The Eiffel Tower was built for the Exposition of 1889, changing the Parisian landscape forever. But the Exposition also changed the soundscape of Paris, and of the world. Claude Debussy went there and heard Indonesian gamelan music for the first time. He was fascinated with the sounds and rhythms, and immediately started incorporating them into his music, paving the way for what would become Impressionism. The Borromeo String Quartet plays Debussy's String Quartet, profoundly influenced by his encounter with the sound of the gamelan.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Manuel de Falla: Excerpts from Popular Spanish Suite
Alisa Weilerstein, cello, Vivian Hornik Weilerstein, piano
George Gershwin: Cuban Overture
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, Gustavo Dudamel, conductor
Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles
The Piano Puzzler: This week's contestant is Wendy Reynolds from Boca Raton, Florida
Peter Tchaikovsky: Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33
Alisa Weilerstein, cello, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Carnegie Hall, New York City
Johann Sebastian Bach: Bouree from Cello Suite No. 3 in C, BWV 1009
Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Carnegie Hall, New York City
Hour 2
Georges Bizet: Carillon from L'Arlesienne Suite No. 1
The French National Orchestra, Seiji Ozawa, conductor
Felix Mendelssohn: Sinfonia No. 5 in B-Flat
The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Margaret Batjer, violin and leader
Royce Hall, Los Angeles
Claude Debussy: String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 10
The Borromeo String Quartet
Taos Community Auditorium, Taos, New Mexico
Ambroise Thomas: Do you Know the Land?, from Mignon
Marie-Nicole Lemieux, contralto, the French National Orchestra, Fabien Gabel, conductor
Theatre des Champs-Elysees, Paris, France
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American Public Media’s Performance Today® is America’s most popular classical music radio program and a winner of the 2014 Gabriel Award for artistic achievement. The show is broadcast on hundreds of public radio stations across the country, including at 1 p.m. central weekdays on Minnesota Public Radio. More information about our stations can be found at APM Distribution.
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