Pianist Tamami Honma is an acclaimed performer and recording artist, and recently released a complete collection of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas on the recording label Divine Art.

Tamami talks with WQED Classical's Anna Singer about these collections of recordings she has made over the past couple of years. She also talks about her research, her students, and how she recorded this album out of order.

She also talks about her mentor, Byron Janis, born in McKeesport, who died at the age of 95 last March. He performed his first piano recital in 1937 at the Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh. Tamami highlights the impact he had on her as a pianist.

Listen to WQED-FM 89.3 on the radio, or on our website, to hear Tamami Honma's newest recording of Beethoven's Piano Sonatas.

There is a world premiere coming to Pittsburgh, presented by Chatham Baroque!

Musicologist Malcolm Bruno talks with WQED Classical's Anna Singer about his role in creating a new edition of JS Bach's lost Markus Passion. Originally performed for Good Friday in the early 1700s, Bach's Markus Passion has been the topic of conversation for many early music historians. Bach's publisher lost the manuscript, with only the libretto and original instruments list left. Today, there have been many attempts at recreating the Passion.

Malcolm talks about his discovery of the lost Passion, and what made him decide to try writing a new edition. Malcolm also highlights what makes his edition different from previous ones. New arias and added sinfonias are in this edition. Malcolm's biggest addition is having a professional actor speak the role of the Evangelist in English instead of singing it in German.

Hungry for more? Stay tuned as we release two more interviews about the Markus Passion on Voice of the Arts. And make sure to keep an eye on our YouTube channel on April 2nd!

Chatham Baroque's world premiere is on Friday, April 11th at the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland.

Visit https://www.chathambaroque.org/ to learn more.

Cellist with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Charlie Powers, talks with Jim Cunningham live about several upcoming concerts, all with cellos!

Charlie highlights a free concert at the City of Asylum which features The Clarion Quartet, the Pittsburgh Cello Quartet, and special guests David Harding and Dimitri Papadimitriou. The concert is on Tuesday, March 25th at 7 pm. It features music by Erich Korngold, Ernst Toch, and many other composers who were forced to flee Nazi Europe. The Clarion Quartet features members of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and the Pittsburgh Cello Quartet features PSO cellists!

Charlie also talks about a Academy Concert which will feature The Pittsburgh Cello Quartet on Sunday, April 6th. Their program will feature music by Bach, Mozart, Brahms, and perhaps some arrangements of Mr. Roger's music. Charlie reminisces about his parents love of Johnny Costa's music, and how that translated to his own life.

Lastly, Charlie will be performing in several upcoming PSO concerts, including WQED Nights at the Symphony this weekend! Hopefully the audience won't hear Charlie individually, but in harmony with the orchestra as they perform Beethoven's Symphony No.6, Pastoral.

So many events to hear the amazing cellos of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra!

You can hear "Music of the Exiled" at City of Asylum on March 25th at 7 pm. There will also be free live-stream tickets.

Visit https://cityofasylum.org/program/the-clarion-quartet/ to learn more.

You can also see the Pittsburgh Cello Quartet at the Allegheny Unitarian Church on Sunday, April 6th at 7 pm as part of the Academy Concert series.

Visit the Academy Concert's Facebook page to learn more.

Renaissance City Choir is hosting its yearly cabaret!

Artistic Director of the choir, Kym Scott, talks about the upcoming show. She describes what a cabaret style show is, and why this year they are doing it at East Liberty Presbyterian Church. Kym also highlights the new format in programming, where the theme is tighter, and the choir auditions for specific songs. This year, the theme is "Follow Our Yellow Brick Road", and will include pieces from The Wizard of Oz, The Wiz, and of course Wicked.

Kym shares the process of creating this program, and why the choir went with this theme this year. She also highlights the program, and what favorite songs will be heard throughout the night.

Renaissance City Choir is also getting ready for it's Pride Month celebration! So many things happening, as the choir keeps expanding to almost 150 members.

Kym hopes everyone comes out to escape the news and celebrate the LGBTQ+ community with this fun cabaret. It's a not to miss event!

You can hear "Follow Our Yellow Brick Road" on April 4th and 5th at 8 pm. Livestream tickets are available!

Visit https://rccpittsburgh.com/ to learn more.

Pittsburgh Opera presents Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" March 22 through the 30th at the Benedum Center. WQED-FM's Anna Singer spoke with Stage Director Matthew Ozawa, who came up with this unique presentation of the opera.

Pittsburgh Opera presents Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" March 22 through the 30th at the Benedum Center. WQED-FM's Anna Singer spoke with Karah Son, who sings the role of Cio-Cio San.

Pittsburgh Opera presents Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" March 22 through the 30th at the Benedum Center. WQED-FM's Anna Singer spoke with Eric Taylor, who sings the role of Pinkerton.

Pittsburgh Opera presents Puccini's "Madama Butterfly" March 22 through the 30th at the Benedum Center. WQED-FM's Anna Singer spoke with Music Director Antony Walker about the production.

In one week, The Mattress Factory will have a new exhibition!

Sound and visual artist, Marc Vilanova, talks about his upcoming exhibition at the Factory. The exhibition features inaudible sound, known as infrasound. Marc recorded underground wells around the Pennsylvania area using geophones, microphones designed to capture seismic activity. His exhibition features 60 speakers projecting the sound into the space and vibrating small threads. It is all part of his vision to have the audience experience sound we cannot hear.

Marc talks about his work as a former musician turned art installation artist, and why he decided to pursue this line of work. He also talks about his previous studies as a saxophonist, and his upcoming travels across the world as he showcases his work.

He hopes people come and experience this meditative and mesmerizing work.

It's an exhibition designed for Pittsburgh!

You can see Marc's upcoming exhibition on March 28th with an opening reception from 6 pm to 8 pm. See the exhibition and meet Marc!

The exhibition will be on display until March 2026.

Visit to https://mattress.org/exhibition/9002/ learn more.

You can learn more about Marc here: https://marcvilanova.com/.

Pianist John Novacek makes his Pittsburgh solo recital debut for the Steinway Society of Western Pennsylvania!

Earlier in the year, he visited Chamber Music Pittsburgh and attended recording sessions with Pittsburgh Symphony Violist Randolph Kelly. He discusses his many recordings including "Last Kiss" and "Classic Romance II" for the Four Winds label. John also traces his career from Los Angeles to teaching at the Mannes School to New York. He suggests that he is amazed at the talent on the scene today and certain that it makes the confusing world we live in a better place.

John speaks with Jim Cunningham about his program including Schumann's Kreisleriana, the Bartok Sonata, the Bach Italian Concerto, Liszt's Liebestraum No. 3, and Rhapsodie espagnole. The concert takes place Sunday March 23rd, 3pm at the Kresge Theatre on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University.

Visit https://www.sswpa.org/ to learn more and find tickets.