Music

Harrell, who died April 27, joined the cello section of the Cleveland Orchestra when he was 18 and went on to perform as a soloist with orchestras around the world. Originally broadcast in 1987.

Two new CDs of serious music feels just right: Johnny Gandelsman plays violin transcriptions of Bach's Complete Cello Suites, and Kate Lindsey sings arias by Handel, Haydn, and Scarlatti on Arianna.

Whitcomb, who died April 19, had the 1965 novelty hit, "You Turn Me On," but soon after devoted himself to writing books about early American popular music. Originally broadcast in 1988.

X's first album 35 years takes its place alongside the best work they've ever done. The music on Alphabetland is the sound of X snatching back its past in order to fuel the music of its future.

Before the coronavirus outbreak, Wrembel visited the Fresh Air studio to talk about his musical influences and to play, with his trio, songs from his new album, Django L'Impressionniste.

Konitz, who died April 15, had one of the longest careers in jazz. He was an intuitive soloist, with a mercurial tone, a quick mind and lifelong commitment to improvisation.

The pop singer's smart and snappy second album is a '70s and '80s disco throwback. The record immediately stands out from nearly all current popular music for its sheer, bursting joyfulness.

DeMent describes herself as extremely shy, but says, "when the songs started coming to me, I felt I didn't have the option to hide and avoid" the stage. Originally broadcast in 2015.

Prine told Terry Gross in 2018 that he began playing music and writing songs for fun: "I didn't expect to do this for a living," he said. Prine died of complications related to COVID-19 on April 7.

The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter, who died April 7, took a journeyman's pride in unifying metaphor and metrical precision. Prine's eccentric music served him — and us — well for five decades.