Get ready to meet one of the biggest names in music. Did you know two hundred years ago, Classical music composer Ludwig van Beethoven was the world’s most popular rock star? And guess what? He’s still BIG! This audio series, hosted by National Public Radio’s Susan Stamberg, gives you an...

Music-- and musicians-- play an important role in military life. From the history of "Taps" to the importance of the USO, this series explores the place of ceremonial, tactical and recreational music in the US military.

The story of the blues travels from the coasts of Africa, through the cotton fields of the Mississippi Delta, across the hills of Appalachia, to the streets of Chicago and beyond. The roots of blues can be found in slave songs, spirituals, and field hollers of the American South; its sound can be...

This series is designed to introduce middle and high school audiences to the many aspects of musical theater. Using examples of the best that Broadway musicals have to offer, Heather Nathans, Associate Professor of Theatre at the University of Maryland, talks about the history of musical theater...

From Fairmont Street to U Street, from the Howard Theater to the Crystal Caverns, take a tour through Washington, DC's jazz history with Billy Taylor and Frank Wess, who lead listeners through their hometown in this 6-part audio series created for middle and high school audiences.

From his time at Juilliard to his grand success on Broadway, follow the path of Stephen Schwartz, the composer/lyricist of such legendary works as Godspell, Pippin, and his most recent Broadway hit, Wicked (which was at the Kennedy Center in 2005). Excerpted from the PerformancePlus event...

As a part of the Global Cultural Initiative, the United States Department of State and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts offer professional development opportunities to energize the work of emerging international artists in their own countries by bringing them to the United...

How do composers hear space? What does space sound like? Is there music in space? Narrated by Roger Launius of the Space History Division of the National Air and Space Museum, this series looks at the way music and outer space connect.

Learn the basics about Blue Note and its remarkable style.

This series, from the archives of the Kennedy Center's Education Department, brings you a glimpse of the history and diversity of China's performing arts.

An occasional series pulled from lectures, workshops and other events for educators presented by and through the Education Department of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Taking a musical from words on a page to songs on a stage: in this series, follow along as talented playwrights, designers and directors at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts transform classic works of literature into original theatrical productions.

This audio series celebrates the history and style of Blue Note Records on its 75th anniversary. Narrated by Susan Stamberg for the Kennedy Center.

Based on the book by Marlee Matlin and Doug Cooney, explore the creation of the Kennedy Center's Theater for Young Audiences and VSA Arts production of Nobody's Perfect. This podcast series goes behind the scenes to look at how the book was brought to the stage, including how American Sign...

In this podcast series, turntablist Kuttin Kandi, one of the best battle DJs in the game, demonstrates the basics of her instrument.

This is your passport to the arts and culture of Japan as experienced through the Kennedy Center's Japan! culture + hyperculture festival (February 2008). This series will help you learn about some of the major art forms in Japan—art, theater, dance, music, manga, anime, robots, and visual art...

Everything we've done, all in one place.

In this video series, sit at the mixing console with Motown historian Harry Weinger and Questlove of The Roots as they unpack the tracks of Marvin Gaye’s 1971 chart-topping hit, “What’s Going On.” More at whatsgoingonnow.org.

Mastered Level 1? Time to move to Level 2! Latin dance level 1 taught the basic steps, and if you’ve mastered those, get ready for more. Level 2 is full of new moves that are as fun as they are challenging. For more dance lessons, visit artsedge.kennedy-center.org.

Chinese music dates back thousands of years and sounds different from Western music thanks to important differences in tone, musical scale, pitch, instrumentation and individual instruments. With instruments crafted from a wide variety of materials, including, bamboo, silk, gourd, clay and...

Louis Armstrong said, “If you can’t feel Swing, you’ll never know it.” This series, hosted by Connaitre Miller of Howard University, explores why Swing was the most popular dance music in America and how it is still alive today in dance halls, clubs and movies. For more on Swing music and...

In this series, John Franklin, professor in the Department of Classics at the University of Vermont, explores what we know about the music of ancient Greece, as well as what we only THINK we know. In the first episode, Franklin, a true history detective, shows how incomplete fragments of papyrus...

On June 23, 2011, OK Go performed at The Kennedy Center in one of the most exciting free concerts of the summer. Inspired by the band's innovative use of video, the Kennedy Center invited 15 Twitter followers to help film the show and create the Center's first crowdsourced concert video. This...

In this podcast, Leonard Slatkin, Music Director of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (and former Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra), examines the history of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” the countless ways it has been adapted by musicians, and the special role it played during the...

Did you know music has a lot to say? Without any words at all, music is a language anyone can understand. It tells stories, expresses feelings, and even makes us think. Get ready to hear how!

Music and football; what could the connection possibly be? But think about it, there's music at halftime, we sing fight songs up in the stands, and when isn't there music when we watch football highlights on TV? Music and football are intertwined as we'll hear in this series, narrated by Tom...

The music of India is  as diverse as its many cultures. India has over a billion people and hundreds of dialects and languages spread across the seventh largest country in the world, but there is still an undeniable “sound” that makes Indian music unmistakable. This 3-part audio series, hosted by...

In this series, Georges Collinet, host of NPR’s Afropop Worldwide, explores the rich history and culture of the music of the Arab World. Arabic musicians and scholars demonstrate the sounds of string, wind and percussion instruments that directly influenced the development of musical instruments...

Abraham Lincoln was one of America's most unmusical presidents: he could neither play an instrument nor carry a tune. Yet he had a passionate love of the arts—enjoying everything from sentimental ballads to  nonsense songs, from melodrama to opera. This 3-part audio series explores Lincoln’s...

Nationally-recognized NPR Morning Edition music commentator Miles Hoffman (and NSO alumn) takes us on a tour through classical music in the United States from the 1720s to today. In this 3-part series, follow the development and impact of classical music in the United States from its humble...

Have you ever wanted to take a Latin Dance class but didn’t have enough time? In this podcast, Latin Dance instructors Ricardo Loaiza and Elba Garcia prep you to dance the night away! Once you’ve practiced all three dances, find a local Latin Dance club or bust these moves at the next school...

Sound and sound effects can help bring stories to life. Things are about to get seriously spooky. While learning about the “Golden Age of Radio,” we’ll explore why the medium seemed to specialize in suspense and horror. And we’ll find out how old-time radio’s sound effects wizards came up with...

In this series, percussionist Farai Malianga talks about drums and their place in African history. For more on world music, visit artsedge.kennedy-center.org.

In this series, dancer Rujeko Dumbutshena and drummer Farai Malianga show you how to dance traditional African dances. For more on music and dancing, visit artsedge.kennedy-center.org.

Coming to the Kennedy Center? ARTSEDGE, the Center’s educational media program, takes you in and around the building in this video series designed for kids and families.

The Kennedy Center is launching "What's Going On...Now," a national youth campaign to inspire young people to share their art and expression by telling us "How have things changed?" since Marvin Gaye's album "What's Going On" was released. At www.whatsgoingonnow.org, young people can use art as...

Welcome to ARTv (HD)! Focused on HD content developed for mobile and Internet-based learning, this podcast will provide quick access to all the Kennedy Center's HD educational video content.

Diane Ravitch is a Research Professor of Education at New York University and a historian of education. In addition, she is a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. She shares a blog called Bridging Differences with Deborah Meier, hosted by Education Week. She...

Garry Golden is a professionally trained Futurist who writes, speaks and consults on issues shaping business and society in the 21st century. In this video interview, conducted in early 2012, Garry discusses the future of the arts in education and society, and how it will intersect with the job...

US 90-the Gulf Coast Highway-is one of the major east-west roads in the Southern United States, knitting together communities large and small and letting music and culture flow freely from Houston to Jacksonville. ARTSEDGE highlights the art and artists of the Gulf Coast Highway in this series...

During his little more than a thousand days in office, President Kennedy worked to remind Americans they could achieve great things as citizens of the nation and the world. He inspired people to enter public service by taking jobs in government or the newly created Peace Corps. He set into motion...

Have you ever wanted to take a Latin Dance class but didn’t have enough time? In this podcast, Latin Dance instructors Ricardo Loaiza and Elba Garcia prep you to dance the night away! Once you’ve practiced all three dances, find a local Latin Dance club or bust these moves at the next school...

Create amusing, amazing stage makeup and bloody special effects.

Professional swing dance instructors Nina Gilkenson and Bobby White are going to teach you how to swing! In these videos, you'll learn the basics of swing dance called East Coast Swing; take it up a notch with the Charleston; and if you're really swingin' after that, you can learn the most...

Today if you want to talk about a tragedy, there are plenty of ways to do it. But in the past, one way people would pass along news was through songs.

People write songs about a lot of things, mostly things that mean a lot to us. We write songs about desire, songs about loneliness, about heartbreak, love, and for some reason, we also write lots and lots of songs about cars.

What does it take to create a musical from beloved books? Find out with these 3 to 4-minute videos that will take you behind the scenes. Watch clips and hear from the people who brought Elephant Gerald and his best friend Piggie to life on stage through writing, music, and design.

An intermittent series where you'll learn about the activities and programs of the Education Department of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.