Stories

On a Knife’s Edge: Cooking, Music, History Come Together in Okpebholo’s Cook-Off

In Chicago composer Shawn E. Okpebholo’s new opera, three chefs vie for cooking show glory — and $100K — by tackling the classically American dish macaroni and cheese.

Keegan MorrisNovember 12, 2018

‘Weird Al’ Yankovic to Make Ravinia Festival Debut in July 2019

brahms tchaikovsky -- classical music feuds

Hannah EdgarNovember 7, 2018

6 of the Most Famous Classical Music Feuds Between Composers

Michael San GabinoNovember 6, 2018

Playlist: Classical Saxophone Music You Need to Hear

New Orleans musician offers kids trumpets for guns

Associated PressJuly 22, 2020

Shamarr Allen tells news agencies that he has a 9-year-old son and started the project last week, the day after a 9-year-old boy was shot and killed. He says the trumpet changed his life.

Hope and Strength: Celebrating Black Artistry with Lawrence Brownlee & Lyric

George PrestonJuly 22, 2020

Ahead of a free livestream this weekend, the star tenor reflected on his colleagues and career in opera and what he thinks classical music organizations should be doing to better represent their communities.

Playlists

See All

Aretha Franklin doc ‘Amazing Grace’ to finally see the light

Associated PressNovember 5, 2018

Sydney Pollack shot most of the footage that documented Franklin's performance at a Los Angeles Baptist church in January 1972.

8 US Presidents You Didn’t Know Were Musicians

Hannah EdgarNovember 5, 2018

Did you know that some of our nation’s leaders past and present could hold their own at a conductor’s podium? Regardless of their political party, many presidents from Jefferson to Nixon to Obama might all agree on one thing: music is important in our lives.

‘Hear Us’ Showcases 3 Young Musicians Who Defy Boundaries to Collaborate and Perform

Keegan MorrisNovember 5, 2018

Clarissa Bevilacqua, a 15-year-old violinist living in Italy, describes the double-edged sword of being dubbed a “prodigy.” She is one of the three young classical musicians who come together to perform as a trio in Hear Us, an hourlong program that first airs on WTTW this Monday, November 5.

Midday with Lisa Flynn