Piedmont Arts Podcast

The Italian painter Caravaggio had a massive influence on the art of the late 16th and early 17th centuries including baroque music. To complement the Mint Museum’s Caravaggio exhibition, 7th Street Concerts is presenting a mash-up performance that combines theatre, art, and music from Caravaggio’s time. On this Piedmont Arts episode, Kristin Olson, 7th Street’s artistic director, and lutenist John Lenti discuss this unique production. Plus, FanFare with plenty of great events for you to explore.

Founded in 2016 by two members of the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Music for All performs throughout the greater Charlotte region. On this episode of Piedmont Arts, you’ll hear violinists Calin Lupanu and Monica Boboc talk about their journey from Romania to Charlotte, and the educational mission behind their ensemble. There’s also an edition of FanFare filled with fun events and activities for you to explore.

Printmaking has always been an important artistic medium in Latin America, and some very interesting technical innovations have been introduced by Latin American artists through the decades. The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art opened an exhibition called Making an Impression: Pioneering Latin American Printmakers. Works by four artists who’ve pushed the boundaries of the genre will be on display. On this Piedmont Arts podcast episode, we talk to Bechtler curator, Dr. Katia Zavistovski about the artists and the exhibition. David McGee, Drum Call from Shadow Men series, 2025, Watercolor on paper, 2025, 60 x 40 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Inman Gallery, Houston, TX. Now owned by Bechtler Museum of Modern Art. Photo by Thomas R. DuBrock. Regina Silveira, Octopus (Track Series), 2009, Vinyl and wooden models. Courtesy of the artist and Alexander Gray Associates. Installation view: Regina Silveira, Alexander Gray Associates, New York, 2009. 1988, Jesus Soto Serigraphie Mur polychrome cfdt.

Music @ St. Alban’s is a monthly concert series held on Sunday afternoons at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Davidson. Established in 2005, it features musicians from near and far performing a wide variety of musical genres. On this episode of Piedmont Arts, board member David Wilson talks about the series and what’s coming to St. Alban’s this season, including a return performance by the Ciompi Quartet. You’ll also hear the latest edition of FanFare with plenty of sounds, sights, and bites across the region.

The North Carolina School of the Arts opened in 1965 as America’s first public arts conservatory and become part of the University of North Carolina system in 1972 with programs in music, drama, dance, filmmaking, and more. UNCSA’s Dean of Dance, Endalyn Taylor Outlaw, is our guest on this episode of Piedmont Arts and she shares an overview of the school’s ballet and contemporary dance programs. You’ll also hear about upcoming dance performances in our region and the latest installment of FanFare to fill out your calendar.

Piedmont Opera launches their 50th season with performances that include Rossini’s Barber of Seville and an appearance by Renee Fleming. Their emphasis this season is on celebrating and fostering community. General Director and Principal Conductor Joseph Mechavich share on this Piedmont Arts podcast details about the season. We also speak to Maggie Pate, Director of Communications for the North Carolina Symphony, about their performance happening at Davidson College.

Charlotte Master Chorale is about to launch its 76th season, and their chamber choir kicks off WDAV’s new Small Batch concert series season. This year the group will celebrate community, belonging, and the power of voices singing together through a variety of concerts that include recent choral compositions as well as classics like Faure’s Requiem. Artistic Director Kenney Potter is the guest on this episode of Piedmont Arts. He tells us about the season and other interesting projects the organization is undertaking. Plus, plenty of fun activities are recommended in our FanFare segment.

The Children’s Theatre of Charlotte got its start shortly after World War II. After many years on Morehead Street, the theater company moved to ImaginOn, where they’ve been delighting audiences since 2005. On this Piedmont Arts, Children’s Theatre of Charlotte Artistic Director Adam Burke talks about their exciting new season. You’ll also get a preview of our region’s other theatrical offerings, plus a quick look at even more events and activities with FanFare. Fenixfoto G. Smith A. Aguilar A. Aguilar ImaginOn

The nation’s largest print and drawing competition in the early 1970s was held at Davidson College. Organized by renowned artist Herb Jackson, the competition drew submissions from across the country and brought some of the most compelling works on paper to campus. Davidson is celebrating the 50th anniversary with a new competition and exhibition called “50 Years Later: Davidson National Print and Drawing Competition.” On this Piedmont Arts episode we talk to Herb Jackson and curator Lia Newman about the competition’s legacy.

A new season of orchestral performances will start in a few weeks, and that includes the 62nd season for the Western Piedmont Symphony. Maestro Matthew Troy has been the Hickory-based orchestra’s Music Director and Conductor since 2019 and he talks on this Piedmont Arts about what we’ll be hearing from them in 2026-2027. You’ll also get a preview of other regional orchestras’ upcoming seasons, plus a quick look at more events and activities with FanFare. WPS Masterworks Symphony Swings with Doreen Ketchens, clarinet. Credit Paul van Breemen Photography Western Piedmont Symphony performs the music of Pink Floyd. Credit Tom Devlin Photography

Storyteller Donna Washington has been weaving tales for audiences of all ages for more than 38 years. On this Piedmont Arts podcast episode, she shares what makes a good story and a good storyteller, and she even tells us a story or two. Plus, a look at the largest Black theatre festival in the world, the International Black Theatre Festival in Winston-Salem. One of the organizers, Brittany Giles-Jones, helps us parse the more than 100 offerings. And hear interesting things to do for fun in the FanFare segment.

There isn’t always a direct path for classical musicians who want to perform professionally to go from university to the stage. But renowned conductor James Meena aims to help these artists through a new venture called the Charlotte Lyric Theatre. Meena is the guest on this Piedmont Arts episode, and he explains how this career development program is working and getting results. Also, the latest edition of FanFare to help you plan fun activities in coming days.

Originally from Northern California, poet and creative arts activist Cheryl Wilder has lived in North Carolina for more than 20 years, and her latest collection of poems, Singing Riptide, stems from a traumatic event in her life. On this episode of Piedmont Arts, you’ll hear what it was that set Cheryl’s writing career in motion. Plus, we’ll let you know about upcoming arts and culture happenings across our region with FanFare.

At An Appalachian Summer Festival in Boone this month, you can do everything from enjoying classical concerts to watching international films. And if you’re in the Greensboro area, the newly launched Eastern Festival of Music offers numerous concerts, many of them led by music director Gerard Schwarz. Find out more about both festival’s offerings by listening to this Piedmont Arts podcast episode.

As American celebrates its 250th Anniversary this week, our Piedmont Arts podcast features two conversations that explore different aspects of the American experience, one past and one present. Moravian music expert Dr. Christopher Ogburn tells us how the Moravians, who settled in North Carolina and Pennsylvania, made significant contributions to music in colonial and post-Revolutionary America. And we talk to the composer and librettist of the opera The Falling and Rising which examines the ways war impacts modern military family life. Their opera is coming to the Brevard Music Center in July 2026.

A rare opportunity for choral composers and lyricists is happening in Charlotte this week. It’s the second annual International Choral Composers Institute, a 5-day immersive program dedicated to nurturing and instructing those who create choral music. On this Piedmont Arts episode, we talk with Sherry Blevins, the Institute’s founder, about the ways participants will get practical, hands-on advice and instruction to further their careers.

In the summer of 1965, a theater arts major from Carnegie Mellon University named Constance Welsh put on the first show by the new Davidson Community Players. Sixty-one years later, the theater company is still going strong and getting stronger. DCP’s executive director Steve Kaliski is on this episode of Piedmont Arts to talk about the productions of Evita, Million Dollar Quartet, and more. Then, soprano Karen Slack speaks about her concert, African Queens, which Piedmont Opera is presenting this month in Winston-Salem. Plus FanFare with even more events and activities across our region.

Summer Shakespeare productions are a long-standing tradition in the U.S., and now the Triad has a theater company dedicated to bringing the Bard’s plays to North Carolina Audiences. Piedmont Shakespeare Company is in its second season with performances of “Much Ado About Nothing” taking place in venues from Winston-Salem to Burlington. On this Piedmont Arts episode, executive director David McGraw talks about the importance of Shakespeare in the modern day and the beauty of summer Shakespeare.

By many accounts, he was an unsavory character, but Caravaggio was also a revolutionary and influential painter of the late 16th century in Rome, Naples, and Sicily. A new exhibition of Caravaggio’s paintings and others by leading Baroque masters has opened at the Mint Museum in Uptown Charlotte. Hear more about it from exhibition curator and Mint President & CEO Todd Herman on this episode of Piedmont Arts. Plus, we have a report from the Spoleto USA Festival in Charleston, SC, and the latest edition of FanFare to help you plan more early-summer fun.

What's Bach's connection to French composers, both baroque and modern? How did Bach influence Brahms? What's Handel's other great religious oratorio besides Messiah? The 2026 Charlotte Bach Festival offers concerts and experiences that help audiences explore those questions and learn about Bach's singular place in the history of music. On this episode, we take an in depth look at the festival with Bach Charlotte executive director Garrett Murphy.

Pianist Phillip Bush grew up in Charlotte and has had a successful career across the country as a soloist, chamber musician, and university professor. He’s the next WDAV Small Batch concert at Free Range Brewing as part of the Steinway at Free Range series. On this edition of the Piedmont Arts podcast, he talks about his music education in Charlotte as well as his love of contemporary music.

Based in Davidson, North Carolina, the Orchestra of the Carolinas is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing people together through the power of music. On this Piedmont Arts podcast, you’ll hear more about what makes the orchestra tick, and details on their upcoming season finale with Grammy award-winning vocalist Carmen Bradford. Plus, a new edition of FanFare to help you fill out your arts & culture calendar.

As America’s 250th Anniversary draws near, Charlotte Ballet will celebrate with a work that pays tribute to America. Artistic director Alejandro Cerrudo’s first full-length ballet called “One Thousand Pieces” receives its Charlotte premier in May at the Knight Theatre. It’s inspired Marc Chagall’s stained-glass creation called “America Windows.” Learn more about “One Thousand Pieces” from Cerrudo on this episode of Piedmont Arts.

America turns 250 this year, and there are all sorts of celebrations, events, and activities happening across the country. One of them is a new immersive experience at the Charlotte Museum of History called American Revolution: The Augmented Exhibition. You’ll hear all about it on the new episode of Piedmont Arts. Plus, hear the scoop on summer arts camps for your kids, and your weekend is covered with FanFare.

Goodyear Arts is an artist-led nonprofit located in Camp Northend that exists to support local artists and musicians in a variety of ways. They offer gallery spaces, performance areas, and studios where artists of all types can create and share their work. On this Piedmont Arts podcast we talk with Goodyear Arts Collective members Amy Bagwell, Kadey Ballard, and Nathan Matthews about the ways the organization connects artists and fosters creativity in our community.