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Natalie Merchant To Perform At Chautauqua

Natalie Merchant performs at Cyndi Lauper’s 8th Annual “Home for the Holidays” benefit concert at the Beacon Theatre on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018, in New York. AP photo

Natalie Merchant will return to Chautauqua County this summer to perform with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra.

Chautauqua Institution officials notified subscribers to its email list of the concert announcement on Wednesday.

The date is included on Merchant’s list of summer tour dates in support of her upcoming album, Keep Your Courage. The album, which Merchant produced herself, is scheduled to be released April 14 by Nonesuch Records. It features two duets sung with vocalist Abena Koomson-Davis (Resistance Revival Chorus), contributions from the Celtic folk group Lflnasa and Syrian virtuoso clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, and horn arrangements by jazz trombonist Steve Davis. There are lush orchestrations throughout by seven composers including: Gabriel Kahane, Stephen Barber, Colin Jacobson, and Megan Gould. “Keep Your Courage” comprises nine original songs by Merchant as well as an interpretation of “Hunting the Wren” by Ian Lynch of the Irish band Lankum.

Merchant is a Jamestown native who joined the band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 while she was a student at Jamestown Community College and was the lead vocalist and primary lyricist for the group. She remained with the group for its first seven albums before leaving to begin a solo career in 1993. Her last recording with the 10,000 Maniacs, a cover of Patti Smith’s “Because the Night” for the 10,000 Maniacs MTV Unplugged album reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1994.

She has since released seven studio albums as a solo artist. Her first solo project, Tigerlily, included the top 10 hit “Carnival” and top 40 hits “Wonder” and “Jealousy.” The album sold more than 5 million copies.

Merchant was also recently named to the Library Of Congress’s American Folklife Center Board of Trustees, an organization that works to preserve and promote the United States’ folklore, cultural traditions, music, and arts, and aide in the long-term planning and policy direction of the center.

“Natalie Merchant, has been an important singer-songwriter for decades, both as a solo artist and as former lead singer of 10,000 Maniacs,” said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-New York and Senate majority leader. “Raised in Jamestown and now a resident of the Hudson Valley, she has had a profound impact on American music culture and has an invaluable perspective for American folk tradition. She is the working heir to the legacy of Billie Holiday, Odetta, Pete Seeger and Levon Helm. That is why I am proud to appoint Upstate New York’s own Natalie Merchant to the Library of Congress’s American Folklife Center Board of Trustees,” said Senator Schumer. “She’ll make her way and provide important contributions to the board’s ongoing policy for the hub of American folklife. Natalie – you’ve been so kind and generous – and your service will help preserve our nation’s most important cultural treasures for generations to come.”

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