The Templeton-Blackburn Alumni Memorial Auditorium crowd’s roar quickly hushed as they watched the man and his mandolin dominate the stage. Chris Thile, accompanied by only his mandolin and his percussive feet, began the evening.
Thile, a Grammy award-winning artist, is famous for his prodigal mandolin work, along with his musical careers in the bands Nickel Creek and Punch Brothers. Thile is now a solo artist and is the host of his own NPR show.
The theme of the concert was simple: the lights, the instruments and the stage decor — consisting of only a stool, a rug and a microphone — but Thile’s performance was anything but. He opened the concert with a medley of traditional folk songs. He also performed some vocal pieces and some instrumental pieces.
Even when Thile wasn’t singing, his facial expressions were a dead giveaway of the song’s story. Along with his expressions, he made his mandolin pieces more of an art than they already are by using his body movements to articulate certain portions of the songs.
Not only did Thile perform instrumental pieces and vocal pieces, but he also utilized his ample charisma to tell funny stories and sing songs coinciding with them. He used his song “Elephant in the Room” to illustrate the struggles of interaction with family members during the holidays, especially regarding politics.
Thile was also heavy on audience interaction. A huge portion of his concert was dedicated to allowing the audience to choose what he played. He began by letting audience members shout out suggestions, and after playing a few decided to narrow down the choices and let the audience’s applause decide the winner.
The audience cheered the loudest for his song, “Best Life,” which follows the story of lobbyist Paul Manafort’s arrest, told from the perspective of the FBI agents making the arrest, Manafort himself and his daughters. This was Thile’s first time performing the song live.
Thile also is the host of his own NPR show, Live From Here, and is notorious for keeping up with important and relevant issues in society. Similarly to his song about Paul Manafort, Thile occasionally uses his storytelling ability in song to relay important issues.
The concert ended with an encore of a few of his older songs, including one of his famous songs from his Nickel Creek days, “The Fox,” and finished the encore by stepping in front of the mic and softly singing the moving and haunting “This is the Song (Good Luck).”
Though Thile’s vocals and stage presence were both heavy factors in the quality of his performance, nothing compares to his prodigal mandolin. The audience was extremely excited for the entire performance, cheering loudly and remaining in a captivated state.
Bernhard Debatin, a professor of journalism at Ohio University, received a recommendation of Thile from his son and couldn’t wait to see the concert.
“I loved it,” Debatin said. “It was absolutely mind-blowing. He’s just an amazing, incredibly talented musician.”
Shelly Horvath, an Athens resident, saw Thile when he performed with Nickel Creek at OU and couldn’t wait to see him again.
“It’s amazing what this man can do with one instrument,” Horvath said. “He can go from joyful to pathos to everything in between. His voice and instrument are wonderful together.”
Brandi Betts, Horvath’s friend from McArthur, Ohio, was thrilled to attend the concert and loved watching Thile perform.
“It was lovely,” Betts said. “I’m a fan of Live From Here. You always have a notion about what someone will be like in person, but he far exceeded my expectations. I found it very moving.”
