Latest news with #CalmDown
New York Post
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Charissa Thompson prepping for Fox ‘shakeup' after two NFL show exits
Fox Sports host Charissa Thompson said she's looking forward to a 'new beginning' after Peter Schrager and Michael Vick's exits from the network left two vacant seats on the Fox 'NFL Kickoff' show. Thompson, who reportedly landed a lucrative contract extension with Fox, hosts the show on Sunday mornings throughout the NFL season with a desk of analysts, including retired Patriots wideout Julian Edelman and Pro Football Hall of Famer Charles Woodson. During a fan Q&A on Tuesday's installment of the 'Calm Down' podcast, Thompson explained that she's excited and curious of how the 'shakeup' will affect the future of the show. Advertisement 6 FOX NFL Kickoff host, Charissa Thompson, speaks to media during FOX Sports Media Day at Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on February 6, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Getty Images 'For Fox, it's a shakeup,' Thompson, 43, said. 'I'm curious because on the Kickoff show … Peter Schrager went to ESPN sadly, which makes me bummed because I love him and Michael Vick went to go coach at Norfolk State, which obviously I'm happy for his opportunity there. 'So, its Jules [Edelman] and I and Charles Woodson. And so, we'll find out a little bit more closer to the football season sort of the structure and the rundown and kind of how we want to frame that show. I think it's a new beginning, so as were hitting our stride at Amazon we're kind of starting back over at Fox, which is also excited because that means that there's new opportunities to do different things on that show.' Advertisement Schrager joined ESPN in April after nearly two decades at Fox. Vick left Fox NFL Sunday to become the head football coach at Norfolk State University in February. 6 Peter Schrager attends 2025 Fanatics Super Bowl Party at The Sugar Mill on February 8, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Getty Images 6 Michael Vick attends the 46th Annual Sports Emmy Awards at Jazz at Lincoln Center on May 20, 2025 in New York City. Getty Images Advertisement Andrews chimed in during the conversation, 'A rebirth if you will.' Thompson, who's been with Fox since 2013, is entering her fourth Amazon Prime Video's 'Thursday Night Football' pregame show. 6 (L-R) Ryan Fitzpatrick, Charissa Thompson and Andrew Whitworth speak onstage during Amazon's Upfront 2025 Presentation at Beacon Theatre on May 12, 2025 in New York City. Getty Images for Amazon 'We are fully in our stride,' she said. '… We are in year four of this bad boy and it feels great we have our same group back and everyone is very comfortable I their designated roles, so I'm excited about that.' Advertisement As for Andrews? The veteran sideline reporter, who reportedly landed a generous contract extension this offseason as well, is thrilled to get back on the road with her crew. 6 Charissa Thompson and Erin Andrews covering Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, as the 2025 game was aired on Fox on February 9. Instagram/Charissa Thompson The WEAR by EA founder is a part of Fox's top broadcast team of analyst Tom Brady, play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt and reporter Tom Rinaldi. 'I like that it's not going to be a rebirth for our crew,' Andrews, 47, said. 'It's going to be Tom [Brady's] second year we kind of are already in the swing of things. Nothing is kind of new for us. I'm excited about just getting on the road, seeing the boys … having our funny, silly conversations. Our text chain has been a little quiet lately, I'll probably get that going here tonight.' 6 Fox Sports reporter Erin Andrews broadcasts from the sidelines prior to the NFC Championship NFL football game against the Detroit Lions at Levi's Stadium on January 28, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. Getty Images Andrews and Thompson did not mention their respective contracts with Fox. Their prior deals expired after the 2024-25 season, including Super Bowl 2025, which aired on the network. Andrews joined Fox in 2012 after her contract with ESPN expired. Advertisement Front Office Sports reported Monday that Fox is promoting college football sideline reporter Allison Williams to Laura Okmin's NFL sideline reporter role. Okmin told the outlet last month that she turned down a contract extension with Fox following 23 years with the network.
The Irish Sun
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Drake fans left furious as rapper ENDS Wireless 2025 set after just 40 mins
DRAKE left thousands of fans fuming last night after his Wireless set ended after just 40 minutes. The 38-year-old rap superstar arrived ten minutes early for his Sunday night set in Advertisement 3 Drake closed his set with a Whitney Houston sing-a-long on a crane on two nights out of three at Wireless Credit: Getty 3 Gutted Wireless fans spoke of chaos at the end of Sunday when his set was cut short Credit: Getty Earlier in the day, fans were led to believe they'd be getting two Drake sets - one at 18:25 and one at 20:55. But the first mysteriously vanished from the schedule mid afternoon. Drake then appeared early and immediately after Burna Boy, which caught the crowds off-guard. Fans were left even more confused when his set finished after 40 minutes due to the curfew. Advertisement READ MORE ON DRAKE To make matters worse, the Several disabled fans were reportedly trapped behind barriers, pleading with security to let them out. The Sun has contacted Wireless festival for comment. Writing on Instagram after the show, Drake said he didn't know what had happened: "Thank you London. Advertisement Most read in Showbiz "Need some time to process what just happened so I don't have my usual caption…just thank you so much for the best 3 nights of my performance career." Drake was booked to headline all three nights at the festival. Watch the moment Drake 'rants about exes' live on stage after former girlfriends SZA and Serena Williams join Kendrick Lamar at Superbowl The rapper had already run into curfew chaos on Friday, when organisers cut off both his and Lauryn Hill's microphones at 10:30pm — replacing the screens with local train station info. He managed to stick to the schedule better on Saturday. Advertisement Earlier in the day on Sunday, Kartel and The Canadian megastar looked tense and rushed, according to the BBC. He kicked things off with an unreleased track featuring UK rapper Instead, he was spotted silently mouthing the lyrics from the front row, with cameras beaming it onto the big screen. Advertisement Trying to win back the crowd, A brief boost came when Nigerian sensation Rema jumped on stage to perform Calm Down and Fever, hyping up the crowd. But just as things were heating up, Vybz Kartel popped back in for a quick cameo and then Drake played just two more songs before wrapping it all up. Drake climbed onto a crane to wave goodbye, while Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You blasted from the speakers. Advertisement Devastated fans realised it was his exit music, after seeing it online from the previous night. 3 Kartel, Drake, Popcaan and Central Cee perform during day three of Wireless Festival 2025 at Finsbury Park Credit: Getty
New York Post
09-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Post
Fox makes major NFL decision with Erin Andrews, Charissa Thompson deals
Fox Sports has locked down two of its top on-air personalities, sideline reporter Erin Andrews and host Charissa Thompson, Front Office Sports reported Tuesday. Andrews and Thompson, whose respective contracts expired after the 2024-25 season, will receive lucrative extensions before the start of the next NFL campaign. The report did not reveal details of the new deals. Advertisement 5 Charissa Thompson and Erin Andrews covering Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, as the 2025 game was aired on Fox on February 9. Instagram/Charissa Thompson Andrews, 47, and Thompson, 43, who are best friends outside of Fox and co-host the 'Calm Down' podcast together, have yet to publicly address the contract news. Fox hinted that Andrews would be back after including her in the 2025 regular season-game schedule in May, which included an image of the veteran reporter along with the network's NFL broadcast crew of analyst Tom Brady, play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt and reporter Tom Rinaldi. Advertisement 5 Fox Sports reporter Erin Andrews broadcasts from the sidelines prior to the NFC Championship NFL football game against the Detroit Lions at Levi's Stadium on January 28, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. Getty Images Andrews and Brady represented the network that month at the 2025 Fox Upfronts. The Wear by EA founder previously 'quietly' re-signed with Fox on a three-year deal, she revealed on the SI Media Podcast in July 2022. 5 Tom Brady and Erin Andrews during the FOX UPFRONT '25 presentation on Monday, May 12, 2025. Ben Hider/PictureGroup for FOX/Shutterstock Advertisement As for Thompson? She made it clear that she wanted to stay put at Fox while the pair discussed covering Super Bowl 2025, which aired on Fox in February, during a February episode of their podcast. In April, Thompson addressed 'fake headlines' about her leaving Fox. 'No, I am not leaving Fox. I was never leaving Fox,' she said on the 'Calm Down' podcast. 'I don't know where this took on a life, whereas I was hosting my family here at the ranch this past weekend, four of my family members asked, 'Well the place looks nice, but how are you going to afford it now that you don't have a job?' 5 Charissa Thompson hosting the 'TNF on Prime' pregame show prior to an NFL football game between the Los Angeles Rams and the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium on December 12, 2024 in Santa Clara, California. Getty Images Advertisement 'I'm like, 'Why is this headline out here?' It's crazy … I wouldn't normally address this … but I was never leaving Fox. I'm not fired … I hope I die at [Fox]. As I always talk about, Fox is my longest relationship. I have worked there since I was what, 22 years old starting in the HR department. So yes, I love Fox, I will hopefully end my career there in a long, long time. But anyways, it's not ending anytime soon. That's a fake headline.' Thompson hosts the 'Fox NFL Kickoff' show and a number of NFL Films spots for Fox. She also hosts Amazon Prime Video's 'Thursday Night Football' pregame show. 5 Charissa Thompson and Erin Andrews during an interview on 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon' on May 23, 2024. Todd Owyoung/NBC via Getty Image Andrews and Thompson often discuss how close they are with their Fox co-workers and how they believe it is a family environment.
Time of India
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson just shut down exit rumors with big FOX contract extensions
Charissa Thompson and Erin Andrews Officially Staying With FOX. (Image via Imago) If you're a fan of NFL Sundays on FOX, breathe easy, Charissa Thompson and Erin Andrews aren't going anywhere. Just as some folks were wondering if the iconic duo might be heading out after some offseason whispers, FOX Sports hit the brakes on that panic and came through with a power move: contract extensions for both. So yes, football's favorite sideline boss and kickoff queen are back for another season and the vibes are immaculate. FOX re-signs Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson ahead of the 2025 NFL season Ahead of the upcoming NFL season, FOX Sports confirmed it has extended the contracts of both Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson, two of the network's most recognizable on-air talents. And if you thought Thompson was leaving? She shut that down herself . 'No, I'm not leaving FOX. I was never leaving FOX,' she told Front Office Sports , laughing off the speculation that had started swirling online. (Phew.) Andrews, of course, will continue her top-tier role on FOX's A-team broadcast crew, reporting from the sidelines alongside play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt and none other than Tom Brady. Meanwhile, Thompson will keep bringing the energy on Fox NFL Kickoff , setting the tone for your entire football Sunday. Amid other big shakeups, FOX makes sure its NFL coverage stays strong where it counts This move comes at a key moment for the network. With longtime analyst Jimmy Johnson officially stepping away after two decades, locking in Andrews and Thompson adds much-needed stability to FOX's NFL coverage. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo Erin Andrews has been a mainstay on NFL sidelines for years, but her star power only continues to rise especially now that she's part of the all-new Burkhardt-Brady broadcast trio. And Charissa? She's the one warming up the crowd every Sunday with Kickoff , keeping the tone fun, fast, and football-obsessed before the big games begin. Together, they help define FOX's NFL identity. So these extensions aren't just feel-good deals, they're smart business. Their podcast 'Calm Down' proves these two are more than just Sunday faces Beyond the cameras and sidelines, Andrews and Thompson have built something special together with their hit podcast Calm Down with Erin and Charissa . It's where they dish behind-the-scenes stories, NFL takes, and unfiltered life chats that keep fans locked in all week long. Whether it's Andrews talking about traveling with Tom Brady's new team or Thompson cracking up over fantasy football disasters, the pod is just more proof that their dynamic clicks both on and off the field. In a media world full of copy-paste coverage, these two are the real deal and fans know it. FOX doubled down on chemistry, experience, and pure star power The takeaway? FOX didn't just re-sign two NFL hosts, they doubled down on what makes their coverage work. With Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson leading the charge, Sundays are in great hands. So while teams are finalizing rosters and quarterbacks are fine-tuning their throws, FOX already scored big by keeping its MVPs right where they belong. Also read - Cardi B and Stefon Diggs just shut down breakup rumors with a surprise workout video Catch Manika Batra's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 3. Watch Here!
Sydney Morning Herald
29-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
25 years on, Killing Heidi gives fans licence to step back into younger selves
During Weir, Ella Hooper teases the chorus, saying 'gotcha!' when they'd lead into the next verse, knowing fans wanted to belt out 'will you make it in the end'. Killing Heidi returns for an unexpected encore – an opportunity to play hit singles Calm Down, Heavensent and I Am from other albums. This performance had a zeal that was missing from the main set, perhaps due to the amplified vocal harmonies from the keyboard and bass player, or maybe because the tracks represented an era when the band's sound had matured. Jesse Hooper expresses how humbled they are that fans have reconnected with their music. Signing off, Ella Hooper says cheekily: 'See you guys in another 25 years … maybe'. Reviewed by Vyshnavee Wijekumar MUSIC MSO Winter Gala: Lang Lang ★★★★★ Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Hamer Hall, June 28 Part pianist-muse, part dazzling showman, classical music superstar Lang Lang presented as an intriguing artistic phenomenon during his two sold-out Melbourne concerts. Wednesday's solo recital affirmed Lang Lang's great affinity with the romantic repertory in a program underlining poetics, rather than pyrotechnics. Faure's beloved Pavane was treated almost too delicately with whispered phrases and half-lit sonorities. Schumann's Kreisleriana, arguably one of his least approachable works, sprang to life with vividly etched contrasts between aching melodic outpourings and frenetic, fiery outbursts. Traversing a dozen Chopin Mazurkas, Lang Lang illuminated the huge variety of moods and styles the composer was able to achieve in this rhythmically lopsided dance form. Among their sometimes-playful perversity, the melancholy sensuality of the A minor, Op. 17 stood out for its meltingly beautiful timbre. The official program ended in a blaze of glory with the imposing Polonaise in F-sharp minor, Op. 44, before encores that included a diaphanous account of Debussy's Clair de lune and a truly incendiary reading of de Falla's Ritual Fire Dance. Saturday's breathtaking account of Saint-Saens' Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra was more in keeping with Lang Lang's rock star image. A strange amalgam of styles, the concerto was once described as 'beginning with Bach and ending with Offenbach'. Loading After the dramatic opening with its baroque overtones and the amusing, nonchalant scherzo, the blinding virtuosity of the tarantella finale left many wondering how anyone could play so fast and so accurately. Images of a fluttering hummingbird came to mind. This seemingly superhuman talent, the stuff of lasting memories, unsurprisingly elicited a rapturous ovation. Two encores, Liszt's Liebestraum No. 3 and the Disney tune Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf? were strange bedfellows. Bookending the concert, chief conductor Jaime Martín revelled in the festive Spanish air of Ravel's Alborada del gracioso, graced with perfectly judged bassoon cameos by Elise Millman. Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition in Ravel's wondrous orchestration was supported by lustrous string tone and cohesive, strongly characterised playing throughout the orchestra. Among the solos, Owen Morris's rapid-fire trumpet impressed. The rousing solemnity of The Great Gate of Kyiv seemed a timely and fitting conclusion. Hopefully, those who came to witness Lang Lang's technical brilliance went away from these concerts realising that he is a well-rounded romantic, whose art is both dazzling and deeply empathetic. For that, he really does deserve a rock star reception. Reviewed by Tony Way MUSIC Jem Cassar-Daley ★★★★ Northcote Social Club, June 28 These are golden days for feeling blue. The Northcote Social Club was thoroughly charmed on Saturday night by the collective heartbreak of three charismatic Gen Z songwriters singing a big, sad world of everyday calamities while positively beaming with the first rush of being heard. Anxiety is the confessed bete noir of Belgian expat Romanie. She silenced the early arrivals with a finger-picked electric guitar, impish banter and songs drawing on the agonies of Palestine, climate grief and fragile hope. They played like first drafts of raw experience, roaring with a voice that threatened to scream and ultimately did. An even fresher voice from rural New South Wales, Mikayla Pasterfield opened with her TikTok breakthrough Damage You Still Do – an assured first dip into a well of childhood guilt, unrequited love and worldly resilience. Her pealing giggle between songs brought ample light, even to that intriguingly loaded one about buying a goldfish, Tactile. Steeped from birth in old-school stagecraft and grit, Jem (daughter of Troy) Cassar-Daley upped the energy with a slick bass-drums-guitar trio and a gushing dedication to her 'incredible' sisters in song before throwing herself into the last night of her Kiss Me Like You're Leaving tour. From the post-romantic inner monologue of Slow Down to the homesick airline stationery letter Space Between, her songs mine a consistent emotional register: sharp-focus country-pop ballads laced with the genre's traditional sighs of longing and brave-faced disappointment. As a writer, she's moving fast. Changes was an oldie from the 2022 debut album that she's all but left behind. The paint was barely dry on Tidal Wave and one or two others, even if it took a couple of inspirational covers — Gwen Stefani, Addison Rae — to bring any real sonic surprise. Mikayla Pasterfield returned to make a seamless duet of Texas Ain't That Far, Is It Dear?, the sheer joy of communion making the song's fundamental melancholy evaporate like an old memory. The headliner's inevitable encore, King of Disappointment, radiated with the same sense of bliss reclaimed in the thrill of performance. For all its gentle sorrows, that joy was the glaring takeaway from this show: three stunning singers claiming a world where blokes are sidemen and women draw strength from bills stacked with more women, then laugh about it on the way to the bar. Some nights, one guitar solo is enough. Reviewed by Michael Dwyer THEATRE Super ★★★★ Red Stitch, until July 6 Superhero culture is dangerous because it's 'essentially fascism', according to Alan Moore. Trump once released a non-fungible token of himself as a superhero with eye lasers, let's not forget, and the adolescent fantasy of fighting evil with superpowers looks frankly terrifying when it plays out in the world. Anyone who thinks seriously about the subject should be worried by the infantilising nostalgia, the power worship, and the narcissistic sense of exceptionalism that seem to have gripped the imagination of a so-called adult audience. At the same time, it's true that satire and subversion from within – the nerdy reality-check of Kick-Ass, say, or the cynical vision of corporatised 'Supes' in The Boys – can act as a kind of kryptonite to the worst tendencies of the genre. Emilie Collyer's new play Super gives us a fantastically silly and strange sideswipe at the superhero tropes we've inherited. It's a full-throttle feminist funfest that will tickle those who love the grandiose cosplay and game-changing powers of superhero stories, while dodging hypermasculinity and ultra-violence, launching a guerrilla attack on gender inequality, and celebrating female friendship into the bargain. Two besties – Nell (Laila Thaker) and Phoenix (Lucy Ansell) – are the only members of their superpower support group, and their special abilities are drawn from a distinctly feminine arsenal. Phoenix has a preternatural gift for suppressing her rage and can calm others against their will. Nell is, well, super-organised – a paragon of unpaid labour who can fast-track solutions to almost any problem. When Rae (Caroline Lee) first enters their gathering, they think she's taken a wrong turn – the AA meeting's down the hall. But the celebrity chef has a superpower of her own. She's so in touch with her own sorrow that if she bursts into tears, she can make anyone cry helplessly alongside her. It comes in handy when the ageing star's producers threaten to dump her from her TV show: Rae weeps and wails and weaponises her victimhood until they relent. Phoenix is suspicious of the new arrival – they're almost opposites of each other – but all three are determined to use their powers to do good in the world, despite the prickliness, and despite their powers coming at a physical cost (nothing special power suits can't fix, though that comes at a price, too). Soon their charity work becomes big business. Rae uses her celebrity to start a reality TV show judging whether ordinary contestants have superpowers. Phoenix gets ripped and fights against gang and domestic violence in marginalised communities. Nell turns their enterprise into a mega-corporation fuelled by big data, drastically enhancing the good they can do … Loading A dystopian twist and climactic confrontation looms, as liberal aims begin to be achieved through – you guessed it – fascist means. Can they right themselves, or will they become villains and victims of their own success? Emma Valente directs an almost painfully entertaining show, featuring exaggerated, laugh-out-loud funny performances and spectacular visual gags and costumes. The examination of power isn't quite as fleshed out as you might hope, but the ending is radical in a way that restores perspective. The greatest superpower, it seems, might be the ordinary human comfort of genuine friendship. Reviewed by Cameron Woodhead IMMERSIVE THEATRE The Door in Question ★★★★ Metro West Footscray, until June 29 Psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia are still a source of fear, confusion and stigma. Troy Rainbow's remarkable mixed-reality immersive theatre event, The Door in Question, fights against them by opening a portal into altered perception, utilising the latest VR and interactive AI technology. This is a solo trip into the labyrinth of the disordered mind. And if that sounds risky, the project is so sensitively realised that it feels unique in humanising (without remotely romanticising) what psychosis is like, inside and out. It helps that the artist has skin in the game. Rainbow's mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia – a deeply personal experience and an inspiration for the world you'll enter. Audiences first step into an antechamber that serves as a meditation room. A few deep breaths are needed before donning a VR headset in a Footscray shopping mall and stepping down the rabbit hole. A colourful, disturbing wonderland awaits, based on a childhood story Rainbow's mother wrote for him. Disorienting voices guide you through gritty urban landscapes, decrepit domestic environments, and a world based on classical mythology – statues of Medusa, fountains, ancient Greek columns – and onwards and upwards into a florid brush with divinity … or paranoid delusion. You're inducted into a secret history of Footscray (including its Indigenous history) as you walk the streets to a second location, and I don't want to spoil what happens there. The less you know, the better, though I can say it's a full-body experience. The show will quite literally make your spine tingle, twisting the design surprises and interactive mystery of immersive theatre and escape rooms towards a higher purpose. In fact, it almost portrays mental illness as a kind of escape room… one with no escape, and a profusion of clues everywhere you look. Each space is engagingly designed, and there's a haunting quality to the voice acting and the polyphonic script, some of which sounds as if taken verbatim from people with schizophrenia. Hallucinatory audiovisual tricks keep you on edge, painfully vigilant, and one section involves a responsive AI program, as a grandiose delusion tightens its grip. Loading Exploring psychosis through mixed reality tech is a fabulous idea, and The Door in Question really does feel at the forefront of a brave new kind of artmaking. But it's the human element that makes it work – the profound authenticity of lived experience, and the unflinching insight into the danger and distress, as well as the wildcard beauty – and, yes, the love – amid the deranged tangle of psychotic illness. Reviewed by Cameron Woodhead MUSIC ACO Unleashed, ★★★★ Australian Chamber Orchestra, Hamer Hall, June 22 Undaunted by the withdrawal of injured Moldovan violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja from its current tour, the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO) took the opportunity to draw soloists from its own ranks in a program confirming all its appealing strengths. In the absence of artistic director Richard Tognetti, longstanding violinists Helena Rathbone and Satu Vanska shared direction of the orchestra. They were joined by the ACO's newest member, Anna da Silva Chen, in a buoyant account of Bach's Concerto for Three Violins. Clearly delighting in their collaboration, they wove the music's contrapuntal strands into a richly detailed tapestry, abetted by the ACO's customary rhythmic drive. Vanska brought an edgy bravura to Bernard Rofe's arrangement of Ravel's Tzigane to which the presence of the celesta in the accompanying forces contributed an additional exotic touch. Loading Exemplary ensemble and beauty of tone graced Tognetti's arrangement of Beethoven's String Quartet in F minor, Op. 95 'Serioso'. Nuanced variations of texture reinforced both the original's urgency and intimacy. Schubert's Quartet Movement in C minor, D. 703 shimmered like a jewel, full of light and shade, where dramatic and lyrical elements were held in admirable balance. Giving the Melbourne premiere of Jaakko Kuusisto's Cello Concerto, principal cellist Timo-Veikko Valve gave a passionate tribute to the late composer, a longtime family friend and fellow Finn. Kuusisto, who died of brain cancer in 2022, aged 48, conceived this well-crafted work with Valve's considerable technical and expressive prowess in mind. Like Sibelius, Kuusisto often sets his emotional lyricism in sparse surroundings. Here, some percussion freshened the orchestral palette, further enticing the listener's close attention. Empathetically supported by his fellow players, Valve's advocacy of this score may well make it a 21st-century classic.
