Search results for

At the core of The Jayhawks' alt-country music is the combined talent of Gary Louris and Mark Olson. These guys seem to have it all: impeccable guitar lines, smooth harmonies and songwriting capabilities that rival just about any musician (or group of musicians) around.

Mark Johnson and Enzo Buono founded Playing for Change as a way to connect the world through music. Their videos of musicians worldwide playing the same song were viral hits, and now a group of musicians has been brought together to create the Playing for Change band.

The children's TV show marks its 20th anniversary this month. We'll see how much the creator of GetOut knows about Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po.

Sunday marks the 75th anniversary of the birth of Sam Cooke, one of the most famous gospel and pop singers in American music history. Along with Ray Charles, Cooke was one of the earliest artists to cross over from gospel to pop music. By the end of his career, he heralded the advent of soul.

As the Appalachia Waltz Trio, fiddler Mark O'Connor, violist Carol Cook and cellist Natalie Haas combine the elegance of classical training with the rhythmic drive of American and Celtic roots music. The group performs music from their new CD Crossing Bridges in Studio 4A.

Johnny Mathis is marking his 50th anniversary in show business. He's celebrating with two retrospective CDs, one featuring holiday classics. And a concert called Johnny Mathis: Gold will be shown on PBS stations later this month.

The southern guitar shuffle of J.J. Cale has been mimicked by some of the most successful acts in rock 'n' roll history - like Eric Clapton and Dire Straits - yet Cale himself has remained a recording artist on the fringe of the music industry. His latest CD is called "To Tulsa and Back," and it marks his return to the studio after eight years. Host Liane Hansen speaks with Cale about his songwriting accomplishments and why he returned to his hometown of Tusla, Oklahoma, to record his new release. (9:41)

Turtle Island Quartet has just released A Love Supreme, a take on the music of John Coltrane, Miles Davis and others. Violinist David Balakrishnan and cellist Mark Summer discuss how they transformed the jazz masterpiece for string quartet.

Los Straitjackets' new album marks a radical departure from the tight instrumental rock of its predecessors: On it, the band enlisted three vocalists to help perform classic rock 'n' roll songs in Spanish. Hear Los Straitjackets give an interview and in-studio performance.

Argentine composer Osvaldo Golijov has written a Latin American Passion, according to Saint Mark. The Passion tells the story of Christ's betrayal, death, and ressurection; perhaps the best-known Passions are those by Johann Sebastian Bach. Our music critic Tom Manoff says Golijov's achievement is remarkable, a musical drama set in a New World for a new time. It's a mixture of traditions — Spanish, Latin, and Aramaic words are set to a music that draws on Latin American folk music, African drumming, flamenco and Gregorian-like chant melodies. • Listen to Fred Child's interview with Osvaldo Golijov for Performance Today, April 8, 2002.