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The jazz piano legend is celebrating his 70th birthday with a weeklong stint at the Blue Note jazz club in New York and with a new record featuring guitarists such as John Scofield and Derek Trucks. The secret to his musical longevity? "Carrot juice," he says.

Pour yourself some eggnog, throw on the shawl, and cozy up to the computer for our annual mix of holiday music, featuring fresh takes on old classics and a few new surprises.

In New Orleans, December brings only faux snow, so Papa Noel packs his presents on a pirogue pulled by alligators. Feux de Joie bonfires are lit along the Mississippi River to light his way to the bayous. Papa might not have a stereo on board, but if he does, you might hear a few of these Cajun carols around the Crescent City area.

Millions have discovered the now-familiar landmarks of California's Yosemite Valley through the extraordinary black-and-white photographs of Ansel Adams. Now, jazz legend Dave Brubeck aims to bring musical emotion to the experience of viewing Adams' work with a new piece.

I'm Not Jim is a collaboration between Walter Salas-Humara of The Silos and award-winning novelist Jonathan Lethem. The duo Elegant Too rounds out this unlikely quartet, whose first record is a mix of giddy pop and mournful blues called You Are All My People.

Wilson is one of the finest saxophonists in the business: He's what musicians label a "first call" player. If you have a session coming up and you want great alto and soprano sax work, Wilson is your man. Hear Wilson's musicianship on display as he visits the KC Jazz Club at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., with his new band called Wilsonian's Grain.

The jazz pianist and longtime collaborator Childo Tomas pay a visit to NPR's Studio 4A to play music steeped in the Afro-Cuban tradition, but fueled by Sosa's teeming imagination and eclectic inspirations.

Recent developments in understanding the interaction between music and the brain might help us avoid the stress inherent in sending one's hard-earned tax dollars to Manhattan and Detroit and Baghdad. With the right music in the background, preparing taxes might feel about the same as drinking cucumber water in a swank spa, or doing tai chi as the sun rises over the seashore.

Before launching into Cedar Walton's "Mosaic" at the Kennedy Center, drummer Lewis Nash said that no tribute to the legendary Blue Note label would be complete without honoring Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Hear the thundering highlight recorded live on Sunday night.

On the new album Trombone Tribe, trombonist Roswell Rudd plays with a number of groups including his own sextet. Music critic Kevin Whitehead has a review.