Jazz

When Thanksgiving approaches, so too does an influx of classical music performances across the state. Wisconsin Public Radio “Afternoon Classics” host Lori Skelton says Wisconsin is seeing a unique “concert bottleneck” this autumn, due in part to effects of COVID-19 public gathering restrictions. Skelton joined WPR’s “The Morning Show” to discuss the season’s most anticipated…

There’s something about both jazz and blues that gets deep into your fibers. Genres with myriad powers. Music potent enough to make you muse, sway or wail. They’re cousins, of sorts. Jazz, pioneered by Black musicians in the early 20th century, features syncopated rhythms, particular chords and “a large amount of improvisation,” says one music…

During WPR’s Fall Member Drive, join our music hosts during daytime classical music shows for a wide range of recordings by some of the greatest singers in American music, including Jessye Norman, Nina Simone and Ella Fitzgerald. Here are a few examples. Join us during the drive for much more! Jessye Norman was one of…

The influence of jazz runs through many kinds of music, including music written by composers working in the classical world. For many American composers, especially, jazz was a welcome jolt of life that gave them an exciting new musical language rooted in their own country. We play a lot of this music, but this week…

Wynton Marsalis and Nicola Benedetti seem to be unlikely collaborators at first glance — she’s a classical violinist from Scotland and he’s a trumpeter and jazz bandleader who hails from New Orleans. But they’re both virtuosos with wide-ranging musical interests, and he’s been composing substantial classical pieces for over two decades now. Marsalis and Benedetti…

In honor of April Fools’ Day, WPR’s music staff had fun putting together a collection of personal — quirky favorites. The songs range from comical melodies to subversive jokes. Enjoy! Stephanie Elkins, “Morning Classics” Host As an 11-year-old, I thought it was hilarious! I was singing with the Swansonettes, a small, junior-high ensemble that performed…

Love, gained and lost, is one of the most common themes in all music. In honor of Valentine’s Day, WPR’s Music Staff shares some wide-ranging personal favorites, from the familiar to the unexpected. Dan Robinson, “Simply Folk” Host Songs get passed down from generation to generation and each time they’re shared, they grow and change,…

A St. Paul college with a reputation as one of the premier contemporary music schools in the country has unexpectedly closed. The McNally Smith College of Music drew many of its students from Minnesota and Wisconsin. According to an e-mail sent to staff Thursday by board chair Jack McNally, the school is closing due to…

The composer of Wisconsin’s official state waltz, “The Wisconsin Waltz,” was born this week in Waupaca in 1893. Born Aug. 1, 1893, Ethwell “Eddy” Hanson was entranced with music from a young age. Overhearing his neighbor’s phonograph, Hanson would try to mimic the rhythms on his mother’s pots and pans. Perhaps for the sake of…

Jazz bassist Linda May Han Oh stopped by our Buck Studio and provided some insights into the life of a New York musician. Along the way, she played “Lucid Lullably,” Pat Metheney’s “Change of Heart,” and “Slow Boat to China.” She’s in Madison in conjunction with the Mead Witter School of Music Annual Jazz Festival…