Poster Fred Child
Fred Child
MPR

Performance Today®

with host Fred Child

All Episodes

PT Weekend: Bach's Chaconne

PT Weekend: Bach's Chaconne

It's 15 minutes of mostly solemn music for solo violin, a set of variations with a few unexpected breaks in the pattern along the way. As simple as that may sound, when it's well played, it's incredibly moving. Join us to hear Violinist Itamar Zorman play the Chaconne from J.S. Bach’s Partita in D Minor…on a violin that’s nearly as old as the music itself.

Finding Rothko

Finding Rothko

In 2006, composer Adam Schoenberg went to a show of paintings by Mark Rothko, and he had what he calls a "visceral reaction." Schoenberg was inspired to write music based on four of Rothko’s paintings. On today's show, we'll take you to Houston to hear Finding Rothko by Adam Schoenberg.

Jordan Bak

Jordan Bak

Violist Jordan Bak was one of our 2020 Young Artists in Residence. He's an incredibly talented young musician with a bright personality who continues to bloom. On today's show, we'll hear Jordan Bak's performance of Bartok's Viola Concerto with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra.

Itamar Zorman plays Bach

Itamar Zorman plays Bach

It's 15 minutes of mostly solemn music for solo violin, a set of variations with a few unexpected breaks in the pattern along the way. As simple as that may sound, when it's well played, it's incredibly moving. Join us today to hear Violinist Itamar Zorman play the Chaconne from J.S. Bach’s Partita in D Minor…on a violin that’s nearly as old as the music itself.

The music of Federico Mompou

The music of Federico Mompou

Pianist Stephen Hough describes the music of Federico Mompou as: "the music of evaporation." Hough says, "The notes are too simple and the soul too complex for conventional analysis." On today's show, we'll hear Stephen Hough play the Magic Songs by Catalan composer Federico Mompou from a concert presented by Spivey Hall at Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia.

Honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Honoring the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

The impact of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. is more important than ever. Join us for a special edition of ‘Performance Today’ honoring King through music. We'll hear the music he loved and the pieces composed by musicians who loved him as we celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

PT Weekend: Christopher Gunning

PT Weekend: Christopher Gunning

Composer Christopher Gunning often advised emerging composers not to wait to write their symphonies until they were too old and tired to do so, and he followed his advice by completing THIRTEEN symphonies before he died in 2023. On today's show, conductor Kenneth Woods leads the Colorado MahlerFest Orchestra in a performance of Christopher Gunning's Symphony No. 10.

A quintet for the winds

A quintet for the winds

The piece started out as a wind octet, and then Beethoven revised it into a quintet for strings. Then, in the 21st century, a bassoonist arranged the string quintet back into music for wind quintet. Don't worry if you've lost the plot—just join us to hear the group WindSync play great music by Beethoven on today's show.

Out with the old...

Out with the old...

Tessa Lark played a Stradivarius violin for several years, but that violin was on loan, and she had to give it back. Now, she has a different violin; it’s not a Stradivarius, but she loves it even more. On this episode of Performance Today, we'll hear Tessa Lark play that violin at a concert presented by the Seattle Chamber Music Society.