On today's show, we'll hear some highlights from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker... but in a version that was put together in 1959 by Duke Ellington. Conductor Andrew Grams says the stylistic difference is especially apparent in the section Tchaikovsky called Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy. Duke Ellington called his version the Sugar Rum Cherry. Tune in today to hear Ellington’s take on the Nutcracker.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Johannes Brahms: Clarinet Quintet in B Minor, Op. 115: Mvt. 3
Arkadiusz Adamski, clarinet | Apollon Musagete Quartet
Album: Brahms: Chamber Music with Clarinet
DUX
Viet Cuong: Constellations
ROCO | Mei-Ann Chen, conductor
St. John the Divine, Houston, TX
Piano Puzzler
Contestant: Kevin Shaw calling from Charlotte, NC
Krzysztof Penderecki: String Quartet No. 3, "Leaves from an Unwritten Diary"
Apollon Musagete Quartet
EBU, Radiotelevision Espanola, Fundacion Juan March, Madrid, Spain
Hour 2
Peter Tchaikovsky, arr. Walter Wollenweber: Nocturne
Sol Gabetta, cello | Munich Radio Orchestra | Ari Rasilainen, conductor
Album: Sol Gabetta plays Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saens and Ginastera
RCA 675951
Peter Tchaikovsky, arr. Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Jeff Tyzik: The Nutcracker Suite No. 1, Op. 71a
Chineke! Orchestra | Andrew Grams, conductor
EBU, BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London, UK
Duke Ellington: Come Sunday
Lara Downes, piano | PUBLIQuartet
Album: New Day Begun
Rising Sun 74227
Giuseppe Torelli: Concerto grosso in G Minor, Op. 8 No. 6 (Christmas Concerto)
Concerto Copenhagen | Lars Ulrik Mortensen, conductor
Album: Per la Notte di Natale: Italian Christmas Concerto
Naxos 8574264
Antonin Dvorak: Silent Woods for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 68
Julia Bruskin, cello | The Knights
Skaneateles Festival, First Presbyterian Church, Skaneateles, NY
Bela Bartok, arr. Michael P. Atkinson: Romanian Christmas Carols
The Knights | Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Album: The Knights Before Christmas
Bright Shiny Things 159
Adolphe Adam, arr. Christina Courtin: O Holy Night
Gaby Moreno, vocals | The Knights | Eric Jacobsen, conductor
Album: The Knights Before Christmas
Bright Shiny Things 159
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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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