2700 F St.: Sherrie Maricle and the DIVA Jazz Orchestra: Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
Move over “Silent Night,” Sherrie Maricle and her DIVAs are in town.
Jazz, Musical Instruments

2700 F St.: Harlem Quartet: Performance/Demonstration
What do you think about when you picture a string quartet? Well, Harlem Quartet wants to shake that image up.
Music, Musical Instruments, America, Young Artists

2700 F St.: Wild Lines: Jane Ira Bloom Plays Emily Dickinson
Jane Ira Bloom is a soprano saxophonist and composer who’s been pushing the boundaries of jazz for more than 40 years.
Composers, Musical Instruments, Jazz, Poetry

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Let's Remix The Classics
What would the classics sound like with a hip-hop beat? Join the National Symphony Orchestra and two guest musicians to find out!
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Open Rehearsal: Christoph Eschenbach with Ray Chen and Adriana Horne
Violinist Ray Chen and harpist Adriana Horne join the NSO to explore three classical symphonies.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Time for Three: A Performance and Demonstration
Meet Time for Three, the young string ensemble who knows no musical boundaries. They play it all from classical to hip-hop and everything in-between.
Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Matthew Whitaker: A Performance and Demonstration
At age 14, jazz, gospel, and R&B keyboardist Matthew Whitaker, who happens to be blind, is quickly becoming one of the most promising young talents in jazz music today.
Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Enso String Quartet: A Performance and Demonstration
Known for their high-energy performances and musical versatility, the Enso String Quartet has proven they are much more than your average chamber music group.
Musical Instruments, Music

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Lights! Canvas! Music!
You've heard of paint by numbers, right? Well, get ready to paint by music! Speed painter Dan Dunn joins the National Symphony Orchestra to turn your favorite music into visual works of art.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassic: The String Thing
Two musicians. Two string instruments. No words, but lots of music…and maybe a playful disagreement or two. Get ready for plenty of great music and madcap musical fun!
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassic: Fancy That!
Discover the secrets for making music even more interesting and how it can change the way it makes people feel.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Stefon Harris & Sonic Creed: A Performance and Demonstration
Get to know jazz vibraphonist Stefon Harris and his electric groove-base band, Sonic Creed, as they explore the different techniques musicians use to personalize their music and create their own unique sound.
Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Cuesheet: NSO YPC: Inspiration!
The music of great composers has been inspired by books, plays, poetry, travel, nature, politics, friends, and even the neighbor’s dog!
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: A “Sleepy Hollow”-een
Join the NSO for a music-filled reimagining of Washington Irving’s classic ghost story about the fabled Headless Horseman, plus plenty of other Halloween surprises!
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassic: Break It Down!
Just like a building made of blocks, music is made with different parts. Explore how music and even musical instruments break down and come together to make amazing music.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Celebrating Great Women of Jazz: Performance/Demonstration
Contemporary jazz artists come together to honor and celebrate three music legends: Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, and Joni Mitchell.
Musical Instruments, Music, Jazz

Cuesheet: Ronald K. Brown/Evidence with Jason Moran and The Bandwagon: Working Rehearsal
Kennedy Center Artistic Director for Jazz Jason Moran and celebrated choreographer Ronald K. Brown bring together their respective ensembles—Brown’s Evidence, A Dance Company and Moran’s Bandwangon jazz trio—for a performance of dance and live music.
Musical Instruments, Music, Jazz, Dance

Cuesheet: Peter and the Wolf in Hollywood
Once upon a time, Peter and the Wolf was a musical tale about a Russian boy who helps catch a wolf. This version features Peter’s tale with tons of twists. For starters, instead of cold, snowy Russia, the story now happens in sunny Hollywood, California.
Family, Animals, Composers, Folklore, Musical Instruments, Orchestra

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Joshua Bell in The Man with the Violin
Imagine a subway station. A man in plain clothes takes out his violin and begins to play beautiful music. Hundreds of people rush by in a hurry to get to school or work. Do you think anyone stops to listen?
Music, Musical Instruments, Music Legends

Cuesheet: NSO Music For Young Audiences: Follow That Fiddle
Get ready for an amazing journey through history and around the world as we follow the fiddle’s musical trail. Musician Glenn Donnellan, who plays the violin (er, fiddle) with the National Symphony Orchestra, will guide you and explain how the fiddle makes its sound.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Music For Young Audiences: Catch The Vibe
“Vibes” is short for vibrations, those little movements that make sound. Hear some big sounds with NSO musicians Stephen Dumaine and Eric Shin, who introduce the tuba and a bunch of percussion instruments.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Music For Young Audiences: Close Your Eyes… Now Open Your Ears!
Music can be lots of fun, especially when you really listen to it, like when you close your eyes and let your ears do the work. In this performance, you will learn how to open your ears to the wonders of music with the help of three musicians and music teacher Madam Mavis Pugh—and a very special song.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Time for Three: A Performance and Demonstration (2015)
Meet Time for Three, the young string ensemble who knows no musical boundaries. They play it all from classical to hip-hop and everything in-between.
Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Connections: Science & Math + Music
Calling all math nerds, science geeks, and music lovers! Join NSO musicians for a fun and surprising look at how math, science, and music connect to one another.
Musical Instruments, Orchestra, Music

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Casey at the Bat
The NSO gears up for Spring Training with this fun program inspired by America’s favorite pastime. The highlight of the program is Principal Pops Conductor Steven Reineke’s baseball composition set to the famous poem "Casey at the Bat."
Music, Musical Instruments, Sports, Poetry

Cuesheet: Imani Winds: Performance/Demonstration
Join classical woodwind ensemble Imani Winds as they explore the topics of rhythm and melody, the building blocks of music.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Antonio Hart Organ Trio: A Performance and Demonstration
Innovative jazz musician Antonio Hart, bandleader of the Antonio Hart Organ Trio, explores the different techniques musicians use to create their own unique musical styles.
Musical Instruments, Music, Jazz

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassic: Beethoven at the Ballpark!
Find out what baseball and music have in common. You’ll see how numbers play their part, how music adds drama to America’s favorite pastime, and how musicians hit the spot on an instrument, just like players do on the field.
Music, Musical Instruments, Sports, Poetry, Composers, Music Legends

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert with Magic Circle Mime Company: The Magic Horn
A traveling adventurer named Sahara Bob visits the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) to show the conductor (and you!) some ancient instruments. But Bob just might be hiding a magical secret…
Music, Musical Instruments, Folklore

Cuesheet: NSO Open Rehearsal: Christoph Eschenbach and NSO Cellists
This program features the cello, the second largest instrument in the string family. Composers have recognized the instrument’s unique, deeper, human-like voice—perfect for telling musical stories, especially of love, longing, and loss.
Music, Musical Instruments, Music Legends

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Gershwin's Magic Key
Step into the 1920s’ streets of New York City, where a poor newspaper boy who loves music has a chance encounter with the famous composer George Gershwin.
Music, Musical Instruments, Music Legends, Composers

Cuesheet: Katie Ernst: Little Words: A Performance and Demonstration
Find out what jazz and poetry have in common with jazz music’s triple-threat Katie Ernst, a bassist, vocalist, and composer who brings the poetry of 1920s American writer Dorothy Parker to life in the original program Little Words.
Music, Jazz, Musical Instruments, Poetry, Young Artists

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Halloween Whodunit
There’s a mystery in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall! Join the NSO for a frightfully fun, music-filled whodunit
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassics: Musical Opposites
Music is full of opposites. Join four musicians from the NSO to explore the different types of opposites and how they are able to make music to our ears.
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO YPC: Exploring Extremes: Music to the Max!
When it comes to creating music, composers like to push the limits. Get ready to hear how!
Music, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: Chris Brubeck's Triple Play: Performance/Demonstration
Join bandleader Chris Brubeck and his high-energy ensemble, Triple Play, to explore the history and evolution of America’s music—the blues.
Music, Jazz, Musical Instruments, Poetry, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Dizzy Gillespie™ Afro Cuban Experience: Performance/Demonstration
The Dizzy Gillespie™ Afro Cuban Experience is a jazz ensemble working to continue the legacy of the great jazz master John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie.
Music, Jazz, Musical Instruments, Poetry, Young Artists

Cuesheet: NSO Teddy Bear Concerts 2014-15
The 2014-15 season’s Teddy Bear Concerts invite the youngest of music lovers (and their favorite stuffed animal) to join in fun, interactive performances with musicians from the NSO.
Music, Family, Musical Instruments, Orchestra

Cuesheet: Lewis Nash Quintet: Fascinating Rhythm—Wonderful Sounds
Meet celebrated jazz drummer and bandleader Lewis Nash and explore the range of rhythms and instrumental sounds in jazz music.
Music, Jazz, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Peter and the Wolf
“Boys like me are not afraid of wolves!” says Peter to his grandfather. But when one actually wanders out of the woods, what will Peter do to save his animal friends?
Animals, Folklore, Musical Instruments, Music, Composers, Orchestra

Cuesheet: NSO Family Concert: Mozart's Magnificent Voyage
Mozart’s young son longs to leave school and spend more time with his famous father. When he finds a magic traveling trunk, his wish comes true as he’s swept back in time to Mozart’s childhood and opera The Magic Flute.
Music, Family, Musical Instruments, Orchestra

Cuesheet: Terence Blanchard Group: A Performance and Demonstration
Meet Blue Note artist Terence Blanchard, a multi-Grammy Award®–winning jazz trumpeter, bandleader, arranger, and composer.
Music, Jazz, Musical Instruments

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderclassics: Bears, Bears Everywhere!
It’s a big bear world out there! This concert takes a peek at these adorable creatures and the sounds of their homelands—music as unique as they are. Join NSO musicians and a special guest storyteller for a performance that assembles a wild combination of instruments to create music from around the world.
Music, Family, Musical Instruments, Orchestra

Cuesheet: Enso String Quartet: Performance & Demonstration
Known for their high-energy performances and musical versatility, the Enso String Quartet has proven they are much more than your average chamber music group. Get to know them as they perform a wide range of musical styles, and discuss how music is created and why it affects us as listeners.
Music, Musical Instruments, Orchestra, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Time for Three: A Performance and Demonstration (2014)
Meet Time for Three, the young string ensemble who knows no musical boundaries. They play it all from classical to hip-hop and everything in-between.
Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Cuesheet: Connections: Music Matters
What do earthquakes, sports cars, and memories have in common? Music, of course! Join NSO musicians to discover the connections and explore why music matters.
Musical Instruments, Orchestra, Music

Cuesheet: NSO Kinderkonzert: Presto! The Case of the Vanishing Viola
Oh no, a musician’s viola has been stolen! Could the culprit be the magician next door? Join Presto!—a string trio—to follow the clues and crack the case.
Musical Instruments, Orchestra, Music

Series: Hip-Hop: A Culture of Vision and Voice
Hip-hop is global, lapping on every shore and landing at every airport. But what does Hip-Hop mean?
Hip-Hop, Young Artists, Dance, Dance Legends, Choreographers, Innovators & Pioneers, Musical Instruments, Music, Poetry, Visual Arts

Collection: Native American Cultures
Experience traditional Native American culture through dance, music and visual arts. Watch Native Pride the eagle and hoop dances, trace the life of a Navajo weaver, learn how Keith Bear makes a flute, make a listening doll, and meet fancy dancers Larry and Jessup Yazzie.
America, Geography, Folklore, Dance, Musical Instruments, Music, World Cultures

Collection: Great Composers
Get inside the mind of a composer-- from a popular song, to a Broadway musical, to a symphony, how does a composer write music?
Composers, Jazz, Innovators & Pioneers, Musical Instruments, Music, Music Legends, Opera, Orchestra, Popular Culture

Collection: Japan
Larger-than-life calligraphy, giant bamboo weaving, and robots both real and toy... experience the vibrant diversity of the arts across Japan.
Japan, Asia, Backstage, Cartoons, Comics, & Animation, Fashion, Innovators & Pioneers, Musical Instruments, Inventions, Language, Music, Popular Culture, Visual Arts, World Cultures

Collection: Classical Music Resources
Booming orchestras, teeming concert halls, obsessive composers, and prodigal musicians – classical music is anything but boring. Learn how Beethoven continued to pen symphonies while going deaf, discover the science behind the instrument and the math behind the music, and explore the ways in which music and emotion go hand-in-hand.
Composers, Europe, Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra

Collection: Acoustics & Sound
How do composers "hear" outer space? How did Beethoven compose music when he couldn't hear? Browse lessons and multimedia that explore the art and science of the world of sound around us.
Innovators & Pioneers, Musical Instruments, Inventions, Math, Music, Science, Space

Article: Strike Up the Band: Creating Homemade Instruments
Make musical instruments by using recycled materials from your house
Family, Music, Musical Instruments, Young Artists

Article: Performing Under Pressure
Help your child master the excitement and stress of music competitions
Young Artists, Music, Orchestra, Musical Instruments

Article: Child's Play or Real Ambition?
How to connect your child with the performing arts
Young Artists, Family, Ballet, Dance, Musical Instruments, Music, Opera, Theater

Article: Do Tell: Giving Feedback to Your Students
How can arts educators provide engaging and useful feedback? Here are seven suggestions to get you started
Education, Young Artists, Musical Instruments, Theater, Literature, Music, Poetry, Ballet, Dance

Tipsheet: Thinking Outside the Test
Introduction to performance assessment, which provides educators with "real-world" arts assessment strategies
Education, Young Artists, Visual Arts, Dance, Musical Instruments, Poetry

Article: When Music Goes Marching to War
Explore music’s important role in the American Civil War. Includes activities for the classroom
America, Composers, History, Musical Instruments, Music, Tragedy

Article: Rhythm and Raga
Learn how to incorporate and teach Indian music in your classroom
India, Musical Instruments, Music, World Cultures

Grade 5 Lesson: Haunting Music
Learn about orchestral “program music” inspired by the spooky and bizarre
Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Folklore

Grades K-2 Lesson: Making Rain
In this lesson, students experience rain through several activities, experiments, reading, and performing
Musical Instruments, Nature, World Cultures, Latin America, Africa

Grades 3-4 Lesson: String Instruments and Pitch
In this lesson, students explore how pitch is altered based on the width and length of the string
Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Science

Grades 3-4 Lesson: Percussion Instruments and Pitch
This lesson introduces students to the instruments of the percussion family
Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Science

Grades 3-4 Lesson: Woodwind Instruments and Pitch
This lesson introduces students to the instruments of the woodwind family
Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Science

Grades 3-4 Lesson: Chinese Instruments
Explore the similarities and differences between traditional western instruments and Chinese instruments while creating a Chinese instrument.
Asia, Geography, Musical Instruments, Music, World Cultures, China

Grades 3-4 Lesson: Brass Instruments and Pitch
This lesson introduces students to the instruments of the brass family
Musical Instruments, Music, Orchestra, Science

Video: Balkan Quartet
Specializing in Gypsy music, these versatile musicians from the heart of the Balkans perform music from the region
Music, World Cultures, Europe, Musical Instruments, Orchestra

Video: Music from the Trash Heap
The people of Cateura struggle with poverty, pollution, and other problems. However, the Cateura Orchestra of Recycled Instruments inspires the youth there to find hope in music.
Latin America, Musical Instruments, Inventions, Music, Young Artists, Orchestra

Video: Oki Dub
Oki is the world's most prominent performer of the tonkori, a long, flat instrument that produces its own distinct sound and is the only stringed instrument in the Karafuto Ainu musical tradition. Oki’s contemporary approach has won him praise in Japan and around the world.
Asia, Music, Musical Instruments, World Cultures, Japan

Video: Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra
Join the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra for a lecture and demonstration explaining each of the four sections of the Chinese orchestra as well as some of the individual instruments.
China, Asia, Musical Instruments, Orchestra, Music, World Cultures

Video: El Alto Strings
The Bolivian musicians may practice Bach and other classical music at home, but they were eager to share their interpretation of traditional Bolivian music during their performance at the Kennedy Center.
World Cultures, Musical Instruments, Latin America, Orchestra, Music, Young Artists

Video: Palestinian Jazz
Palestinian and Moroccan musicians perform on the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, which offers free shows 365 days a year as part of the Performing Arts for Everyone initiative. See how the musicians go from a sound check to actual performance.
World Cultures, Jazz, Musical Instruments, Music, Young Artists

Video Series: Ralph Stanley: The Roots of Country Music
Learn about the beginnings of country music and its early innovators through the stories and music of three of country music's most respected musicians: mountain music legend Dr. Ralph Stanley, Jim Lauderdale and James Shelton.
America, Musical Instruments, Music, Music Legends

Video Series: Tambuco Percussion
Among the finest percussion quartets today, the musicians of the three-time Grammy-nominated ensemble refuse to be tied down to one style, with a repertoire ranging from structuralist percussion music to a wide range of ethnic drum music and avante garde sound interpretation.
Musical Instruments, Folklore, Latin America, Music, World Cultures