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(Fernando Leon/Getty Images)Hip Hop's Night at the Symphony
Rapper Ice T is set to perform with the Indianapolis Symphony, but it’s not the first time two very different genres have found common ground. Today we look at the cozy relationship between classical and hip hop music. Also: jazz drummer Brian Blade talks about crossing boundaries of a different sort -- he plays with everyone from Joni Mitchell to Wayne Shorter. Plus: live music from the Austin band Shearwater.
O.G.'s Down With the I.S.O.
Rapper and actor Ice-T is set to perform tonight with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In the performance, he will narrate "Ask Your Mama: Twelve Moods for Jazz," a poem from the 1960s by Langston Hughes. And while an ISO performance of Ice-T's classic album "O.G.: Original Gangster" is not on the program, tonight is not the first time classical music has backed an MC. We talk with writer Jayson Greene
Our blog: John Schaefer at the crossroads of hip hop and classical
"Top Ten Classical-Music Samples in Hip Hop" by Jason Greene
Shearwater
Jonathan Meiburg is the golden-throated songwriter (and part-time ornithologist) at the heart of the Austin-based rock band Shearwater. Two years ago, the group gained wide acclaim for the disturbing ballads and soaring vocals on the album, "Palo Santo." Shearwater's fifth release, "Rook," might be even better. They join us for a live performance.
Shearwater web site
Shearwater on MySpace
Video: Jonathan Meiburg in "Looking for Johnny Rook"
More installments of "Looking for Johnny Rook"
Brian Blade
Drummer Brian Blade has worked with some of the biggest names in American folk – Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell – and in jazz - Wayne Shorter and Pat Metheny. But he also has his own adventurous jazz group, Brian Blade and The Fellowship band. He joins us to talk about their latest album, Season of Changes.
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Go behind the scenes!
Find out what John Schaefer and the Soundcheck staff have to say about recent segments on the show. Plus, watch videos from in-studio performances.
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Introducing our Video Contest
Soundcheck
John Schaefer gives the lowdown on Soundcheck's music video challenge with the Fiery Furnaces.
In Studio: Angel Deradoorian
Soundcheck
The 22-year-old multi-instrumentalist performs live in our studio.
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Cucu Diamantes Performs Amor Cronico
Soundcheck
Cucu Diamantes went from a tough childhood in Havana, Cuba, to an art school in Rome to underground New York City, where she co-founded the Latin alternative band Yerba Buena.
- Comments [1]
In Studio: Stephanie McKay
Soundcheck
The local singer-songwriter performs "Jackson Avenue," a nostalgic toast to her childhood in the South Bronx.
- Comments [3]
In Studio: The Decemberists
The Portland, Ore., band's latest album, "The Hazards of Love," is a concept album with a mythological flair. They joined Soundcheck to play live for a studio audience in WNYC's Greene Space.
Sound Off
Soundcheck
Throughout May, Soundcheck presents “Sound Off” a Friday series on the many aspects of noise in music and our lives. The series -- which coincides with “Better Hearing and Speech Month” -- looks at issues like New York’s noisiest neighborhoods, the latest research on iPods and hearing loss, and what happens when noise becomes a musical ingredient.
