Audie Cornish

NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Christian McBride about the impact of Miles Davis' seminal album Bitches Brew — an electrified sound that ushered in decades of jazz fusion 50 years ago.

Decorated jazz composer Wynton Marsalis talks about creating music inspired by an artist he's never heard play, Charles "Buddy" Bolden, for the film Bolden.

NPR's Audie Cornish talks with Christian McBride of Jazz Night in America about the forgotten all-female big bands that toured the United States during World War II.

He called it "a parallel to the history of the American Negro." Duke Ellington's Black, Brown and Beige wasn't an immediate hit, but it set a tone for ambitious, provocative works about black life.

Whether it's through jazz, soul or an electronic music collaboration, Gregory Porter wants to spread Nat King Cole's message that "the greatest thing you'll learn is to love and be loved in return."

As Havana prepares to host this year's International Jazz Day celebration, Jazz Night In America's Christian McBride shares how the island nation has shaped jazz in America and around the world.

Over the last year, the bassist and NPR's Audie Cornish have discussed and dissected everything about jazz. Their latest chat, held for a live audience, focuses on how his own career started.

The sport — yes, sport — of monster truck driving has come a long way. What started in the late '70s as intermission entertainment for tractor-pulling competitions is now a multimillion-dollar industry that tours the world. "We are a show," says veteran Rod Schmidt, "but yet we're racers."