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In Mozart's final opera, an entire city burns to save a single love affair. Though written on demand, to humor a preening monarch, the score is Mozart at his best — shot through with startling innovations and great beauty.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the debut release by the L.A. band Fol Chen. The album is called Part 1: John Shade, Your Fortune's Made.

Often compared to The Flaming Lips and Pavement for its complex indie-pop sound, The Spinto Band draws from the music of Burt Bacharach, The Beatles, The Beach Boys and many other acts with Bs in their names. Its latest album is Moonwink.

Is it possible to write music that sounds like an icy landscape? Claude Debussy succeeded in a Prelude he called "Footsteps in the Snow," taking the solo piano to places it had never been before.

Appearing with members of Beirut and The National, Shugo Tokumaru performed his first-ever studio session this past fall at KEXP. The Japanese guitarist spoke through a translator and played his eccentric style of experimental pop music.

Singer/songwriter Asa was born in Paris but spent her childhood and adolescence in Lagos, Nigeria. She returned to Paris as an adult to test her talent on the French music scene. But it was in Nigeria where Asa first discovered the sounds that would influence the music she creates. Tony Cox talks with Asa about her debut album.

She's best known for her original songwriting, but her cool, insinuating delivery is perfect for classics, too. She visits NPR's Studio 4A for a performance from her latest album, The Cole Porter Mix — plus a certain Valentine's Day standard.

Trumpeter Christian Scott is a relatively new voice in jazz music, but he is already challenging the genre's conventional thinking. Scott has picked a fight with some famous jazz purists, and he's holding his ground. Tony Cox speaks with Scott about jazz music's past, present, and future.

After making her debut on the telenovela Luz Clarita, Sarinana became a household name in Mexico. Now, with the release of her solo album Mediocre, the 23-year-old has become an international success.

Last November, for the first time in his career, Morrison revisited his second album, Astral Weeks, in concert. The result, Astral Weeks: Live at the Hollywood Bowl, arrives this week, offering a fresh take on one of the key recordings in late '60s rock.