Classical music lovers turn out for YourClassical MPR Happy Hour with the Havana Quartet

Week two of the Minnesota Orchestra’s Nordic Soundscapes festival brings audiences the music of Jean Sibelius and Hans Abrahamsen. Listen to the live broadcast with host Melissa Ousley at 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16, on YourClassical MPR.

Thursday night at the MacPhail Center for Music in Minneapolis, scores of classical music fans turned out for the YourClassical MPR Happy Hour, which featured hospitality and live music.

Find out how a chance meeting with the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. helped give composer and conductor Paul Freeman the resolve to make classical music more inclusive and diverse on the latest episode of the ‘Rhapsody in Black’ podcast. Listen now.

On the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ we hear music that honors sadness, grief and healing. Selections include Tamar Sagiv’s ‘Shades of Mourning,’ “Longing” from Dobrinka Tabakova’s Concerto for Cello and Strings and more. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

On the latest episode of ‘New Classical Tracks,’ cellist Dan Ryan and flutist Suzanne Stumpf, the music directors of Musicians of the Old Post Road, talk about the ensemble’s latest recording featuring music by Christoph Graupner and more. Listen now with host Julie Amacher!

Margaret Bonds dealt with racism as she broke barriers for future generations of Black women composers. Find out how the words and friendship of renowned Black novelist Langston Hughes helped her with that struggle in the latest episode of the ‘Rhapsody in Black’ podcast.

With a new year, we bring you two hours of new works on the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ and it’s hard to think of a better way to go than by focusing on the composers who are emerging as the voices taking classical music into the future: the women. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

On the latest episode of ‘New Classical Tracks,’ Icelandic pianist Víkingur Ólafsson “orbits around” Beethoven’s Opus 109 Piano Sonata on his latest project. Listen now with host Julie Amacher!

We pick the theme — you choose the variation by requesting a piece of music inspired by that theme. Our theme for January is NEW: as we begin a new year, share a new music discovery that opened your ears.

During Kwanzaa, which runs Dec. 26-Jan. 1, we celebrate African-American culture with composers that have imbued the essence of the Seven Principles in their timeless and joyous music hosted by Jeffrey Yelverton.