Michelle Mercer

Film composer Ennio Morricone, known for his use of harmonica and whistling on Western scores, has re-imagined his most popular sounds with help from the Czech National Symphony Orchestra.

Freedom Jazz Dance, a new collection of outtakes from the Miles Smiles and Nefertitisessions, shows us Davis as a productive professional — a contrast to the tortured genius seen on film lately.

The pianist's new album places Latin standards at the center of instrumental jazz and offers creative experimentation with harmony and meter.

The pianist and composer left his home country seven years ago. Michelle Mercer says Rodriguez's latest album is the sound of a prodigiously talented Cuban embracing the wider world of music.

After a tour through the Upper Midwest, the trumpeter pays tribute to the Norwegian settlers' arrival on the American plains with his new album, Midwest.

NPR reviews the latest release from jazz clarinetist Anat Cohen, Luminosa.

While a number of music festivals are struggling in a down economy, Colorado has three bluegrass festivals that are selling out. And one small mountain town there is becoming the Nashville of the Rockies.

Luciana Souza's The New Bossa Nova features pop standards set to a Brazilian bossa nova beat.

Irish storyteller and folklorist Eddie Lenihan has spent 30 years collecting and telling stories. He has the largest private collection of folklore in Ireland. Lenihan travels the world on a mission to tell his tales -- and in the process, help preserve Irish culture in the modern world.

Involvement in bowling leagues, bridge clubs, and other participatory groups has declined considerably in recent decades, but community choruses have bucked the trend. Commentator Michelle Mercer has noticed the connection between singing and happiness, as she shares in this postcard from her gleeful local chorus.