Blog/News

Last week From the Top headed to Cedar Falls for a radio show taping at the University of Northern Iowa as part of our multi-year Iowa Makes Music residency, in partnership with Orchestra Iowa. In addition to visiting local elementary schools, being interviewed on-air by Iowa Public Radio, and, of course, taping the show, our […]

17-year-old percussionist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Marcelina Suchocka has appeared on two From the Top shows in the past (Show 206 in Texas and Show 220 in Iowa), and was the Grand Prize winner of From the Top and Carnegie Hall’s Big Break YouTube Contest! She and the runners-up of the Big Break […]

Our whirlwind tour of tapings (five this month!) kicked off this week in Cedar Falls, Iowa, where we recorded a great episode with five outstanding teenage performers: 17-year-old cellist Andrew Altmaier, 17-year-old saxophonist Elizabeth Lin, 18-year-old pianist Yifan Wu, 14-year-old violinist Jennifer Cha, and 17-year-old accordionist Danielle Renzi. The night before the show, our producers …

18-year-old cellist John-Henry Crawford recently won First Prize in the Senior Division of the Philadelphia Orchestra’s 2011 Greenfield Competition. As a winner, he will solo next season in a concert with the Philadelphia Orchestra! John-Henry has appeared on From the Top twice, Show 206 in Dallas, TX in 2009 and Show 219 in Saint Paul, […]

15-year-old violinist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Anna Lee (Shows 152 and 204), is making her debut with the New York Philharmonic this Saturday, April 2 at 2pm! The concert is part of the Young People’s Concert Series: The Ages of Music. More information and tickets here. If you go, be sure to stop […]

Young From the Top alum and pianist Umi Garrett, age 10 (Shows 211 and 217) is putting on a charity concert next week to raise money for the crisis in Japan. Check out her video about the project: Umi’s “Help Japan” concert will be Friday, April 8 at 7:30pm at the Steinway Piano Gallery in […]

On April 7, From the Top will visit the e.g. Conference for an exciting show featuring ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro in performance with sensational young musicians! We have a limited number of complimentary tickets to give away to our fans – register here with password ‘fromthetop.’ Thursday, April 7 @ 5:00 pm The Golden State […]

16-year-old trumpet player and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Baldvin Oddsson appeared on Show #221 in Boston, Massachusetts last fall. Currently a junior at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Michigan, over the holidays Baldvin returned home to Reykjavik, Iceland, where he put on a small concert series as an Arts Leadership project.  He performed in […]

For the past few months, From the Top has been hard at work launching our Center for the Development of Arts Leaders! This blog is the first in a series written by Linda Gerstle, Director of Education and Community Partnerships, chronicling the pilot year of this program. Enjoy! The anticipation and excitement of the January […]

The day after taping Show #228 in Athens, GA, our Education Team traveled with performer and harpist Angelica Hairston to the Clarke Central High School. They met with twenty orchestra students, ranging from 9th to 12th grade, and teacher Eunice Kang in the school’s orchestra room. Angelica is the recipient of From the Top’s Jack […]

This week’s broadcast was taped at the University of Georgia’s Center for the Performing Arts in Athens, GA with special guest Sir James Galway on Sunday February 27, 2011. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Arianna Smith, 17, viola From My Heart and Circus By: Paul […]

Big news for 18-year-old From the Top alum and violinist Caroline Goulding! On March 14, she was one of three recipients of the 2011 Avery Fisher Career Grant, awarded at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The other recipients were pianists Benjamin Hochman and Chu-Fang Huang. They join a distinguished […]

The morning before we taped Show #227 in Opelika, AL, From the Top’s Education Team traveled to Opelika High School with performer and guitarist Jiyeon Kim. They visited a classroom of 25 beginner guitar students studying with guitarist and teacher Patrick Bruce. Guitarist Jiyeon Kim currently attends the Cleveland Institute of Music and studies with […]

Last year we featured From the Top alum and pianist Stephanie Nilles as part of our 10th Anniversary Series. These days, Stephanie is based in New Orleans and has continued her musical shift away from the classical and towards jazz and punk. She recently released her fourth album, F*** Off Grizzly Bear (WARNING: adult language […]

This week’s From the Top broadcast was taped in the Opelika Center for the Performing Arts in Opelika, AL on Tuesday February 8, 2011. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Samuel Casseday, 17, Double bass I. Allegro Moderato from Concerto No.2 in B minor By: Giovanni […]

Welcome to the fifth installment of The Parents’ Perspective – a mini blog series for parents by parents, to lend advice and share stories about raising musical children. For this post we’ve taken a slight detour in format. Blogger Katheryn Rivas approached us with an idea that we adapted for The Parents’ Perspective. Katheryn wrote […]

We had an amazing taping this past weekend in Athens, Georgia featuring a very special guest – Sir James Galway, the man with the golden flute! He was fantastic to be with, mentoring our young performers, joking with them, and putting everyone at their ease. Sometimes before a taping, we need to make last minute […]

This week’s V-POW post from Music Producer Tom Vignieri will be slightly different. You’re likely to be blown away, but not for the reasons you’d expect. From the Top alumnus Michael Thurber is one of the most enterprising guys we know. Whether he’s emerging from a practice room with his double bass at Juilliard, recording […]

This past weekend, From the Top traveled to beautiful Athens to tape a radio show at the University of Georgia’s Performing Arts Center. Our four stellar young artists were joined by special guest flutist Sir James Galway, making for an unforgettable performance! The next morning, three of the four young performers joined us for the […]

From the Top Alum and past Roving Reporter and violinist Caeli Smith just sent us another great update. These days Caeli is studying at Juilliard and is a founding member of Rayos de Canción (Rays of Music), a group of students committed to raising awareness about the power of music to facilitate healing, especially in […]