Los Angeles Times music critic Mark Swed wonders what the inclusion of composer John Williams's new Copland-inspired piece in yesterday's official inauguration proceedings might promise for the place of classical music in the new Obama administration. He suggests a number of artists whom the President might invite to the White House to signal his commitment to the arts. On the list of these "rich, wise, inclusive original voices" are many Nonesuch artists and others who have collaborated with them. "Mr. President," Swed asserts, "I guarantee your life will be richer and the tone of America will rise if you listen to them."

Laurie Anderson will lead a special concert tonight at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Howard Gilman Opera House in Brooklyn, New York, to launch BAM's Next Stage Campaign. Curated by Laurie and titled Laurie & Friends, the show features a diverse group of artists—from the experimental rock of Dirty Projectors to the Latin sounds of jazz master Arturo O'Farrill—who share the common goal of making new and original art. BAM is looking to break ground this fall on an intimate black-box performance space behind the main Opera House.

Bill Frisell's most recent Nonesuch release, 2008's History, Mystery, is up for a Grammy Award next month for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, the same month Nonesuch will release a collection of Bill's work titled The Best of Bill Frisell, Volume 1: Folk Songs. This week, he is the subject of a feature article in the latest issue of The New Yorker, which describes him as "the fearless and adaptable guitarist Bill Frisell, whose varied endeavors have drawn him into free-form extemporizations, symphonic collaborations, hard and soft rock, country, and accompaniments for Buster Keaton silent films ..."

Kronos Quartet is in Paris to help launch the International Year of Astronomy, organized by UNESCO. The year marks the 400th anniversary of Galileo's first astronomical observations with a telescope. Opening ceremonies were held this morning, and conference events continue through Friday. In the closing ceremony, Kronos will give the French premiere of Terry Riley's Sun Rings, which features celestial sounds captured by plasma wave receivers and images from NASA's archives.

Emmylou Harris and Punch Brothers will be among the performers at the 36th Annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival, to be held June 18-21, in Colorado. Punch Brothers, known for its boundary-breaking blend of musical styles, is slated to switch things up this year with a rare set of traditional bluegrass. Also among this year's participants are Elvis Costello, Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, and Edgar Meyer, a longtime Telluride performer and Chris Thile's duo partner on a 2008 Nonesuch release. Thile first befriended fellow Punch Brother Noam Pikelny at the festival in 2005.

Dartmouth College is hosting Philip Glass this week for a residency that culminates in a public event Thursday night titled An Evening of Films and Discussion with Philip Glass. The event will begin with the screening of two of Glass's film collaborations—Godfrey Reggio's Anima Mundi (1992) and the short film Evidence (1995)—followed by an onstage discussion between the composer and Margaret Lawrence, the director of the school's Hopkins Center for the Arts.

Youssou N'Dour: I Bring What I Love, the documentary film that follows N'Dour as he records and tours with his Grammy-winning 2004 album, Egypt, begins its European theatrical release today in six cities across the Netherlands. After the film's world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last summer, the Toronto Star described it as "a stirring documentary" that "pulses with life and energy." The film is slated for US release on June 12.

Toumani Diabaté’s The Mandé Variations has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding World Music Album. Audra McDonald was nominated for two acting awards, for her work on the TV series Private Practice and on the TV movie A Raisin in the Sun. President-elect Barack Obama, the subject of many of the works in the Image Awards' literature categories, chose Kulanjan, Diabaté's 1999 collaboration with Taj Mahal, as the only CD on his Borders Shortlist recommending five things to read, watch, and listen to.

"If it's difficult to describe the music that Chris Thile has been making since before he reached puberty, that's just the way he likes it." So says Frank Oteri in his introduction to an interview with Thile for New Music Box. "But even by his standards," Oteri continues, "the projects he's gotten involved with in the past couple of years completely confound expectations." Among those projects are Punch Brothers and its Nonesuch debut, Punch, and his self-titled debut duo record with bassist Edgar Meyer. "Now," Oteri suggests, "everything and anything is possible."

The Recording Academy, the organization behind the Grammy Awards, will honor Elliott Carter and Allen Toussaint with the special Trustees Award during Grammy week in February. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to the industry in a non-performing capacity, as determined by a vote of The Recording Academy's National Board of Trustees. Says Neil Portnow, the Academy's President/CEO, says of this year's recipients: "Their outstanding accomplishments, legendary passion and artistry have positively affected our culture and will continue to influence and inspire generations to come."

Emmylou Harris, a longtime animal lover and advocate, has teamed up with the animal-rights group PETA to record two new and timely public service announcements. Emmylou urges listeners not to keep their dogs chained outdoors, particularly during the bitter cold of winter, and to bring them indoors, as part of the family, for the benefit of both dog and family alike. She also encourages pet owners to spay or neuter their cats and dogs to help ensure that all dogs and cats find the loving homes they deserve.

Leonard Cohen's classic "Hallelujah" has lately become resurgent in the UK pop world as the featured song on the finale of British TV singing contest X Factor. The song has been interpreted, famously, by countless performers, from Bob Dylan to Jeff Buckley to k.d. lang. k.d. recorded the tune for her 2004 Nonesuch debut, Hymns of the 49th Parallel, and it has become a highlight of her live performances, called “downright transcendent” by the Boston Herald and “mesmerizing” by The Guardian. The BBC has put together a multimedia quiz "Do You Know Your Hallelujahs?" testing readers' knowledge of the song's various incarnations.