When Swan Lake premiered in Moscow in 1877, it received terrible reviews. One critic said Tchaikovsky's music had "a poverty of ideas." The prima ballerina hated the music. But in the long run, the genius of Tchaikovsky's music won over everybody excepting the deepest of cynics. Today, Swan Lake is among the most popular ballets on the planet. Alan Gilbert conducts the New York Philharmonic in a suite of dances from Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake in a concert from Lincoln Center in New York City.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Maurice Ravel: Miroirs: Movement 1
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
Beautiful Starry Night - Jean-Yves Thibaudet Plays Ravel
London/Decca 448618
Bohuslav Martinu: Three Madrigals, H. 313, for violin and viola
Eugene Drucker, violin; Lawrence Dutton, viola
Dvorak Prague International Music Festival, Dvorak Hall, Rudolfinum, Prague, Czech Republic
Piano Puzzler: This week's contestant is Jim Hanson from St. Paul, MN
Maurice Ravel: La Valse
Simon Bolivar Orchestra of Venezuela; Gustavo Dudamel, conductor
2016 BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London, England
Hour 2
Jean Philippe Rameau: Elegy (Deux gigues)
Dmitry Paperno, piano
Through the Years
Cedille 74
Antonio Vivaldi (arr. J. S. Bach): Concerto in G Minor for Flautino, Strings, and Basso Continuo, RV 316/BWV 975
Anna Fusek, recorder; Venice Baroque Orchestra; Andrea Marcon, conductor
University of Georgia, Hodgson Concert Hall, Athens, GA
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Gavotte and Variations in A minor
Benjamin Grosvenor, piano
Spivey Hall, Clayton State University, Morrow, GA
Peter Tchaikovsky: Selections from Swan Lake, Op. 20
New York Philharmonic; Alan Gilbert, conductor
Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York, NY
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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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