Acoustic Quintet Punch Brothers Joins the 2018-2019 Kauffman Center Presents Series
The genre-bending group will perform September 9 in Muriel Kauffman Theatre
Kansas City, MO – The Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts announced that the Punch Brothers will perform September 9 in Muriel Kauffman Theatre. This event is part of the 2018-2019 Kauffman Center Presents series.
Punch Brothers are the acoustic quintet of mandolinist Chris Thile, guitarist Chris Eldridge, bassist Paul Kowert, banjoist Noam Pikelny and violinist Gabe Witcher. Says the Washington Post, “With enthusiasm and experimentation, Punch Brothers take bluegrass to its next evolutionary stage, drawing equal inspiration from the brain and the heart.” The band combines instrumental wizardry with playful storytelling, pushing genre boundaries to make music like no one else. Singer-songwriter Madison Cunningham will open the evening, followed by headlining act Punch Brothers.
Tickets for the event range from $29 to $59 plus applicable fees and go on sale to the public at 10 a.m. Friday, March 2. Tickets will be available through the Kauffman Center Box Office at (816) 994-7222, via the Kauffman Center mobile app, or online at www.kauffmancenter.org.
ABOUT PUNCH BROTHERS
Punch Brothers formed in 2006. The band’s first Nonesuch record, Punch, was released in 2008 and combined elements of their many musical interests. In 2009, they began a residency at NYC’s intimate club, Living Room, trying out new songs and ultimately spawning the GRAMMY-nominated Antifogmatic (2010). In 2012, the band released Who’s Feeling Young Now?, which Q praised for its “astonishing, envelope-pushing vision,” while Rolling Stone said, “The acoustic framework dazzles – wild virtuosity used for more than just virtuosity.” The band’s most recent album, the T Bone Burnett-produced, The Phosphorescent Blues (released in 2015 on Nonesuch Records), addresses with straight-up poignancy and subversive humor the power and the pitfalls of our super-connected world.
Recently, Chris Thile took over hosting duties of Live from Here (formerly A Prairie Home Companion) in 2016 and released Thank You for Listening in late 2017 – a collection of songs written for the popular radio show. Chris Eldridge partnered with Julian Lage for the GRAMMY-nominated Mount Royal and Noam Pikelny released his fourth solo album, the GRAMMY-nominated Universal Favorite. Both Mount Royal and Universal Favorite were produced by Gabe Witcher, who was also behind Sara Watkins’ latest, Young In All The Wrong Ways. Paul Kowert has been recording and touring with the Dave Rawlings Machine while developing his latest project Hawktail, his band with Jordan Tice, Brittney Haas and Dominick Leslie.
ABOUT MADISON CUNNINGHAM
Orange County, Calif. native, Madison Cunningham, possesses a keen understanding of songcraft that is perplexing for someone who’s just 20 years old. With an ear for melody that is reminiscent of early Joni Mitchell and approach to guitar and vocals that isn’t far off from long past heroes of Jeff Buckley or Nick Drake, Cunningham exhibits a unique ability to keep the listener on the edge as they explore her debut EP, Love, Lose, Remember. The oldest of five daughters, Cunningham picked up a guitar at the age of seven and was singing with her sisters and family in church by the age of 12. It was a happenstance meeting with producer Tyler Chester (Blake Mills, Sara Watkins) four years ago that helped Cunningham start to develop her approach as a songwriter. Released in early 2017, Love, Lose, Remember, showcases Madison’s ability as a songwriter and arranger with the lyrical content of someone who has lived twice the life of this young artist.
Madison Cunningham. Photo by Robbie Jeffers