Never On-The-Air

Pipedreams, hosted by Michael Barone, spotlights extraordinary instruments and performers in stirring works that display the variety and wonder of the pipe organ. The program has been a classical music staple on public radio for more than 30 years. Each two-hour program features a theme such as a particular performer, organ maker, composer, or period in time.

Now you can listen to PipeDreams anywhere and at anytime: current programs and archives are available online and are as near as any smartphone, tablet, laptop, or computer.

America's Test Kitchen is a real 2,500 square foot test kitchen located just outside of Boston that is home to more than three-dozen full-time cooks, editors, food scientists, tasters, and cookware specialists. Their mission is simple: to develop the absolute best recipes for all of your favorite foods. To do this, they test each recipe 30, 40, sometimes as many as 70 times, until they arrive at the combination of ingredients, technique, temperature, cooking time, and equipment that yields the best, most-foolproof recipe.

Ten years after the terrorist attacks of September 11th,  as part of WNYC's "Decade: 9/11" coverage, this special explores New Yorkers' most visceral and immediate emotional reactions to the attack on the World Trade Center and how they are - and are not -- still with us today.

Actor Alec Baldwin is best known in public radio circles as host of The New York Philharmonic broadcasts (Sunday afternoons at 1 pm on Classical 88.7-1) and for his tongue-in-cheek rants urging listeners to not contribute during fund drives.

One of our favorite podcasts is his new series of Here's The Thing interviews from WNYC in New York. Alec takes us inside the dressing rooms, apartments, and offices of people whom he really wants to learn more about.

As the first day of Autumn approaches on September 22, it's time to take stock of highlights of the Summer of 2012 - in sound. Here's a playlist of some of the best of Summer-themed public radio stories and music from around the country. 

Let us know what was the sound highlight of your Summer.

Listen to the Sounds of Summer

Music Mountain is the home of the oldest continuing summer chamber music festival in this country. Founded in 1930 as the permanent home for the Gordon String Quartet, one of the leading string quartets of its time, Music Mountain celebrates its 83nd anniversary in 2012.

Listen online to Music Mountain's series of 16 complete chamber music concerts, recorded live in Falls Village, Connecticut.

For the lover of choral music, Minnesota Public Radio offers a 24/7 online stream of choral music, a public-broadcasting first.

Professional, college, and church choirs can be heard singing selections "from Palestrina to Pärt, spirituals to Schubert." The featured ensembles include VocalEssence, Cantus, St. Olaf Choir, Choral Arts Ensemble and the National Lutheran Choir, drawn from Minnesota's choral talent.

Listen Online 24/7

American Graduate: Let’s Make It Happen is a public media initiative, supported by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), to help students stay on the path to graduation and future success. Public broadcasting has a long history improving educational outcomes for high-need students and communities. The dropout crisis demands attention now, and we are rising to the challenge of doing our part to address this problem.

There was a time when many of us in radio would spend evenings turning knobs on shortwave receivers filled with glowing tubes, staining over the static to hear exotic music and news broadcast in foreign languages.

OK; so highlights from one of the "The World's Greatest Classical Music Festival" are sometimes heard over Classical 88.7-1, but never the entire annual event. Here's a fantastic front-row seat to the BBC Proms, live from Royal Albert Hall in London, as close as your computer, smartphone, or tablet.