Disclosure: Some links in this article are affiliate links. Upstate Concerts may earn a commission on ticket purchases at no additional cost to you.
Some shows are about spectacle. Some are about volume. And then there are the ones where you sit down, the lights drop, and the first note from a fiddle stops the room cold. Alison Krauss and Union Station are coming to the Palace Theatre in Albany on Wednesday, July 22 at 7:30 PM — and if there’s a more perfect pairing of artist and venue on the summer calendar, we haven’t found it yet.
About Alison Krauss and Union Station
Twenty-seven Grammy Awards. That number belongs to Alison Krauss — more than any female artist in Grammy history. She’s been recording since she was fourteen years old, and in the decades since, she’s become the voice that most Americans hear in their heads when they think of bluegrass. Crystal clear, aching, capable of making a roomful of grown adults forget to breathe for a few bars at a time.
Union Station is the band that makes it all sing. Jerry Douglas on dobro is widely regarded as the finest player on the instrument alive. Dan Tyminski — whose voice you know even if you don’t know his name, because that’s him singing “Man of Constant Sorrow” in O Brother, Where Art Thou? — anchors the harmonies. Together, this group plays with a precision and warmth that makes every song feel like it was written in the room you’re sitting in, just for the people who showed up that night.
If you know their work from the O Brother soundtrack, from “When You Say Nothing at All,” from their collaborations with Robert Plant — you know what’s coming. But knowing the records and hearing Krauss sing live in a room like the Palace are two entirely different experiences. The records are beautiful. The live show is something you carry with you.
Venue Info
The Palace Theatre is Albany’s crown jewel — a restored 1931 movie palace on Clinton Avenue that seats about 2,800. The interior is gorgeous, all ornate plasterwork and warm lighting, and the acoustics are built for exactly this kind of music. Every seat feels close. For an artist whose instrument is nuance and dynamics, there’s no better room in the Capital Region. This is a show where the quiet moments will be as powerful as the loud ones, and the Palace will honor every one of them.
Tickets & Pricing
Tickets for Alison Krauss and Union Station at the Palace Theatre are on sale now through Ticketmaster. A midsummer Wednesday evening with twenty-seven Grammys worth of talent in one of the most beautiful theaters in upstate New York. Clear your calendar.