Maya Shankar: A Moving Reunion with MusicNovember 11, 2009From the Top alumna Maya Shankar was on a course to becoming a professional violinist when a terrible set back turned her life in a completely new direction. Music was a part of her past until a surprising phone call changed everything, again.From The Top
Backstage Pass with OssiaOctober 27, 2009Ossia, the Eastman School of Music student-run ensembleNational
Berlioz Takes His Romance to the Concert HallOctober 25, 2009How celebrities made their confessions before the era of Larry King and other forms of "mea culpa media" took over the world.Virtuoso Voices
Gustavo Dudamel: His debut is completeOctober 16, 2009Venezuelan conducting wunderkind Gustavo Dudamel took his official bow as music director of the Los Angeles PhilharmonicThe Christian Science Monitor
Young Cellist Shares the Power of Music with Patients at an Atlanta HospitalOctober 7, 2009From the Top's Margaret Stewart Lindsay Arts Leadership program provides skills, resources and opportunities for performers to connect with new audiences, serve as positive peer role models, and give back to their communities in many ways. From The Top
Stephanie Nilles: Classical Pianist Brings Training to Jazz/Folk CareerOctober 7, 2009This year marks From the Top's tenth anniversary in public broadcasting; in celebration, the show is catching up with interesting alumni from past seasons. Emerging jazz/folk artist Stephanie Nilles is this week's alumni profile.From The Top
First ListenOctober 1, 2009"Brahms In Berlin, The Symphonies": Hear The Berlin Philharmonic Play Brahms' Symphonies In Their Entirety
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Caroline Goulding Takes it all in StrideSeptember 1, 2009From the Top interviews rising young violinist Caroline Goulding, whose self-titled debut album hit stores last week.From The Top
Horowitz Rediscovered At Carnegie HallAugust 23, 2009Private Collection, a set of Carnegie Hall performances from 1948 and '49 by Vladimir Horowitz, is being released to the public after digital restorationNPR
Pianist Ji-Yong: From Korean Idol to College FreshmanAugust 9, 200918-year-old pianist Ji-Yong has been in the professional music world since the age of 10. About to begin college, he speaks with From the Top about participating on a new Telarc recording, a chamber group with pop idol status in Korea, and his philanthropic ambitions. From The Top
Gold Standard For Bach's 'Goldberg Variations'August 12, 2009Bach's Goldberg Variations function not only as a brilliant investigation of a sublime theme, but also as a masterly compendium of style and a study in how to write idiomatically for the keyboard. Murray Perahia's recording combines energetic rhythms with seasoned musicality.NPR
A Flutist Makes Ends Meet With MusicJuly 21, 2009Every year American colleges, universities and conservatories graduate hundreds of trained classical musicians. Only a small handful will be able to get full-time salaried work with a major orchestra. Yet flutist Tod Brody has managed to find a way to pay the bills with his music.NPR
Pastoral Passion: Ravel's 'Daphnis and Chloe'July 23, 2009Ravel's magical orchestration and subtle sensuality bring an aura of poetry to this pastoral drama. Jean Martinon guides the Chicago Symphony in this 1964 recording.NPR
Josquin Des Prez's Luminous SoundJuly 18, 2009He was the greatest composer of the Renaissance, and as significant a figure in his own day as Beethoven was in the early 19th century. Hear the pure, expressive sound of his Missa Pange Lingua illuminated brilliantly by a choral group called the Tallis Scholars.NPR
Brilliant Beethoven By The Emerson QuartetJuly 9, 2009The Emerson Quartet waited many years before recording all 16 of Beethoven's string quartets. The group's seven-CD, Grammy-winning effort sets a benchmark for interpreting Beethoven's sometimes difficult music.NPR
Aaron Copland's American VisionJuly 7, 2009Commentator Rob Kapilow explains how Copland's pure, American sound springs from two simple chords that open the ballet Appalachian Spring. Stacked upon each other, the chords reveal a sound like all of America, like the purest values, and like Shaker simplicity.NPR
Rhapsody In Blue: Gershwin At His GreatestJuly 3, 2009Leonard Bernstein does full justice to the still racy and spontaneous score of Rhapsody In Blue in this 1959 recording. As both conductor and pianist, he brings a smoky, sultry jazziness to the piece.NPR
Jonathan Dunsby on the future of classical musicJune 24, 2009Eastman theory prof Jonathan Dunsby, the recently-elected president of the Music Theory Society of New York, talks with WXXI's Brenda Tremblay.National
Waves of Sound: Debussy's La MerJune 25, 2009Debussy's fantastical, Impressionistic vision of the Mediterranean sea is one of the great masterpieces of the symphonic literature. Charles Munch brings out the vivid imagery of light on water with his spontaneous, organic style.NPR
Mozart in The Netherlands August 27, 2009In September 1765, the Mozart family set foot for the first time on Dutch soil. It was the final stage of their 'Great Western Trip' and was expected to last for just one month. It ended up becoming a much longer stay and the nine year old Wolfgang was lucky to escape with his life. Radio Netherlands Worldwide
Violinist David Garrett Rocks A New AudienceJune 15, 2009On his new CD, classical violinist David Garrett performs works from some of the great composers like Vivaldi and Bach. But he also draws from some more contemporary composers: Metallica, Michael Jackson and Bill Withers. Garrett talks about how he started on the violin and how he hopes to bring new audiences to core classical performances with a little help from rock bands like AC/DC.NPR
Gustav Holst's Peerless 'Planets'June 18, 2009Gustav Holst evokes the astrological character of the planets in his popular symphonic suite. John Eliot Gardiner tops the list of conductors who have recorded Holst's forerunner of science-fiction soundtracks.NPR
After the Flood: Iowa Makes MusicJune 12, 2009One year after the flooding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, From the Top and Orchestra Iowa celebrate the community through music residency.
From The Top
Vivaldi: A Man For All SeasonsJune 13, 2009The Venice Baroque Orchestra, with violin soloist Guiliano Carmignola, brings a dramatic approach to Vivaldi's well-known Four Seasons. The concertos' angular, energetic rhythms celebrate the sound of birdsong and thunderstorms.NPR
Guitarist Sharon Isbin's American 'Journey'June 4, 2009The classical guitarist discusses her new album, Journey to the New World. It traces the evolution of American folk music from 16th century Renaissance England to the advent of bluegrass.NPR