SubCulture, 45 Bleeker St, Manhattan
March 25, 2018

Here’s a bright idea. GatherNYC, a weekly program of chamber music, is the brainchild of Australian guitarist Rupert Boyd and his partner American cellist Laura Metcalf (if you’re lucky, you might have caught them touring Australia last year as the smartly-monickered duo Boyd Meets Girl). Held in downtown Manhattan – Tribeca to be precise – the hour-long concerts are touted as what do on a Sunday morning if music is your religion. As a bonus, they come complete with a sermon (sort of) and an opportunity for meditative reflection. If that smacks of piety, not a bit of it. Held in the appropriately-named SubCulture – right next to the subway on Bleeker St – the basement bar vibe lends a groovy, grungy feel to proceedings, ideal for breaking a few conventions.

The audience – a real family crowd – gathers ahead of the concert for the chat and the (reasonably decent) coffee, plus plenty of cookies for that Sunday morning sugar rush (pretty essential if you’ve had to negotiate the usual NYC subway weekend engineering advisories). The performers talk to you – and it’s amazing how many still don’t – and do...