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Soundcheck

Monday, September 25, 2006
  • (<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/courtoly/77780770/" target="_blank">Courtoly</a>/flickr)
    (Courtoly/flickr)

    Can You Spare a Ticket?

    Paying $400 to see the Rolling Stones or $700 for Barbara Streisand might sound excessive as it is. But you'll fork over even more when you go to eBay or a scalper. Today, a look at how Ticketmaster's new online auction service is changing how we buy concert tickets. With us to explain how the service will affect music fans is Alan Krueger, professor of economics at Princeton University and co-author of the paper "Rockonomics: The Economics of Popular Music." Also: Dr. Dog, the psychedelic rock band from Philadelphia, performs live in studio. Finally, today is the 100th birthday of the late Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich. In honor, we take a close look at his Symphony No. 13 "Babi Yar."

Big Ticket Items

Alan Krueger, co-author of the paper "Rockonomics: The Economics of Popular Music," discusses the changing landscape of concert ticket sales.
Rockonomics: the economics of popular music (PDF)

Dr. Dog

Philadelphia band Dr. Dog joins us with a live performance.
Dr. Dog's Web site

Shostakovich at 100

Shostakovich's Symphony No. 13 commemorates the 1941 massacre of Jews at Babi Yar, a ravine outside the Russian city of Kiev. The work will be performed in the composer's two-piano version on Wednesday at the Museum of Jewish Heritage—A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. Joining us with a preview is Stephen Vann, the program's artistic producer.
Concert details

Best Live Performances of 2008

Soundcheck

We revisit memorable in-studio performances from Toumani Diabaté, Cat Power, Regina Spektor, and others.

The Year in Music and Branding

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Pop music and advertising go together like peanut butter and jelly. Grey Group music director Josh Rabinowitz shares his picks for the best song picks and ad campaigns of 2008.

Critics Week

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Music writers look back at the year's best pop, rock, hip hop, classical, jazz, Latin and world albums. Plus: the worst music of the year and the best online music. Read our critics' lists here. And don't forget to cast your vote in our best-albums poll.

Noteworthy New York

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We have invited musicians and artists to help us select their favorite cultural destination in the neighborhood where they live. From parks and coffee shops to bowling alleys and museums, the options are as diverse as our group of contributors.