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Performance Today®

An American Rhapsody

Join us this Independence Day for a multimedia piece that highlights the unifying words of George Washington, set to dramatic music by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. The Sphinx Symphony Orchestra plays "An American Rhapsody" by Aaron Dworkin on this episode of Performance Today.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Anthony DiLorenzo: Anthem of Hope: Houston Strong
ROCO | Mei-Ann Chen, conductor
Album: ROCO: Visions Take Flight
Innova 016

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor/Aaron Dworkin: The American Rhapsody: Symphonic Variations on an African Air
Aaron Dworkin, spoken word | Sphinx Symphony Orchestra | Roderick Cox, conductor
Max M. & Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, Detroit, MI

Reena Esmail: Teen Murti for String Orchestra
ROCO | Mei-Ann Chen, conductor
Album: ROCO: Visions Take Flight
American Composers Forum / Innova 016

Leonard Bernstein: On the Town: 3 Dance Episodes
New York Philharmonic | Leonard Bernstein, conductor
Album: Bernstein conducts Bernstein
Sony 42263

Hour 2

Joseph Jenkins: American Overture
Aspen Music Festival Orchestral Ensemble | Lawrence Isaacson, conductor
Aspen Music Festival and School, Benedict Music Tent, Aspen, CO

Valerie Coleman: Umoja (Unity)
Elizabeth Mann, flute | Jonathan Fischer, oboe | Daniel Gilbert, clarinet | Michael Kroth, bassoon | Michael Thornton, horn | John Kinzie, percussion
Colorado College Summer Music Festival, Packard Hall, Colorado Springs, CO

R. Nathaniel Dett: Magnolia Suite: The Place Where the Rainbow Ends
Lara Downes, piano
Album: Settle: Migration Music Part 3
Rising Sun 7

George Gershwin: Piano Concerto in F Major
Joyce Yang, piano | Aspen Festival Orchestra | Robert Spano, conductor
Aspen Music Festival and School, Benedict Music Tent, Aspen, CO

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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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