Sarah Caldwell expresses how fortunate she's been in her career as a conductor. This recording also contains an excerpt with opera bass-baritone Donald Gramm.*Please note: some sections have been edited out from the original recording due to copyright considerations 

While in town for the Chicago Jazz Festival, Sam Pilafian and Gerhard Meinl discuss the history of the tuba. With demonstrations on the tuba, they play scales and other short pieces. Gerhard Meinl's family business of making instruments like the tuba has been around since 1810, explained Meinl.

Ryland Davies and Margaret Price discuss opera, Welsh art and culture, and their musical upbringings. They discuss various characters and operas they have performed in, including "Don Giovanni" and "Lulu". Music is played throughout the original airing, but has been removed from this recording for copyright reasons.

Studs Terkel and Tcherepnin discuss Tcherepnin's early years in Leningrad, his creative drive and its relation to real-life experiences and the influence of Chicago on his 1953 Op. 87 Suite for Orchestra.

Author and pianist Russell Sherman discusses his book “Piano Pieces” and the philosophical concepts associated with listening to and playing music. Sherman plays a selection of compositions in the studio.

When Rudolf Ganz was younger, he first played the cello. After his cello broke into 800 pieces, Rudolph Ganz's father told Ganz he had to play the piano. Ganz became a world-renowned pianist and composer. Ganz's attitude toward music: in order to be progressive, one has to respect the past.

Studs Terkel interviews soprano Rosa Raisa about her career in Opera.

Renowned soprano, Madame Rosa Raisa discusses her career, early training, Chicago debuts, travels, teaching, and hobbies post opera.

Studs interviews Rolf Liebermann, director and composer, at the Hamburische Staatsoper in Hamburg, Germany. Liebermann explains some history of previous directors and performances. Many artists and operas are mentioned, but only a few were focused on in detail. Liebermann explains details about the operation of the opera highlighting the budget and the functions of the opera house. The recording stops short toward the end of the interview.

Composer and Pulitzer prize winner for music Roger Sessions discusses his music and its reception by the Russian people. Sessions is known for his admiration for music genres such as modern music and its influence in his compositions.

While their works and forte is classical music, Roger Detmer and Virgil Thomson talk about tape and electronic music. Detmer points out that in some eastern European countries, tape is considered pasee, and yet it's used often to recreate a sound to be used with their orchestras. Both men talk about electronic music and how it's sometimes used to make hand-made music sound artificial.

Robertson Davies, Canadian writer and professor, discusses his newest book, "Lyre of Orpheus," the third book in the "Cornish Trilogy." The summary of the book and its ties to the King Arthur legend are explained.

Discussing the Lithuanian Opera Company with conductor Robert Kaminskas and Egle Rukstelyte Sundstrom.

Studs Terkel and Robert Altman discuss the opera "McTeague" based on Frank Norri's novel of the same name.