Search results for

All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen counts down listener picks for the 10 best CDs of 2005, with NPR music reviewers Will Hermes, Tom Moon and Meredith Ochs.

In classical-music terms, "New Music" is always complicated to define. Yes, it's the current manifestation of the classical tradition, but these days, the edges of so-called New Music tend to bleed into the realms of ambient music, indie rock, jazz and even folk. So, rather than get bogged down in picky rules, Q2's Nadia Sirota simply opts for the 10 records from the past year that she can't stop playing.

No, no — the headline's not referring to you. Heaven forbid. But people like you listen to a lot of cool and/or unusual music, and refuse to sample the good stuff right under their noses because it's "mainstream." It's best not to think these hipsters omniscient — after all, there's lots of great music they're too cool to notice. Here are 10 examples from 2009.

When you think about the guitar, your favorite rock band or a singer-songwriter might come to mind, but classical guitar rocks just as hard as its more mainstream counterparts. April is International Guitar Month: celebrate by learning more about Kansas City’s classical guitar scene.

Françoise Hardy is an immediately recognizable face who also possesses a poetic way with words — launching her to European super-stardom in the 1960s. At age 74, Hardy released her 28th album.

Add some holiday cheer to your regular classical listening with our special fall & winter holiday programming. From Thanksgiving and Hanukkah to Christmas and New Year's Eve, enjoy music fit for any and every celebration this season.

Music critic Tom Manoff says you needn't spend a fortune on classical music CDs for holiday gifts. Hear his top picks for inexpensive classics, from renaissance masses to 20th-century guitar concertos.

Many younger artists are making a strong case to be the future of the genre — and the future looks bright. All but three musicians on Shaunna Morrison Machosky's Top 10 list are under the age of 40, and they all brush aside any notion of jazz being in a rut.

In a fusion of art, live music and narration, works by ground-breaking female artists and composers throughout history will weave together for one fierce evening. Classical KC's Christy L'Esperance speaks with Bach Aria Soloists' Elizabeth Suh Lane and art curator Aimee Marceau DeGalan about the collaborative event.

The guitarist and arranger for one of the world's biggest rock bands is also a composer, whose work on Paul Thomas Anderson's latest film is up for an Oscar.