FAME in Muscle Shoals / Show 478

About

FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama has played a role in some of the most iconic recordings in American popular music history. Today it hosts From the Top and the next generation of classical musicians.

We hear from a 16-year-old pianist performing Amy Beach and a teenage violinist performing Kreisler. We meet a 13-year-old bluegrass banjo player with a talent for improvisation and an 18-year-old horn player with insights on the challenges and rewards of the French horn. A young soprano shares her journey from Gospel to classical voice. Guest artist KJ Willis, a talented soul singer who is currently featured on NBC’s The Voice, joins with host Peter Dugan and the young performers to pay tribute to Etta James, one of the legendary musicians who recorded at FAME in the past. Plus, we hear a flashback finale from 2001, featuring an Alabama native who is now an ICU doctor chronicled by the New York Times for bringing music into her hospital.

Thanks to Focusrite and ADAM Audio for making From the Top’s recording at FAME possible. Focusrite and ADAM Audio are proud supporters of NPR and the content they provide.

Guests

• Host: Peter Dugan
  Peter Dugan's position is sponsored by Susan and Gerald Slavet.

Performers & Repertoire

• Pianist Henry Hewitt, 16, from Mobile, Alabama

  Four Sketches Op. 15, No. 3 in G-flat Major "Dreaming" by Amy Beach (1867-1944)
• French Horn player Madeline Cagle, 18, from Birmingham, Alabama

  Nocturno, Op. 7. By Franz Strauss (1822-1905)
• Banjo player Alex Davis, 13, from Madison, Alabama

  Lonesome Road Blues by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs Alabama Jubilee by George L. Cobb (1886-1942)
• Violinist Lauren Yejin Kang, 15, from Vestavia Hills, Alabama

  Tambourin Chinois, Op. 3 by Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
• Soprano Taylor-Marie Robinson, 18, from Greenville, South Carolina

  Will There Really Be a Morning? By Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956)
• Guest Artist vocalist K.J. Willis with pianist Peter Dugan and today's young performers perform a tribute to Etta James
  Featured: Henry Hewitt, Madeline Cagle, Alex Davis, and Lauren Yejin Kang
  With: Jimbo Hart, bass, Justin Holder, drums, Travis Terry, background vocals

  I’d Rather Go Blind by Ellington Jordan, Etta James, Billy Foster, arr. Sean O’Loughlin
• Flashback Finale
  Clarinetist Rachel Easterwood from Anniston, Alabama performed on Show 46 recorded in 2001

  Concerto No. 1 for Clarinet, Op. 73, 3rd mvt. by Carl Maria von Weber

Release Date

• Monday, April 13, 2026

Release date is when this show is released to NPR stations, here on our website, and to our podcast. Shows are released on a weekly basis; please check your local NPR station listing for the actual airtime in your market. If you'd like, you can visit NPR's "Find Stations" page to look for your station.

Support Provided By

This episode of From the Top was recorded and mixed in Studio X at the legendary FAME Recording Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Studio X is FAME’s immersive mix room, outfitted with audio solutions from Focusrite and ADAM Audio. Focusrite and ADAM Audio are proud supporters of NPR and the content they provide.

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