From the Top at Carnegie Hall to return to PBS

America's most extraordinary young musicians aged 8 to 18 will be showcased on PBS this spring when From the Top at Carnegie Hall returns for its second season on May 10 (check local listings). Based on the popular NPR program, the public television series takes viewers backstage with today's rising young musicians, captures the excitement of their Carnegie Hall debuts, and reveals that they bring passion and perseverance not only to classical music, but to everything from speed skating and soccer, to fashion design and model trains.

In an exciting new addition, From the Top at Carnegie Hall will stream online free of charge at www.pbs.org/fromthetop. Season One episodes of the award-winning series will be available in April with new Season Two episodes to follow after the premiere in May.

The series is hosted by acclaimed pianist Christopher O'Riley and is a co-production of WGBH, From the Top, and Don Mischer Productions in partnership with Carnegie Hall. WGBH recently announced that Emmy Award-winning director and Juilliard School alumnus Gary Halvorson has signed on to produce and direct the second season. With a combined list of credits including Friends, Everybody Loves Raymond, the televised Grand Reopening of Carnegie Hall, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the venerable production team of Halvorson and Don Mischer Productions represents an unprecedented collaboration for public television, and a rare one for the entertainment world at large.

Season Two of From the Top at Carnegie Hall promises to be more intimate and engage viewers more personally with each of the featured musicians: "Last year we produced a show about classical music played by kids," said Don Mischer. "This year we are making a show about kids, all of whom play classical music."

Viewers will accompany these sensational young performers backstage at Carnegie Hall, as well as to their hometowns where they'll see a family bathroom double as the most acoustically pleasing rehearsal space in a young violist's home. They'll also meet a trumpet player who performs in a Manhattan jazz club frequented by the likes of Tony Bennett, and a spirited young marimba player who explains that rhythm exists not only on the performance stage but all around him, even as he does his chores.

Executive producers for From the Top at Carnegie Hall are Laurie Donnelly for WGBH, Gerald Slavet and Jennifer Hurley-Wales for From The Top, and Don Mischer for Don Mischer Productions.Exclusive corporate funding for From the Top at Carnegie Hall is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance. Responsibility. What's Your Policy? Major foundation funding is provided by the Bernard Osher Foundation - proud to celebrate From the Top at Carnegie Hall's second season and the commitment of young people to music and the arts. Additional funding is provided by the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Helen and Peter Bing, and the E.H.A. Foundation.