Cal Performances presents American Railroad featuring Silkroad Ensemble
Zellerbach Hall Auditorium
U.C. Berkeley, Bancroft Way at Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA 94305 USA
8:00 PM, Friday, November 17, 2023

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[8:05 PM] {lights down; announcements; dead air}
[8:06 PM] {applause for entrance of the performers}

1. [8:07 PM] Swannanoa Tunnel I (trad. arr. Giddens) »
2. [8:09 PM] Canoe Song (Pura Fé)
3. [8:14 PM] Far Down Far (Maeve Gilchrist)
4. [8:21 PM] Swannanoa Tunnel II (trad. arr. Giddens) »
5. [8:25 PM] Steel-Driving Man (RG duet with SD; trad. arr. Giddens)
6. [8:28 PM] Rela (Sandeep Das)
7. [8:33 PM] Wíhaŋblapi Mázačhaŋku (Suzanne Kite)
8. [8:41 PM] Rainy Day (Wu Man)
9. [8:47 PM] Milimo (Niwel Tsumbu)
   [8:56 PM] {applause at end of set}

[9:18 PM] {lights down; applause at band entrance}

1. [9:18 PM] Swannanoa Tunnel III »
2. [9:20 PM] Time Elapse (Wu Man, Arr. Zhang Haihui)
3. [9:30 PM] Have You Seen My Man? (Cecile McLorin Salvant)
4. [9:36 PM] Swannanoa Tunnel IV (trad.; string quartet version)
5. [9:41 PM] (KW drum solo)
6. [9:46 PM] Fugaku Sanju Rokkei (Kaoru Watanabe)
7. [9:52 PM] Tamping Song (Haruka Fujii)
8. [9:56 PM] Mahk Jchi (Pura Fé)
9. [10:03 PM] O Shout! (Mazz Swift) »
10. [10:09 PM] Swannanoa Tunnel V
    [10:10 PM] {applause at end set}
    [10:11 PM] {RG introduces everybody}
    
    Finale
    [10:17 PM] {RG tuning}
11. [10:18 PM] Steel-Driving Man
    [10:26 PM] {final applause}
    [10:27 PM] {all bow up front; show ends}

Silkroad Ensemble

• Shawn Conley: contrabass;
• Pura Fé Antonia Crescioni AKA Pura Fé: lap steel guitar, vox;
• Haruka Fujii: marimba, percussion;
• Sandeep Das: tabla;
• Rhiannon Giddens: violin, banjo, vox;
• Karen Ouzounian: cello, vox;
• Mazz Swift: violin, vox;
• Niwel Tsumbu: acoustic guitar, vox;
• Francesco Turrisi: accordion, frame drum;
• Kaoru Watanabe: shinobue flute, nohkan flute, saxophone, taiko drums, narimono percussion;
• Michi Wiancko: violin, vox;
• Wu Man: pipa;
• Yazhi Guo: suona, other unidentified Chinese horns and whistles, Chinese percussion.

Despite playing the same setlist as Wednesday night, tonight seemed rather different to me. Of course, the biggest change was the absence of surprise: I knew more or less what was coming all night. I'd worried a bit that I would be unhappy hearing a repeat performance, but it turned out to be really interesting to notice how the players varied their performances and reactions to one another.

Program Notes or program notes

American Railroad Tour Booklet

Ann Brice posted a nice history piece as a sort of promo for this program with Berkeley News.

Big thanks to Ting for the photo gallery!

Whoa! This section is incomplete for now, sorry!

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2023 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2023 event list! ☸ On to the next event!