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Innocence Exploited: Gounod's 'Faust' September 10, 2010 Though it's Faust who sold his soul to the devil, the innocent Marguerite takes the fall in this classic story dating back to the 1400s. Hear the entire opera and follow along with the libretto in this production from Opera Carolina. NPR
First 'Authentic' Klingon Opera By Terrans (That's You, Earthlings) Premieres September 9, 2010 The drama of battle! The euphoria of song! It's opera! It's Klingon opera! NPR
Opera Noir: Alban Berg's 'Wozzeck' September 3, 2010 As he struggles with jealousy and poverty in this powerful tragedy, the psychologically disturbed title character endures ridicule from his superiors and undergoes bizarre medical experiments. NPR
From Classical Music to Indie Rock September 2, 2010 Violist Nadia Sirota is making her mark in New York City through a mix of classical music and indie/alternative rock. From The Top
Sheet Music File-Sharing - Make It Legally Available! August 25, 2010 One listener cries out: 'Make sheet music easily available for musicians so it can be performed!'¿ NPR
Composing for Kids: It Is Just a Game August 24, 2010 Musician Tim Woos gives back to his community by engaging young students in music through a creative composing game. From The Top
From Zero To Hero: Seraphic Fire's Viral Monteverdi August 21, 2010 When the ensemble was turned down by record labels, Seraphic Fire's members released its recording themselves. In just a few days, it was the sixth-best-selling classical album on iTunes. NPR
A Shocker In Real Time: Puccini's 'Tosca' August 20, 2010 Execution, extortion, and exploitation. No, it's not an episode of Showtime's Dexter. It's Puccini's operatic thriller Tosca, which takes a surprisingly realistic approach to the passage of dramatic time with scenes of physical and psychological torture. NPR
Sheet Music Piracy: You Can Get Everything For Free On The Internet August 19, 2010 Songwriters don't want their sheet music shared online. But are the laws against it out of date? NPR
Domingo The Baritone In Verdi's 'Simon Boccanegra' August 13, 2010 The famed tenor tackles one of Verdi's most nuanced roles for baritone at this year's BBC Proms concerts. Boccanegra, the powerful leader of Genoa, deals a host of personal and political troubles as he finds his long-lost daughter, thwarts a kidnapping attempt and faces death. NPR
Giving Back Through Music August 13, 2010 Talented teenage violist & Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Isabella Markham makes a positive impact through her music. From The Top
Camp Introduces The Texting Generation To Opera August 13, 2010 Forget the bug spray and sleeping bags: At opera camp, the kids need only bring talent and a desire to sing. From singing to set design, the program introduces students to life in show business. NPR
Dale Warland's Transcendent Choral Sound August 11, 2010 The consummate choral conductor strives for beauty in every musical experience. It all started with the simple, lonesome sound of a late-night train whistle. Hear Warland lead two 20th-century masterworks in concert. NPR
Johann Johannsson: The Transporter August 10, 2010 The Icelandic composer mixes orchestral and electronic sounds to make music that's as beautiful as his homeland. Listen to a live session from KEXP featuring New York's famed ACME Quartet. NPR
High Stakes At International Piano Competition August 8, 2010 Last month, a few dozen teenage pianists from around the world converged on Oberlin, Ohio, for a grueling high-stakes competition. A 14-year-old, George Li, took first prize, which included a full scholarship to the Oberlin Conservatory. Hear his winning performance. NPR
Quirk of Nature: Janacek's 'Cunning Little Vixen' August 6, 2010 Although populated with barnyard animals, the opera speaks volumes about human nature, though some of Janacek's most touching music. NPR
Assad Brothers Bring Brazil To Savannah August 5, 2010 Brazilian guitarists Sergio and Odair Assad have been playing together for 40 years, and they have the varied, imaginative repertoire to prove it. Hear them in concert at this year's Savannah Music Festival. NPR
From Self-Taught Saxophonist to Conducting Fellow August 2, 2010 At 25 years old, Keitaro Harada has mastered the saxophone and discovered his real passion: conducting. From The Top
Performed by one Musician, but far from a Solo July 30, 2010 “Elements” is a tour-de-force that sends you looping through a live concert of Matthew Schoening’s cello cycles Echoes
William Harvey Takes His Music Across The Globe July 26, 2010 William Harvey demonstrates just how universal music can be with more than a decade of musical service with cultures across the globe. From The Top
Bawdy and Baroque: Cavalli's 'La Calisto' July 23, 2010 This early opera by Francesco Cavalli revolves around a transgendered tryst involving the king of the gods. Though it's mostly about lust, there's a little true love thrown in, in this production from the Theatre des Champs Elysees in Paris. NPR
$18 Million Violin Looking For A Home July 18, 2010 While Stradivarius might be the closest thing to a household name when it comes to valuable violins, an instrument made instead by Guarneri del Gesu may be the most coveted instrument ever. If it sells for its asking price of $18 million, it will be the most expensive instrument on Earth. NPR
Betrayal In Brooklyn: 'A View From The Bridge' July 16, 2010 William Bolcom's searing opera, based on a play by Arthur Miller, is a sometimes bleak yet always vivid drama set in the Italian-American community of Red Hook, Brooklyn, in the 1950s. NPR
Conductor Charles Mackerras Dies At 84 July 15, 2010 Although he never opted for a glittery career, Mackerras was a favorite of fans and critics. His passion for the music of Leos Janacek led him to almost singlehandedly rebuild the composer's reputation as one of the most important opera composers of the 20th century. NPR
Charles Mackerras Played My Wedding July 15, 2010 After we spoke our handwritten vows, I nodded to my friend Wilson. Clutching a medium-sized boom-box, he punched the play button, and out poured Janacek's gleaming, brass fanfare. The music never sounded so right. NPR
Nadine Sierra Sings Her Way To The Top July 15, 2010 Nadine Sierra conquered odds to become the youngest soprano ever to win the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions From The Top
Marc-Andre Hamelin: Sonatas By The Seashore July 14, 2010 From the gorgeous new music hall overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, hear the courageous pianist make finger-scorching music by Liszt and Berg sound easy as pie at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival in Maine. NPR
A Trumpet Player’s Dream Come True July 12, 2010 After a decade and a half of hard work, trumpet player Matthew Muckey finally receives his dream job. From The Top
Psychological Slow Burn: 'Pelléas and Mélisande' July 9, 2010 Can opera be passionate without shrieking mad scenes and overstuffed choruses? The answer is yes, and Claude Debussy's subtle, dreamy psychological thriller proves it, in a production from German Opera On Rhein. NPR
Making Music in Hawaii July 8, 2010 This January From the Top traveled across land and ocean to tape two radio broadcasts in Hawaii. From The Top
A King's Violin: From Italy To South Dakota July 7, 2010 One of the world's leading collections of musical instruments is found not in New York or Los Angeles, but in a small college town on the Great Plains. And now the National Music Museum in Vermillion, S.D., has added a priceless violin, made for French royalty in the 16th century, to its remarkable collection. NPR
Innocence Rewarded: Bellini's 'La Sonnambula' July 2, 2010 A young woman's habit of sleepwalking leads to troublesome consequences. But Bellini's light-handed approach is the perfect complement to the inspired purity of his melodic style. NPR
You Think Ravel Never Wrote For The Vuvuzela? Oh, You're So Wrong. June 30, 2010 Please enjoy Brahms and Ravel played on the vuvuzela. No, seriously. NPR
Soulmates Of The String Quartet: Ravel and Adams June 30, 2010 When composer John Adams heard the St. Lawrence Quartet play Beethoven, creative doors started flying open. Inspired by the musicians, and the music of Maurice Ravel, Adams wrote his very first string quartet. NPR
Musical Matchmaking June 28, 2010 One radio show brought double bassist/composer Evan Premo and soprano Mary Bonhag together. From The Top
A Deal Undone: Smetana's 'The Bartered Bride' June 25, 2010 Hidden identities, secret bargains and dancing bears characterize this Czech comedy, in a production from the Prague National Opera. NPR
Jennifer Higdon's Musical Labors September 5, 2010 When it might be a good idea to turn down work... Virtuoso Voices
Grammatically Correct Haydn August 29, 2010 Punctuating Haydn Virtuoso Voices
Good Bye Leonard Bernstein August 22, 2010 New York Philharmonic English Horn Player Remembers the Orchestra's last encounter with Leonard Bernstein. Virtuoso Voices
Chewing on Bach in Non-Traditional Locations August 15, 2010 Bach... Bars ... and Brandenburg Virtuoso Voices
The Chopin Effect August 8, 2010 The other side of Lang Lang Virtuoso Voices
Bach's Air Guitar August 1, 2010 Bach's Air is Everywhere Virtuoso Voices
Classical Music's Macho Men July 25, 2010 Pianist taps in to Liszt's Secret Ingredient Virtuoso Voices
Hilary Hahn Resists Temptation July 20, 2010 Save Some Sibelius for Later Virtuoso Voices
Verdi's 'Il Trovatore': Profound Or Preposterous? June 18, 2010 Verdi's Il Trovatore remains one of the most popular operas of all time, but it walks a fine line between tragedy and farce. Find out who threw which baby into the fire in this production from the Maggio Musicale in Florence, Italy. NPR
Band Of Gypsies: Haydn And Brahms At Spoleto Festival June 16, 2010 Musicians at the 2010 Spoleto Festival U.S.A. bring out the "Gypsy" in Haydn and Brahms. The newly renovated Dock Street Theater in Charleston, S.C., plays host to Gypsy-inspired sounds from Haydn and Brahms at the 2010 Spoleto Festival USA. NPR
'The Golden Ticket' Is Finally Unwrapped June 16, 2010 The new opera, based on Roald Dahl's ever-popular Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, was meant to bring families into the opera house. But the premiere under way now at Opera Theatre of St. Louis did not have a sweet ride from conception to opening night. NPR
New Name, Same Talent: Yundi At WNYC June 15, 2010 Chinese pianist Yundi Li recently shortened his stage name to "Yundi." But it may not have been necessary: The young musician has already achieved superstardom in his homeland. In this session from WNYC, he plays two Chopin nocturnes. NPR
One Opera, Four Stories: Martin¿'s 'The Plays Of Mary' June 11, 2010 After Dvo¿ák, Smetana and Jana¿ek, Bohuslav Martin¿ continued the long and distinguished line of Czech opera composers. Characters both sacred and profane struggle for supremacy in Martin¿'s unique stage drama, inspired by the medieval tradition of mystery and miracle Plays. NPR
Joyce Yang: Inside The Psyche Of Schumann June 8, 2010 Robert Schumann suffered through intense, ecstatic highs and frightening, depressive lows. Today, we'd call that bipolar disorder. Hear pianist Joyce Yang explore the many colorful characters who emerge in Schumann's Carnaval. NPR
Robert Schumann's Routine Of Intensity June 8, 2010 Schumann's gangbusters work ethic results in some of the best material for music festivals. Hear his dynamic Piano Quintet in E-flat from the Montreal Chamber Music Festival. NPR
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