Category: Arts Leadership

“I have watched our society become more and more divided each day. I have listened to people talk about feeling voiceless. I have seen stereotyping become popular and bitterness override common sense. And in the midst of it all, I have wondered if there was anything that I could do to encourage people to put […]

We seek to positively impact Diné society through empowering youth. Today’s political climate is filled with negative rhetoric and actions towards indigenous people. Our cultural exchange works against this climate through music – a shared language that can foster peace and justice. Ariel Horowitz, 2018 From the Top Alumni Leadership Grant recipient 21-year-old violinist Ariel […]

“I strive to be an artist who serves everyone, not only those who are already familiar with classical music and those who can afford expensive concert tickets.” Corinne Auger, 2018 From the Top Alumni Leadership Grant recipient 19-year-old Corinne Auger is the co-founder and Executive Director of Music Lens, a free, summer music program for elementary […]

Alum Joseph Conyers, age 36, grew up in the small southern city of Savannah, Georgia. He performed on From the Top in 1999 as part of our second pilot program. We reached out to him recently to see what he’s up to in 2017. 18 years after performing on From the Top, he now serves […]

There’s no doubt about it; being on NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley is a big deal for our young musicians. They work very hard to perfect their playing, and they even get a chance to rehearse their interviews before stepping up to the microphone. When it’s over, there’s a palpable sense of […]

This interview is part of This Land/Our Land, a music video project bringing together six young musicians from immigrant backgrounds to perform a new arrangement of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land.” The arrangement is by From the Top host Christopher O’Riley. Watch the video here. Want more stories like this? Scroll down to […]

We are excited and proud to be one of more than 1,000 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Art Works grant recipients! Please see our press release, below. DATE: June 15, 2017 CONTACT: Jodi Beznoska jbeznoska@fromthetop.org 617.437.0707 x117 Boston-based youth music and media organization From the Top receives National Endowment for the Arts Funding Boston, Massachusetts—National […]

Friends, Federal support for the arts, humanities, and public broadcasting has been getting a lot of attention these days, and, unfortunately, it’s not because of all the wonderful things we do. If you’re wondering what you can do to help, check out our 3 Actions You Can Take Right Now. (And, Alumni – we need you!) What’s Happening The […]

In every city or town that we visit to record an episode of NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley, we work hard to celebrate the power of music in the hands of young people. But what does that mean, exactly? Well, it depends on the community. No matter where we go, we seek […]

Happy #ArtsMatterDay, Massachusetts!  Arts & culture drive the economy, enhance education, build community, and embrace diversity & inclusion. They encourage us to explore new and unfamiliar ideas in safe spaces. Karen Cueva, a recipient of the Jack Kent Cooke Scholarship and a From the Top alum, writes: “The arts matter because they offer multiple entry points to […]

Welcome to the new CDAL Class of 2016–2017 For the past six years, young musicians in the Greater Boston area have applied to join our Center for the Development of Arts Leaders (CDAL) here in our hometown. CDAL is the only program in Greater Boston focused on leadership training for pre-collegiate and collegiate classically-trained musicians. This […]

Arts Leadership in Action Join us this week as members of our Center for the Development of Arts Leaders (CDAL) work with students at the Conservatory Lab Charter School (CLCS)  in Dorchester, Massachusetts. The CLCS students had to learn an entirely new piece of music, put it together as a group, and perform it at […]

Nicholas Padmanabhan, a student at the Palo Alto High School, has played classical guitar for nine years and frequently performs in both formal concert venues and community outreach programs. You may have first heard him when he performed with the San Francisco Conservatory Guitar Quartet on NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley on Show 301 […]

We invite you to experience the exquisite sounds of 16-year-old pianist Leyla Kabuli in this stunning and moving new video by filmmaker Nathan D. Lee. Leyla plays selections from a piece called “Black Earth,” written by Turkish composer Fazil Say. There’s a lot more we could say about this video, including information about the composer, Leyla […]

Did you know that there are other ways for young musicians to be part of From the Top beyond being on our radio show? Here in our hometown of Boston, we offer a unique leadership program called the Center for the Development of Arts Leaders (CDAL). More than 50 young musicians joined this past year (meet […]

From the Top alum and staffer Matthew Dykeman is on the ground in Miami for a week-long residency with local schools. He’s sent back these reports (here and here). On his last day there, he wrote this final post…enjoy! Folks, let me give you some statistics: 250 students, age 5-18 5 schools 44 mammoth pizzas 1 […]

From the Top alum and staff member Matthew Dykeman is on the ground in Miami at a week-long residency. He’s blogging about his experience – you can read his first post here. This is quickly turning into one of the most awesome experiences I’ve had in my life. As the appointed “Pizza Czar” (I tried […]

By Matthew Dykeman, From the Top alum and staff member Greetings from sunny Miami – the weather is…ahh, delightful. Beyond the weather, the energy down here is incredible. As part of From the Top’s Miami Arts Leadership Residency, myself and three other Arts Leaders have been talking to area schools about the power of music under […]

On May 16, fans of From the Top will gather at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts for the 2016 From the Top gala, raising funds to support our arts education, media, and outreach programs. We pride ourselves on throwing a pretty incredible party, with astonishing live music, wonderful food, and one of the […]

Angelica Hairston knows how to make a harp sing. You may have first heard her work her magic when she performed on NPR’s From the Top with Host Christopher O’Riley Show 228 in Athens, Georgia, at age 17. “It was such a blast to be a part of something that was simultaneously youthful and innovative, and […]