Olney had a gift for character — creating them in his lyrics, inhabiting them in his performances — and that literarily bent musical talent made him a fixture in Nashville for decades.Read More
A listener's guide for the opera-curious includes a little history, a little trash-talk and some gorgeous singing. Read More
When it comes to the Underground Railroad, everyone knows Harriet Tubman. But a new oratorio sheds light on a different, key figure named William Still. Read More
The saxophonist and composer — an artist who wrote for Miles Davis and Charlie Parker, and who nurtured John Coltrane — died Sunday at age 93.Read More
Watch the celebrated opera star deconstruct old Italian love songs with her signature flair, backed by a crack jazz ensemble.Read More
Dolly Parton, Carla Thomas, Fanny, The Runaways and Salt n Pepa are just some of the women who should be in the Hall by now.Read More
The song is from the Netflix series The Witcher and has inspired enthusiastic remixes and covers. Composers Kathryn Sonya Belousova and Giona Ostinelli discuss their songwriting process.Read More
"We're only immortal for a limited time." Peart, who died on Jan. 7, guided Rush through the decades with a pen, a massive drum kit and an openness towards life's many shades.Read More
"I'm a combination of a perfectionist and a snail," Khushi jokes. It took him 10 years to write Strange Seasons, which he ended up recording in a shed over the course of six years. Read More
As a composer, Guinga's written hits for Brazilian superstars like Elis Regina. As a musician he's set the bar for classical guitarists far beyond his native country.Read More
Spanglish Fly is one of the pioneers of the boogaloo revival scene happening on the East Coast. For about sixteen minutes, they turned the NPR Music offices into the hottest Latin dance club in D.C.Read More
Daniela Medina is a first-grade teacher in the Kennewick School District — at the same school she found herself in at age six when she and her family immigrated to Washington from Mexico in 2001. The Mid-Columbia Mastersingers are holding concerts January 10, 11 and 12 of music by immigrant composers to tell the stories behind the politics. Read More
Fiddler Jenee Fleenor is the first woman ever to win the Country Music Association's Musician of the Year Award. Her work is partly responsible for the instrument's resurgence.Read More
Every Christmas Eve at exactly 3 p.m., the Chapel of King's College in Cambridge, England plays A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols. The tradition began in 1918, and for decades it's been broadcast on the BBC and around the world. Read More
Made famous by Frank Sinatra — who grew to hate it — "My Way" represents the quintessentially American outlook that nothing in life matters more than living on your own terms.Read More
A woman had become barely verbal, an effect of dementia. Her daughter, an opera singer, decided to try singing Christmas songs with her, and they reconnected.Read More
We celebrate 25 Years of democracy in South Africa by focusing on the trailblazers that stayed during the brutal era of apartheid, featuring Herbie Tsoaeli and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.Read More
Mariah Carey's "All I Want For Christmas Is You" is back at the top of the chart a quarter century after it was first released. So why haven't there been any lasting Christmas songs to take its place?Read More
The guitarist, who hails from a small town on the edge of the West Siberian Plain, competed against two Americans for one of, if not the, most prestigious prizes available to younger jazz artists.Read More
For nearly 200 years, Beethoven's epic Ninth Symphony, with its powerful "Ode to Joy," has inspired millions. Now conductor Marin Alsop takes it on a world tour.Read More
One of classical music's most beloved and widely heard conductors died Saturday. Born in secret in Nazi-occupied Latvia, he went on to a stunning international career.Read More
They were a classical music hosts who helped make the genre approachable. Bob and Bill started at Northwest Public Radio delighting audiences with their humor and knowledge. Recently, Bob Christenson passed away. Bill Morelock remembers him. Read More
The Brooklyn-born Burgie studied at Juilliard and co-wrote many of the songs on Harry Belafonte's breakthrough album, Calypso, including his genre-defining hit, "Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)." Read More
On her new album, the restless Italian opera star sings virtuoso music composed for Farinelli, the greatest of the baroque castratos.Read More
Despite some very public bumps in his tenure, the head of the largest performing arts organization in the U.S. received a five-year extension to his contract.Read More
The classicly trained duo — whose real names are Kevin Sylvester and Wilner Baptist — formed Black Violin and found their unique sound mashing together Bach with Biggie Smalls.Read More
The insightful pianist offers a Beethoven bonanza, ranging from the mesmerizing pulse of the popular "Moonlight" Sonata to flashes of wry humor and tender beauty.Read More
Before any opera purists start wringing their hands, let's remember that the 400-year-old art form has proven itself terrifically adaptable and resilient.Read More
The singer and pianist says he's loved Porter's music since he was a little kid. Connick's latest album pays tribute to an enduring influence.Read More
It's almost impossible to pinpoint an exact moment in music history when the plates shift. But looking back at the last decade in Latin music, it's easy, now to see that the release of "Despacito" by Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi in early 2017 was just such a moment.Read More
One of Mexico's most renowned classical composers, Ortiz's latest work was commissioned by Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic and inspired by Mexico's first liberator of slaves.Read More
The classical flutist came back from the hospital after receiving an Alzheimer's diagnosis and felt compelled to write. The result is a stunning memoir that mixes poetry and prose.Read More
What do Gertrude Stein, Billy Joel and Robert Burns have in common? Their words all show up in a new song by Pulitzer-winning composer Caroline Shaw. Read More
Intended only for home use, the Mellotron became a sonic tool for The Beatles, The Moody Blues and David Bowie. Now it's inspiring a new generation of musicians.Read More
This week, two Native American men, Faran Sohappy and Tim Brooks, who live in the Grand Coulee area, are going back east to complete what has been a surprising adventure. They are finalists, along with Chicago singer/songwriter Joan Hammel (who is not Native), for a Native American Music Award. Read More
NPR's Ari Shapiro talks to WNYC's Jad Abumrad about his new podcast which explores the life and legacy of the prolific songwriter and her ability to bridge the divide in America.Read More
Onstage, Joplin oozed confidence, sexuality and exuberance, but biographer Holly George-Warren describes the singer as a bookworm who worked hard to create her "blues feelin' mama" musical persona. Read More
Neil Young and Crazy Horse have put out music together for 50 years. Young talks to NPR's David Greene about their latest album, Colorado.Read More
It's not easy to see that history is being made when it's happening right in front of you — just ask the critics tasked with assessing these classic, ahead-of-their-time recordings.Read More
The British conductor, harpsichordist and scholar helped reignite interest in works by composers like Monteverdi — but he also championed new works and wrote notable film scores of his own.Read More
The past 10 years in classical music, which this episode of All Songs Considered explores, has been a roller coaster ride of high points and derailments. Hence the dramatic title, "A Decade of Reckoning."Read More
The band couldn't afford instruments. So they made their own out of scavenged items, like kitchen pots and air-conditioner parts. On their U.S. tour, they stopped by NPR's Tiny Desk.Read More
The Alabama Shakes singer and guitarist brought an eight-piece backing band to the Tiny Desk for a set of deeply personal and affecting songs.Read More
In a new memoir, the actress writes about the films and creative collaborations — like Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music — that marked the height of her fame.Read More
Jazz drummer, bandleader and mentor Art Blakey was born 100 years ago. The Jazz Messengers came to be called Blakey's University and graduated stars Donald Byrd, Wayne Shorter and Wynton Marsalis.Read More
The Grammy Award-winning group's self-titled album is packed with political messaging and brims with hope.Read More
Ten years ago, Costanzo had surgery that threatened to destroy his singing voice. Now the countertenor is starring as a gender-fluid Egyptian pharaoh in a new production by the Metropolitan Opera.Read More
Roseanne Cash has been making great records for forty years, but she's never played or written better music than she's doing right now.Read More
For more than twenty years, Imani Winds has inspired audiences and young musicians of all backgrounds with their energetic performances, outreach endeavors and adventurous programming. Anjuli Dodhia caught up with horn player/composer Jeff Scott and bassoonist Monica Ellis at an Imani Winds rehearsal. Read More
This year, Turning the Tables focused on music's "founding mothers." Watch the season-opening concert at Lincoln Center Out of Doors, featuring Rhiannon Giddens, Lizz Wright and more.Read More
