In printing and publishing, a watermark is a faint design pressed into a piece of paper used to identify the time and place it was created. Composer Caroline Shaw had a poetic version of that idea and composed a piece that references a Beethoven piano concerto. On today's show, hear Jonathan Biss and the Saint Paul Chamber orchestra play Watermark by Caroline Shaw.
Toby Appel is one of the best viola players around, and he is also an excellent chef. Appel spent several years running a restaurant in Santa Fe, and, for a year, he was the personal chef for the artist Georgia O'Keeffe. Join us today to hear chef Toby Appel and friends play the Phantasy Quintet by Ralph Vaughan Williams, from a concert in Colorado Springs.
Join us for a musical New Year's celebration! We'll usher in the new year with a celebratory Trumpet Concerto by Johann Neruda and sample a bit of musical champagne, courtesy of Johann Strauss Jr. Music for the New Year, on this edition of Performance Today.
The Manhattan skyline, the majesty of the Teton Mountains, and indigenous communities living in the American West. Those are some of the elements that inspired a musical reflection on our nation: American Scene by William Grant Still.
When Maurice Ravel wrote Gaspard de la Nuit, he tried to make it the most difficult piano music ever written... perhaps even unplayable. On today's show, Benjamin Grosvenor plays the unplayable in a concert presented by Capital Region Classical in Schenectady, NY.
Felix Mendelssohn had a close relationship with his older sister, Fanny. So when she died unexpectedly at age 41, Felix was devastated. He said he would never get over her death. On today's show, hear the piece Mendelssohn dedicated to his dear departed sister.
When composer Victoria Kelly was a kid in New Zealand, she watched an animated show featuring an adorable kiwi bird. At the end of each episode, the kiwi ended the show by turning out the lights. Kelly used this memory to compose a piece of music that ultimately helped her say "goodnight" to her ailing mother. On today's show, hear pianist Juho Pohjonen perform Goodnight Kiwi by Victoria Kelly.
Join us today for a musical exploration of Kwanzaa, a celebration of African-American heritage, culture, and community.
For Christmas Day, we're playing some of the best holiday music... you might even find yourself joining the chorus. Tune in for Christmas and holiday music from concerts around the world. Happy Holidays from all of us at Performance Today!
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