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Sergei Rachmaninov

New Mix: Young Fathers, Confidence Man, A Stunning Tiny Desk Contest Entry, More

Clockwise from upper left: Confidence Man, Young Fathers, Hookworms Courtesy of the artists hide caption

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All Songs Considered

New Mix: Young Fathers, Confidence Man, A Stunning Tiny Desk Contest Entry, More

This week's new mix features a profound Tiny Desk Contest entry, "dorky" electropop from Australian group Confidence Man, an intimate paean to different loves from Forth Wanderers and more.

New Mix: Young Fathers, Confidence Man, A Stunning Tiny Desk Contest Entry, More

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New Research Reveals Rachmaninoff's Secret Career

After his First Symphony flopped, Sergei Rachmaninoff briefly switched careers. A London critic wrote, "It was such a spectacle as has rarely been seen anywhere in the Empire." Photo illustration by Jeff Curnow/Wikimedia Commons/Library of Congress hide caption

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Photo illustration by Jeff Curnow/Wikimedia Commons/Library of Congress

Deceptive Cadence

New Research Reveals Rachmaninoff's Secret Career

After his First Symphony flopped, the Russian composer made ends meet with a short-lived and little-known career in vaudeville and the circus.

Rachmaninoff: An American Without Assimilation

Serge Rachmaninoff, photographed in 1919, somewhere outside of San Francisco. Wikimedia Commons hide caption

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Wikimedia Commons

Deceptive Cadence

Rachmaninoff: An American Without Assimilation

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Music Director Marin Alsop muses on both the Russian and American sides of Sergei Rachmaninoff and his Third Symphony.

Rachmaninoff: An American Without Assimilation

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A Tale Of Two Sergeys: Boston Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

Conductor Andris Nelsons led the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Tanglewood Festival Chorus Thursday in Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky at Carnegie Hall in New York. AJ Wilhelm for NPR hide caption

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AJ Wilhelm for NPR

Classics in Concert

A Tale Of Two Sergeys: Boston Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

WQXR radio

Conductor Andris Nelsons rallies the Tanglewood Festival Chorus in Prokofiev's riotous Alexander Nevsky and makes the orchestra shine in Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances.

A Tale Of Two Sergeys: Boston Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

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First Listen: Cameron Carpenter, 'If You Could Read My Mind'

Cameron Carpenter's new album, If You Could Read My Mind, comes out Aug. 26. Thomas Grube/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Thomas Grube/Courtesy of the artist

First Listen

First Listen: Cameron Carpenter, 'If You Could Read My Mind'

The organist aims to rescue his instrument from its church-bound traditions. With his new album, which includes Bach and Bacharach alike, Carpenter could land a multitude of converts.

If You Could Read My Mind

Audio for First Listens is no longer available after the album is released.
Yuja Wang: Rooted In Diligence, Inspired By Improvisation

Yuja Wang at NPR's studio in Washington, D.C. Denise DeBelius/NPR hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

Yuja Wang: Rooted In Diligence, Inspired By Improvisation

The 26-year-old classically trained pianist tackles Rachmaninov's dense and intimidating "Concerto No. 3" in a new recording. The musician says she hears a connection between the challenging piece and improvisations from the late Art Tatum.

Yuja Wang: Rooted In Diligence, Inspired By Improvisation

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Spring For Music: Detroit Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

Leonard Slatkin leads the Detroit Symphony Orchestra at the Spring for Music festival at Carnegie Hall. Torsten Kjellstrand/for NPR hide caption

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Torsten Kjellstrand/for NPR

Classics in Concert

Spring For Music: Detroit Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

WQXR radio

Pink Martini singer Storm Large joins Leonard Slatkin and the orchestra for Kurt Weill's satirical Seven Deadly Sins, in a program bookended by composers who straddled the turn of the last century.

Spring For Music: Detroit Symphony Orchestra At Carnegie Hall

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Remembering Pianist Earl Wild

American pianist Earl Wild performs at his 90th-birthday recital at Carnegie Hall. courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Chopin At 200

Remembering Pianist Earl Wild

Celebrated for his robust technique and rich tone, American pianist and composer Earl Wild died Saturday at age 94, after an eight-decade career. He performed for six American presidents and was the first pianist to give a solo recital on American television.

Hear Earl Wild, At Age 90, Discuss His Career With Fred Child

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Pops Conductor Erich Kunzel Dies At 74
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Music News

Pops Conductor Erich Kunzel Dies At 74

Once dubbed "The Prince of Pops," Kunzel, who died Tuesday, continued in a long line of famous pops conductors such as Arthur Fiedler. Hear the exuberant Kunzel lead his beloved Cincinnati Pops Orchestra in music by Strauss and Copland.

Erich Kunzel Remembered on 'Morning Edition'

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Review

Music Reviews

Critic Tom Manoff reviews a new recording of Rachmaninov's preludes by pianist Steven Osborne, who opts for innocence over opulence, giving each of the 24 preludes its own distinct and compelling character.

Rachmaninov Reawakened In Preludes

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From the Top

Five Pianos, 100 Fingers, and a Sabre Dance

From the Maui Arts and Cultural Center in Kahului, Hawaii, this week's gifted young musicians include a 13-year-old guitarist playing music from Venezuela, an award-winning 15-year-old double bassist, and a five-piano, ten-pianist extravaganza, featuring music by Bizet and Khachaturian. This program originally aired on January 23, 2008.

Five Pianos, 100 Fingers, and a Sabre Dance

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From the Top

Wagner, High Notes, and a Ghost in Atlanta

This week, the Atlanta Symphony Hall at the Woodruff Arts Center in Georgia hosts From the Top's young musicians, including the Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra performing Wagner, a 17-year-old violinist playing a graceful rag by William Bolcom, and a talented teen tenor singing Gounod. This segment originally aired on May 2, 2007.

Wagner, High Notes, and a Ghost in Atlanta

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Review

Music Reviews

Rachmaninov's Refreshing 'All Night Vigil'

Written around the time of World War One, Sergei Rachmaninov's "All Night Vigil" is an extraordinary choral music composition. A new recording of Rachmaninov's work from conductor Paul Hillier and The Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir is out, and music critic Tom Manoff says it's magnificent.

Rachmaninov's Refreshing 'All Night Vigil'

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