Voice of the Arts

Have you ever been to a Pittsburgh basement? Have you ever seen a band perform in one? In this continuing series of finding venues outside the traditional box office, our intern Oliver Arner found a spot in the basement of a mansion on Chatham University's campus. The Rea Coffeehouse has been a student-run music venue since the school acquired the building in 1967. Oliver talks with Rea Coffeehous...

The Pittsburgh Symphony Association will be hosting a Garden Tour in Fox Chapel this weekend! Marketing member of the Association, Jean Horne, and one of Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra's first violinists, Irene Cheng, talk about the Garden Tour with Anna Singer. Jean highlights the 8 private gardens featured in the tour, with some as large as 15 acres. One garden is Smithsonian-certified as a museu...

For the 3rd year in a row, Blairsville is showcasing classical music in its own Chamber Music Festival! Co-organizer of the festival, Avital Mazor, cellist Gabriel Martins, and pianist Sunmi Han, talk about the festival's program. The musical festival started during the pandemic, when Avi and his wife started organizing concerts in their neighborhood in Blairsville. Since then, they have expanded...

Visit https://www.pittsburghpa.gov/Recreation-Events/Events/Concerts/Bach-Beethoven-and-Brunch for the full schedule.  Find more information about Cello Fury here.   Thanks for tuning in to WQED's Voice of the Arts, Pittsburgh's trusted source for arts and culture in our region. Whether you're passionate about classical music, film, theater, opera, or local music, we’re here to bring you closer to...

The Organ Artists Series of Pittsburgh will present Caroline Robinson Sunday June 22, 2025 at 4pm at St. Paul Cathedral in Oakland. She joined the faculty at the University of Michigan in 2024. With Fulbright support, Dr. Robinson studied in Toulouse after spending four years working on her degree from the Curtis Institute studying with Alan Morrison whose mom, Jeanine Morrison, was the duo piano...

It is Pride Month in Pittsburgh! Artistic Director of Renaissance City Choir, Kym Scott, talks about their upcoming Pride Concert, #THIS IS ME. Kym talks about the spirit of the concert, celebrating the LGBTQIA+ community in Pittsburgh, and reflecting on the importance of never going back. She highlights the program, which includes "This is Me" from the Greatest Showman, "Born This Way" by Lady Ga...

Josh Axelrod, the Director of Communications and Media at the Lindsay Theater, is back once again to talk about another joint event with WQED! Lindsay Theater is screening part of "Caregiving" a new PBS documentary that explores the frontlines of the caregiving movement. Executive produced by Bradley Cooper, this film shares intimate stories of individuals taking care of loved ones. It focuses on...

There is a new exhibit at the Children's Museum this summer! The Senior Director for the Center of Creative Experiences at the Children's Museum, Anne Fullenkamp, talks about the "I am Wild: A Charley Harper Exhibit" at the museum. The exhibit celebrates Charley Harper, a beloved mid-century modern artist known for his vibrant nature illustrations. He has had his work in Golden Book Illustrations,...

Who doesn't love a good murder mystery? The Summer Company, affiliated with Duquesne University, is performing an East Coast premiere of Agatha Christie's "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd". Director Heather Ruppert, and lead actor playing Dr. James Sheppard, Frank Schurter, talk about the upcoming production. Founded in the 1990's, The Summer Company produces classic, adapted classics, and original wo...

The Pittsburgh Public Theater is hosting it's last work of the 2024-2025 season, an adaptation of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night! Director of the show, Marya Sea Kaminski, talks about the production. Marya discusses the genesis of this idea, dating back to when she worked with The Public Theater in New York City on their Public Works program. Based on their free Shakespeare in the Park model, the Pub...

BETA Quartet is visiting Blackwood Arts on June 22nd for a night of profound music! Three of it's members, Dr. Cassandra Eisenreich, Tatianna Cassetta, and Dr. Eftihia Arkoudis, talk about their upcoming concert. BETA Quartet is an award-winning ensemble who reimagine the flute quartet with transformative music that explores improve, beat-boxing, and many other art forms. The group was first forme...

You can hear the New Ground Orchestra Festival's public performance on July 25th at 7:30 pm at the Penn State School of Music Recital Hall.   Visit their Instagram to learn more.  Thanks for tuning in to WQED's Voice of the Arts, Pittsburgh's trusted source for arts and culture in our region. Whether you're passionate about classical music, film, theater, opera, or local music, we’re here to bring...

Aria412 is presenting a new opera, "The Blue Fairy". Composer Robert Frankenberry, soprano Jenna Ziccardi, and co-founder Desiree Soteres, talks about the production. Jenna plays the Blue Fairy, and Robert plays Pinocchio. The 70-minute opera is a unique take on the Pinocchio story. A human Pinocchio wishes to return into a puppet, but cannot until he becomes truly human by shedding a single tear....

There are lots of things going on at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History! Director of the museum and Vice President of Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Gretchen Baker, talks with Jim Cunningham in this wide ranging interview. Gretchen is the first female director of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. She previously was at the Field Museum in Chicago, and the Natural History Museums in LA. G...

Prime Stage Theatre is doing another Cemetery Walk! This time in June! Producing Artistic Director, Wayne Brinda, and PR Director Lawrence McCullough, talk about the upcoming event. This year, the Cemetery Walk will be at Allegheny Cemetery, and feature a variety of different people. Wayne highlights the progression from Homewood to Allegheny, and why they are doing it in June and in the fall this...

Acclaimed violist and soloist, Patricia McCarty, has a new collaboration album with Bill Zito out called "Crossings". Anna Singer talks with Patricia by phone about the albums origin, repertoire, and her approach to the whole project. Patricia talks about first meeting Bill Zito at a concert venue in the Adirondacks. During the COVID-19 pandemic, their collaboration grew! They decided to explore a...

There is a new theater producer in Pittsburgh! Hailing from Orlando, Florida, producer and director Jeremy Seghers and actor Sam Lander talk about their upcoming performance of "The Trial" by Franz Kafka. Jeremy talks about how this newer adaptation of Kafka's novel found him, and why he decided to produce it as his first production in Pittsburgh. Jeremy also talks about the history of the novel o...

A new Opera company in Pittsburgh, Thousand Bridges Opera, is celebrating Pride Month this weekend! Co-Founders Alicia Jayourba, Bridget Johnston, and singer Emily Gallagher, talk with Anna Singer about their upcoming double-feature weekend. The double-feature contains a PA premiere of "Meow and Forever", and "Daphnis et Chloe". "Meow and Friends" is a romantic comedy opera about a woman, her new...

CitiPark's Bach, Beethoven, and Brunch is starting soon! The Pittsburgh Youth Concert Orchestra (PYCO) is starting it off on June 22nd. Executive Director of PYCO, Pablo Ardiles, and three students, Bailey Nolan (violin), Ainsley Anderson (viola), and Kyronessa Avotri (cello), talk about the concert. Bach, Beethoven, and Brunch is a free Sunday morning concert series at Mellon Park with live class...

The Pittsburgh Youth Chorus (PYC) is hosting an upcoming concert as a fundraiser to support their scholarship fund! Anna Singer talks with PYC's Executive Director, Lee Saville-Iksic, opera singer Marianne Cornetti, and former Pittsburgh Pirates player Steven Brault, about the upcoming Gala Fundraiser. The Pittsburgh Youth Chorus serves about 180 students annually, with camps, festivals, and conce...

It's that time of year again for Marianne Cornetti and Friends Benefit Concert! Opera singer Marianne Cornetti talks with Anna Singer about her upcoming Benefit Concert and Art Auction on Sunday, June 8th. This year's concert will feature Joe Serafini, Kevin Glavin, Megan Cumming, Flavio Chamis, the Zallo Sisters, and many more! The event will support the Making Minds Matter Fund at UPMC Western B...

Celebrating Juneteenth, Anqwenique will sing for Chamber Music Pittsburgh in the Pittsburgh Performs Voices of Pittsburgh series! Anqwenique talks with Jim Cunningham about the music on the program including Errol Garner's Misty with new lyrics. The program also includes music by Jessie Montgomery, Daniel Bernard Roumain, Cecile McLorin Salvant, and Nicole Mitchell. Anqwenique updates Jim about he...

You can see the premiere of "Steel Links" at the Lindsay Theater on Monday, June 9th at 7 pm.   Visit https://thelindsaytheater.org/films/steel-links/ to get tickets.   To learn more about WQED's Steel Links, visit https://www.wqed.org/steel-links/ . Thanks for tuning in to WQED's Voice of the Arts, Pittsburgh's trusted source for arts and culture in our region. Whether you're passionate about cla...

There is plenty to see at the Indiana County Art Studio Tour (ICAST) this weekend! Artists, Janice Trusky Clay, and her husband, Dr. Vaughan Clay, talk with Jim Cunningham about the tour. Janice highlights the eight Indiana County artists in the two day free Studio Tour. Janice discusses the studios on the tour, which are accessible on the website's map. Dr. Vaughan talks about his and Janice's wo...

The final concert of the Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh on Saturday May 31st at 7:30 in Levy Hall of Rodef Shalom Temple brought conductor Edward Leonard and soloist Anne Moskal, the Orchestra's Concertmaster with Executive Director Andrew Swenson to the QED Morning Show with Jim Cunningham where they described  the Ellen Zwilich Violin Concerto and it's special quality along with the Fourth Symp...