The new “Eighth Blackbird Presents: The Chicago Artists Workshop” (CAW) live stream concert series continues with three-time GRAMMY Award nominee and one of the “all-stars” of the indie family music scene, Justin Roberts 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov 18. Roberts will be joined by cellist Anna Steinhoff in a program featuring selections from Roberts’ “Wild Life,” released earlier this year. Limited in-person seating for the concert is available. For more information visit www.eighthblackbird.com.
For nearly 20 years, Justin Roberts has been creating the soundtrack to families’ lives, helping kids navigate the joys and sorrows of growing up while allowing parents to remember their own childhoods. Robert’s latest album, “Wild Life,” is his 14th album for families and his most personal project yet. Inspired by the birth of their first child, he wrote cello parts for Steinhoff into almost every track. They were joined by an eclectic group of instrumentalists including pianist and Eighth Blackbird founding member Lisa Kaplan (Eighth Blackbird), percussionist Gerald Dowd (Robbie Fulks), and vocalist Nora O’Connor (Flat Five, the Decemberists). “Wild Life” includes songs about anticipation, uncertainty, unconditional love and advice for a life well-lived, and aims to evoke the wonder of what poet Mary Oliver called this “one wild and precious life.”
Roberts began his musical career in the 1990s, performing in the Minneapolis-based indie-rock band Pimentos for Gus. While moonlighting as a Montessori preschool teacher, he began writing and singing songs for his students. The kids inspired Justin to record some of his new songs and send them out to a few friends for Christmas. One of the gift recipients was Liam Davis, a college pal and music producer, who suggested that they record the songs professionally. Roberts soon released his first album for families, “Great Big Sun” (1997) to critical acclaim. Roberts went on to receive three GRAMMY nominations, for “Jungle Gym” (2010), “Recess” (2013) and “Lemonade” (2017). Along with his band, “The Not Ready for Naptime Players,” Roberts has travelled the globe, from Hong Kong to New York, and Miami to Seattle. Recent appearances include performances at NYC’s New Victory Theater, DC’s National Geographic Live, LA’s Getty Museum, Seattle’s Moore Theater, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, and Chicago’s Ravinia. He has also performed on “The Today Show,” been featured on Nick Jr. TV, and his song “Get Me Some Glasses” was on a World Series broadcast.
Roberts is also an accomplished picture book author and his “The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade” (illustrated by Christian Robinson) received the Horace Mann Upstander Award and was a finalist for the E.B. White Read-A-Loud Award. In 2014, Roberts wrote a musical based on Hansel and Gretel with Ernie Nolan and is currently working on a new one with Ernie for Nashville Children’s Theater.
Anna Steinhoff, has been described by critics as “soulful,” and “the rhythmic heart of the ensemble.” Based in Chicago, Steinhoff specializes in the baroque cello and viola da gamba. She is a member of Third Coast Baroque, the Haymarket Opera Company, and Second City Musick, and was recently appointed to be principal cellist with the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra. Steinhoff has performed with early music ensembles across the Midwest such as Bella Voce Sinfonia, Newberry Consort, the Bach and Beethoven Ensemble, Music of the Baroque, and the Madison Bach Musicians. During the summers, Anna has the pleasure of being a part of the Staunton Music Festival and the Princeton Festival Baroque Orchestra.
Steinhoff is a founding member of Wayward Sisters, with whom she won first prize in the 2011 Early Music America competition. Wayward Sisters released their debut album of music by Matthew Locke on the Naxos label and their second recording, “A Restless Heart,” was released in 2017. In addition to classical music, Steinhoff has performed and recorded with indie rock bands Saturday Looks Good to Me, Mysteries of Life, Frisbie, and children’s artist Justin Roberts. Steinhoff studied baroque cello in the Netherlands with Jaap ter Linden and holds degrees in cello performance from the Oberlin Conservatory and Northwestern University.
Tickets
The 7 p.m., Nov. 18 concert featuring Justin Roberts with Anna Steinhoff will be staged at the Eighth Blackbird production facility located at 4045 N. Rockwell St. This live streamed ticketed event will also feature limited in-person seating. Recommended ticket price is $20, but options include choosing a price as well contributing as a supporter. For tickets and more information visit www.eighthblackbird.org.
About CAW
Eighth Blackbird, debuts a new project this fall entitled “Eighth Blackbird Presents: The Chicago Artists Workshop” (CAW). Remaining 2020 concerts include three-time GRAMMY Award-nominee Justin Roberts and cellist Anna Steinhoff (Wednesday, Nov. 18): pianist and media artist Xuan (Tuesday, Dec. 1) and Image Award-winning poet, artist, musician, author and actor J. Ivy (Tuesday, Dec. 8). Artists/dates/times are subject to change. For tickets or more information visit eighthblackbird.org. CAW is made possible in part with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
About Eighth Blackbird
Eighth Blackbird is “one of the smartest, most dynamic contemporary classical ensembles on the planet” (Chicago Tribune). Launched in 1996 by six committed Oberlin Conservatory undergraduates, this Chicago-based super-group has earned its status as “a brand-name…defined by adventure, vibrancy and quality…” (Detroit Free Press).
Eighth Blackbird has since evolved from ensemble to institution, currently realizing its mission through five initiatives: Eighth Blackbird, the award-winning sextet; Blackbird IV, a piano/percussion duo featuring founding members Lisa Kaplan and Matthew Duvall; the Blackbird Creative Lab, the organization's mentoring arm; Blackbird Productions, a designation for wide-ranging creative projects; and the Chicago Artists Workshop, a streaming platform created to support artists.
Recent achievements include a fourth GRAMMY Award, the inaugural Chamber Music America Visionary Award, an Ensemble of the Year Award from Musical America, and the prestigious MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. In 2017, the company launched the Blackbird Creative Lab, a tuition-free summer training program, alumni network, and career support platform for emerging professionals focused on cutting edge musicianship, dynamic performance aesthetic, and savvy entrepreneurship.
Set to celebrate its 25th Anniversary in 2021, Eighth Blackbird continues to fuel the modern canon it helped engine with hundreds of commissioned and premiered works by dozens of composers including Viet Cuong, Pamela Z, Bryce Dessner, Jennifer Higdon, Amy Beth Kirsten, David Lang, Andy Akiho, Missy Mazzoli, Nico Muhly, and Steve Reich, whose commissioned work, Double Sextet, went on to win the Pulitzer Prize (2009). A long-term relationship with Chicago’s Cedille Records has produced ten acclaimed recordings and four impressive GRAMMY Awards for Best Small Ensemble/Chamber Music Performance. Eighth Blackbird's most recent album, “Singing in the Dead of Night” by Lang, Julia Wolfe, and Michael Gordon, was released by Cedille in June 2020.
The group's latest venture is the inaugural 2020–2021 Chicago Artists Workshop, a full season presenting 24 online concerts with a stellar lineup of featured artists as well as a residency program offering studio space and technical support to area artists. For more information about Eighth Blackbird visit eighthblackbird.org and visit them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter #eighthblackbird.