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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.

They're an odd couple. Angel-voiced Scot Isobel Campbell and gravelly grunge rocker Mark Lanegan of Seattle combine their talents on the CD Ballad of the Broken Seas. Campbell tells Liane Hansen about life after Belle and Sebastian.

Two years ago, guitarist Kaki King announced that she would tour with a full band. For an artist who made her name as a solo instrumentalist, it marked her move into pop territory. Hear King perform a concert from WXPN and the Abbey Bar in Harrisburg, Pa.

To mark the composer's 250th birthday this year, violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter and pianist Lambert Orkis have been on an all-Mozart sonata concert tour. They also have released a four-CD set of 16 Mozart sonatas.