Classical Music Happy Hour
Episodes
Ray Chen - superstar violinist wants you to practice
27 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Violinist and social media guru Ray Chen wraps up this season of Classical Music Happy Hour with an in-studio live performance. He chats with Manny ab...
Paquito D’Rivera -Beef, Beans and Benny (Goodman)
20 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Paquito D’Rivera is composer, saxophonist and clarinetist whose work spans classical, jazz and latin music. Born in Havana, Cuba, D’Rivera sta...
Yefim Bronfman - master of the keyboard
13 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Pianist Yefim Bronfman, “Fima,” chats with Manny about their decades-long friendship, their love of sports, their surprising anxiety around live b...
Isabel Hagen - likes a good viola joke
06 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Comedian Isabel Hagen is a classically trained violist, and a filmmaker. As a comedian, she has been featured on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallo...
Nicholas Brittel - more than that one viral theme song!
29 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The New York Times has called Nicholas Brittel: “The composer at the frontier of film music.” Britell has written scores for Hollywood movies incl...
David Hyde Pierce - a.k.a. Niles Crane
22 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Actor David Hyde Pierce has had a long career in film, television and the theater. He’s best known to listeners for his portrayal of Niles Crane o...
Jeanine Tesori - from “Fun Home” to the Met Opera
15 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Composer Jeanine Tesori is a two time Tony Award winner, a two time finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and in 2024, she became the first woman composer t...
Yo-Yo Ma - 53 years of friendship and duets
08 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Live from Tanglewood, cellist Yo-Yo Ma chats with Manny about their long musical relationship and friendship. The two treat the live audience to a f...
John McWhorter - Lover of Language
01 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Columbia University Professor of Linguistics John McWhorter, chats with Manny about swear words, Broadway, and tackles the conundrums of musical etymo...
John Adams - not the President
25 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Renowned American composer John Adams joins Manny to discuss his approach to opera composition, the stories behind his intriguingly titled works, and ...
Gabriela Ortiz - Composer and Grammy Gal
18 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Composer Gabriela Ortiz joins Manny to talk about her grandfather’s surprising connection to Mahler, her own compositional process, and her enduring...
Marc-André Hamelin - Rocks Rachmaninoff
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Composer and pianist Marc-André Hamelin joins Manny to talk about growing up with a musical father, the mechanics of piano playing, and the influence...
Yuja Wang - Superstar Pianist Plays Too Many Encores
04 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Superstar pianist Yuja Wang joins Manny Ax to talk about bad pianos, encores, what influences her musical interpretations, and her love for Prokofiev....
Introducing Classical Music Happy Hour with Manny Ax
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join renowned pianist Emanuel Ax for Classical Music Happy Hour: a new podcast full of music, merriment, and conversation. Manny (Emanuel) talks with ...
Our Common Nature Recommends: Classical Music Happy Hour
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hello Our Common Nature fans, Ana González is dropping into the feed to tell you about Classical Music Happy Hour, a new podcast you might be interes...
Ana’s Thanks, Plus the Hunt for a Long-Lost Musical Masterpiece
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Host Ana González is back to thank you all for sharing your amazing photos from our Common Nature! She is also sharing an episode from The Broadside ...
Hawai‘i: Yo-Yo Ma and the Whales
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Yo-Yo Ma has wanted to use his cello to communicate with whales for half his life. And, in Hawai’i he got a chance. With help from the Polyneisan Vo...
Hawai‘i: Yo-Yo Ma on Moloka‘i
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On the island of Molokaʻi in Hawaii, we trace the spiritual power of mana, from a sacred grove to the Kalaupapa colony, where music, story, and Yo-Yo...
West Virginia: Yo-Yo Ma and West Virginia Coal
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
West Virginia is defined by its beauty and its coal, two things that can work against each other. Yo-Yo Ma felt this as soon as stepped foot in its hi...
Alaska: Yo-Yo Ma and the Gwich’in play for the salmon
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This episode begins in Fairbanks, AK. Yo-Yo Ma is at a house concert with drag queen environmentalist Pattie Gonia, singer/songwriter Quinn Christop...
The Smokies: Mountains and Forgotten Family with Yo-Yo Ma
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the Smoky Mountains, traditions layer and intersect. Yo-Yo Ma believes that story and song can help us grapple with America’s complicated history...
Kentucky: Yo-Yo Ma and the Louisville Orchestra perform in Mammoth Cave
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A cave can hold secrets. Louisville Orchestra conductor Teddy Abrams knows that, which is why he wrote a piece for symphony orchestra to be performed ...
Acadia: Yo-Yo Ma and the Wabanaki Play for the Dawn
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The series opens with a window into the Yo-Yo universe, one where music and nature work together. Host Ana González guides us into Yo-Yo Ma’s minds...
Our Common Nature with Yo-Yo Ma: Coming Soon!
11 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When the world stopped in 2020, cellist Yo-Yo Ma started thinking about how music can reconnect people to nature. In this limited podcast series, Yo-Y...