Earlier this month – after weeks of anticipation and an amazing amount of preparation -- 60,000 die hard fans gathered on the Great Lawn in Central Park to hear tenor Andrea Bocelli sing. There was rain off and on all day, and it was windy and cold. For some time, it wasn’t clear that the concert would actually take place.

How was it that Gershwin and Schoenberg came to enjoy a fiercely-fought tennis match each week? Why was Prokofiev so interested in the game? As the U.S. Open heats up, host Midge Woolsey considers the links.

Ten years ago on September 11, I was on the air here at WQXR from 7 p.m. until midnight. I had been called in at the last minute to cover for my colleague, June LeBell, who had been evacuated from Battery Park City to New Jersey earlier in the day. As I walked to the station that night, I remember how absolutely lost I felt. "What should I say? What should I do? How can we help?" It seemed so illogical to be playing music while television and radio stations all over the city were trying desperately to explain what had happened and to advise us about what to do next.

Last week, American pianist, Van Cliburn celebrated his 77th birthday. This came just weeks after the Russians gave Cliburn a warm welcome when he returned to their country to serve as honorary juror in the International Tchaikovsky Competition. He was a true hero "returning home" 53 years after winning the country’s premiere musical competition at the height of the Cold War.

Soprano Martina Arroyo may have stepped back from a hectic performance schedule, but she remains active in the opera community. She joins Midge Woolsey to talk about her idols, including her experiences working with Luciano Pavarotti.

Over the years, some of the most popular questions we've fielded here at WQXR have to do to do with old record collections – especially 78’s.  Can the records be sold? Can they be given to schools… or libraries? Surely there must be a place of honor for these cherished musical memories that have been preserved with such loving care. After all, some fabulous performances risk being forgotten forever if the records are simply discarded, right? And what about the ongoing "quality" discussion? I mean, do LP's actually sound better than CDs or downloads?     

Have you ever been to a free concert at The Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park? If you haven’t, you should plan to go before the summer is over. It’s one of most unique experiences New York has to offer.

With the first-ever Gilbert and Sullivan sing-along taking place at Symphony Space and Caramoor kicking off its summer season with H.M.S. Pinafore, Naomi Lewin and Midge Woolsey talk about the timeless charm of the dynamic operetta duo.

Host Midge Woolsey reminisces about hosting Carnegie Hall's 100th anniversary celebration.

On the WQXR blog, Midge Woolsey ponders why it's important to keep creating new classical works: "After all, there’s a lot of old music out there so why not work on making good with that and forget about creating anything new?"

On the WQXR blog, Midge Woolsey observes: "These days, all sorts of performers are willing to go out on a limb and give singing a try – some to good effect, and others not."

I had a really interesting time talking with Jake Heggie recently in The Greene Space here at WQXR. Jake is the composer who first hit the scene in a big way with the San Francisco premiere of his opera Dead Man Walking which he wrote with the playwright Terrence McNally. That was over ten years ago. Since then, the opera has played all over the world. He has written several other operas including Moby Dick, which premiered last year at the Dallas Opera with Ben Heppner as Captain Ahab.

"Those of us who love and value classical music are in the minority," writes Midge Woolsey. "We'll always be fighting an uphill battle when it comes to protecting our interests." But it's a battle worth fighting.

Hey, musical theater fans! I know, I know -- WQXR is a classical music station. But this morning I had the sound of Broadway on my mind, and I came into the office singing a song from a classic piece of American musical theater: Brigadoon, the 1947 Lerner and Lowe show about the enchanted Scottish village that appears every hundred years for only one day.

Midge Woolsey wonders, "is youth is the magic bullet for what ails orchestras right now? Do today's young conductors have what it takes to live up to the hype?"

Speaking of Mozart and his 255th birthday, do you remember the Milos Forman film Amadeus? Just for fun, let’s imagine a remake of the movie and a brand new cast. Whom would you choose to play Mozart? How about Salieri? And what about Mozart’s wife, Constanze?

The Austin, TX choir Conspirare, arrives in New York this week. Midge Woolsey praises their "beautiful voices" and calls them "dedicated people who understand the power in the word 'ensemble.'"

Midge Woolsey considers the career of Vladimir Horowitz, "a man who overcame great emotional challenges to bring classical music lovers some of the most thrilling performances of his day."

Of Beethoven's popularity, Midge Woolsey asks: "Is it name recognition or familiar melodies? Shouldn’t we think about giving one of the other guys a shot at the top?"

Midge Woolsey observes: I've received several notices about this YouTube clip of people in a Canadian mall breaking out into a performance of the Hallelujah chorus. I'm not exactly sure why, but I'm wiping the tears from my eyes.