MPR Hero Stories

What is a piece of classical music that makes you feel good whenever you hear it? Share it with YourClassical MPR.

Anthony McGill is the principal clarinetist of the New York Philharmonic, the first Black musician to hold a principal chair in the orchestra’s history. He has used the platform to promote racial equity in classical music. Find out more on the ‘Rhapsody in Black’ podcast.

Pianist Alice Sara Ott recently returned to Iceland to record the music of Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. The resulting record features some of Jóhannsson’s orchestral works reimagined for solo piano, including some of his film scores. Listen now with host Julie Amacher.

St. Paul Chamber Orchestra Artistic Partner Gábor Takács-Nagy returns for another consecutive season finale leading the orchestra in a program that touches on many of its 2025-26 season themes, including the idea of music and art as hope and light. Listen to the concert now!

‘Extra Eclectic’ continues our time at the 2026 BBC Proms Festival this week with Welsh composer Gwilym Simcock’s Triple Concerto for Saxophone, Horn and Cello performed by the soloists who premiered it: Jess Gillam, Ben Goldscheider and Sheku Kanneh-Mason. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

Sheik had been best known for his lasting radio hit “Barely Breathing” when he turned his sights on Broadway with “Spring Awakening,” resulting in the envelope-pushing show that musicalized teenage angst.

Jeff Scott’s 2024 Grammy-nominated oratorio is full of inspiration from Johann Sebastian Bach and jazz legend John Coltrane. ‘Passion for Bach and Coltrane’ with the Imani Winds is an innovative and surprising confluence of classical and jazz. Listen now with host Toyin Spellman-Diaz in celebration of Coltrane’s 100th anniversary!

Randall Goosby has been playing violin since he was seven, including studying with legendary violinist Itzhak Perlman, and the trajectory of his career shows no signs of slowing down. Find out more in the latest episode of the ‘Rhapsody in Black’ podcast.

Concert Master Steven Copes and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra join pianist and composer Stephen Prutsman for a new project that takes works by Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev and reimagines them for chamber orchestra. Listen now with host Julie Amacher.

This summer, the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies (GTCYS) wowed audiences during its New Zealand and Australia tour. Listen to the ensemble’s send-off concert — recorded at Orchestra Hall and hosted by Steve Staruch — from this past June.