Update 8/22/13: We’re going to air a special tribute to Marian Wednesday the 28th during our Midday Café at 1 pm, repeated Saturday the 31st at 10 pm.
Marian McPartland, acclaimed pianist and host of NPR's longest-running music program Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz, passed away this week at age 95. McPartland had hosted the program for more than three decades, in recent years curating archival performances. WHQR carried the program for several years.
Over the decades, McPartland's guests ranged from Tony Bennett to Dizzy Gillespie, Dave Brubeck, and Pat Metheny, as well as Willie Nelson, Elvis Costello, Alicia Keys and the members of Steely Dan. Piano Jazz was produced by the South Carolina ETV Radio network in Columbia. Director Shari Hutchinson wrote of her joy in working with "one of the strongest, most successful, vital, creative women of her time, someone who overcame every obstacle and who pushed through every glass ceiling."
You can find their tribute here.