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Jazz fans will surely know some of the musicians who have called the City of Roses home: Charlie Rouse, Jim Pepper, Esperanza Spalding and more. But the annual Portland Jazz Festival, which opens Friday, turns the spotlight on a diverse community of talent in place right now.

Up until recently, the likely composers of the great American symphony looked remarkably similar: all white, overwhelmingly male. But recent developments have opened up the doors to composers who were once lost to history.

As a fledgling classical soprano in New York, Norman went to hear singers like Mabel Mercer perform. She tells WBGO's Rhonda Hamilton that her study of jazz vocalists influenced the way she interprets songs — including operatic arias.

With the holiday season comes the holly and mistletoe, as well as a new batch of improvisations on holiday classics. WBGO's Gary Walker suggests a few well-aged jazz pairings for eggnog and yule logs.

On this edition of All Songs Considered: rare live recordings from Billie Holiday; inspired new music from the Magnetic Fields and more.

WBGO Morning Jazz host Gary Walker shares his favorite jazz recordings of 2007. Among the artists he singles out: Michael Brecker, Abbey Lincoln, Maria Schneider and Ron Carter.

There's controversy at this year's Academy Awards, and it has nothing to do with the recent writer's strike. Andy Trudeau returns for his annual breakdown of the Oscar nominations for Best Original Score — and some puzzling rule changes.

On this edition of All Songs Considered T-Bone Burnett shares some of his favorite songs and talks about his new solo release, Tooth of Crime.

Marian McPartland, world-renowned jazz pianist and host of NPR's Piano Jazz, thought that an all-time favorite song list was impossible. Here, she offers her current Top 5: the songs and recordings that she's listening to right now.

It's the end of a summer day, and the heat's been hammering you since you woke up. Now, at last, the sun has gone down, and it's time to seek a little relief. Take a sip of an icy beverage and listen to the sound of five cool songs at the end of the day.