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Pianist Ben Folds has crafted a series of alt-rock hits over the past 15 years. For his pseudo-"greatest-hits" package, he's commissioned new arrangements of those songs from university a cappella groups across the country. Folds and host Jacki Lyden compare and contrast the various versions of his songs.

The monks of Heiligenkreuz Abbey in Austria sing ancient Gregorian chants in their 12th-century church — and then post them to YouTube. Their technological savvy landed them a record deal, and now their album is storming the European charts and arriving in America. Father Karl Wallner talks to host Andrea Seabrook about balancing pop stardom with the religious life.

A week after Lil Wayne's latest album was released, it had sold a million copies. Robert Christgau says the phenomenal success of Tha Carter III, especially in these dismal times for the music industry, is due to the risky marketing techniques Lil Wayne employed and the playful way he treats traditional gangsta rap themes.

Villages along the northwestern Alaskan coast are facing widespread erosion and flooding that not only threatens homes, but also artifacts and archeaological treasures clustered near the beach. From Alaska Public Radio Network, Gabriel Spitzer reports on efforts to save ancient dwelling places and artifacts.

Before it took over Latin dance halls worldwide, bachata arose from Dominican shantytowns as a kind of lower-class party music. Now, a recent CD and a series of concerts are bringing the genre's early acoustic tradition back into the spotlight.

Jennifer Haigh's new novel, The Condition, is about a girl who has a genetic disorder that stops her development just before puberty. The "condition" gives her family an excuse to resist facing each other and fall apart.

On his new album, The Hard Way, the British singer and guitarist delves deep into old-fashioned soul and R&B, channeling the influence and spirit of Sam Cooke and Jackie Wilson.

After decades of producing solo albums, renowned American folk musicians Grey Larsen and Cindy Kallet have released their first collaboration, Cross the Water. Here, they talk about their musical partnership and their influences in traditional Scandinavian and Balkan music.

American and Brazilian musicians have been finding common ground ever since jazz artists turned to bossa nova 50 years ago. But the result has never quite sounded like Nation Beat's mash-up of Southern country and northeast Brazilian maracatu.

Over the past 14 years, some of New York's hottest young jazz musicians have worked for peanuts, just to have the chance to play the Argentine composer's challenging mix of Latin rhythms, classical structures and singable melodies.