Audio On Demand
Classical Crossroads
Where classical music crosses paths with rock and roll, world music, folk music and jazz.
As Duke Ellington said "There are only two types of music: good music and the other stuff." Listen to interviews with people who make good music here.
2013
Barry Manilow - 04/05/2013
Barry Manilow talks with WQED-FM's Jim Cunningham in April, 2013.
Carl Palmer - 03/27/2013
Carl Palmer, drummer of the '70s progressive rock supergroup Emerson, Lake & Palmer talks about the band, which turned Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition and other classical masterpieces by Copland, Sibelius, Tchaikovsky into favorites with rock fans. Palmer tells QED's Jim Cunningham about the drummers that influenced him and about his recent work and touring.
Sandra Feketija of Perpetuum Jazzile - 03/19/2013
Sandra Feketija, alto, soloist, and assistant music director of Perpetuum Jazzile, the pop-oriented Slovenian choir, talks with WQED-FM listener/member Jim Shock.
Carrie Rodriguez - 02/28/2013
QED donor Jim Shock interviews Mexican-American singer-songwriter and fiddle player Carrie Rodriguez.
Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul & Mary - 01/09/2013
Folk singer Peter Yarrow continues to perform with Noel Paul Stookey after the death of their colleague and friend, Mary Travers. Before a concert at Chautuaqua Institution on July 27, 2012, Yarrow talked with QED's Jim Cunningham. Yarrow spoke about his early classical music training, his new book, the origin of Puff the Magic Dragon, and more.
Jann Klose - 01/09/2013
Jim Cunningham interviews German-born pop singer-songwriter Jann Klose, who was raised in Kenya, South Africa, Germany and northeast Ohio.
2012
Annie Haslam of Renaissance - 12/18/2012
Classical QED's Jim Cunningham interviews singer Annie Haslam of the 1970s English progressive rock band Renaissance.
Celtic Woman's Mairead Nesbitt - 12/13/2012
Irish fiddler Mairead Nesbitt of the group Celtic Woman talks with QED's Jim Cunningham before a concert at Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center. The classically-trained violinist talks about her background, violin technique, her work as a member of the RTE Concert Orchestra, and Celtic Woman's latest CD, titled "Believe."
Swiss Yodeler Melanie Oesch - 10/24/2012
QED 89.3's Jim Cunningham interviews Swiss yodeler Melanie Oesch, who fronts her family folk band, die Dritten. From the Bernese Oberland, the Oesch family has found success with traditional yodeling accompanied by large and small accordion, guitar, and electric bass.
Arts Festival Update - Bruce Hornsby - 06/07/2012
Pianist, singer and songwriter Bruce Hornsby talks about the influence of composers such as Arnold Schoenberg, Charles Ives, and Elliott Carter on his rock, jazz, and bluegrass playing. Hornsby and The Noisemaker close the 2012 Three Rivers Arts Festival on Sunday, June 10th.
Bruce Hornsby [Complete interview] - 06/06/2012
Since winning the Best New Artist Grammy in 1987, pianist, singer and songwriter Bruce Hornsby has been a member of the Grateful Dead, played jazz with artists such as Jack DeJohnette, and teamed up with country star Ricky Skaggs. He talks about how composers such as Ives and Schoenberg continue to influence his music.
Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull - 05/21/2012
Flutist, vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for the '70s British rock band Jethro Tull, Ian Anderson is not your typical rock star. The creator of some of the best-selling concept albums of the progressive rock era, Scottish-born Ian Anderson counts flutist James Galway among his ardent fans. Anderson's latest CD is "Thick as a Brick II," a sequel to the Jethro Tull classic released 40 years earlier in 1972.
Anoushka Shankar - 04/13/2012
Sitarist and composer Anoushka Shankar is the daughter of Indian sitar legend Ravi Shankar and is the paternal half-sister of Norah Jones. She's an acclaimed world music and classical music star who has performed at the Grammys, at Carnegie Hall, and with artists such as Sting, Lenny Kravitz, Joshua Bell, Mstislav Rostropovich, Jean-Pierre Rampal, and Herbie Hancock. She has played her father's music with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra and the London Philharmonic. Anoushka talks with QED's Jim Cunningham about her music, her father, and family friend George Harrison of The Beatles.
Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues - 03/01/2012
Best known as singer, songwriter and guitarist in the rock band The Moody Blues, Justin Hayward looks back on the birth of "symphonic rock" in 1967 with the recording and release of the landmark album "Days of Future Passed." Hayward talks with WQED's Jim Cunningham about his musical influences.
2011
Alexandre Desplat - 07/28/2011
French film composer Alexandre Desplat burst onto the Hollywood scene in 2003 with his score for "The Girl with the Pearl Earring." His filomography includes "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," "Julie and Julia," "Twilight: New Moon," and "The King's Speech." His current releases are the box-office record-breaker "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2," and Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or winner, "The Tree of Life." QED 89.3 producer Amanda Iannuzzi talks with Alexandre Desplat.
Michael Feinstein - The Sinatra Project - 06/21/2011
Michael Feinstein sings Frank Sinatra's signature tunes (and does it HIS way) with Marvin Hamlisch and the Pittsburgh Symphony Pops. Feinstein tells Jim Cunningham about recording with legendary Pittsburgh guitarist Joe Negri, broadcast appearances on NPR's From the Top and his own PBS series, and about iconic musicians such as Oscar Levant and Ira Gershwin.
