Editor Pick: Music

There was a bit of an underground vibe in Zankel Hall, The contrast between Kahane's performance as a troubadour and his creative energy as a classical composer is striking.

Queen and Freddie Mercury are at the top of their game in a 1981 concert from Montreal.

'Last Call For Cinderella' from the Grievous Angels is a stirring mix of songs of resistance and ballads sung by consummate professionals.

Great music from the under-appreciated Cryin' Shames, plus reviews of reggae CDs, a Dr. John anthology, and more.

'Loeffler was ultimately too American for the European musical establishment and too European for the maverick sound of the New World—a predicament that effectively wrote him out of both musical histories.'

Reviews of the effusive latest Chip Taylor CD, plus jazz greats Chet Baker, Sun Ra, and Art Tatum, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Crow and Gazelle.

Riverside Choral Society sang music of John Luther Adams and Alberto Grau and the New York premiere of 'The End of Rain' by Scott Ordway, an impassioned response to the California wildfires.

Steve Conte's 'Concrete Jangle,' with an assist from Andy Partridge, is pure listening pleasure that can't help but bring a smile to your face and a thought to your brain.

The French ensemble played a muscular concert of Piano Trios by Schumann and Ravel, along with Liszt's weird and wily "Tristia – La Vallée d'Obermann" and an invigorating encore by Lili Boulanger.

We may be avoiding calling it "Gypsy music" now, but its spirited influence on both Brahms and Liszt is unmistakeable.