thirteen ways

eighth blackbird’s latest CD release, strange imaginary animals, has been nominated for three Grammy Awards:

• Category 104: Best Chamber Music Performance - strange imaginary animals
• Category 107: Best Classical Contemporary Composition - Jennifer Higdon, Zaka
• Category 97: Best Producer of the Year, Classical - Judith Sherman

Our hearty - no, LUSTY - congratulations to both Jen and Judy for their nominations, and a big “thank you” to them for their invaluable contributions to this disc, as well as for their support and inspiration over the past decade.

According to the Lake County News-Sun, we are sharing the Grammy nomination honors with some interesting Chicago folks, including artists like Kanye West and the Plain White T’s (should the single inverted comma really be there?), but also: R Kelly, who is nominated for his ridiculous but strangely compelling Trapped in the Closet series (the world’s first and last R&B opera); the legendary Kurt Elling; the fabulous Otis Rush; and the Democratic presidential hopeful, Barak Obama, who is nominated for the spoken word version of his book, The Audacity of Hope.

This was a very pleasant surprise, and the news led to some serious school-girl giddiness during rehearsal this morning:

“We are nominated for a (insert expletive here) Grammy!”

“Un-(expletive)-believable.”

Unfortunately, we won’t be able to get all dressed to the nines to hang out on the red carpet with Jay-Z and Brittney; we have a concert to play in Pittsburgh on Grammys night.