Music

The summer of 2012 marks the centennial of the birth of American folk icon Woody Guthrie, on July 14, 1912. A poet of the people, Guthrie wrote some of America's most important songs, including "This Land Is Your Land." He penned ballads that captured the heart of hard economic times and war.

While Guthrie left a lasting mark on music, culture and politics, he struggled with family poverty, tragedies and personal demons.

The barn reeked of mildew, wet wood in 90 degrees, an odious perfume with which I was familiar from a childhood in a Long Island canal town peppered with planked houses. I opened my instrument's case to see the hygrometer's needle stuck on the highest humidity level: assurance that my first professional-grade violin would not crack, or, to the great aural pleasure of Katja, my radiant Austrian stand partner with superb pitch, remain in tune.

Neil Young's dozens of albums and myriad side projects showcase his incredible range and stylistic flexibility. His music has gone from the soft folk of Buffalo Springfield and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young to the loud, raucous rock of Crazy Horse.

Hear the best of emerging sounds, styles and artists with host Fiona Ritchie and her batch of brand new releases from Celtic roots.

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Aaron Copland is considered one of America's greatest composers. Among his most famous works is a tribute to an iconic figure in American history. In 1942, Copland wrote A Lincoln Portrait, which features a full orchestra playing while a narrator reads excerpts from Lincoln's speeches and other writings.