July 31, 2008 - The 15th annual Minnesota Fringe Festival, the midwest's biggest performing arts festival, opens today. For the next ten days actors and dancers will perform in over 150 shows throughout Minneapolis. Covering the event seemed an impossible task for one reporter - so we sent out four to see what's in store for Fringe-goers this year.
June 3, 2008 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke profiles Minneapolis jazz musician Gordon Johnson. Gehrke interviews Johnson about his musical background, and other local musicians about Johnson’s playing.
April 3, 2008 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke profiles classical clarinetist Bruce Cho, who plays the Mozart Clarinet Concerto with the Minnesota Orchestra as part of the Young People's Concerts. Gehrke interviews Cho, his music teacher, and a music colleague.
February 28, 2008 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke meets with American composer Dominick Argento at his Minneapolis home to discuss his work “Evensong: Of Love and Angels," commissioned by Washington Cathedral Choral Society. Argento wrote the piece for his deceased wife, Carolyn, and considers it his most meaningful work.
February 25, 2008 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke talks with Minnesota jazz vocalist Connie Evingson about her CD of songs by Dave Frishberg, an American jazz pianist, vocalist, composer, and lyricist born in St. Paul. Gehrke interviews both artists and others about the music compositions.
October 26, 2007 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke profiles Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate, a Chickasaw composer dedicated to spending his life looking for North American Indian solutions in classical music composition. Tate's new guitar concerto is titled "Nitoshi' Imali." It was a commission from the Joyce Foundation, and awarded to Tate and the St. Paul-based American Composers Forum.
September 28, 2007 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke looks at a major New York City concert series uniting classical and indie rock audiences that is coming to the Twin Cities. In the previous year, the Wordless Music Series has paired rock and electronic musicians in intimate chamber music settings with classical performers.
May 18, 2007 - MPR's Karl Gehrke reports that the personal stories of several Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity homeowners have been turned into songs for Minnesota Chorale "Sing Me a Home" concert. The performance is part of the chorale's outreach program called "Bridges."
December 21, 2006 - A new exhibit at the University of Minnesota challenges the stereotype of Lutherans as staid, white Scandinavians. The recent arrival of immigrants from Latin America, Africa and Asia has created many ethnically diverse Lutheran congregations in the Twin Cities. As the exhibit demonstrates, you can hear as well as see the changes. Minnesota Public Radio's Karl Gehrke has more. The exhibit "A Mighty Fortress Far from Lake Wobegon" is at the U of M's Elmer L. Andersen Library through December 29th.
March 8, 2006 - MPR’s Karl Gehrke reports that the University of Minnesota School of Music and the SPCO are collaborating on a festival exploring Elliot Carter's confounding work. On first hearing, Carter's music sounds chaotic. It doesn't fit into preconceived notions of what "classical" music should sound like. There's no single, steady rhythmic pulse or recurring melodic themes to grab onto.