The recorder may call to mind tortured performances of “Hot Cross Buns” or “Jingle Bells” from your elementary school days, but these pieces make use of the instrument’s virtuosic potential.

While building a successful career as a musician, (and amassing a mighty social media following), rising violinist Ray Chen has had to stay sharp. And while visiting Chicago for a series of performances with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Chen showed WFMT audiences that being stage-ready is as easy as 1,2,3!

Roman Totenberg didn’t live to see his instrument again; he died in 2012 at the age of 101. But Nathan Meltzer, a nineteen-year-old star violinist, has revived the prized instrument.

The school year is officially underway, and the sleepover requests and homework complaints have likely already started. Don’t fret, there are plenty of after-school options across the city that will keep students of all ages and interests engaged in music and off their phones … at least for an hour or two a week.

Beneath the Tiffany Dome of the Chicago Cultural Center, 18-year-old pianist Kimberly Han performed works by Bach, Haydn, and Chopin.

Many musicians dream of performing on the stage of Orchestra Hall with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The Crain-Maling Foundation Chicago Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Competition makes this dream come true for one young musician every year. On Saturday, February 23, four young musicians competed on that famous stage for the opportunity to perform with the CSO during the 2019-2020 season. …

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.

“We want people who want to move in a new direction. And we want our students to have a well-rounded background in arts or science. If they want to go on in dance or in film or in literature, they can.”

“I love being able to share music with your close friends… As I started playing in more competitions and festivals, I would think, ‘Who would be my dream team for a quartet?’”

CMPI will support promising young musicians from underrepresented backgrounds and low-income households in order to diversify the next generation of musicians.

“Their work ethic and thirst for knowledge was what inspired me to start the Cuban American Youth Orchestra.”

From the Chicago Symphony Orchestra to Lyric Opera of Chicago and much more, the Teen Arts Pass is making it easier for young people to have access to Chicago’s many great cultural institutions.

17-year-old Jai Bartley used to think that opera was “really long and boring.” Now, she’s producing and performing in EMPOWER, an original opera set to have its world-premiere performance at Lyric Opera of Chicago.

In addition to performing with the CSO, Yerin Yang will also perform on Introductions, WFMT’s weekly Saturday morning showcase of the finest pre-college musicians in the Chicago area.

13-year-old cellist Noah Chen of Chicago recently performed on WFMT’s Introductions. Watch him perform David Popper’s Concert Polonaise, a brilliant showpiece for cello, with pianist Kay Kim.

Frédéric Chopin’s Étude Op. 10, No. 4 and Prelude Op. 28, No. 16 are notorious for being among the composer’s most challenging works to play. And when pianist Aldric Gozon learned these two pieces, he didn’t stop at getting the notes right – he played both blindfolded. Chopin wrote Étude Op. 10, No. 4 in 1830 as part of his …

“It’s quite fun to say this, but I actually hate competitions. I really can’t stand them,” Paul Lewis. His strong dislike of competitions may seem dissonant with his current role as co-artistic director of the Leeds International Piano Competition.

For many musicians, the chance to perform with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is a dream gig. The Crain-Maling Foundation Chicago Symphony Orchestra Young Artists Competition makes this dream come true for one young musician every year. On Saturday, March 11, four finalists competed in Symphony Hall for the chance to perform with the CSO during a youth concert in the …

Now in its 70th season, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO) recently announced that Susie Lape will serve as the orchestras’ new Executive Director. Susie is currently Executive Director of the Lake Forest Symphony. You might recall a recent WFMT series highlighting the Lake Forest Symphony’s search for a new music director in the aptly named program The Search. The CYSO …

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma is not only one of the world’s most renowned musicians; he’s also a passionate advocate for using the power of music to create community.

Many musicians have started their careers in Chicago, and some of them have also studied at the Academy of the Music Institute of Chicago. Founded in 2006, the Academy was established to serve as a training center for gifted pre-college classical musicians. The program is designed for piano and strings. “The Academy was modeled after another program, the oldest of its …

Grammy Award-winning violinist Gil Shaham made his professional debut at age 10, an age when most are hardly even thinking about professional work of any kind.

Chicago audiences will know pianist Conrad Tao from his time as Composer-in-Residence with Music in the Loft, and from WFMT’s airwaves.