Some of the major struggles and victories of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s coincided with a most active period for jazz music.  In honor of Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday, WNYC’s Sara Fishko looks at a few cases where the movement and the music came together.  Here’s the next Fishko Files…

In music and especially in jazz, says WNYC’s Sara Fishko, one thing leads to another.  For lyricist and singer Jon Hendricks, who turns ninety today, it was some great instrumental jazz solos that led him to make an unforgettable leap into song. Here is the next Fishko Files…

In this archival edition of Fishko Files, WNYC’s Sara Fishko reflects on the mystique of cool jazz trumpeter/singer Chet Baker, and the facts and fantasies that have lifted jazz horn players to a special place in cultural mythology.

The Grammy Awards are this weekend. One of the many nominees is pianist Keith Jarrett, up for his improvised solo on the song “Body and Soul.”  It has WNYC’s Sara Fishko thinking about that song’s long history of musical inspiration...in this edition of Fishko Files.

Pianist and singer Hazel Scott is perhaps best remembered for her glamour.  Glamorous she was, but in this edition of Fishko Files (from January ’09), WNYC’s Sara Fishko explores a new book and an old CD that can help us go beneath the surface to Scott’s life and work.

As the awards season goes into full sparkle, WNYC’s Sara Fishko listens in on a group of non-glitzy winners of a few weeks ago.  Some chat among masters, in this edition of Fishko Files...

Originally aired on the occasion of the 2007 Academy Awards, this edition of the Fishko recognizes celebrated film composer Ennio Morricone, who received a special Oscar that year. Many of the composer's early scores for westerns used whistling to great effect. And as WNYC's Sara Fishko tells us, the world of 'instrumental whistling' has it's own story.

Is the whole greater than the sum of its parts? Since the 1920s, composers of all kinds have been trying to write music that combines jazz and symphonic elements.

This weekend, a run of shows devoted to the music and lyrics of Hoagy Carmichael will recall the distinctive style of that composer and performer.  We have more on Carmichael from WNYC’s Sara Fishko, in this edition of The Fishko Files…

This May will mark 100 years since the birth of Artie Shaw, the bandleader and clarinet player. As WNYC’s Sara Fishko tells us in this edition of the Fishko Files, Shaw is worth remembering for more than just his music...

Next week, two concerts in New York’s Town Hall recall an event held 50 years ago on that very same stage. There, Thelonious Monk and nine other stellar players made their mark on jazz history. WNYC’s Sara Fishko has the story behind a famous musical moment, in this edition of ...

An exhibition of classic jazz photographs is now showing in New York. It inspired WNYC’s Sara Fishko to talk about the art of photographing jazz with a couple of it’s most admired practitioners. Here is the next Fishko Files...

“The Genius of Miles Davis” runs Through Dec. 10th at ...

A new song by the popular Icelandic group Sigur Ros is notable for having no time signature at all; it’s impossible to count. It has WNYC’s Sara Fishko pondering time, music, and especially the number 5. Here is the next Fishko Files.

Listen to Stuart Isacoff play "Castle ...

Jazz has become so treasured as a part of film-scoring that it's the subject of a new Museum of Modern Art exhibit, opening next week. As WNYC's Sara Fishko tells us in this edition of the Fishko Files, the connection between jazz and American film was especially vibrant during one ...

In the music world, being labeled a virtuoso is the highest compliment... or is it? WNYC's Sara Fishko considers the question, in this edition of the Fishko Files.

More To Do:
Marc-André Hamelin will be performing with renowned violinist Midori at Lincoln Center's Rose Hall ...

That notable date, December 25th, is also the birthday of the exuberant entertainer Cab Calloway of Hi-De-Ho fame. This year it's his centennial, which has Sara Fishko considering his vibrant legacy.

More:

This New Years Eve at the Apollo Theater: The Cab ...

Today marks the 90th anniversary of the birth of one of the masters of American music, Thelonious Monk. Monk, who died in 1982, left numerous recordings in his inimitable piano style; and broke new ground with visionary compositions such as "Brilliant Corners" and "Round Midnight." As Sara Fishko tells us ...

Today a restored version of a film made 20 years ago about the horn player and singer Chet Baker re-opens in New York. It’s combination of fact and fantasy has WNYC’s Sara Fishko trying to make sense of the horn-player’s special place in musical mythology. Here is the next Fishko ...

As the New York culture scene for ’07 gets underway, some of last year’s exhibits are ending their runs. WNYC’s Sara Fishko says two of the more interesting ones, closing soon, use portraits to reveal something larger than the pictures themselves.

“Glitter and Doom, German Portraits from ...