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Her bandmates have called her the best player in their group. But Nelson is content to hunker down in front of her piano, hidden by her cowboy hat. She had to be tricked into recording her solo debut.

Relatives can be an important ingredient to a successful Thanksgiving. Classical music commentator Miles Hoffman points out some important musical relatives of Mozart, Bach, Schumann and Mendelssohn.

For musicians just a decade ago, radio was the only way to make it big. The Internet has changed that. Artists like City and Colour can build an audience by sending out their music over various networks. But in a crowded online world, just putting it out there isn't enough.

Activist and singer Odetta has died. When you talk to some of the most famous singers in America, they'll tell you she inspired the way they sing. One moment she'd grimace like something was hurting. Then suddenly Odetta would smile. And you'd melt.

Conor Oberst says he's not deliberately thinking about fleeing home — but it keeps coming up in his songs. He's written about a road trip, the healing powers of the road and escape. For his latest album, which is self-titled, he recorded on the grounds of a vacant hotel in Mexico.

He was born in 1908, the year Henry Ford introduced the Model T. At age 100, Elliott Carter is still composing music. Today, he continues to amaze, and occasionally confound, his fans and critics.

It's an instrument that sounds like Halloween — a ghostly whine from another dimension. But it doesn't take long to hear the familiar melodies of Christmas: "The First Noel," "Silent Night," even "Frosty the Snowman." The music comes from an album called The Singing Saw at Christmastime.

Herbie Hancock's album is now considered one of the defining moments in jazz fusion. The Library of Congress is preserving the album in its musical collection as one of the country's most culturally significant audio recordings. Hancock and producer David Rubinson reflect on the album's creation and long-lasting impact.

Bolstered by gatherings such as the Smithsonian Institution's "Classical Native" series, American Indian composers are searching for a sound. The result is music in the spirit of their ancestors mixed with techniques from Western classical music.

The book Hometown Appetites tells the story of Clementine Paddleford, an anthropologist who traveled the country to chronicle how America ate in the early to mid 20th century.