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Performance Today®

Highlights from across the globe

Every week, composer Bruce Adolphe joins us for a musical game. Play along; see if you can name the tune, and the composer whose style Bruce is mimicking. On this weekend's Performance Today, we'll play the Piano Puzzler, plus we'll hear highlights from concert halls around the world.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Richard Wagner: Romanza (Albumblatt)
Elissa Lee Koljonen, violin; Robert Koenig, piano
Heartbreak, Romantic Encores for Violin
Dorian 90268

Michael Engelhardt: Gaudete!
Utah State University Chamber Singers; Cory Evans, conductor
Kent Concert Hall, Chase Fine Arts Center, Logan, UT

Benjamin Britten: The Spirit of the Lord (World of the Spirit)
St. Olaf Choir Massed Choirs; St. Olaf Orchestra; Anton Armstrong, conductor
St. Olaf Christmas Festival, Skoglund Center Auditorium, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN

Walter "Jack" Rollins & Steve Nelson (arr. Dallas Brass): Frosty the Tuba
Dallas Brass; Mike Levine, conductor
Beaches Fine Arts Series, St. Paul's by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, Jacksonville, FL

The Piano Puzzler: This week's contestant is Cynthia Schwab from Joplin, MO

Richard Wagner: Prelude to Act 1 of Lohengrin
National Festival Orchestra; Asher Fisch, conductor
The University of Maryland, The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, College Park, MD

Abbie Betinis: In the Bleak Midwinter
Evan Mitchell, piano; Luther College Nordic Choir; Dr. Allen Hightower, conductor
Center for Faith and Life, Decorah, IA

William James Kirkpatrick (arr. Patrick Kerber and David Bryan): Away In A Manger
Pepe, Celin, Lito, Celino and Angel Romero; guitars
Christmas with Los Romeros
DG 17474

Alex Bigney: New Snow/Mittens for Christmas
Kirkmount: Alex Bigney, harp and bones; Samuel Bigney, fiddle; Simeon Bigney, cello and bodhran
Mittens for Christmas
Dorian 93236

Hour 2

Antonin Dvorak (arr. Fritz Kreisler): Sonatina for violin and piano, Op.100, "Indian Lament"
Yo-Yo Ma, cello; Patricia Zander, piano
Kreisler, Paganini: Works
Sony 37280

Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Excerpts from Noels pour les instruments
Masques; Olivier Fortin, conductor
Noel baroque
Analekta 9908

Gustaf Nordqvist: Jul, jul, stralande jul
Chanticleer; Ragnar Bohlin, conductor
Sacred Music in a Sacred Space, Church of St Ignatius Loyola, New York, NY

Pietro Yon: Gesu Bambino
Adagio Trio
Winter Gift
Adagio Trio 2

Antonin Dvorak: Songs My Mother Taught Me
Yo-Yo Ma, cello; Kathryn Stott, piano
The Arc of Life
Sony 10316

Johann Sebastian Bach: Orchestral Suite No. 3: Air on the G String
Yo-Yo Ma, cello; Bobby McFerrin, vocals
Hush
Sony 48177

Traditional: Dona Nobis Pacem/Auld Lang Syne
Yo-Yo Ma, cello; Chris Botti, trumpet
Yo Yo Ma & Friends - Songs of Joy and Peace
Sony 24414

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Overture to The Wasps
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra; Andrew Litton, conductor
Grieg Concert Hall, Bergen, Norway

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Antiphon (Five Mystical Songs)
Massed Choirs of St. Olaf College and the St. Olaf Orchestra; Christopher Aspaas, conductor
St. Olaf Christmas Festival, Skoglund Center Auditorium, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN

Ralph Vaughan Williams: Wassail Song from "Two Songs of Winter"
Judy Mason, piano; Spivey Hall Children's Choir; Martha Shaw, conductor
Spivey Hall, Clayton State University, Morrow, GA

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

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Vladimir Jurowski

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Richard Danielpour: Triptych

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Wynton Marsalis: Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra

Wynton Marsalis: Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra

On today's show, we'll hear a piece for solo trumpet and orchestra by Wynton Marsalis. Throughout the piece, Marsalis gives us a quick history of the trumpet, from simple horns (literally) to the invention of brass and on to one of Marsalis's heroes: Louis Armstrong. Today, we’ll hear Wynton Marsalis's Trumpet Concerto, played by trumpeter Alison Balsom and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra.

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PT Weekend: David Lai

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Where true joy is serious business

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1:59:00
Rossini's worst critic: Rossini

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When composer Gioachino Rossini was 12, he wrote six "terrible" sonatas. WE don't think they're terrible—Rossini is the one that used that word. So, see what you think... join us today to hear Rossini's not-so-terrible String Sonata No. 3 from a concert in Portland, Oregon.

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The Year of the Snake

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Beethoven's 'Hammerklavier'

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Marc-Andre Hamelin is one of the most celebrated and respected pianists of our time. His performances are known for their brilliance, technical mastery, and deep musicality. On today's show, we'll hear Hamelin play one of the world’s most challenging piano compositions: Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 29, the Hammerklavier.

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Young Artist in Residence: David Lai

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About Performance Today®

To find a station near you on our Stations Listings page, click here.

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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