Category: z-News

We just taped a show in Rockport at what may have been the most beautiful concert hall I’ve ever performed in – the Shalin Liu Performance Center. The back of the stage featured a wall of floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking a sparking blue bay – a stunning backdrop for the show’s talented performers! Opening the show […]

16-year-old pianist and composer Conrad Tao (From the Top Shows 107 and 232 and From the Top at Carnegie Hall Season 1) performed with the Pacific Symphony and Carl St.Clair on Thursday, June 3, 2011. The concert was originally supposed to feature Chinese pianist Yuja Wang, but she had to cancel due to illness. Rick Schultz […]

Starting June 4, 2011, From the Top will air on 99.5 All Classical in Massachusetts on Saturdays at 5pm. This is part of a WGBH initiative called “Classical Kids,” providing education, entertainment, games, videos and resources designed to bring kids closer to classical music. You can still listen to From the Top on-demand on our […]

From the Top’s broadcast for Show 232 was taped in the Dekelboum Concert Hall (within the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center) at the University of Maryland College Park, MD on Saturday, April 16, 2011. We asked our performers to tell us about the music they performed on the show: Kimberly Hou, 16, piano IV. Fuga: […]

On May 21st cellist and From the Top alum Oliver Aldort (Show 126 in Boston) gave a recital in Miami Beach, Florida as part of the Miami International Piano Festival. Below is a video excerpt from Oliver’s performance, featuring the Chopin Sonata. This summer Oliver will attend the Tanglewood Summer Festival Program, and in the […]

This past weekend, From the Top taped a radio show at Oklahoma City University’s Kirkpatrick Auditorium. This show featured four stellar soloists, as well as a 50-person youth chorale! Our four instrumentalists and two of the choir members joined us the next morning for the Arts Leadership Orientation, where we explored the ways that music […]

Beginning this summer, The Boston Conservatory introduces a new two-week High School Composition Intensive for students ages 15-18 who are serious about music composition. Program Director Andy Vores has teamed up with the QX String Quartet to give young composers the opportunity to work with professional musicians and have their pieces played by a professional […]

This just in from double bassist Emily Brown (Show 230 in Monterey, California): She snagged second prize in the Robert Avalon International Competition for Composers! Aside from being a superb double bass player, it seems like Emily also has a talent for composition. She entered the contest with her first composition ever, a piece for […]

Pianist Thomas Steigerwald, who performed on Show 185 in San Antonio, Texas, will be attending Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York this fall. Thomas will be studying with Douglas Humpherys and has received the highest level of scholarship that Eastman offers! As the winner of the 2011 Future Stars Competition, Thomas will be […]

We’re back in Boston for a short stretch following our taping last week at the beautiful Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in Virginia Beach, where we met six terrific teenage performers. Kicking off the show was a cello duo comprised of 17-year-old Naomi Benecasa and 18-year-old Richard Mazuski. They performed from Menotti’s Suite for […]

For the past few months, From the Top has been hard at work launching our Center for the Development of Arts Leaders (CDAL)! This blog is the fourth in a series written by Linda Gerstle, Director of Education and Community Partnerships, chronicling the pilot year of this program. You can read the first post here,  […]

Last week, From the Top taped a radio show at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts in sunny Virginia Beach. We were joined by six young artists from across the country for a phenomenal performance! The next day, all of our performers took part in the Arts Leadership Orientation, where they explored the power […]

This spring has been a whirlwind for everyone at From the Top! In the past two months alone we’ve taped radio shows in Georgia, Iowa, California, New York, Maryland, Indiana, and this week we are in Virginia. Here’s a quick snapshot of the fun we’ve had: We were honored to have special guest and internationally […]

12-year-old guitarist Roberto Granados and 16-year-old pianist Rieko Tsuchida are both performing at the California Symphony season finale this Sunday, May 1 at 4pm. Roberto will play “Concierto de Aranjuez” and Rieko will perform the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 1. The program also features Shostakovich Symphony No.5 in D minor. Robert has appeared on two […]

This week From the Top traveled to Carmel, IN to tape a radio show at The Palladium – the gorgeous concert hall of The Center for the Performing Arts. The show featured seven extraordinary young artists, as well as a guest appearance by singer and pianist Michael Feinstein! The morning after, our performers joined us […]

To help sustain awareness of the recent devastation in Japan and raise money for relief efforts, From the Top alum and violist Lauren Chipman and her band The Rentals have teamed up with the Red Cross Los Angeles Region and Ernest Jenning Record Co. to release ‘Resilience,’ an album featuring 18 orchestral compositions that will […]

15-year-old violinist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Michael Ferri appeared on Show #220 in Davenport, IA this past October. Not long after, Michael visited two schools in his hometown of Cleveland, and performed for a wide range of students. He first visited the Marion-Sterling Elementary School, then traveled to the E-Prep School with Cleveland […]

Weeks ago we posted about how From the Top alum and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Umi Garrett was planning a benefit concert for Japan. The event was a great success and raised $3,400, all of which was donated to the Red Cross! Below are pictures from the concert and the repertoire list. Yoshie Akimoto, […]

We just got wind of a new opportunity from Carnegie Hall for young composers! The Carmina Burana Choral Project features 200 high school singers and 50 middle school singers from all over New York City with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s conducted by David Robertson. Carnegie is looking for three high school-aged composers to write […]

12-year old pianist and Jack Kent Cooke Young Artist Sherry Tang appeared on Show #220 in Davenport, IA this past October. A resident of Monterey Park, CA, Sherry wanted to share her music with the residents of her neighborhood’s retirement facility: the Beverly Hills Carmel Retirement Hotel. “I want to share music with the elderly […]