Performance Today®

Cellist Yo-Yo Ma, pianist Emanuel Ax, and violinist Leonidas Kavakos recently released a new album titled "Beethoven for Three." The idea is to take play Beethoven's symphonies arranged for a trio. It works surprisingly well, and we love it! Hear a couple of these pieces and a conversation with the musicians on this episode of Performance Today.

When Claude Debussy wrote music for the ballet "Jeux," he was picturing a game of tennis between two women and one young man. In tennis, "love" means nothing; in Debussy's music, love is everything. On today's episode, we'll hear romance and seduction on the courts, from a concert by the New York Philharmonic.

Composer Joel Thompson made one rule when he began work on a piece in 2019. He would go through the major news stories each day before working on his composition. Hear the results on this episode of PT: "In Response to the Madness" by Joel Thompson.

Pianist Sara Davis Buechner says that music takes her to a place where she feels completely herself, especially the music of Mozart. Learn more about Sara Davis Buechner and hear her play a sonata by Mozart on today's show.

Conrad Tao wrote a piece when he was 15 years old called Eventide. It's inspired by the gentle arrival of night. Now, more than a dozen years later, it's still one of his favorites. On today's show, we'll hear Conrad Tao and friends play Eventide from a concert in Rockport, Maine.

Juneteenth is this Sunday, June 19th. It’s the longest-running celebration of the end of slavery. For many Americans, it's a day of reflection on freedom, resilience, and strength.  Join us today for music to start celebrating this Juneteenth weekend!

There's a photo of a young boy in an abandoned train station in Albania. The boy turns an old water bottle into a toy, and he's lost in his world of play, despite the refugee crisis around him. On today's show, hear music inspired by that photo, "A Boy and a Makeshift Toy," by Armenian-American composer Mary Kouyoumdjian.

Conrad Tao wrote a piece when he was 15 years old called Eventide. It's inspired by the gentle arrival of night. Now, more than a dozen years later, it's still one of his favorites. On today's show, we'll hear Conrad Tao and friends play Eventide from a concert in Rockport, Maine.

The Alexander String Quartet is known in part for their recordings of Beethoven quartets. Cellist Sandy Wilson says Beethoven's music can seep into anyone's subconscious and stir up feelings of empathy. On today's show, hear them play Beethoven's String Quartet No. 1 at a concert in New York City.