Performance Today®

Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero was our 2023 PT Classical Woman of the Year. Join us for a special hour of music and conversation, co-hosted by Gabriela Montero and Fred Child.

Composer Miguel del Aguila imagined a meeting between two characters: one is Justice, the blindfolded woman holding scales and a sword, and the other is Law, the man holding a book and gavel. We'll hear Imani Winds play the world premiere of Miguel del Aguila's 'Blindfold Music' on today's show.

The ballet world is filled with images of graceful, colorful birds: Swan Lake. The Firebird. A famous bluebird in Sleeping Beauty. And a ballet about pigeons? On today's show, we'll hear music from The Two Pigeons, a ballet written in 1886 by French composer Andre Messager.

Composer Florence Price was also an excellent organist. In the 1930s, she played organ for silent films and radio shows in Chicago—and she wrote for the organ as well. We'll hear a Passacaglia and Fugue for organ by Florence Price on today's show.

What does an anthem for the 21st century sound like in today's multicultural environment? In 2014, composer Jessie Montgomery attempted to answer that question when she wrote a piece in tribute to the 200th anniversary of “The Star Spangled Banner.” On today's show, we'll hear the group A Far Cry play "Banner" by Jessie Montgomery, from a concert at the beautiful Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, Massachusetts.

Dalia Stasevska was born in Kyiv. Her career as a conductor is taking off, and she's also devoted to providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine...even driving supply trucks into the country herself! Dalia Stasevska: her music and her story on this edition of PT.

In 2022, the Apollo Chamber Players commissioned a work by composer Wang Jie. Wang Jie, also trained as an organist, wrote the piece for the unusual combination of pipe organ and string quartet. On today's show, we'll hear the Apollo Chamber Players and organist Daryl Robinson play the world premiere of The Night When You See Again by Wang Jie.

What does an anthem for the 21st century sound like in today's multicultural environment? In 2014, composer Jessie Montgomery attempted to answer that question when she wrote a piece in tribute to the 200th anniversary of “The Star Spangled Banner.” On today's show, we'll hear the group A Far Cry play "Banner" by Jessie Montgomery, from a concert at the beautiful Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, Massachusetts.

At the age of 35, English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams went to Paris to study with Maurice Ravel (who was younger than Vaughan Williams). They worked together intensely for several months, after which Ravel gave him a great compliment. He said Vaughan Williams was his only student who didn't try to write exactly like Ravel himself. On today's show, we'll take you to the most recent Spoleto Festival USA to hear the Piano Quintet by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Plus, we’ll have the story of a musical hoax!