A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor

Rory Block

Rory Block grew up steeped in music. Her father, a fiddler, owned a sandal shop in New York City's West Village where he hosted Saturday-afternoon jam sessions. Young Rory taught herself flatpick-style guitar and began to accompany her dad at folk festivals. By 15, she had left home to make her way through the South and study the guitar techniques of greats like Skip James and Mississippi John Hurt. In a four-decade-plus career devoted to preserving Delta blues and bringing it to life for today's audiences, she has emerged as a top interpreter and authority on traditional blues. Her most recent CD is Blues Walkin' Like a Man: A Tribute to Son House (Stony Plain Records).

Maria Jette

In addition to her 45-plus operatic roles, soprano Maria Jette has performed pop songs, chamber music, oratorio and more. She has appeared with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and Minnesota Orchestra, and with numerous symphony orchestras coast to coast. A frequent collaborator with VocalEssence and other choral ensembles, she is also a regular guest at the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival and the Oregon Festival of American Music. For years, Twin Cities audiences have delighted in her Sopranorama performances with Molly Sue McDonald, Janis Hardy and Dan Chouinard.

John McDermott

Born in Scotland and raised in Canada, tenor John McDermott grew up singing with his father and mother and 11 siblings. His first album, Danny Boy, was originally recorded as a 50th-anniversary gift for his parents, but eventually found its way to EMI Music Canada. The success of Danny Boy led to McDermott's participation in the Irish Tenors, of PBS fame, and to a career that has garnered fans the world over. He has been recognized by several organizations, including the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and the Semper Fidelis Society, for his commitment to veterans' causes. Among his many recordings are Sharing Christmas with Friends (Bunnygee Music) and the soon-to-be-released Journeys, his first-ever collection of original music. His web site is wwww.johnmcdermott.com

Peter Ostroushko

Mandolinist Peter Ostroushko grew up listening to tunes played at family get-togethers in the Ukrainian community of northeast Minneapolis. It's the music that provides the basis for many of his compositions. His first recording session was an uncredited mandolin set on Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks. Since then, his works have been performed by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Kremlin Chamber Orchestra, among others. Peter's recent CDs include Postcards: Travels with a Great American Radio Show (Red House) and Peter Joins the Circus (Borderland), a collection of Peter's original and arranged music for Circus Juventas, a circus arts school in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Anthony Ross

Principal cello of the Minnesota Orchestra since 1991, Anthony Ross has been a soloist many times with that organization, performing concertos by Dvořák, Victor Herbert, James MacMillan, Beethoven, Saint-Saëns and Elgar, among others. In May 2009, he will perform Shostakovich's First Cello Concerto under the baton of Edo de Waart. He also has an active career as a recitalist and chamber musician. His recordings include Bernstein's Meditations with the Minnesota Orchestra under Eiji Oue, the George Lloyd Cello Concerto with the Albany Symphony under David Alan Miller, and works of Rachmaninoff and Carter for Boston Records.

Barbara Leibundguth

Flutist Barbara Leibundguth has performed with major orchestras in Boston, San Francisco, Atlanta, and Houston. She was a member of the Minnesota Orchestra for 20 years, including 14 as co-principal, and she served as principal flute with the Omaha Symphony and Opera Omaha for 11 seasons. A Chicago native, she graduated from Northwestern University; her teachers were Walfrid Kujala and Donald Peck of the Chicago Symphony, Susan Levitin, and French flutist Marcel Moyse. Her CD with pianist/composer Carl Witt, Visionary Duos for Flute and Piano, was released on Albany Records in 2001.

Asako Hirabayashi

Asako Hirabayashi is recognized internationally as both a masterful composer and gifted harpsichordist. She has performed the world over — from the International Bach Festival in Sumy, Ukraine, to the Festival Musicale delle Nazioni in Rome. She earned a bachelor's and master's degree in composition from the Aichi Art University in Japan, and a doctorate in harpsichord performance from the Juilliard School. In 1990, she moved from Japan to the U.S. and is now based in the Twin Cities.

Andra Suchy

Andra Suchy spent her childhood on a farm near Mandan, North Dakota, the daughter of two talented singers. By the time she was in grade school, she was traveling around, doing concerts and festivals with her family. These days, she sings with several groups in the Twin Cities area — including the all-girl trio The Dollys. She also works as a back-up singer and as a jingle singer on commercials for White Castle, Target, and more. Andra's solo CD is called Patchwork Story.

Guy's All-Star Shoe Band

The Guy's All-Star Shoe Band is led by A Prairie Home Companion music director Richard Dworsky. A masterful keyboard player, composer and improviser in any style, he writes all the script themes and underscores, and he has accompanied guests from James Taylor to Renée Fleming. His latest CD is So Near and Dear to Me.

Chet Atkins called Pat Donohue (guitar) one of the greatest finger pickers in the world today. And he writes songs too — recorded by Suzy Bogguss, Kenny Rogers and others. Freewayman (Bluesky Records) is the most recent of Pat's nine albums.

Gary Raynor (bass) has performed with the Count Basie band, Sammy Davis Jr. — with whom he toured for several years — and the Minnesota Klezmer Band. He teaches jazz bass at the McNally Smith College of Music in St. Paul.

Peter Johnson (percussion) has played klezmer music with Doc Severinsen and jazz with Dave Brubeck. He was a drummer for The Manhattan Transfer and for Gene Pitney. He has toured the world, but he always comes back to home base: Saint Paul.

Andy Stein (violin, saxophone) definitely has far-flung musical leanings. He collaborated with Garrison Keillor to create the opera Mr. and Mrs. Olson, and he has performed with artists such as Itzhak Perlman, Eric Clapton, Smashing Pumpkins, Billy Joel, Tony Bennett, Ray Charles and Bob Dylan.

The State Theater

When the State Theatre opened on February 5, 1921, many thought it to be the most elaborate building of its kind in the whole United States. The architect, J.E.O. Pridmore, had designed it with a glass floor, elegant murals, classically inspired sculptural elements, and the first well-driven air-conditioning system in Minneapolis. The opening-night crowd was treated to a silent film, a newsreel and a travelogue. By 1925, a Wurlitzer pipe organ had been installed, and for a 50£ admission charge, you could hear a concert any day of the week.

But like so many grand movie palaces, the State lost its luster as the decades went by. In 1978, it was purchased by the Jesus People Church and used as a place of worship. Decorative details, including a ceiling painting titled "Bountiful Nudes," were covered over with drapery and plaster shields.

Then in 1989, the City of Minneapolis bought the building, and after an $8.8 million restoration, the State reopened in 1991 with the Minnesota Opera's production of Carousel. It remains a favorite venue for touring productions and concerts.