Music was Erik Friedlander's refuge when his wife fell ill. Then, in one week, he lost both. The cellist and composer speaks with NPR's Arun Rath about making the new album Claws & Wings after months out of commission.

The Detroit duo of Daniel Zott and Joshua Epstein release their new album this week. They join host Rachel Martin.

Just as he had promised in May, Minnesota Orchestra Music Director Osmo Vänskä resigned Tuesday, after labor negotiations collapsed once again and the group's board canceled two prestigious Carnegie Hall concerts in November.

Labor disputes engulfed the Minnesota Orchestra. Bankruptcy shuttered the New York City Opera. Even Carnegie Hall had to cancel its opening-night gala. What gives?

In few operas does all the mayhem express what underlies George Benjamin's Written on Skin. The work conveys a profound awareness of human cruelty and its inextricable connection to passion and art.

Iraq and Afghanistan veterans may have trouble answering questions about what war was like — but Vietnam veterans say they weren't even asked. Composer and Vietnam vet Kimo Williams says he turned to music to explain his war experience, and that it continues to define his work.

Every one of the 17 songs on Jim Bianco's new album Cookie Cutter is inspired by a fan. Against her better judgment, NPR's Audie Cornish answered the questionnaire that inspired another.

Can the highly publicized band turn its hype into hits? Ken Tucker wants to join the fan club.

Formed in the 1930s during Jim Crow, The Blind Boys of Alabama have been singing gospel for seven decades. For the new album I'll Find a Way, the group has teamed up with a younger artist: Justin Vernon of Bon Iver.

After a round of emergency fundraising failed, New York's "People's Opera" is shutting down. Unfortunately, many — including the company's current director and its musicians — saw this coming.