in the Bay Area. An award-winning traditional performer and virtuoso on 16-string dan tranh (zither), she’s also an Emmy Award-winning composer who has collaborated with Kronos Quartet. We will miss her performance in the Bing Studio, but we hope you enjoy this intimate Tiny Desk performance. NPR Tiny Desk Concert-18 minutes
Gong Linna & Bang on a Can All Stars: Tan Te
Chinese vocalist, Gong Linna, joins New York’s electric Bang on a Can All-Stars. Weaving together ancient Chinese storytelling and Western songwriting, Cloud River Mountain honors the “sound worlds” of both China and the West, fusing texts sung in both Mandarin and English with sophisticated chamber music, rock, folk, and jazz. Cantaloupe Music NYC-4 minutes
Daniel Caesar
Caesar’s work blends R&B with electronics and includes critically-acclaimed Eps Praise Break, Pilgrim’s Paradise, and Freudian, which won the 2018 Juno Award for R&B/Soul Recording of the Year. NPR Tiny Desk Concert-16 minutes
Lectures and Conversations
Neil Gaiman and Margaret Atwood
Neil Gaiman converses with Margaret Atwood to celebrate her 75th birthday and explores the prescience of “The Handmaid’s Tale” among other topics. 92nd street Y-43 minutes
Oskar Eustis: Why Theater is Essential to Democracy
Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director of The Public Theater in New York, speaks to the importance of dialogue in theater to give perspective and empathy, that truth is not held within one person, but by the conflict of various points of view. TED Talk-13 minutes
Lang Lang Up Close
Lang Lang is a leading figure in classical music today – as a pianist, educator and philanthropist he has become one of the world’s most influential and committed ambassadors for the arts in the 21st century. Heralded by the New York Times as “the hottest artist on the classical music planet,” Lang Lang plays sold-out concerts all over the world. The Green Space at WNYC & WQXR-42 minutes
Bruce Cockburn on Crowing Ignites
One of Canada’s finest lyricists has decided to lose the words—at least for the moment. Bruce Cockburn joins Tom Power to discuss his new instrumental album, “Crowing Ignites.” This is Cockburn’s 34th album and is made up of eleven new compositions. q on CBC-58 minutes