Maia Stern
Director
NPR Tiny Desk Concerts (2008)
Season 2014
Intimate musical performances, recorded live at the desk of All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen.
Released April 22, 2008
Episode 14 min
None+
Genres: Music
Keywords: tmdb.concert, imdb.concert, tmdb.music, tmdb.irreverent, tmdb.inspirational, tmdb.awestruck, tmdb.joyful
Production Companies: NPR Music
Network: NPR
Country: United States
Languages:
English
S7E1 - Van-Anh Vanessa Vo
The musician unpacks an array of traditional Vietnamese instruments — and 1,000 years of culture.
Jan. 4, 2014, midnight
S7E2 - Lily & Madeleine
The teenagers play a restrained, homespun mix of folk and pop with undeniably sweet harmonies.
Jan. 7, 2014, midnight
S7E3 - Afro Blue
The Howard University vocal jazz ensemble performs beautiful African-American spirituals.
Jan. 13, 2014, midnight
S7E4 - Robert Glasper Experiment
Members of the Grammy-winning, organic R&B Experiment band jam with singer Marsha Ambrosius.
Jan. 20, 2014, midnight
S7E5 - Angel Olsen
The expressive, powerful singer previews songs from her new album, Burn Your Fire for No Witness.
Jan. 27, 2014, midnight
S7E6 - Pixies
Hear the legendary band perform 1989's "Monkey Gone to Heaven" and two new songs — one unreleased.
Feb. 3, 2014, midnight
S7E7 - Fanfare Ciocarlia
The joyous Balkan brass band plays at a pace that would make the Ramones burst into a sweat.
Feb. 8, 2014, midnight
S7E8 - Suzanne Vega
The inventive folk-music veteran book-ends a four-song set with her hits "Luka" and "Tom's Diner."
Feb. 10, 2014, midnight
S7E9 - Cate Le Bon
The Welsh singer's set conveys loneliness and doubt with just two guitars and an inviting whisper.
Feb. 18, 2014, midnight
S7E10 - Sofia Rei
For about 20 minutes one sunny afternoon, Rei turned a desk into a small Latin American folk club.
Feb. 22, 2014, midnight
S7E11 - Brass Bed
See the band re-create some of its stellar studio effects with a pedal steel and some novelty mics.
Feb. 24, 2014, midnight
S7E12 - Asaf Avidan
Avidan has an album and no U.S. record label to put it out. But he's on a solo tour that's stunning.
March 2, 2014, midnight
S7E13 - Lowland Hum
It's hard to convey the sound of two people in love, but Lowland Hum does that effortlessly.
March 6, 2014, midnight
S7E14 - Jake Bugg
Watch the 20-year-old English singer-songwriter, who has worked with superproducer Rick Rubin.
March 10, 2014, midnight
S7E15 - Diane Cluck
On record, Cluck's elastic voice and fingerpicking are impressive. Live, they jam the senses.
March 17, 2014, midnight
S7E16 - Joseph Calleja
All the world's top opera houses want the young tenor with the old-school approach.
March 24, 2014, midnight
S7E17 - The Haden Triplets
When the sisters cover classic country music together, the result is a treat and a trip in time.
March 31, 2014, midnight
S7E18 - The Both
Singer-songwriters Aimee Mann and Ted Leo unite from opposite ends of the volume knob.
April 7, 2014, midnight
S7E19 - Tom Brosseau
The North Dakota singer-songwriter possesses one of the most arresting voices in folk music today.
April 12, 2014, midnight
S7E20 - Courtney Barnett
Barnett tells stories like your best friend, provided your best friend is a funny Australian poet.
April 14, 2014, midnight
S7E21 - Usman Riaz
A young Pakistani musician treats the guitar as percussion — with surprisingly shimmering results.
April 19, 2014, midnight
S7E22 - Federico Aubele
The Argentine singer uses his dark, husky voice to produce a specific effect in these three songs.
April 21, 2014, midnight
S7E23 - Quilt
Interweaving harmonies and guitar lines set the tone for these soft, benevolent, dreamy songs.
April 26, 2014, midnight
S7E24 - Johnnyswim
Impossibly telegenic and charming, the band mixes booming intensity with polish and sparkle.
April 28, 2014, midnight
S7E25 - Cian Nugent
The Dublin guitarist runs through a ragtime jaunt, a basement-bar choogle and a sad-sack closer.
May 3, 2014, midnight
S7E26 - Public Service Broadcasting
The duo's sample-laden instrumental music is entertainment as education for the head and feet alike.
May 5, 2014, midnight
S7E27 - Timber Timbre
See the swamp-folk band play a characteristically eerie and mysterious set in the NPR Music offices.
May 10, 2014, midnight
S7E28 - Chvrches
The Scottish synth-pop band turns up with a small arsenal of synthesizers to perform three songs.
May 12, 2014, midnight
S7E29 - Iestyn Davies
See the countertenor and lutenist Thomas Dunford perform John Dowland's melancholy songs.
May 17, 2014, midnight
S7E30 - Ages And Ages
The band makes the kind of music that can at least briefly restore your faith in humanity.
May 20, 2014, midnight
S7E31 - Yasmine Hamdan
The Lebanese singer-songwriter is one of the most groundbreaking musicians in the Middle East.
May 24, 2014, midnight
S7E32 - Hozier
Andrew Hozier-Byrne wraps his rich, vital, soulful voice around songs rooted in the blues.
May 27, 2014, midnight
S7E33 - Juana Molina
Molina sounds as if she'd been raised by wolves and discovered the world of music on her own.
May 31, 2014, midnight
S7E34 - Simone Dinnerstein
Watch the celebrated pianist make Bach's Two-part Inventions sing and zing.
June 2, 2014, midnight
S7E35 - Marian McLaughlin
A quirky and wistful performer with a string section, McLaughlin makes music like few others.
June 7, 2014, midnight
S7E36 - Eliot Fisk And Paco Peña
A classical virtuoso and an equally captivating flamenco player combine for a set of duets.
June 14, 2014, midnight
S7E37 - Rodney Crowell
The country singer-songwriter performs with the ease and swagger of a man comfortable in his ways.
June 16, 2014, midnight
S7E38 - Mali Music
The singer-songwriter and musician performs with unabashed positivity and an uplifting spirit.
June 21, 2014, midnight
S7E39 - Conor Oberst
The Bright Eyes singer performs songs from Upside Down Mountain with help from members of Dawes.
June 23, 2014, midnight
S7E40 - Tracy Silverman
See the innovative player create waves of sound with a six-string violin.
June 28, 2014, midnight
S7E41 - Lydia Loveless
The 23-year-old singer-guitarist performs gritty, countrified blues-rock in the NPR Music offices.
July 1, 2014, midnight
S7E42 - The Foreign Exchange
Watch the Tiny Desk turn into a church, comedy club and neo-soul spot.
July 5, 2014, midnight
S7E43 - Moon Hooch
They call what they make "cave music" — but it's just as powerful at the Tiny Desk.
July 7, 2014, midnight
S7E44 - John Grant
Grant's songs don't mess around, with lyrics that function as darts of retort and thought.
July 13, 2014, midnight
S7E45 - Holly Williams
The singer has a magnificent way with phrasing, not to mention a remarkable country-music lineage.
July 14, 2014, midnight
S7E46 - Marisa Anderson
The guitarist kicks up some dirt with a Rev. Gary Davis deconstruction and a Stratocaster hoedown.
July 19, 2014, midnight
S7E47 - Hamilton Leithauser
In this three-song set, the Walkmen singer demonstrates that he's lost none of his vocal power.
July 21, 2014, midnight
S7E48 - Highasakite
Watch an atmospheric Norwegian band with a yearning sound. Also: See a flugabone!
July 25, 2014, midnight
S7E49 - Saintseneca
In the NPR offices, the Ohio band plays three alternately brooding and stomping songs from Dark Arc.
July 29, 2014, midnight
S7E50 - Quetzal
The veteran East L.A. band's music penetrates the intellect even as it makes your hips sway.
Aug. 2, 2014, midnight
S7E51 - The Family Crest
The band's seven players are trained in classical and jazz, led by Liam McCormick's powerful voice.
Aug. 4, 2014, midnight
S7E52 - Irene Diaz
With Carolyn Cardoza, Diaz conjures a place where emotions run deep and beauty is unmistakable.
Aug. 9, 2014, midnight
S7E53 - Bob Mould
The former Hüsker Dü and Sugar frontman plugs in for a characteristically loud four-song set.
Aug. 11, 2014, midnight
S7E54 - Ernest Ranglin
Watch a talented, charming guitar legend make magic as his band Avila holds down the beat.
Aug. 16, 2014, midnight
S7E55 - Pacifica Quartet
Watch the group play selections from Shostakovich's cycle of introspective string quartets.
Aug. 18, 2014, midnight
S7E56 - Rodrigo Amarante
A veteran of Little Joy and Los Hermanos, Amarante makes warm, tender music as a solo artist.
Aug. 23, 2014, midnight
S7E57 - Nickel Creek
The band was made to sing and play around one microphone, so a Tiny Desk Concert seemed inevitable.
Aug. 26, 2014, midnight
S7E58 - Sturgill Simpson
The Kentucky native writes country songs about loneliness, failed dreams, drinking and drugs.
Aug. 30, 2014, midnight
S7E59 - Trampled By Turtles
Known for the speed of their playing, the Minnesotans are about more than just blistering bluegrass.
Sept. 3, 2014, midnight
S7E60 - Jessica Lea Mayfield
Mayfield's music has gotten more beguiling as she explores the many contrasts in her hypnotic sound.
Sept. 6, 2014, midnight
S7E61 - Justin Townes Earle
In advance of his new album Single Mothers, the singer performs two new songs and an old favorite.
Sept. 8, 2014, midnight
S7E62 - Luluc
Graceful singing and storytelling meet guitars and textures that help create an unforgettable aura.
Sept. 15, 2014, midnight
S7E63 - Tweedy
With his drummer son Spencer, Wilco's Jeff Tweedy performs songs from their new album, Sukierae.
Sept. 22, 2014, midnight
S7E64 - Bio Ritmo
The 10-piece salsa band built its career on dance floors, where it never fails to make people move.
Sept. 29, 2014, midnight
S7E65 - Ryan Keberle & Catharsis
The trombonist's working band established some nifty swing, assisted in absentia by Sufjan Stevens.
Oct. 4, 2014, midnight
S7E66 - Jackson Browne
Browne still writes songs with conviction, craftsmanship and careful attention to detail.
Oct. 6, 2014, midnight
S7E67 - Raquel Sofia
Sofia has spent most of her career 20 feet from stardom as a backup singer for Juanes and Shakira.
Oct. 11, 2014, midnight
S7E68 - The Bots
The band plays with a great rock-duo punch that recalls The White Stripes or JEFF The Brotherhood.
Oct. 14, 2014, midnight
S7E69 - Ásgeir
The Icelandic singer's voice is angelic and yearning, his songs simple and universal.
Oct. 18, 2014, midnight
S7E70 - Anthony D'Amato
D'Amato's music can feel Motown-y, garage-y and Springsteen-y, but he sounds sparer here.
Oct. 20, 2014, midnight
S7E71 - Danish String Quartet
Watch the young, versatile ensemble play folk music from around Denmark and beyond.
Oct. 25, 2014, midnight
S7E72 - T-Pain
We asked the King of Auto-Tune to grace the Tiny Desk without any embellishment or effects.
Oct. 29, 2014, midnight
S7E73 - Banks
Known for lavish electronic productions, Banks serves notice as a powerful singer in her own right.
Oct. 30, 2014, midnight
S7E74 - Sun Ra Arkestra
With costumes inspired by Egyptian symbolism and sci-fi, Ra's band plays a special Halloween set.
Oct. 31, 2014, midnight
S7E75 - Making Movies
A rousing band from Kansas City, Making Movies mixes languages and eras with infectious energy.
Nov. 8, 2014, midnight
S7E76 - Roomful Of Teeth
Watch the group sing new music with yelps, yodels and a few fine harmonies.
Nov. 10, 2014, midnight
S7E77 - Davíd Garza
The Austin singer-songwriter joins his stunning voice with that of touring partner Gaby Moreno.
Nov. 15, 2014, midnight
S7E78 - J Mascis
The Dinosaur Jr. frontman, one of the world's loudest musicians, performs unplugged and acoustic.
Nov. 22, 2014, midnight
S7E79 - Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo
Benatar and Giraldo play three classics: "We Live For Love," "We Belong" and "Promises In The Dark."
Nov. 24, 2014, midnight
S7E80 - Sam Amidon & Bill Frisell
Amidon weaves his compositions into traditional music, while Frisell adds atmospheric guitar.
Dec. 1, 2014, midnight
S7E81 - Dublin Guitar Quartet
Hear the Irish ensemble's fresh take on Philip Glass' propulsive yet intimate string quartets.
Dec. 4, 2014, midnight
S7E82 - St. Paul And The Broken Bones
The band's got heart and soul and flair, with a well-worn sound buoyed by strong, fresh songwriting.
Dec. 6, 2014, midnight
S7E83 - Yusuf/Cat Stevens
The singer performs two new songs, as well as "The First Cut Is the Deepest" and "Father and Son."
Dec. 9, 2014, midnight
S7E84 - Lucinda Williams
She came to the desk a little unsure, and left singing "West Memphis" with intensity and passion.
Dec. 20, 2014, midnight
S7E85 - HMSTR
Watch our favorite hamsters play their twee-as-all-get-out holiday pop-punk song, "Snow Day."
Dec. 24, 2014, midnight
Network: NPR
Episode Runtime: 14 min.
Season Runtime: 20 min.
Released: April 22, 2008
Last Air Date: June 2, 2025, midnight
Status: Returning Series
Certification: NR
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