Chris Cornell of Soundgarden will perform with Mad Season (featuring Mike McCready of Pearl Jam and Duff McKagan of Guns N Roses and Velvet Revolver fame) at the fourth annual Sonic Evolution concert, held at the Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA on January 30, 2015. The Seattle Symphony will also be performing at the event, playing a number of compositions inspired by various grunge acts, including Nirvana and Pearl Jam. They are reportedly sitting in on some orchestral renditions of Mad Season songs. The event is reportedly sold out, according to the website.
According to an official rundown on the event:
“The first half of the program features three world premieres and Seattle Symphony commissions and co-commissions. French composer Yann Robin’s Ashes, a piece inspired by the iconic American rock band Nirvana, which rose to fame in Seattle in the late 1980s, will begin the program. It is followed by Beyond Much Difference by Angelique Poteat, inspired by another legendary Seattle-based rock band of the 1990s, Pearl Jam.
Poteat participated in the Seattle Symphony Young Composers Workshop from 2002 to 2004, and has since become one of the most promising young composers for new music. The Symphony commissioned Poteat to write a chamber piece, titled Much Difference, for its May 5, 2014 concert at (Le) Poisson Rouge in New York City. Beyond Much Difference is an orchestral arrangement and expansion of the earlier chamber work.
The first half of the program concludes with Waking the Horizon, a piece conceived by Pearl Jam Lead Guitarist Mike McCready (arranged by Scott Teske). Joining Ludovic Morlot, the Symphony, and members of Vocalpoint! Seattle on stage, McCready will perform during the piece. Ludovic commented during a recent score reading with McCready: “With this collaboraton we are both coming out of our normal comfort zones. This is an incredible opportunity to learn from one another and give ourselves a chance to grow as artists.”
Mike McCready returns after intermission with American rock supergroup Mad Season, including original drummer Barrett Martin. The star-studded line up will also include iconic Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell and Guns N’ Roses bassist Duff McKagan. Ludovic Morlot will lead guest musicians and the Seattle Symphony in a debut performance of orchestral and solo arrangements of original Mad Season works.”