Performance Today®

In the spring of 1968, conductor Paul Freeman ran into Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the Atlanta airport. Their brief conversation was one he never forgot. On this episode of Performance Today, hear about that life-changing encounter in our musical celebration of Dr. King's life and legacy.

David Baker was a legendary trombonist until his jaw was injured in a car accident. After that, he learned to play the cello and immersed himself in composing and teaching. David Baker's story, plus we'll hear from his piano trio Roots II, on this episode of Performance Today.

Imagine standing at the edge of a frozen lake in Alaska. The air is so cold it's painful to breathe, but at the same time, you see vast forests and a majestic mountain glowing in the sunrise. Music inspired by the the awesome landscape of Denali, on this episode of Performance Today.

Petrushka is a character who goes back hundreds of years... an aggressive court jester who is most happy when he's hurting someone. On today's show, Gustavo Dudamel leads the LA Philharmonic in a performance of Igor Stravinsky's Petrushka... a fun and scary puppet show where we don't really know who's pulling the strings.

David Baker was a legendary trombonist until his jaw was injured in a car accident. After that, he learned to play the cello and immersed himself in composing and teaching. David Baker's story, plus we'll hear from his piano trio Roots II, on this episode of Performance Today.

On today's show, hear a piece by the great 20th century master of Argentine tango, Astor Piazzolla. The Anderson and Roe Piano Duo play a slow burn of a tango, Piazzolla's Oblivion, from a concert in Winona, Minnesota.

That first four notes of Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 are so famous, the music becomes easy to ignore. On this episode of Performance Today, we'll pay attention to the rest of this symphony in its struggle, beauty and ultimately triumphant, golden sunshine moment of an ending.

Gil Shaham first played Prokofiev's second violin concerto when he was thirteen. 35 years later, he's still playing it. He says "it's a miracle of a piece." On this episode of Performance Today, we take you to a concert in Houston to hear Gil Shaham and the Houston Symphony play Prokofiev's "miracle." Elena See guest-hosts.

Of all the 21st century compositions we've played on PT, one piece has gotten the most rapturous response. It's music inspired by the beauty of the night sky... but also by the pain and violence of war. "Azul" by Osvaldo Golijov, featuring Yo-Yo Ma, on this episode of Performance Today.