Poster Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland
Library of Congress, Music Division
Performance Today®

Copland and the American West

Aaron Copland was from Brooklyn. He was a city slicker who, to a certain degree, created what we think of as the sound of the old American West. On Thursday's Performance Today, we'll hear selections from his cowboy ballet "Billy the Kid."

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Aaron Copland: Prelude for Piano Trio
Michael Boriskin, piano; Nicholas Kitchen, violin; Wilhelmina Smith, cello
Music From Copland House
Arabesque 6794

Giovanni Paolo Cima & Dario Castello: Two Sonatas in Stile Moderno
Red Priest: Piers Adams, recorders; David Greenberg, violin; Angela East, cello; David Wright, harpsichord
Hodgson Concert Hall, University of Georgia, Athens, GA

Aaron Copland: Suite from Billy the Kid
Artosphere Festival Orchestra; Corrado Rovaris, conductor
Walton Arts Center, Walton Arts Center, Fayetteville, AR

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Quartet for Flute and Strings in D major, K. 285
Lorna McGhee, flute; Augustin Hadelich, violin; Richard O'Neill, viola; Ronald Thomas, cello
Seattle Chamber Music Society, Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall, Seattle, WA

Hour 2

Paul Hindemith: 4 Pieces for 2 bassoons
Daniele Damiano, bassoon; Milan Turkovic, bassoon
United Sounds of Bassoon
Koch/Schwann 313 742

Marc-Antoine Charpentier: Incidental music for Le Malade Imaginaire
Tempesta di Mare
Philadelphia, PA

Frederic Chopin: Ballade No. 3 in A-flat Major, Op. 47
Stephen Hough, piano
Spivey Hall, Clayton State University, Morrow, GA

Francois Devienne: Concerto No. 4 for Bassoon and Orchestra
Kristin Wolfe Jensen, bassoon; River Oaks Chamber Orchestra; Alastair Willis, conductor
River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, The Church of St. John the Divine, Houston, TX

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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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