Performance Today®

Tuesday, February 5 is New Years Day on the Chinese lunar calendar, one of the biggest annual celebrations on the planet. Depending on how you do the translation, we're heading into the Year of the Pig, or the Year of the Boar. Music for Chinese New Year, on this edition of Performance Today.

In 1948, American composer William Grant Still was inspired by some poems about the natural beauty of the American South. On this episode of Performance Today, take a break with us and hear Wood Notes, William Grant Still's work of quiet musical contemplation.

"If you find yourself elated by my music," composer Wang Jie says, "the credit goes to the muses. If you hate it," she continues, "well, it's only 15 minutes long." On this weekend's Performance Today, a composer who calls herself "part cartoon character, part virtuoso." We'll hear the Symphony No. 1 by Wang Jie.

Composer Edvard Grieg found tremendous inspiration in Norwegian history and folklore. His Lyric Pieces for piano are expressions of his country's places, stories, and people. On this episode of Performance Today, Joyce Yang brings those colorful works to life, from a concert in Seattle.

If you're ready to step into a different world, follow us through medieval gates into a storybook world created by composer Anton Bruckner. On this episode Performance Today, Marek Janowski conducts the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in concert performance of Bruckner's Symphony No. 4.

Composer Matthew Jackfert spent six months in the seaside city of Qingdao, China. Memories of the waves and wind and local culture stuck with him. On this episode of Performance Today, tune in for On the Shores of Qingdao by Matthew Jackfert, from a concert by the West Virginia University Symphony Orchestra.

Pianist Daniil Trifonov has a unique warm up and practice routine. He "goes through the motions"... underwater. On this episode of Performance Today, hear Daniil Trifonov describe this unique method, and hear him play Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra.

When Addison Maye-Saxon was in the 7th grade and choosing what to play, he didn't like cello or trumpet, so his teacher picked his instrument (and his future) for him. On this episode of Performance Today, we're proud to introduce you to our first brass playing Young Artist in Residence, trombonist Addison Maye-Saxon.

Trombonist Addison Maye-Saxon is Performance Today's current Young Artist in Residence. Addison recently joined Fred Child for conversation and music at our studio in Saint Paul. You can hear it all here!