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From the Top

NPR

Music and stories from America’s best young classical musicians.

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  • 29 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 35 min
  • English

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Episodes 29

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  • Monday · 34 min

    Creative to the Core

    Today’s performers are creative to their core. A talented teen violinist with a gift for storytelling performs Ravel. A guitarist who developed his own mobile app performs a lively piece inspired by a Spanish dance. A young pianist with an ear for improvisation uses social media as a playground for his creativity and plays Chopin. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • October 26 · 26 min

    Communicating Without Words

    A teenage string quartet shares how their non-verbal communication is the secret sauce to their success. Plus a young cellist performs Mendelssohn’s moving Songs Without Words. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • October 19 · 33 min

    Connection & Collaboration

    When was the last time music made you feel like a part of something greater than yourself? This week, we meet teens who have a special passion for finding connection through music and hear their outstanding performances of Poulenc, Telemann, and Schumann. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • October 12 · 25 min

    Teens Champion Contemporary Music

    Both teen artists on today’s program have forged meaningful connections with living composers: our teen cellist worked closely with composer José Elizondo on the piece he performs today, and our violist co-founded an organization dedicated to introducing more people to contemporary composers and new music. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • October 5 · 35 min

    Musical Jackpot

    We hit the jackpot of incredible repertoire. A teen guitarist describes her Spanish-inspired work like a fiesta, a cellist with insights into physical and mental wellbeing brings fire to her performance of Cassado, and a piano trio from the Pacific Northwest perform Shostakovich with gusto! See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • September 28 · 36 min

    Brahms and Tubas

    A passionate young clarinetist performs Brahms and we meet a New England brass player with the fortitude to lug around two tubas at once. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • September 21 · 35 min

    Musical Superpowers

    A Georgia teen shares how the children’s cartoon “Little Einstein’s” influenced him to pick up the French Horn and speaks from the heart about the superpowers that come with playing music. A young bassoonist shows the range of her instrument, and we learn about percussion instruments from a South Carolina teen with a love for playing Bach on marimba. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • September 14 · 37 min

    12 and Under Highlight Show

    All of today’s young musicians are 12 or younger! Wipe your jaw off the floor and enjoy some truly memorable moments. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • September 7 · 27 min

    Youngest of the Young Highlights Program

    We’ve gone back in our archive to rediscover astonishing performances by some of the youngest performers (12 and under) to appear on From the Top! You’ll even hear a young violinist who now performs in the London Philharmonic. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • August 31 · 1 hr 3 min

    Four Hands Piano & Atlanta Music Project

    Clarinetist Alex Laing joins Peter Dugan at the Atlanta Music Project for a program featuring musicians from Georgia! We hear the fantastic Atlanta Music Project Senior Youth Choir performing a Spiritual. A flutist shares her love for Eastern European Folk music, a percussionist performs Sibelius on marimba, and Peter collaborates on a gorgeous four handed Ravel with an alum. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • August 24 · 31 min

    The Swan & More from Michigan: Part II

    We meet a violist with a love for Formula One racing who gives an evocative performance of Schumann. We hear a conversation between a teen clarinetist and his mentor, the principal clarinetist of the Minnesota Orchestra, who share much in common including leaving their homes in Costa Rica to study at Interlochen Arts Academy. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • August 17 · 36 min

    The Swan & More from Michigan: Part I

    A talented 12-year-old cellist performs The Swan by Saint-Saëns, a flutist with a passion for marine biology plays a dreamy Fantasie by Hüe, and the winner of Interlochen Arts Academy’s Concerto Competition performs a difficult but rewarding work by Ysaÿe. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • August 10 · 35 min

    Mozart, Kreisler, and Schubert: Part II

    We meet a percussionist from the famous LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts who gives a tour of the marimba to Peter Dugan, a 13-year-old cellist who loves both ballet and music, and a pianist who relates with the emotions of Schubert. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • August 3 · 36 min

    Mozart, Kreisler, and Schubert: Part I

    A teen quartet plays Mozart, a 15-year-old flutist shares why her instrument is a dependable friend, and a violinist plays a Kreisler arrangement and draws connections between science and art. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • July 27 · 30 min

    Let’s Get Together: Texas Youth Orchestra & More

    Peter collaborates with a 16-year-old violinist on an elegant rag. We hear Poulenc's trio for oboe, bassoon, and piano and meet one of Texas’ premier high school orchestras who perform Shostakovich. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • July 20 · 29 min

    Let’s Get Together: Rachmaninoff to Barber

    How does ensemble size and instrumentation shape the listening experience? We hear from a 14-year-old violinist who feels passionately about music-making, meet a teen pianist who takes on Rachmaninoff, and hear Peter play Barber with a young cellist who speaks about the importance of a local music program in his life. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • July 13 · 48 min

    Chopin, Guitar Quartet & More from Minnesota: Part II

    We hear from a teenage guitar quartet playing a lively Brazilian piece, an oboist playing a new work by composer Reena Esmail, and a violinist who imagines herself in Brahms’ world when she performs. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • July 6 · 38 min

    Chopin, Guitar Quartet & More from Minnesota: Part I

    We meet a 14-year-old pianist playing a Chopin Scherzo, a classical cellist who also plays rock covers, and a young trumpeter who gives insight into the physicality of playing his instrument. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • June 29 · 25 min

    Viola Power and a Young Pianist

    An 11-year-old pianist knocks our socks off with Chopin Etudes and we hear from an all-viola quartet on a mission to spread the beauty of the viola to the world. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

  • June 22 · 40 min

    Countertenor’s Lullaby and an Irish Violist

    A teen pianist plays Scriabin, an Irish American violist explores classical and Celtic fiddling, and a countertenor sings a gorgeous lullaby. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

Showing 1–20 of 29 episodes