Elliott Forrest

WQXR has a new logo. Much thought went into the color, font and musical notation for it. Perhaps you know what the two dots and two lines mean? Perhaps you don’t. Perhaps you see it as an emoticon.

I am not a stickler type person. I recognize that the English language is a flexible, ever changing colorful source of communication. BUT, I do have a bit of a pet peeve.

I have only a few rules in my life and one of them is when asked to host at Carnegie Hall, I always say yes. Such was the case many years ago when I was asked to appear for a few minutes, mid concert, with The New York Youth Symphony. After hearing everything from 1st graders to high schoolers play, I was not sure what to expect. But within minutes of hearing these remarkable young people, I was blown away.

Recently the much loved opera tenor Placido Domingo stepped on stage into his 131st role at the age of 69 after undergoing colon cancer surgery. While he had given millions of opera lovers decades of joy and zillions of notes, how was he thanked? By being booed! People paid good money and sat for hours to see a super star in the world of opera return after a possibly life threatening illness--and he was booed!!

Mother’s Day is coming up and we’d like to invite you to contribute some fun musical programming ideas. What comes to your mind when you mix classical music and mothers?

Mondays through April bring back a long running vocal recital series to WQXR. On Wings of Song was the brain child of mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne. The series started on stages in 1995 and shortly after that, on the radio. But this series is coming to a halt. Or rather, a change. After this season, it will be folded into The Song Continues, a series at Carnegie Hall.

We review some of the remarkable moments in classical music in 2009.

There is a disturbing new trend on Broadway--and I’m not talking about turning movies into shows or juke box musicals.

Elliott Forrest interviews the renowned flutist Sir James Galway on the occasion of his 70th birthday. WQXR presents an hour of conversation and music.

Recently President Obama brought classical music to the White House. His only problem: he claimed not to know when to applaud.

Well this is my first blog entry on WQXR.org. And I want to hear from you.

This week, Grammy Award winning guitarist Sharon Isbin was part of a day of classical music at the White House. She spoke with WQXR's Elliott Forrest about the experience.