Music

A view of Pikes Peak from the Carroll Lakes, circa 1925. Katharine Lee Bates' trip up the Colorado mountain inspired her poem "America," later to become the song "America the Beautiful."

Music & Culture

Greatness Is Not A Given: 'America The Beautiful' Asks How We Can Do Better

8:06pm April 04, 2019

by Eric Westervelt

Written by a feminist poet who struggled with bouts of depression, the song is an aspirational counterpoint to "The Star-Spangled Banner" — calling on America to use its riches for the common good.

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After facing a calamitous scandal that cast doubt on its very future, the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra has returned with new leadership and a new album, featuring songs by its city's patron saint of rebirth, Allen Toussaint.

Music & Culture

A Band Rebuilds In New Orleans After A Man-Made Catastrophe

4:23pm April 04, 2019

by Nate Chinen

In 2016, the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra faced a scandal that cast doubt on its very future. The road to recovery has been, in the words of the group's new CEO, "a tightrope walk."

Music & Culture

Metric Talks Fundamental Differences In 'Art Of Doubt'

3:58pm April 04, 2019

Co-Founder Jimmy Shaw gave up the producer reins for the first time for Metric's seventh album, Art of Doubt.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin has been the music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra since 2012.

Music & Culture

For Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Making Music Is 'Like A Religious Call'

3:12pm April 04, 2019

by Terry Gross

Nézet-Séguin uses every part of his body when he conducts — including his eyes, eyebrows, shoulders and feet. He's the music director at New York's Metropolitan Opera and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

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Anderson .Paak shares a loving look with his partner in the video for "Make It Better."

Music & Culture

Anderson .Paak Links With Smokey Robinson For The Exquisitely Smooth 'Make It Better'

1:40pm April 04, 2019

by Joshua Bote

On a track from the forthcoming Ventura, Anderson .Paak weathers the stormy trials of a romance that's long departed from honeymoon avenue.

Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend, whose new album, Father of the Bride, comes out May 3.

Music & Culture

Vampire Weekend Releases Two More Songs From 'Father Of The Bride'

11:54am April 04, 2019

by Stephen Thompson

"This Life" and "Unbearably White" are the latest songs to see release in advance of the band's first album in six years, due out May 3. Hear them now.

Music & Culture

Anaïs Mitchell On Mountain Stage

11:41am April 04, 2019

by Adam Harris

Every time Anaïs Mitchell performs on Mountain Stage, she embarks on new creative territory. For Mitchell, her 2007 song "Why We Build the Wall" has taken on a whole new meaning.

Shovels & Rope's By Blood is out April 12 on Dualtone.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Shovels & Rope, 'By Blood'

11:39am April 04, 2019

by Brittney McKenna

The husband-and-wife duo's new album is an impressive feat of song craft from one of roots music's most exciting, unpredictable acts.

Emily Reo's Only You Can See It is out April 12 on Carpark Records.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Emily Reo, 'Only You Can See It'

11:39am April 04, 2019

by Adelaide Sandstrom

The Brooklyn-based pop artist shines her light on some of the least sparkling realities of the human experience.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Glen Hansard, 'This Wild Willing'

11:39am April 04, 2019

by Stephen Thompson

Where Hansard's early solo work felt suited to seated shows in elegant theaters, This Wild Willing often seems tailored to rawer spaces, from intimate bars to the open air.