Kronos Quartet received the Polar Music Prize in a ceremony at the Stockholm Concert Hall last week, along with their fellow laureate, Patti Smith. "Music is one of humanity's most essential resources—the 'greenest' of substances—here one moment, a memory the next," said Kronos artistic director David Harrington in the group's acceptance speech. "The greatest piece has yet to be written, the most perfect note has yet to be played." Read the complete text of the speech and see several photos from the ceremony here.

New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity dedicated the Musicians’ Village Toddler Park last month in the Upper Ninth Ward of New Orleans. The central walkway, Hurwitz Way, is named in honor of Bob Hurwitz, president of Nonesuch Records. A gallery of photographs from the park's dedication has now been posted to nonesuch.com/media, along with several of Hurwitz's photos of Musicians' Village. In 2005, Nonesuch released the benefit album Our New Orleans, which raised 1.1 million dollars to create new housing for the Musicians' Village.

Steve Reich's forthcoming Nonesuch album, WTC 9/11—featuring the title piece performed by Kronos Quartet, Mallet Quartet performed by Sō Percussion, and Dance Patterns from members of Steve Reich and Musicians—is now streaming in full as an NPR First Listen. NPR cites the "haunting power" of WTC 9/11, adding: "Here again and as ever, Kronos plays with fierce beauty and deep intelligence." The Boston Globe asks: "The musical memorials to 9/11 are still arriving but, in the end, how many will match the dark power of Steve Reich's WTC 9/11, finally here in a recording by the Kronos Quartet?"

Ry Cooder's new album, Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down, receives perfect five-star reviews from the Guardian and the Independent. "Magnificent," exclaims the Guardian. "Cooder returns with a solo project that is as refreshing, brave and original as his early recordings in the 70s." The Independent says he offers "the modern-day equivalent of the kind of dust-bowl ballads with which Woody Guthrie once hymned the poor and skewered the wealthy." The Boston Herald finds it's "just what America needs in these uncertain times." The Morton Report says "it's obvious there isn't anything he can't do ... and the way Cooder builds his own musical world continues to thrill." The San Francisco Chronicle, reviewing Cooder's two sold-out shows there this week, says "Cooder is a true master of the guitar."

The 38th Telluride Film Festival gets under way today, with Caetano Veloso as its Guest Director. Tom Luddy, Co-Founder of the Festival, says: "Caetano Veloso will be presenting six films, both rare and established classics, with his unique enthusiasm about why they are movies worth seeing again or for the first time." In addition, the festival's program includes 25 new feature films plus special artist tributes, classics and restorations, shorts, student films, seminars and conversations, each introduced or proceeded with a Q&A by its filmmaker, actors, writer, or producer.

Wanda Jackson, who recently joined British songstress Adele on her tour, launches her own headlining tour that will take her to venues and festivals across the United States, Europe, and the UK through the fall. The Queen of Rockabilly's sets are sure to include songs from her Jack White-produced Third Man / Nonesuch Records debut album, The Party Ain't Over, along with favorites from throughout her decades-long career.

Steve Reich, whose latest Nonesuch album, WTC 9/11, is due out on September 20, spoke with musicOMH for an extensive interview in which he discusses the new recording; his involvement in performances of his work taking place around the world, especially during this year filled with multiple celebrations of his 75th birthday; the current state of the music business; music he's enjoyed by bands like Radiohead and The National; and much more.

The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, starring Audra McDonald as Bess, opened at the A.R.T. in Cambridge last night. "Ms. McDonald is Bess (or to use the hyperbolic speech of movie ads, 'Audra McDonald Is Bess')," exclaims New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley, "and she can claim rights to full possession of her role, the kind of ownership that transforms a classic character forever ... Ms. McDonald’s performance is as complete and complex a work of musical portraiture as any I’ve seen in years." The Boston Globe says that "in Audra McDonald, this production boasts a Bess for the ages."

Nonesuch releases Steve Reich’s album WTC 9/11 on September 20, 2011. Commissioned for and recorded by Kronos Quartet, the title piece will be available for digital purchase on September 6. The album also includes Reich’s Mallet Quartet, performed by Sō Percussion, and Dance Patterns, featuring members of Steve Reich and Musicians, as well as a DVD with a live performance of Mallet Quartet by Sō Percussion. The full album may be pre-ordered now in the Nonesuch Store, where CD orders include a free download of the title piece starting September 6 and the complete album starting September 20.

After launching his solo career with the critically acclaimed Familial last year, Philip Selway returns with the Running Blind EP, which Nonesuch Records has now released digitally in the US and Canada. (It was released earlier this year in the UK and Europe via Bella Union.) The EP includes four songs plus a live session video of the title track, which you can watch here.

The Metropolitan Opera's premiere production of John Adams's Nixon in China, conducted by the composer and staged by director Peter Sellars in their Met debuts, will be given a free screening in Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City tonight at 7:45 PM as part of the Met's third-annual free Summer HD Festival. Seating for the Met's Summer HD Festival is on a first-come, first-served basis and no tickets are required; more than 3,000 seats will be available.

Ry Cooder's new album, Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down, is out now on CD and digitally, with the vinyl LP to follow on September 13. Cooder was the guest on Marketplace from American Public Media, where the album is now streaming in full. "From rock n’ roll to country to Dixieland jazz," says the show, "Cooder has mastered multiple genres on many albums. He does it again with his latest production ... His songs’ lyrics are a statement on our current economic times, but the music offers a tour of the country’s musical heritage." The New Yorker's Alec Wilkinson offers an extensive appreciation of Cooder. "I can’t write briefly about Ry Cooder," writes Wilkinson. "Admiration for his accomplishments, his singularity, and the longevity and diversity of his career intervene."