The legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King has rattled through current events this past year. His impact is more important than ever. Join us for this special edition of Performance Today honoring Dr. King through music. We'll hear music he loved and the pieces composed by musicians who loved him.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Thomas A. Dorsey, arr. Adrian Dunn: Precious Lord (Excerpt)
The Adrian Dunn Singers; Adrian Dunn, conductor
Revelations
HoperaWorld Music NA
Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton & Larry Mullen, Jr., arr. Bob Chilcott: MLK
The King's Singers
Gold
Signum Records NA
Adolphus Hailstork: Epitaph for a Man Who Dreamed: In Memoriam: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Chicago Sinfonietta; Paul Freeman, conductor
African Heritage Symphonic Series, Vol. 2
Cedille 61
Duke Ellington: Three Black Kings - Ballet: Mvt 3 Martin Luther King
Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra; JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Duke Ellington: Black, Brown and Beige
Naxos 559737
Gene Taylor: Why? (The King of Love Is Dead)
Nina Simone, vocals and piano; Gene Taylor, bass; Rudy Stevenson, guitar; Samuel Wyman, organ; Buck Clarke, drums
The Essential Nina Simone
Sony Music 786702
Brooke Joyce: He Hung His Head and Died (12 Variations for George Floyd)
The Unison Piano Duo: Xiao Hu, piano; Du Huang, piano
Iowa Public Radio, Luther College: Noble Recital Hall in the Jensen-Noble Hall of Music, Decorah, IA
Omar Thomas: Of Our New Day Begun
Dallas Winds; Jerry Junkin, conductor
Meyerson Symphony Center, Dallas, TX
Hour 2
Hildegard von Bingen: O ignee Spiritus
PUBLIQuartet
Freedom and Faith
Bright Shiny Things NA
Nina Simone: Young Gifted and Black
PUBLIQuartet
Freedom and Faith
Bright Shiny Things NA
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: 24 Negro Melodies, Op. 59 (2 Excerpts)
Frances Walker Slocum, piano
Coleridge-Taylor: 24 Negro Melodies, Op. 59
Orion 7806
Traditional, arr. Lara Downes & PUBLIQuartet: Deep River
Lara Downes, piano; PUBLIQuartet
Some of These Days
Flipside Music NA
William Grant Still: Symphony No. 2 in G minor, Song of a New Race
Detroit Symphony Orchestra; Neeme Jarvi, conductor
Still: Symphony 2; Dawson: Negro Folk Symphony; Ellington: Harlem
Chandos Records LTD 9226
Walter Hawkins, arr. Stephen Prutsman: Goin' Up Yonder
Stephen Prutsman, piano
Rockport Music, Shalin Liu Performance Center, Rockport, MA
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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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