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Saturday

Herlin Riley: master of drums in the cradle of jazz

Herlin Riley performing at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana on April 30, 2011. Ebet Roberts/Redferns/Getty Images hide caption

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Ebet Roberts/Redferns/Getty Images

Music

Herlin Riley: master of drums in the cradle of jazz

With a long career playing among jazz and R&B greats, he remains one of the most in-demand drummers in New Orleans.

Herlin Riley: master of drums in the cradle of jazz

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Friday

How Harry Belafonte's Caribbean roots helped him change America

Harry Belafonte, alongside Ed Sullivan, signs autographs for fans outside CBS Studio 50 in New York City, circa 1955. Archive Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Archive Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

How Harry Belafonte's Caribbean roots helped him change America

Since his death at 96, tributes to the singer and activist have centered his legacies in the U.S. But it's impossible to grasp Belafonte's larger meaning without first understanding his island roots.

In Memoriam 2023: The Musicians We Lost
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Music

In Memoriam 2023: The Musicians We Lost

When artists die, it can feel impossible to imagine a world without their musical guidance. Yet it's also a moment to celebrate — not just their impact on culture but also inside ourselves.

In Memoriam 2023: The Musicians We Lost

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'Oh Me Oh My': Finding grace after something hellified (a New Year's story)
Courtesy of Lonnie Holley

It's Been a Minute

'Oh Me Oh My': Finding grace after something hellified (a New Year's story)

To close out the year, Brittany is sitting down with Lonnie Holley. He's a painter, sculptor, and musician who released his latest album, Oh Me Oh My, in early 2023. In it he sings of his difficult childhood growing up in Jim Crow Alabama where he was sold, beat, and effectively enslaved. But today he sings of hope. He's been on a journey to heal his pain, and the pain of the generations that came before and the ones that will follow. It's a story of gratitude.

'Oh Me Oh My': Finding grace after something hellified (a New Year's story)

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Saturday

Friday

In which we toot the horn of TubaChristmas, celebrating its 50th brassy birthday

Hundreds of musicians display their tubas after completing TubaChristmas Dec. 18, 2003, in Chicago. Tim Boyle/Getty Images hide caption

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Tim Boyle/Getty Images

Culture

In which we toot the horn of TubaChristmas, celebrating its 50th brassy birthday

Every year, musicians across the country gather for what has become known as TubaChristmas — concerts range from just a few tubas to hundreds of them. (The record is 835.)

In which we toot the horn of TubaChristmas, celebrating its 50th brassy birthday

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'Everyone walked away with part of themselves healed' – 'The Color Purple' reimagined

(L-R) Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery, Fantasia Barrino as Celie and Danielle Brooks as Sofia in The Color Purple, a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Warner Bros. Pictures hide caption

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Warner Bros. Pictures

Culture

'Everyone walked away with part of themselves healed' – 'The Color Purple' reimagined

Blitz Bazawule's musical re-imagining of the 1982 Alice Walker novel The Color Purple finds new joy among the pain.

'Everyone walked away with part of themselves healed' – 'The Color Purple' reimagined

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Tuesday

The 2023 'All Songs Considered' holiday extravaganza

We return to the snowy cabin in the woods where our annual holiday extravaganza all began, as we once again ask the question, "What could possibly go wrong?" Mike Brinson/Getty Images hide caption

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Mike Brinson/Getty Images

All Songs Considered

The 2023 'All Songs Considered' holiday extravaganza

Our annual celebration of the season returns with a trip back to the snowy cabin in the woods where it all began, as we attempt once again to throw a holiday party for the ages.

The 2023 'All Songs Considered' holiday extravaganza

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Wednesday

10 years later, the 'Beyoncé' surprise drop still offers lessons about control

Beyoncé performs during the MTV Video Music Awards in August 2014, at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

10 years later, the 'Beyoncé' surprise drop still offers lessons about control

On Dec. 13, 2013, Beyoncé fans got a holiday gift no one expected. A decade later, the artistic and economic impact of her fifth album is still reverberating.

10 years later, the 'Beyoncé' surprise drop still offers lessons about control

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The 10 Best Classical Albums of 2023

In 2023, pianist Awadagin Pratt released a terrific comeback album, his first in 12 years. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

Best Music Of 2023

The 10 Best Classical Albums of 2023

Discover a broad spectrum of this year's most compelling classical music, from symphonic hell rides and soaring voices to searing string quartets, cathartic choirs and one amazing comeback.

The 10 Best Classical Albums of 2023

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Tuesday

Saturday

Kiss performs its final concert. But has the band truly reached the 'End of the Road'?

Kiss band members, from left, Tommy Thayer, Gene Simmons, Eric Singer and Paul Stanley participate in the ceremonial lighting of the Empire State Building on Thursday in New York. Charles Sykes/Invision/AP hide caption

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Charles Sykes/Invision/AP

Music

Kiss performs its final concert. But has the band truly reached the 'End of the Road'?

The 50-year-old heavy rock group performs the final concert of its "End of the Road" tour Saturday in New York. But it's said farewell before.

Maria Callas: The soprano of the century

Maria Callas as Rosina in Rossini's Il Barbieri di Siviglia, at Milan's La Scala theater in 1956. Erio Piccagliani/Teatro alla Scala hide caption

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Erio Piccagliani/Teatro alla Scala

Music

Maria Callas: The soprano of the century

One hundred years after her birth, Maria Callas still commands attention in the world of opera, which she forever altered with her singular, searing performances.

Maria Callas: The soprano of the century

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Friday

At 95, jazz icon Sheila Jordan still eats, drinks and breathes the music

Jazz singer Sheila Jordan, then 84, performs at the 21st annual Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in New York City's Tompkins Square Park on Aug. 25, 2013. Jack Vartoogian/Getty Images hide caption

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Jazz Night In America: The Radio Program

At 95, jazz icon Sheila Jordan still eats, drinks and breathes the music

WBGO and Jazz at Lincoln Center

She's among the last living beboppers, one of the first singers on Blue Note and a pioneer of voice and bass. The legendary Sheila Jordan joins Christian McBride for a career-spanning conversation.

At 95, jazz icon Sheila Jordan still eats, drinks and breathes the music