Blog/News

We recently received an email from Kurt Anderson, a cellist who appeared on Show 009 in November, 1999. Kurt told us that he just had re-met From the Top host Christopher O’Riley at a concert in Huntsville, Alabama – Kurt’s hometown! On November 22, 1999, Kurt performed Allegro Appassionato by Camille Saint-Saëns on From the […]

As you might imagine, the music production team at From the Top is constantly reviewing recordings and music videos submitted by outstanding young musicians from across the country. We’re frequently blown away by the performances we see, and thought it might be fun to share some of these videos with you! These V-POW posts will […]

Mezzo-soprano Samantha Hankey, who recently appeared on Show #226 in Boston, MA, was a participant in the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts in Miami and was selected to receive their YoungArts Silver Award! Back in January, Samantha participated in YoungArts Week in Miami. She was one of 150 artists selected from 5,000 applicants […]

This week’s From the Top’s broadcast was taped at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston, MA on Saturday January 29, 2011. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Samuel Katz, 17, violin Spring Breeze By: Edward Kalendar Perhaps the highlight of this piece for me was […]

The Blount-Slawson Young Artists Competition is a prestigious annual competition open to students of strings, winds, brass, percussion, and piano, who are in seventh through twelfth grades. This year it took place January 29-30, and at the invitation of Helen Steineker, Executive Director of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra, From the Top Music Producer Tom Vignieri […]

Great news – as of last week, American Public Media’s “Performance Today” will air selected From the Top segments once a week! Up this week: The Emerald Quartet from Show #218 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Please note that “Performance Today” will air From the Top performances at their discretion, so days and times of our pieces […]

From the Top taped a radio show this week in Opelika, AL at The Opelika Center for the Performing Arts. With a wide array of talent and a house filled near-capacity, the taping was a huge success! Our five performers joined us bright and early the morning after the show for our Arts Leadership Orientation, […]

Sometimes when we’re taping a show, the totally unexpected happens, and it was one of those times this past Tuesday when we taped a show in Opelika, Alabama. We were at the midpoint of our taping when 14-year-old pianist Evan Ritter took to the stage to play the Prokofiev’s fiery Suggestion Diabolique. He was about […]

We just heard that From The Top alum Arianna Körting (Show 175 in Boston, MA) snagged First Prize in the first ever David D. Dubois International Piano Competition! 16-year-old Arianna is currently a student of Gerardo Teissonnière in the Preparatory Division of the Cleveland Institute of Music. The Dubois International Piano Competition was held at […]

From the Top’s Show 225 was taped in the Lincoln Theater Napa Valley in Yountville, CA on Sunday January 23, 2011. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Mondo Trio I. Allegro con brio from Piano Trio No.4 in B-flat major, Op.11 By: Ludwig van Beethoven Matthew […]

We are pleased to announce three very special guest artists who will appear on upcoming radio shows! Renowned flutist Sir James Galway will appear on From the Top in Athens, Georgia on Sunday, Feburary 27. He will perform the second movement from Sonata, Op. 23 by Lowell Liebermann, accompanied by host Christopher O’Riley on the […]

This past weekend, From the Top taped a radio show right here in our hometown of Boston, MA at Jordan Hall. With a wide array talent, from guest artist Eran Egozy (clarinetist with Radius Ensemble and co-founder of Harmonix Music Systems, Inc) to a wind sextet made entirely of Walnut Hill students, all of our […]

The day after we taped Show #225 in Yountville, California, the From the Top Education Team visited the beautiful Blue Oak School with performer and clarinetist Perry Choi. The team spent time with 35 third to fifth graders who take music from teacher Kim Markovich. Despite being only 18 years old, Perry runs a non-profit […]

15-year-old organist Karen Christianson has been busy since appearing on Show 223 in Abilene, Texas! This Saturday, February 5, Karen is featured on WWFM’s “Cadenza” with David Osenberg at 3pm. Karen’s From the Top show will also be rebroadcast on Saturday at 12pm, so if you’re in Eastern Pennsylvania or New Jersey, definitely tune in! […]

This past weekend, we taped a great show at our home base, New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston. Directly before the taping started, the audience got to meet the inaugural class of From the Top’s new Center for Arts Leadership – twenty young musicians and four mentors who are about to embark on a […]

Last Sunday we taped a show in one of the most beautiful areas of the country – Yountville, California in the heart of the Napa Valley. We took in the gorgeous vineyards, sampled the delicious food, and, of course, experienced amazing music-making! First up on our program, the very young Mondo Trio from San Francisco […]

This past weekend From the Top visited sunny Napa to tape a radio show at the Lincoln Theater in Yountville, CA! Our performers joined us the morning after the show for the Arts Leadership Orientation to explore how music can make a difference beyond the concert hall. All seven from the West Coast, the group […]

NPR’s classical music blog “Deceptive Cadence” recently published an interesting article by From the Top host Christopher O’Riley about the changing landscape of classical music. Here’s a quick excerpt: In its present state, classical music in the American cultural landscape seems to be ever more marginalized. I propose that getting more people to listen is […]

This just in – From the Top alum and soprano Megan Bell (Show 62, January 2002) recently sang with the touring educational outreach company “Opera for the Young.” Below she shares her arts leadership experience: Based in Madison, Wisconsin, Opera for the Young (OFY) is dedicated solely to performance outreach, which is part of what […]

This new addition to our Arts Leadership map gives musicians of all levels a place to practice and share their music! When violinist and conductor Eli Spindel moved to New York in 2006, he didn’t feel like he was a part of a musical community – so he decided to create his own! In the […]