First off, plan to be at Traverse City’s Opera House on May 4 at 3:00 p.m. Here’s why.

Over the course of a 44-year career, Detroiter Karl Haas built the most popular classical music radio program the world has ever known. His Adventures in Good Music played on 650 U.S. stations, beamed to several other nations and attracted 3.6 million listeners daily. Karl has passed away, but the anniversary of his 100th birthday is this year, and his son, Jeff, who built a national jazz career from Traverse City, has planned a special birthday tribute concert that will also show a 30-minute documentary of Karl’s life.

Making the evening extra special is the presence of Karl’s own concert grand piano, which was discovered in a WJR storage space and restored by Jim Evola, owner of several Detroit area piano stores. Evola gave the restored piano to Jeff Haas as a surprise gift.

The video above was created by 9&10 News. In the mood for more video? Check out this oldie-but-goodie from the WJR archive, in which Karl Haas discusses his show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxswozcNZnw—J.S.