Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks, by Richard Strauss, is a musical fairy-tale... a 15-minute orchestral romp that celebrates a crass, anti-establishment prankster. Hear the Los Angeles Philharmonic perform the piece, as well as other concert highlights from around the world, on Thursday's Performance Today.
Hearing Manu Delago play music, you might think he is using a tabla, steel drums, a harp, bells and more--but all those sounds are actually the work of one instrument: the hang drum. Listen in as Delago brings his hang into our New York studio for a conversation with host, Ria Misra.
Franz Schubert celebrated his 21st birthday as he was writing his Symphony No. 6. On Wednesday's Performance Today, join us for a concert from Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles, with Gustavo Dudamel conducting the LA Philharmonic in the Symphony No. 6, by the young Franz Schubert.
In 1914, things were going well for Danish composer Carl Nielsen. He was able to limit other commitments and focus his attention on writing music. At that time, events in Europe were taking a dark turn, and he poured his energy into a new piece of music. It's a fervent symphony that expresses Nielsen's belief that, despite horrific darkness, life and light can prevail. On Tuesday's Performance Today, hear a concert performance of Symphony No. 4, "The Inextinguishable", by Carl Nielsen.
It's a highly anticipated competition that happens once every four years. Two and a half weeks of musical drama and competition, and on Saturday... the medals were awarded in Fort Worth, Texas. On Monday's Performance Today, we'll meet the Gold Medal winner and hear a gold medal winning performance from the 2017 Cliburn Piano Competition.
Most of us have a few unfinished tasks in our lives: half-filled photo albums, returning that voicemail you received last month, and of course, addressing that room in the basement. On Saturday's show, hear the Berlin Philharmonic perform Franz Schubert's most famous loose end, his Symphony No. 8, known as the "Unfinished Symphony".
Composer David Bruce says that, for him, the sound of mandolin is "golden", so he wrote a piece for mandolin and string quartet inspired by the sun. On Friday's Performance Today, Avi Avital and the Dover Quartet play the sunny piece "Cymbeline" by David Bruce.
During a solemn ceremony, as Prince Charles was making John Eliot Gardiner a knight, the prince bent down and whispered in the conductor's ear: "thanks for the cows!" On Thursday's Performance Today, the story behind that comment, and we'll hear Sir John Eliot Gardiner lead the London Symphony in concert.
On the latest episode of Music is Music, host Ria Misra leaves our studios and visits composer and pianist Vijay Iyer in his studio - which, conveniently, is also his home. Join us to listen in on their conversation about the secret lives of instruments, the everyday art of improvisation, and also just to hear some really beautiful music.
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