Music

Music & Culture

Songs We Love: Sarah Jarosz, 'House Of Mercy'

10:00am May 23, 2016

by Katie Presley

The folk and bluegrass artist takes a big, bold step, writing darker, more mature material. With stylized images of her bare skin, the video reads like an exploration beyond previous comfort zones.

Jazz Books: Conversations in Jazz and Music in the Air

From Duke To The Dead, Ralph J. Gleason Loved It All

9:24am May 23, 2016

by Felix Contreras

Two new volumes of work by the legendary music writer Ralph J. Gleason are out this spring. Though he grew up during the Jazz Age, Gleason loved acts like Janis Joplin and the Grateful Dead too.

SHEL's latest album is called Just Crazy Enough.

Music & Culture

Four Home-Schooled Sisters, One Awesome Metallica Cover

8:13am May 22, 2016

by NPR Staff

Violin, mandolin, piano, drums and gorgeous vocal harmonies define the sound of SHEL, a band of four sisters raised in a music-minded household. They speak with NPR's Rachel Martin.

Classical music fans are familiar with Robert Schumann. But they might not know that his his wife, Clara, was an accomplished composer, too.

'Sounds And Sweet Airs' Remembers The Forgotten Women Of Classical Music

6:40am May 22, 2016

by NPR Staff

You may be familiar with Felix Mendelssohn and Robert Schumann. But did you know Mendelssohn's sister Fanny and Schumman's wife Clara were accomplished composers, too?

Transgender choruses — such as the Trans Chorus of Los Angeles, led by Lindsey Deaton (with guitar) — are springing up all over the country. A transgender pride flag is at the center of this image.

Music & Culture

Transgender Choruses Harness The (Changing) Power Of Voices

10:33pm May 21, 2016

by CJ Janovy

Transgender people are speaking out in society — and singing in choirs nationwide. "Voice is probably one of the deepest signifiers of who a person is," says the founder of a group about to debut.

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Music & Culture

Show Up Early To The Party With Andy Shauf

10:58am May 21, 2016

by NPR Staff

The Canadian singer-songwriter's new album, The Party, is full of character studies and vignettes. He breaks down the story behind the song 'Early To The Party.'

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Adia Victoria is a Nashville-based singer and songwriter who sounds nothing like what we think of as Nashville.

Music & Culture

Adia Victoria Reckons With The South

9:19am May 21, 2016

by Jewly Hight

The singer and songwriter grew up under difficult circumstances in South Carolina. Today she uses her music, and the legacy of Southern black women's music, to come to terms with the past and present.

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Clockwise from top left: Car Seat Headrest, Band of Horses, Shawn Colvin & Steve Earle.

Music & Culture

Watch Live: Car Seat Headrest, Band Of Horses And More, Live In Philadelphia

4:29pm May 20, 2016

Shawn Colvin and Steve Earle, Esmé Patterson and Soul Asylum will also perform at World Cafe Live. Watch live starting at 7 p.m. EDT.

Recordings made by the journalist and songwriter Vivien Goldman from 1979 to 1983, including her first single, "Launderette," have been collected on the album Resolutionary, out May 20.

Music & Culture

Watch A Long-Lost Video For Vivien Goldman's 'Launderette'

1:25pm May 20, 2016

by Evelyn McDonnell

Unseen since shortly after it was made, this music video is a charming snapshot of the early-'80s London life of its creator, the punk and reggae musician, scholar and journalist Vivien Goldman.

One of musician-turned-chef Philip Gelb's culinary creations for his Sound & Savor series of dinners and concerts. It's a mezze plate of falafel, roasted garlic hummus, beet nut pate, pepper pecan sauce and socca, a thin pancake made of chickpea flour.

An Underground Supper Club Where Music Moves The Menu

1:00pm May 20, 2016

by Maria Godoy

Philip Gelb once toured with top musicians. Now he's a chef who hosts intimate dinner parties where the entertainment, by innovative world musicians, is as experimental as the ever-changing fare.