Rufus Wainwright
Rufus Wainwright is stripping things down in a very good way on his current “Going to a Town” tour, which is named after one of his most overtly political love songs and includes a Monday performance here at the Belly Up.
After performing a series of orchestral concerts in England earlier this fall, the New York-born singer, songwriter and opera composer’s latest concert trek features him armed only with his glorious voice, a piano and an acoustic guitar. Happily, that should be more than enough to command the rapt attention of his devoted fans and any casual listeners fortunate enough to attend.
A sui generis artist, Wainwright soars as high with his own impeccably crafted songs as he does when essaying classics by the late Leonard Cohen and Judy Garland. His eclecticism was most recently demonstrated on his 2023 album, “Folkocracy,” which features this New York native collaborating with such noted admirers as Chaka Khan, David Bryne, Brandi Carlile, John Legend, Van Dyke Parks, Sheryl Crow, Andrew Bird and Anna McGarrigle, who is Wainwright’s aunt.
His next album, the 15-song “I’m a Stranger Here Myself — Wainwright Does Weill,” will be released Nov. 21 and teams him with the 40-piece Pacific Jazz Orchestra, which features ace pianist Josh Nelson and drum great Peter Erskine. Wainwright sings in both English and German on his tribute to Weill, the towering German composer whose credits include such gems as “Mack The Knife,” “Speak Low” and “September Song.”
It remains to be seen if, sans the Pacific Jazz Orchestra, Wainwright will include any songs by Weill here. Either way, it should be a memorable evening of music interspersed with some timely social commentary.
8 p.m. Monday, Nov. 3. Belly Up, 143 South Cedros Avenue, Solana Beach. $50-$85 (must be 21 or older to attend). bellyup.com
Top Portuguese fado singer Mariza’s Balboa Theatre concert will mark her first San Diego performance in more than a decade. (Courtesy La Jolla Music Society)
Mariza
Born in Mozambique and based in Lisbon, Mariza is the reigning vocal queen of fado, the intensely dramatic Portuguese music genre that is synonymous with her name.
Her singing is infused with a stunning command of nuance and dynamic control, both key elements when performing such heart-wrenching music. Fado draws from some of the same influences as Spanish flamenco, including Gypsy, Moorish, Iberian and northern African music.
Mariza, whose full name is Marisa dos Reis Nunes, is steeped in the history of fado but not bound by it. This enables her to appeal to traditionalists — who regard her as the heir to deceased fado queen Amalia Rodrigues — while also attracting a new generation of listeners. The 2020 album, “Mariza Canta Amália,” is Mariza’s tribute to Rodrigues by way of Brazil, thanks to the lush orchestrations by Jaques Morelembaum, who has previously worked worked with such Brazilian stars such as Antonio Carlos Jobim and Caetano Veloso,
Other fado singers have sought to claim the throne that Rodrigues held until her death in 1999. Their ranks include Ana Moura, Cristina Branco, Yolanda Soares, Joana Amendoeira, Raquel Tavares, Mafalda Arnauth, Dulce Pontes and Kátia Guerreiro. But none have had the same international impact as Mariza, who started out singing jazz, gospel and soul music before focusing on fado. She cites Billie Holiday, Mahalia Jackson and Nina Simone as three of her key early vocal inspirations.
Mariza’s admirers and collaborators have included Gilberto Gil, Sting, Lenny Kravitz and the late Cesaria Evora, But she shines brightest on her own and her first San Diego concert since 2013 should be an occasion worth celebrating. So should her terrific five-man band band, which features ace drummer/percussionist Mario Costa and the nimble guitarists Luis Guerreiro and Carlos Phelipe Ferreira.
7:30 p.m. next Friday, Nov. 7. Balboa Theatre, 868 Fourth Ave., San Diego. $49.50-$94. ticketmaster.com
Singer-songwriters Aly Michalka and AJ Michalka of Aly & AJ will perform Wednesday at Humphreys Concerts by the Bay. They are shown here speaking at March For Our Lives in New York City in 2022, the same year they witnessed a deadly mass shooting outside their Sacramento concert (Barry Williams / New York Daily News)
Aly & AJ, with Amanda Shires
Alyson and Amanda Michalka were teenagers when they co-starred in the Disney Channel film, “Cow Belles.” in 2005, Alyson turned down the lead role in “Hannah Montana,” a move that led to Miley Cyrus being cast instead.
Aly & AJ’s 2021 release — “A Touch of the Beat Gets You Up on Your Feet Gets You Out and Then Into the Sun” — was their first album since 2007. It saw them deftly shift from their previous synth-pop style to a rootsy folk-rock and country-rock amalgam inspired by the Laurel Canyon singer-songwriter traditions of the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Their new album, “Silver Deliverer,” builds on that template and adds a healthy dose of Fleetwood Mac in its Steve Nicks/Christine McVie-era heyday. The duo’s current tour finds them speaking out on behalf of Everytown For Gun Safety, the nonprofit they teamed with after Aly & AJ survived a 2022 mass shooting in Sacramento that killed six people and wounded 12 others.
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5. Humphreys Concerts by the Bay, 2241 Shelter Island Drive. $61.20. ticketmaster.com