The Score | Rocking Knoxville

Every March, the multi-genre Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, Tennessee, draws thousands of concertgoers for an eclectic lineup, with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra frequently among the performers. This year the orchestra’s string section joined British folk-rock artist Richard Thompson for his song cycle K.I.A.: Killed In Action, conducted by Peter Askim with the composer on guitar and vocals. K.I.A. was written in commemoration of World War I’s centenary and uses archives, journals, and reflections as basis for the texts. Previous Knoxville Symphony performances at the festival have included Were You There, a collaboration with American Modern Opera Company and baritone Davoné Tines, and music by John Adams, John Luther Adams, and Matthew Aucoin.