Lara Downes : NPR

Lara Downes Lara Downes is among the foremost American pianists of her generation, a trailblazer both on and off the stage.

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Lara Downes

Tuesday March 25, 2025

Composer Carlos Simon carries his ancestors with him

Classical California KDFC

March 25, 2025 • The rising composer talks about the influence of the church on his music and the premiere of his Good News Mass at the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

Thursday January 30, 2025

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Tarriona 'Tank' Ball unleashes the radical power of joy

Classical California KDFC

January 30, 2025 • The Tank and the Bangas frontwoman talks about the strength and versatility of her words — alone and within her music.

Wednesday January 15, 2025

Martin Luther King Jr. at the March on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963

Martin Luther King waves to supporters on Aug. 28, 1963, on the Mall in Washington, D.C., during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where King delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Many musicians, including Marian Anderson, Mahalia Jackson, Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Odetta and The Freedom Singers were also at the march. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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AFP/Getty Images

Classical California KDFC

January 15, 2025 • In celebration of what would have been Martin Luther King Jr.'s 96th birthday, pianist Lara Downes examines how musicians have followed in his footsteps, and faced the cost of taking a stand.

Thursday December 5, 2024

Jon Batiste traces the blues back to Beethoven and beyond

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Amplify With Lara Downes

Jon Batiste traces the blues back to Beethoven and beyond

Classical California KDFC

December 5, 2024 • The Grammy winner and former Late Show bandleader unravels the crisscrossing threads of musical lineage from Beethoven's own personal blues to the musical art form that undergirds Batiste's Louisiana roots.

Thursday October 31, 2024

Amplify With Lara Downes

Opera star Denyce Graves’ global compassion in red, white and blue

Classical California KDFC

October 31, 2024 • Whether she’s singing in the world’s great opera houses, the White House or in prisons, the celebrated mezzo-soprano and U.S. Global Music Ambassador understands how music can move people.

Friday September 27, 2024

Amplify With Lara Downes

Words, sounds and the art of listening with Aja Monet

Classical California KDFC

September 27, 2024 • The self-described “surreal blues poet” savors the significance of words and the noisy poetry of city life.

Thursday August 29, 2024

Conductor Jonathon Heyward is breaking barriers

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Amplify With Lara Downes

Conductor Jonathon Heyward is breaking barriers

Classical California KDFC

August 29, 2024 • As music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Heyward is the youngest to lead a major American orchestra and the first Black music director in the organization’s 107-year history.

Tuesday July 30, 2024

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Amplify With Lara Downes

Conductor Thomas Wilkins asks orchestras to 'jump off a cliff' with him

Classical California KDFC

July 30, 2024 • The principal conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra radiates an empathetic, Yoda-like wisdom when it comes to conjuring beautiful sounds from both pros and students.

Tuesday June 11, 2024

Marian Anderson arrives in London in 1952. On June 8, the Philadelphia Orchestra named its main performance hall in her honor.

Marian Anderson arrives in London in 1952. On June 8, 2024, the Philadelphia Orchestra named its main performance hall in her honor. Douglas Miller/Getty Images hide caption

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Douglas Miller/Getty Images