Music & Culture

Early music specialist Jordi Savall has turned his attention to the widely varied music of the Balkans. "For me," he says, "it's one of the most exciting projects that happened in the last 20 years."

Music & Culture

Honey, Blood And Harmony: Jordi Savall's Balkan Journey

1:42pm April 21, 2014

by NPR Staff

Early music specialist Jordi Savall explores different periods and cultures, mashing them together for surprising results. His new project finds fruitful varieties all in one spot: the Balkans.

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Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars take their name from the documentary film that featured them in 2005.

Music & Culture

Album Review: 'Libation'

8:26am April 21, 2014

by Banning Eyre

Years since two filmmakers discovered a group of musicians in a Guinea refugee camp, that group — Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars — continues to make new music.

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Music & Culture

Perennial Co-Writer Returns With An Album Of His Own

8:25am April 21, 2014

by NPR Staff

Dan Wilson is your favorite songwriter's favorite co-writer, lending a pen to artists from Nas to Adele. But he also writes music for himself — and he joins the program to talk more about it.

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The Secret Sisters' new album, backed by Jack White and produced by T-Bone Burnett, is called Put Your Needle Down.

Music & Culture

Harmony-Loving Sisters Keep It Retro

12:05pm April 18, 2014

by Meredith Ochs

The Secret Sisters' new album, Put Your Needle Down, displays their sophisticated, timeless sound and the country-twang influences of their hometown, Muscle Shoals, Ala.

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Frozen is the tale of sisters Anna and Elsa, whose relationship is captured in music by songwriters Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez.

Songwriters Behind 'Frozen' Let Go Of The Princess Mythology

8:29am April 11, 2014

Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez tell Terry Gross about the inspiration for "Let It Go" and a "very strong strike across the bow at all princess-myth things" song that didn't make the film.

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Music & Culture

Yusuf Islam To Perform At Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Ceremony

11:33am April 10, 2014

Cat Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam, churned out hits in the 1970s before leaving pop music after a conversion to Islam. He's among this year's inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

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Rick Blaine, the sentimental tough guy in Casablanca, pined for "As Time Goes By."

Play It Again And Again, Sam

8:57am April 09, 2014

by Alix Spiegel

We're all seduced by repetition, music research suggests — 90 percent of the music we listen to, we've heard before. Beyond music, this bias toward familiarity holds up in every culture. What gives?

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Antique bows were often made with a small piece of ivory that clamps the bow hairs onto the wood.

Music & Culture

Musicians, Take Note: Your Instrument May Be Contraband

7:29pm April 07, 2014

by Adam Ragusea

Tighter regulations on ivory coming in and out of the U.S. could have a profound impact on musicians who travel with antique instruments.

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... only to get a phone call at 7:30 a.m. Saturday asking her to fill in at the matinee performance of Puccini's La bohème, singing the lead role of Mimi, pictured here with Vittorio Grigolo as Rodolfo.

Music & Culture

Two Leads, Two Deaths In 18 Hours

7:29pm April 07, 2014

by NPR Staff

In a first for the Metropolitan Opera, Kristine Opolais made two major-role debuts in the space of 18 hours. The Latvian soprano sang leads in Madama Butterfly and La Bohème back to back.

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Black Lips' latest album is Underneath the Rainbow. Left to right: Jared Swilley, Joe Bradley, Cole Alexander, Ian St. Pé.

Music & Culture

'We Like Struggle': Black Lips On The Will To Entertain

2:02pm April 05, 2014

by NPR Staff

The Georgia rockers have endured high school expulsion, the death of a bandmate and countless other challenges — and soldiered on. Kelly McEvers speaks with founders Cole Alexander and Jared Swilley.

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