Poster Emily Reese
Top Score podcast host Emily Reese
Nate Ryan
Performance Today®

Video Game Music

For hundreds of years, composers have written music for the stage. For about the last 80 years, great composers have written soundtracks for films. Now, there's yet another medium for composers. Video game music. Emily Reese joins us to show the connections between video game music and classical music, on Friday's Performance Today.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Johannes Brahms: Six Pieces for Piano, Op. 118 - I. Intermezzo in A minor: Allegro non assai, ma molto appassionato, IV. Intermezzo in F minor: Allegretto un poco agitato
Lang Lang, piano
Haydn, Rachmaninov, Brahms, Tchaikovsky
Telarc 80524

Johann Strauss II: Thunder and Lightning Polka
Vienna Philharmonic; Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Musikverein, Vienna, Austria
New Year's Concert 2009
London/Decca 1256902

Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 "Appassionata"
Lang Lang, piano
Musikverein, Vienna, Austria
Lang Lang Live in Vienna
Sony 88697726892

Robert Schumann: Traumerei
Lang Lang, piano
Carnegie Hall, New York, NY
Lang Lang Live at Carnegie Hall
DG 2047

Claude Debussy: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun (Prelude a l'apres-midi d'un faune)
New York Philharmonic; David Robertson, conductor
Avery Fisher Hall, New York City, NY

Hour 2

Richard Strauss: "Potpourri" from Die schweigsame Frau
Bamberg Symphony Orchestra; Karl Anton Rickenbacher, conductor
Preludes and Intermezzos from Operas
Koch 6520

Jeremy Soule: Call of the Raven from Guild Wars

John Barry: Dances with Wolves
London Symphony Orchestra; John Williams, conductor
The Hollywood Sound
Sony 62788

Charles Ives: Old Home Days Suite
The President's Own United States Marine Band; Colonel Timothy Foley, director
Charles Ives' America
USMB 19

Garry Schyman: Elizabeth from BioShock Infinite

Garry Schyman: Lighter than Air from BioShock Infinite

Stephen Foster: Beautiful Dreamer
Thomas Hampson, baritone; Jay Ungar, violin; Molly Mason, guitar; David Alpher, piano
American Dreamer
EMI 54621

Joel Corelitz: Palace Minuet from The Unfinished Swan

Richard Strauss: Divertimento. Op. 86 - III. Le Tic-Toc-Choc, VI. Les Tours de passe-passe, VII. Les ombres errantes, VIII. Les Brimborions
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Richard Strauss
DG 435871

Joel Corelitz: The Unfinished Swan Theme

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

PT Weekend: Richard Danielpour

PT Weekend: Richard Danielpour

Composer Richard Danielpour found musical inspiration in a sculpture made by his mother—an image of an Iranian woman breaking away from her veil. He contemplated recent protests in Iran, led by young women who want to choose whether to wear a headscarf. On today's show, we'll hear music inspired by the brave women of Iran: Breaking the Veil by Richard Danielpour.

1:59:00
Damien Geter's "Neo-Soul" quartet

Damien Geter's "Neo-Soul" quartet

Composer Damien Geter spent much of the pandemic reliving his love of 90s neo-soul. He says the music of Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, and Lauryn Hill helped him get through. As a classical composer, he wanted to write his own music in homage to neo-soul. On today's show, we'll hear what he came up with: "Neo-Soul," the String Quartet No. 1 by Damien Geter.

1:59:00
Valerie Coleman: Tzigane

Valerie Coleman: Tzigane

Valerie Coleman's "Tzigane" is a fiery response to a classic. Inspired by Ravel's iconic piece of the same name, Coleman channeled the energy and spirit of Roma music into a composition for wind quintet. On today's show, we'll hear the Imani Winds play Coleman's Tzigane at a performance presented by the Colorado College Summer Music Festival.

1:59:00
Danielpour: Breaking the Veil

Danielpour: Breaking the Veil

Composer Richard Danielpour found musical inspiration in a sculpture made by his mother—an image of an Iranian woman breaking away from her veil. He contemplated recent protests in Iran, led by young women who want to choose whether to wear a headscarf. On today's show, we'll hear music inspired by the brave women of Iran: Breaking the Veil by Richard Danielpour.

1:59:00
Leif Ove Andsnes plays Grieg's Piano Concerto

Leif Ove Andsnes plays Grieg's Piano Concerto

Publishing houses in Germany initially rejected Edvard Grieg's Piano Concerto. When pianist Franz Liszt played through the piece with Grieg, Liszt warmly shook his hand and said, "You have the gift. Keep on composing. Don't let them intimidate you." Liszt’s advice changed Grieg's life; that piece has become one of the most famous pieces in classical music. On today's show, pianist Leif Ove Andsnes plays Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra in Switzerland.

1:59:00
Kirill Gerstein plays Rachmaninoff

Kirill Gerstein plays Rachmaninoff

Sure, it's a flashy showpiece for piano, but Kirill Gerstein says, "If you dig deeper, it's also a sincere expression straight from the heart." On today's show, hear Kirill Gerstein play Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2 with conductor Hannu Lintu leading the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.

1:59:00
PT Weekend: Martinu's room with a view

PT Weekend: Martinu's room with a view

Composer Bohuslav Martinu spent his childhood in a bell tower, where his father was the keeper. Looking back, he said he saw "everything in miniature, and above it all a great, boundless space... it is this space that I am forever seeking in my music." On today's show, we'll take you to a concert in Switzerland to hear Marinu's Cello Concerto No. 1.

1:59:00
Ravel's String Quartet

Ravel's String Quartet

French composer Maurice Ravel wrote so much wonderful music, but only once did he write a piece for two violins, viola, and cello. We don’t need to call it Quartet No. 1 by Ravel... it's the ONLY String Quartet by Ravel. Join us today—we'll take you to a concert in Portland, Oregon, to hear the Catalyst Quartet play the String Quartet by Maurice Ravel.

1:59:00
Jessie Montgomery: Peace

Jessie Montgomery: Peace

In the Spring of 2020, the pandemic was brand-new, isolating, and scary. American composer Jessie Montgomery wrote a short composition called Peace… and when Clarinetist Anthony McGill first heard it, he was moved to tears. On today's show, Anthony McGill and pianist Conrad Tao play music about coming to terms with sadness: Peace by Jessie Montgomery.

1:59:00
The Lantern Festival

The Lantern Festival

In many Asian cultures, a colorful festival marks the final day of Lunar New Year celebrations. People light lanterns, let go of the past and welcome new beginnings. On today’s show, we'll celebrate this time of reconciliation: the Lantern Festival.

1:59:00
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About Performance Today®

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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.

Performance Today® features live concert recordings that can’t be heard anywhere else, highlights from new album releases, and in-studio performances and interviews. Performance Today® is based at the APM studios in St. Paul, Minnesota, but is frequently on the road, with special programs broadcast from festivals and public radio stations around the country. Also, each Wednesday, composer Bruce Adolphe joins host Fred Child for a classical musical game and listener favorite: the Piano Puzzler.

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