The 7th Avenue Project

Saxophonist/composer Rudresh Mahanthappa has been lighting up the jazz scene with his blend of western and Indian musical influences. Mahanthappa aims for, and achieves, a sound that's both seriously cerebral and seriously swinging, both technical and tuneful. He talks about the identity crisis that led to his discovery of Indian music, his musical self-education and his upcoming performance at the Monterey Jazz Festival.

It's not all in your head. Philosopher Alva Noe says neuroscientists are looking for consciousness in all the wrong places: it's not in our brains after all.

Three people whose faces were altered by illness or injury talk about self-image, the meaning of beauty, and the realities of reconstructive surgery. David Roche is an inspirational speaker and humorist. Gina Butchin works to raise awareness of facial difference. Louise Ashby is an actress and writer. Originally broadcast Oct. 2009

For two decades, environmental activist John Francis travelled America on foot while keeping a vow of silence. Along the way, he got to know a side of himself and this country that few experience. Originally broadcast Aug 2009.

John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants discusses the delights and challenges of writing science songs for kids, as we listen to TMBG's new CD/DVD "Here Comes Science. And Michael Hearst of the band One Ring Zero talks about their new CD "Planets," which offers a fanciful tour of the solar system.

We talk to members of two ensembles who’ve helped change the sound of “classical” music. Violinist David Harrington is the founder of the Kronos Quartet, which has revolutionized the string quartet repertoire. Matt Albert is violinist and violist with Eighth Blackbird, a talented and inventive sextet who’ve further extended the range of classical expression. Both Kronos and eighth blackbird are performing at this year’s Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music. David and Matt joined us to share their passion for music, reflect on their work and talk about their Cabrillo Festival performances.

As the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music begins its 2010 season, we speak to two of this year's featured artists about their upcoming performances. Kevin Puts, best known for his composing, talks about the challenges of performing his own piano concerto "Night" for the first time. In part 2, percussion virtuoso Colin Currie describes his rendition of Jennifer Higdon's "Percussion Concerto." We listened to Colin's Grammy-winning performance of the concerto with the London Philharmonic as we discussed the piece.

A new documentary film depicts life--and afterlife--in Lily Dale, New York. Founded in 1879, Lily Dale is the "world's largest spiritualist community," home to dozens of mediums and a destination for bereaved people hoping to contact deceased loved ones. "No One Dies in Lily Dale" is a fascinating and poignant look at love, loss and belief. We talk to the director, Steven Cantor, and three people depicted in the film.

In part 1, a 2006 interview with Harvey Pekar, who died this past week on July 12. We talked about his brawling youth, his autobiographical comics American Splendor and The Quitter, the impact of fame, his run-ins with David Letterman and other topics. In part 2, a 2009 interview with Jonathan Ames, discussing his own semi-autobiographical graphic novel The Alcoholic, the movie adaptation of his novel The Extra Man and his HBO comedy series Bored to Death.

Historian Rebecca Herzig describes a time in turn-of-the-century America when scientists were expected to lay down life and limb for their profession. Many did, but was it necessary? Then, writer and comedian Sandra Tsing Loh plays up the fun of science, but knows a thing or two about suffering for it, too.

Two stories for the 4th of July: In part 1, "Lift Ev'ry voice and Sing," also known as the black national anthem. We'll hear performances of the song as historian Imani Perry discusses its meaning and importance to the civil rights struggle. In part 2, Frank Kameny recalls the early days of the gay rights movement. Kameny, now 85, led some of the first public demonstrations for gay equality, picketing the White House and staging 4th of July protests in the mid-1960s.

Writer Kathryn Schulz considers what it means to be wrong, how we feel about it and how we deal with it. In her new book “On Being Wrong,” Schulz examines the sources of human error, and says that rather than try to perfect ourselves, we need to embrace our fallibility.

Composer David Cope discusses his 30-year investigation into the nature of musical creativity. Cope's computer programs generate new musical works in the style of historical composers, as well as original modernist compositions, delighting and/or enraging lovers of classical music. We listen to some of his old and new compositions, and consider what they reveal about art, originality and human intelligence.

Wes Moore was a Rhodes Scholar on his way to a successful career when he learned of another Wes Moore, wanted by police for murder. He discovered surprising parallels in their two lives, despite their divergent paths. Wes Moore discusses his book "The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates"

Comic and actor Paul Provenza (director of "The Aristocrats") and photographer Dan Dion take a searching look at contemporary comedy in their book "Satiristas," featuring conversations with and photos of many of today's leading satirical artists. Paul and Dan discuss the craft of comedy and the issues confronting contemporary comics.