Performance

Hotter than July

1 upcoming performance in New York

Released in 1980, *Hotter than July* sits at a hinge point in Stevie Wonder’s catalog, balancing dance-floor craft with songs that carry a public conscience. In New York, its afterlife now runs through BAM, where *Stevie: A Life in the Key of Songs* recasts this material for classical ensemble, favoring clear lines and shared tempo over star turns. Premier musicians and rotating world-renowned guests treat the album less as pop artifact than as repertory. The shift reveals how tightly its writing holds up when the groove is stripped to structure.