Blog/News

From the Top alum Leeza Ali has been embarking on quite the Arts Leadership project for the past few years. She’s been holding concerts to raise money for P.E.C.A. – Partnership for the Education of Children in Afghanistan. We will cover her work in a blog series – below you can read about Leeza’s inspiration […]

So often on this blog we highlight the accomplishments of our young musicians, but today we’re turning the spotlight on our very own host, Christopher O’Riley. As an acclaimed pianist, Christopher doesn’t just host From the Top. He does concerts around the country and is a Distinguished Visiting Artist at Louisiana State University in Baton […]

The Emerald Quartet, who performed on this week’s show from Gettysburg, PA, put together a really funny “From the Top Rap.” We made it into a video for you! Check it out:

We are excited to announce a special grant from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation to launch From the Top’s Center for Arts Leadership! Housed in Boston, the Center (CAL)  empowers young musicians towards action and service in their communities, inspiring them to take it beyond the concert hall. Arts Leadership has been part of our […]

14-year-old pianist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist, Hyung-Do Kim recently performed on our show in Gettysburg, PA. During the Arts Leadership orientation held the following morning, we learned that he and his sister, a violinist, have been performing regularly for the residents of Waterford Towers, a retirement center located in Edgewater, New Jersey, for […]

This week’s show was taped at the Gettysburg Festival in Gettysburg, PA on Friday June 18, 2010. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show and to reflect on their From The Top experience after the show was completed: Sodienye (Sodie) Finebone, 18, tuba III. Allegro giocoso from […]

9 year-old pianist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Umi Garrett (who appeared on last week’s From the Top broadcast with the Boston Pops) joined the Desert Symphony on their Children’s Music Discovery Series to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto no.23 in A Major. The concert was held on April 16, 2010 at the McCallum Theatre […]

We just got news that From the Top alum Arianna Körting won first place in the 5th Julia Crane International Piano Competition. This is especially exciting because she’s the first ever contestant to receive a unanimous vote from the international jury! This year’s competition took place from September 10-12 at the Crane School of Music at […]

It’s that time of year again – back to school – and for many From the Top alums, this means embarking on a new stage of their life: college! In honor of our higher-education-bound performers, we’ve compiled this quick update on where they’ll be this year. Please join us in wishing them well! Julian Langford […]

From the Top alum Clark Pang, who appeared on the first episode of From the Top at Carnegie Hall, as well as radio show 215 in Portland, Maine this past March, had the opportunity to perform abroad this summer!  This 14-year-old cellist traveled to Costa Rica with the Oakland Youth Orchestra on their World Tour. This […]

This week our show with Keith Lockhart and the Boston Pops (taped on June 8th) is airing across the country. We’ve created a multimedia press release to spread the word, which includes pictures, video, fast facts, and more. Please check it out and share it with your friends and family: http://pitch.pe/83496. To check local listings […]

This week’s From the Top show was taped in Symphony Hall with the Boston Pops in Boston, MA on Tuesday June 8, 2010. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Umi Garrett, 9, piano III. Allegro Assai from Piano Concerto No. 23, in A Major, K. 488 By: […]

Hopefully you’ve been following harpist and From the Top alum Anna DeLoi’s summer Arts Leadership project – she got together an ensemble and has been touring, raising money for CureSearch. You can read more about her ensemble, Heartstrings, and what they’ve been doing this summer here. We just got an update from her on Heartstrings‘ […]

We are pleased to announce the release of From the Top’s new iPhone app! Powered by Instant Encore, the mobile tool gives fans up-to-the minute access to From the Top’s podcasts, videos, radio show clips, news updates, concert listings and more. The application is available through the iTunes store and requires users to create an […]

Phuong-Nghi Pham, a 14-year-old pianist from Dorchester, MA and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Award recipient, wrote a letter to Dr. Carol R. Johnson, Superintendent of the Boston Public Schools District, appealing for a spending increase on the city’s musical education programs for the following school-year budget. Phuong-Nghi shares her letter to Dr. Johnson below: Dear […]

Simon Estes is a perfect example of a true Arts Leader. This Iowa native and world-renowned opera singer has established not only a school in South Africa for some of the continent’s poorest children, but also the Simon Estes Iowa Educational Foundation, “a multiracial, nonprofit organization that provides positive minority role model programs and scholarships […]

This is the second installment of our Parents’ Perspective blog series, which is meant to share information, hints, and knowledge about raising musical kids. You can read the first blog about musical beginnings here. Today’s topic: Your kid wants to study an instrument – now what? Our parent panel gives some tips on finding music […]

Because From the Top tapes radio shows across the country, we often fly in young musicians from different states to appear on broadcast tapings. If you’re a musician, you know traveling with your instrument can sometimes be tricky. The American Federation of Musician recently launched this petition to make air travel more friendly for musicians. […]

This spring, 17 year-old composer/bassoonist Tim Woos, a Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist, held composition workshops at two different schools in Vermont – the Integrated Arts Academy in Burlington and the North Branch School in Ripton. For each school, he created  a “composing game”: a program that engaged the students as composers using visual aids and noisemakers. […]

Last week we posted a great Arts Leadership project that was created and executed by alum Kara Sainz (soprano). We just got word that Kara has won a $10,000 award from the Young Musicians Foundation/ASCAP in Los Angeles! This Leiber & Stoller Scholarship is particularly special because it’s only awarded to one graduating high school senior […]