Category: Alumni

If you’re here, that means you’re part of the From the Top family…Michael Thurber, alum and gala performer And if you’re reading this, you are too. We’re grateful for every single one of you, as we couldn’t do what we do without your support: listening to our NPR radio show, sharing our videos and stories, […]

NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley alum Yuga Cohler (Shows 104, 142 and From the Top at Carnegie Hall on PBS), is no longer playing his oboe full time. But it’s not due to a lack of interest in music! Yuga is the newly appointed Music Director and Conductor of the Young Musicians […]

The incredible From the Top band covers Jennifer Lopez’s “Feel the Light” from the Dreamworks movie Home. Shot on location at Fruitlands Museum in Harvard, Massachusetts. And yes, we used drones. We’re cool like that. A From the Top video. All rights reserved. Please contact info@fromthetop.org for more information. www.fromthetop.org www.facebook.com/fromthetopfans …

“When I was four, I took [my father’s] trumpet when he was taking a break, and I got a good sound.” Elmer Churampi told Christopher O’Riley on Show 268. “On that day, he told me that I was going to be a trumpet player.” And that he would. From the moment Elmer picked up the trumpet, […]

From the Top alum Kevin Olusola of Pentatonix beatboxes with fellow alum and violinist Kate Arndt, covering Sugar by Maroon 5. A From the Top video. Direct all inquiries to info@fromthetop.org. Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/fromthetopfans Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/fromthetop Follow us on Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/fromthetopfans Check out our blog: …

In 2015, From the Top commissioned a new musical work from alum Michael Thurber, that would feature the next generation of classical musicians. His concerto, “The Three Musketeers: A play for instruments” premiered on From the Top’s live recording at Interlochen Center for the Arts on March 13. Excerpts from this piece will be broadcast […]

  It’s that time of year again when we can go mad from one of two things. 1) a very slowly approaching spring (cough cough, if you live in Boston), or 2) sports, specifically the NCAA tournament. For those of you “non sports” types, that’s basketball. College basketball, to be even more specific. How does this […]

“Jump right in!” a young lady with long brown hair belts out from the stage, her foot tapping as she dances along with the music, “Let the music pull you in, jump right in!” The more than 500 middle and high school students in the audience here in Hazard, Kentucky are very familiar with this […]

NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley features many string players, pianists, and wind and brass musicians. But it’s not often that we are able to feature an organ player on our show. One such exception occurred back in 2010 when we welcomed 15-year-old Karen Christianson from Media, Pennsylvania on Show 223 in in […]

This is pianist Anna Boonyanit reflecting on her journey to performing on NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley, Show 281. She was 14 years old at the time.  My Home – February 9, 2014 7:19 pm My name had just been announced through my antiquated JVC radio propped on the floor of my bedroom. I had […]

This is part 2 of the “Alumni in Action” series about our young musicians working with YoungArts and Joshua Bell for an HBO Documentary. Read part 1 here. Before we get to our young musicians’ experiences with Joshua Bell in London, there was one more in New York that made the record books. Here is […]

“Glory”, from the movie Selma, was the winner for Best Song during last night’s Academy Awards. Join a bunch of talented From the Top musicians as they take us on a little musical journey through Oscar-winning songs of the past. And spoiler warning – the last one will get stuck in your head.

Happy frozen Friday from Boston. Check out our alum Nathan Chan‘s newest video. #fttalumni

Clare Semes, who appeared on Show 108 in 2004, has made a big name for herself in the violin world. Check out the video premier of her duo with violinist Chelsea Starbuck Smith. The group, called Les Deux, performs an original arrangement of variations on Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story.

46-year-old violin star Joshua Bell didn’t appear on From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley as a kid because, well, the show hadn’t been created yet! But in 1999, and again in 2005, he did indeed perform on the show as a guest artist, which makes him an honorary alum of the show in our books. […]

If there is such a thing as a typical From the Top alum, Sean Olanui Robbins of Puna, Hawaii is not one of them. When Sean performed on NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley (Show 210 in Kea’au, Hawaii) his instrument was, and happily still is, the guitar. But more specifically, Sean plays […]

Lauren Chipman, who first appeared on Show 46 at age 17, is now all grown up and taking the viola world by storm. A resident of Los Angeles, Lauren’s creative and multifaceted career as a musician has spanned many mediums and genres. Not only is she making waves in the classical world, but also jazz. That’s, right. […]

Radio alum 12-year-old Maxim Lando (Show 283 recorded in Boston – listen here) and Lang Lang rehearsing Fazil Say’s jazz arrangement of Mozart Rondo Alla Turca before a WQXR broadcast.

From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley first aired in the year 1999. We love to go back to those early days of the show to see what our very first alumni are up to now that they’ve truly reached adulthood. In the case of composer Eric Nathan, age 30 (Show 56, October 2001), his […]

Growing up in Denver, Colorado, Trey Pernell was a student with many talents. Despite some significant challenges in his home life, Trey decided that he would not let that hardship keep him from achieving his goals. For him, “not achieving was not an option.” Beyond his academic pursuits, Trey has very diverse interests that include but also go beyond […]