Live In Concert from NPR's All Songs Considered Folgen

It's hard to know what will happen when the string quartet Brooklyn Rider starts playing. Yes, these four guys love to play Debussy and Brahms, but they're just as likely to team up with a singer-songwriter or a Kurdish kamancheh player. Or write their own music. So we weren't sure what they'd do when they stopped by the NPR Music offices to play a Tiny Desk Concert. What we got was a bracing sample of their visceral fire.

When The Low Anthem came to perform at NPR Music, the band seemed humbled and comfortable sitting on and around Bob Boilen's desk, playing music as if it were hanging around in someone's living room. The group's sullen, spacious music was a perfect fit for the intimacy of an office.

When Arcuragi came to the NPR Music offices to play a Tiny Desk Concert, many of us hadn't heard his music. After hearing him play three songs, many walked away dazzled by his voice. Arcuragi's voice is powerful, but without unnecessary melodrama.