More Than Holly Leaves and Christmas Trees

TOM MASON's third Yuletide album, UNDER A MISTLETOE SKY, offers a fine option with which to make Christmas merry and bright, in a year when we really need it to be so…
by David McGee
 

 
 

It Happened on 5th Avenue (1947)

Often overlooked among holiday evergreens, IT HAPPENED ON 5TH AVENUE features CHARLES RUGGLES leading a fine cast in a tale of redemption filmed in New York City in 1947, when 5th Avenue was still a 2-way street. Plus 14 Disney...
by David McGee
 

 

 

Sustainable Agriculture News

Report: Missouri has a serious food insecurity problem; Oregonian TARA WHITSETT is preaching the gospel of 'empowerment and preservation through fermentation.'
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Kiowas’ Sacred Longhorn Mountain Under Siege in Oklahoma

In southwest Oklahoma the LONGHORN MOUNTAIN, sacred site to the Kiowa people, is in jeopardy of being turned to rubble by a gravel mining operation. Mining has stalled but the threat remains.
by David McGee
 

 

 

From Advent to Epiphany

Classical editor ROBERT HUGILL rounds up the best in Classical Christmas albums for 2016.
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Cosmopolitan Queen of Bel canto

Classical contributor JOSEPH NEWSOME sits down for an enlightening chat with JESSICA PRATT, 'The Cosmopolitan Queen of Bel canto,' upon the release of her debut recital disc, SERENADE
by David McGee
 

 

 

Jennie Ross Cobb: Indian Territory Trailblazer

Remembering JENNIE ROSS COBB, the first-known Native American female photographer, who put her subjects at ease for uniquely candid images from early 1900s Indian Territory.
by David McGee
 

 
 

‘A Perfect Blue-White Diamond, And Just As Rare’

Remembering the silver screen's, and one of the 20th Century's, greatest vocalists, DEANNA DURBIN, 1921-2013, plus a guide to her essential recordings on CD.
by David McGee
 

 

 

Music a Remedy

In his monumental ANATOMY OF MELANCHOLY, published in 1621, ROBERT BURTON argued for, among other things, music as a remedy for melancholy. It might work.
by David McGee
 

 
 

Robert Neubecker’s Little Plane That Could

Two superb new children's books are on JULES's radar: ROBERT NEUBECKER's charming LITTLE SMOKEY and, from the legendary ELOISE GREENFIELD, a personal look at midwives in THE WOMEN WHO CAUGHT THE BABIES
by David McGee
 

 

 

When Orcas Go Postal: The Gravest Show On Earth

Duncan Strauss talks with author DAVID KIRBY about Death At SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity, his riveting exposé of SeaWorld’s disturbing treatment of killer whales, one of which killed its tr...
by David McGee
 

 
 

The Biologist’s Folk Songs

Inspired by Moravian folk songs transcribed by Dr. Vladimir Ulehla, DAVALA--the duo of ARAM BAJAKIAN and Dr. Ulehla's daughter, JULIE ULEHLA--reinvigorate those songs for modern ears.
by David McGee