"American Epic" compilation series is a collection of releases of music associated with the film series "The American Epic", a historical documentaries are a journey back in time to the "Big Bang" of modern popular music.

"American Tunes" is the final recording from New Orleans jazz and R&B pianist Allen Toussaint. It was produced by Joe Henry and includes music from a 2013 solo session at the pianist's home studio in New Orleans and an October 2015 session featuring musicians Bill Frisell, Charles Lloyd, Greg Leisz, Jay Bellerose, and David Piltch, with special guest vocalist Rhiannon Giddens and pianist Van Dyke Parks, recorded in Los Angeles the month before Toussaint died. The album title is taken from the 1973 Paul Simon song "American Tune", which Toussaint performs on the album. Also included are songs written or recorded by Toussaint, Professor Longhair, Duke Ellington, Bill Evans, and Fats Waller.

Produced by T Bone Burnett, "Lost On The River: The New Basement Tapes" was written and performed in creative collaboration by Elvis Costello, Rhiannon Giddens, Taylor Goldsmith, Jim James and Marcus Mumford. The artists, under the moniker The New Basement Tapes, and Burnett gathered in Capitol Studios in March to write and create music for a treasure trove of recently discovered lyrics handwritten by Bob Dylan in 1967 during the period that generated the recording of the legendary "Basement Tapes".

A one-night-only concert was held at New York City's Town Hall last fall, to celebrate the music of the Coen brothers film "Inside Llewyn Davis". The evening was filmed for a documentary that was broadcast by Showtime last winter, and now Nonesuch Records releases a live recording of the concert, Another Day, Another Time: Celebrating the Music of “Inside Llewyn Davis”. The concert, documentary, and live album were produced by the film writer/director/producers Joel and Ethan Coen and soundtrack producer T Bone Burnett.

Grammy Award–winner and 2017 Grammy nominee, Rhiannon Giddens is a folk revivalist who knows that old stories can still have a powerful and painful relevance, and on her second solo album since leaving the Carolina Chocolate Drops, she sings about the history of America’s fight against racism, in order to warn of current dangers. Her last album was an adventurous covers set, but here she matches her own powerful compositions based on vivid, true stories from the slavery era against classic blues, and civil rights songs from the 60s.

Rhiannon Giddens, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and founding member of Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops, makes her solo recording debut with "Tomorrow Is My Turn" on Nonesuch Records. The album was produced by T Bone Burnett.

Pianist Lara Downes celebrates the launch of her Sony Classical debut album FOR LENNY, a Leonard Bernstein centennial tribute that spans the landscape of American music from the past, present, and future. Downes, joined on stage by singer Rhiannon Giddens, presents a portrait of Bernstein the man, full of boundless curiosity and a fervent belief in the power of music to change our world for the better.

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma is back for a sixth album with the Silk Road Ensemble. "Sing me Home" is the companion album for a new documentary film called The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble. The album is a musical exploration of the notion of "home", from the diverse perspectives of the members of the Silk Road Ensemble. With a mix of traditional tunes and original songs we're taken on a tour of homes around the world from the Balkans to China, India, Iran, Ireland, Japan, Mali, Syria, and the United States.