Voice of the Arts
Insights and anecdotes from musicians, dancers, artists, actors and directors, as well as audience response.
Episodes
Celebrate the grand finale of TRYPO’s season at Heinz Hall on Saturday, May 23rd at 7:00pm! Music Director Brian Worsdale stopped by the WQED-FM studio to chat with Anna Singer about the concert.
Classical QED's Jim Cunningham will host the evening, which brings together all of TRYPO's large ensembles! Brian talks about the program, which includes works by Arturo Márquez, Saint-Saëns, and Frank Ticheli, and concludes with Shostakov...
Pianist Chaeyoung Park makes her Pittsburgh debut on Sunday, May 17 at 3:00pm at the Kresge Theater at Carnegie Mellon University for the Steinway Society of Western Pennsylvania.
She explains in this conversation with Jim Cunningham how she put together Beethoven's Tempest Sonata with Ravel's La Valse as a combination of the storm with dance, adding Spanish pieces by Albeniz, Granados and Mompou plus Olivier Messaien. Chaeyoung wa...
The Lindsay Theater has an upcoming screening of Robert Cochrane's Boys of Summer: Short Stop, the third installment of his documentary series chronicling precious time spent with his father, Dan Cochrane, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2001. Robert joined Jim Cunningham from California to talk about the film.
For this screening, the Lindsay is partnering with the Parkinson Foundation Western Pennsylvania, for which ...
The Millvale Music Festival takes place this weekend, May 15th & 16th! Anna Singer spoke with collaborators for concerts taking place at St. Nicholas Croatian Church about the festival's classical music programming.
St. Nicholas is the home of the murals of Maxo Vanka. Becky Gaugler, Director of Education for the Society to Preserve the Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka, talks about the ongoing restoration of the murals and the church'...
Phipps Conservatory opens their new show, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, this weekend! Associate Director of Exhibits Jordyn Melino stopped by to chat with Anna Singer live on the QED Afternoon Show about the exhibit.
Jordyn takes Anna through the process of bringing an exhibit to life. She started thinking about Alice in Wonderland two years ago, planning how to transform the original Lewis Carrol illustrations into plant sculp...
Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures recently announced its 2026-2027 season! Executive Director Sony Ton-Aime joined Anna Singer live on the QED Afternoon Show to talk about the series and other upcoming lectures.
There are four upcoming June lectures, featuring Winchester Thurston alum Alec Karakatsanis, Michael Lowenthal (Place Envy), Lisa Olszak Zumstein (The Brady's Bend Flood of 1980), and Isaac Fitzgerald (American Rambler). The first...
The Grand Teton Music Festival Orchestra recently released a new recording of Mahler's Fifth Symphony! Music Director Sir Donald Runnicles joined Jim Cunningham from Berlin to talk about the CD.
Sir Donald discusses the orchestra's high caliber, the involvement of musicians from various major orchestras including Pittsburgh, and the evolution of the festival's recording agenda, highlighting the partnership with Reference Recordings...
QED's Jim Cunningham ventured to City of Asylum's campus to speak with their recently appointed Executive Director, Andrés Franco, about his transition, the organization's mission, and their 2026 Jazz Poetry programming.
Andrés previously served as the organization's Executive Director from 2020-2023, and comes back to City of Asylum after wrapping up his role as Executive Director of Attack Theatre. He recounts the story of the gl...
The North Hills Chorale has their 2026 spring concert this weekend at St. Vincent Hall at the Vincentian Learning and Engagement Institute. The choir's manager Tara Berdik speaks with Jim Cunningham about their program, "America in Harmony, 250 Years of Song."
Featured on the program are American favorites, including the Star-Spangled Banner, God Bless America, and Shenandoah. Tara's favorite is "The Midnight Ride Paul Revere," a s...
Beth Corning, Artistic Director, choreographer, and performer for Corningworks, presents the latest installment of her Glue Factory Projects, Foolish Assumptions. Beth sat down with Anna Singer to speak about the production.
The Glue Factory Projects are original productions created by Beth that feature dancers over 40 years old. Foolish Assumptions examines the "foolish assumptions" we as people make about each other. Beth stars i...
The Bach Choir recently wrapped up their 2025-2026 season with "Oscar Nods!" Assistant Director Jon Erik Schreiber and Choir President Tybe Brett spoke with Anna Singer live on the QED Afternoon Show about their upcoming event, Sing Democracy 250.
Sing Democracy 250 is a national choral odyssey commemorating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. It will feature performances by choir across the cou...
Ginger Brooks Takahashi is the only Pittsburgh-based artist that will be featured in the 59th Carnegie International! WQED Digital Correspondent Nick Tommarello ventured down to the Carnegie Museum of Art to speak with Ginger about her International exhibition.
Ginger's work for the exhibition includes a garden of perilla frutescens, a plant in the mint family that is a staple of Japanese and Korean cuisine. Through her art, she ex...
Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh have commissioned a new piece for their 2026 season finale concert! Composer Trevor Weston, Artistic Director Edward Leonard, and Executive Director Andrew Swensen sat down with Anna Singer live on the QED Afternoon Show to talk about the program.
Trevor speaks about his piece, Steel City Sounds, which draws inspiration from August Wilson, Billy Strayhorn, and Franco Harris's Immaculate Reception. Th...
Christine Brondyke, Executive Director of the Sweetwater Center for the Arts in Sewickley, stopped by the WQED-FM studio to chat with Anna Singer about the organization.
Sweetwater celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, and it continues to be the epicenter of Northwest Pittsburgh's arts community. Christine talks about their recent move into the old Sewickley post office, their new brand campaign, and their mission as a nonprof...
SERIO has an upcoming production of Gaetano Donizetti's opera, Don Pasquale, opening May 8th! Founder Louisa Jonason, director Rebecca Kerr, and tenor George Milosh sat down with Anna Singer live on the QED Afternoon Show to talk about the show.
Louisa, who will be leading the production from the keyboard, explains her history with Don Pasquale and praises the cast's talents. George is returning to SERIO after appearing in their pr...
Prime Stage Theatre will present the world premiere of the stage adaptation of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson. Playwright Tammy Ryan sat down with Melissa Black to talk about the show.
Speak follows Melinda, a teenage girl who struggles with sexual assault and uses art to find her voice. Tammy talks about adapting the story for the stage, working with the production's director, Dana Hardy Bingham, and how the cast of young actors h...
The 59th Carnegie International, If the word we, opens this weekend on Saturday, May 2nd and will run until January 3rd, 2027. Senior Director of Marketing and Communications for the Art and History Museums Stefanie Cedro Mohr and Carnegie Museum of Art Director of Education and Public Programming Dana Bishop-Root spoke with Jim Cunningham live on the QED Morning Show about the exhibition.
Dana explains the meaning of the exhibitio...
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