Music & Culture

Kendrick Lamar performs onstage in June. His most recent album, To Pimp A Butterfly, runs nearly 80 minutes over 16 songs.

Music & Culture

A Rational Conversation: Does Anybody Even Have Time For An 80-Minute Album?

4:07pm August 19, 2015

by Eric Ducker

In a musical environment that prizes economy and the listener's ability to shuffle, skip and create playlists, is there still a place for ambitious, sprawling albums meant to be consumed all at once?

The rapper V-Sita (at right) had a No. 1 hit in Kenya with the song "Hivo Ndio Kunaendaga."

Stop The Foreign Music! African Pop Stars Ask For Government Help

1:31pm August 19, 2015

by Gregory Warner

Musicians in Kenya want a law forcing radio stations to play 70 percent local music. Nigeria and South Africa have similar rules. But this kind of protectionism could backfire.

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Members of the Syrian band Khebez Dawle include (from left to right) Hekmat Qassar on guitar and keyboards, lead guitarist Bashar Darwish, bassist Muhammad Bazz and lead singer Anas Maghrebi. Half the band members are now in Turkey, and are strongly consi

Syrian Rockers, Fleeing War, Find Safety And New Fans In Beirut

1:05pm August 19, 2015

by Alice Fordham

Members of a Syrian indie rock band escaped their country's bloodshed and have become a mainstay of Beirut's music scene. "In spite of all the deaths," the band sings, "you are still alive."

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Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder perform during "Bluegrass Underground" at the Cumberland Caverns in 2010.

Music & Culture

Cumberland Caverns: A Subterranean Concert Venue In Tennessee

5:24pm August 18, 2015

by Blake Farmer

Ever wanted to see Jason Isbell, Shovels & Rope or Billy Joe Shaver 333 feet underground? You'll have to take a hike.

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Bob Dylan in the studio in the summer of 1965, while recording Highway 61 Revisited, which was mostly produced by Bob Johnston.

Music & Culture

'Is It Rolling, Bob?': Remembering Producer Bob Johnston

5:20pm August 18, 2015

by Joe Henry

Producing albums for Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen and most crucially, Bob Dylan, Johnston helped give shape, heft and durability to some of the most transformative music of the past five decades.

Music & Culture

'The Thompson Fields' Mixes Prairie Dreaming With A Big-Band Beat

2:33pm August 18, 2015

by Kevin Whitehead

Composer Maria Schneider draws on her rural Minnesota roots in her new album. Critic Kevin Whitehead says that while Schneider can do grandeur, "once in awhile, the majesty gets a little too purple."

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The five young stars of Straight Outta Compton. Left to right: Aldis Hodge (MC Ren), Neil Brown, Jr. (DJ Yella), Jason Mitchell (Eazy-E), O'Shea Jackson, Jr. (Ice Cube), Corey Hawkins (Dr. Dre).

Music & Culture

Biopic 'Straight Outta Compton' Tells The Epic Story Of Hip-Hop And N.W.A

1:59pm August 18, 2015

by Mandalit del Barco

The original members of N.W.A produced the film, which opens nationwide Friday. Like the group's story, the making of Straight Outta Compton — which took 11 years — is filled with drama.

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Swedish musician Anna von Hausswolff says she was drawn to the church organ by its physicality: "When you play it, you can really feel it because you're sitting close to the pipes. It's almost as if you're becoming a part of the instrument."

Music & Culture

Anna Von Hausswolff: An Artist In Thrall To A Mega-Instrument

1:10pm August 18, 2015

by NPR Staff

"When you play it, you can really feel it because you're sitting close to the pipes. It's almost as if you're becoming a part of the instrument."

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Soprano Dawn Upshaw (second from right) and fellows from Tanglewood's summer program performed the world premiere of Michael Gandolfi's Carroll in Numberland July 25.

Music & Culture

At 75, Tanglewood's Student Program Holds Focus On New Music And People Making It

6:56pm August 15, 2015

by Jeff Lunden

The Boston Symphony's summer program for young musicians has long been commissioning works and fostering new talent.

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Isabel Leonard and Nathan Gunn star as Ada and Inman in the world premiere of Jennifer Higdon's Cold Mountain at the Santa Fe Opera.

'Cold Mountain' Takes Civil War Odyssey To The Opera Stage

2:37pm August 14, 2015

by Paul Ingles

The best-selling novel and star-studded movie gets the operatic treatment from Pulitzer-winning composer Jennifer Higdon with a world premiere in Santa Fe.

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