While Europe was alive with new, sophisticated works by Vivaldi, Bach, and Handel, America was a backwater. If you looked for classical music in the early days of America, you'd be hard-pressed to find it, even in the big cities and the centers of wealth, commerce, and social sophistication. But it *was* there; in far-flung locations including the backwoods of North Carolina and the Port of New Orleans. Miles Hoffman, NPR Morning Edition music commentator and dean of the Petrie School of Music at Converse College in Spartanburg, South Carolina takes us on a tour of classical music in early America. ARTSEDGE, the Kennedy Center’s arts education network, supports the creative use of technology to enhance teaching and learning in, through, and about the arts, offering free, standards-based teaching materials for use in and out of the classroom, media-rich interactive experiences, professional development resources, and guidelines for arts-based instruction and assessment. Visit ARTSEDGE at artsedge.kennedy-center.org.