Performance Today®

On Friday's Performance Today, we have romantic, dramatic music by Rachmaninoff from a concert in Los Angeles. Lise de la Salle tearing up the piano, while Gustavo Dudamel conducts the LA Philharmonic in Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

Mozart wrote his Concerto for Two Piano with himself and his sister in mind. On Thursday's Performance Today, we'll hear Joanne Pearce Martin and Jeffrey Kahane play it in concert with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

On Wednesday's Performance Today, we'll go to sunny Los Angeles to hear the LA Philharmonic play Brahms' sunny Symphony No. 2. Plus, Bruce Adolphe joins us for our weekly Piano Puzzler.

When the young wind quintet called WindSync plays a concert, they memorize their music and play without music stands. Why do they do this? We'll find out on Tuesday's Performance Today, when WindSync joins Fred in the studio for music and conversation.

Wind quintet WindSync joins Fred in the studio to discuss their approach to playing - and performing - classical music.

Joshua Bell and Steven Isserlis are classical superstars. But when they wanted a pianist for a European tour, they decided to choose a pianist whose playing they loved, but who isn't famous - yet. His name is Denes Varjon, and on Monday's Performance Today we'll hear Bell, Isserlis, and Varjon play a Chopin piano trio in concert in Poland.

Lots of unusual instruments on the way on this weekend's Performance Today, including a 21st century concerto for Pipa and Orchestra, and a Grand Grand Overture for Vacuum Cleaners, Floor Polisher, and Concert Band.

The Chinese lute, or pipa, has been around for more than two thousand years. On Friday's Performance Today, we'll hear a 21st century composition for pipa performed by Wu Man and the Buffalo Philharmonic.

On Thursday's Performance Today, Lawrence Foster conducts the Houston Symphony Orchestra in a glorious performance of music from Edward Elgar's Enigma Variations at Jones Hall in Texas.