Celebrating Percussion: 20 Years of Innovation

We update our running list of the year's best songs with a plainspoken but moving story from Chris Staples, a wildly unpredictable piece from soprano Barbara Hannigan, Natalia Lafourcade and more.

Featured artists and songs:
1. Third Coast Percussion: "Please Be Still," from 'Standard Stoppages'
2. Chris Staples: "Two Carat Diamond," from 'Don't Worry'
3. Barbara Hannigan, David Chalmin: "Che t'ho fatt'io?," from 'Electric Fields'
4. Natalia Lafourcade: "Cocos en la playa," from 'Cancionera'
5. Brooklyn Rider: "Tenebrae," from 'The Four Elements'

'All Songs Considered' 25th anniversary segment: Our No. 1 songs from 2012

Weekly reset: Airing out and beating futons on a Saturday morning in Toyohashi, Japan

Enjoy the show? Share it with a friend and leave us a review on Apple or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Questions, comments, suggestions or feedback of any kind always welcome: allsongs@npr.org

Hear new songs from past episodes in the All Songs Considered playlists in Apple Music and Spotify.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy