Performance Today®

In 1812, Beethoven composed joyful music in his Symphony No. 7, yet that time was a low point in his personal life. How could a person so unhappy write such cheerful music? That question haunted composer Kevin Puts so he decided to look for the answer by composing new music. This weekend on Performance Today, we'll hear Puts's piece "Inspiring Beethoven," in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, plus a performance of Beethoven's 7th from Dallas, Texas.

It was 50 years ago today that President John F. Kennedy was fatally shot in Dallas, Texas. On Friday's Performance Today, music to remember his impact and leadership. Also ahead, special music to commemorate the lasting legacy of composer Benjamin Britten on his centennial.

On Thursday's Performance Today, our Young Artist in Residence saxophonist Jonathan Wintringham is back in the studio. He is determined to expand the classical saxophone repertoire and grow its popularity on the concert stage. Wintringham will talk with PT host Fred Child and perform music full of character and adventure by Edvard Grieg.

It's a conundrum. In 1812 Beethoven wrote his Symphony No. 7, which is full of sunny melodies and phrases that bubble along. It sounds happy, yet Beethoven wrote it during a particularly low point in his personal life. How could a person so unhappy write such cheerful music? That question haunted composer Kevin Puts so he decided to look for the answer in music. We'll hear his piece "Inspiring Beethoven" on Wednesday's Performance Today.

Conductor Valery Gergiev feels eternally grateful to the London Symphony Orchestra. He says at that time, only his friends, family and former classmates knew that he was capable of conducting an orchestra. The London Symphony took a chance on the young Russian conductor and today he's one of the most famous men at the podium. We'll hear him conduct Debussy's La Mer in a homecoming performance of sorts with the London Symphony Orchestra on Tuesday's Performance Today.

While on vacation in Cuba, George Gershwin also found time for a little work. He heard a jazz melody at a concert, and later turned it into an orchestral showcase called Cuban Overture. Tap your toes to the the rumba rhythms played by the Los Angeles Philharmonic on Monday's Performance Today, from APM.

Josef Suk was a composition student of Antonin Dvorak in Prague, and later became his teacher's own son-in-law. This weekend on Performance Today, we'll hear Suk's Serenade for Strings performed in Berkeley, California. Plus, composer Bruce Adolphe has a musical riddle in this week's Piano Puzzler.

In 2011, French composer Yannick Paget was living in Japan when the devastating tsunami struck. In the aftermath, he funneled his grief into writing new music. On Friday's Performance Today, we'll hear the composer conduct the premiere of "Tears of Sakura."

Pianist Helene Grimaud explores the deeply introspective side of Johannes Brahms in his second piano concerto. The music is a glimpse into the composer's thoughts, looking back on a long life. Her performance with the Vienna Philharmonic on Thursday's Performance Today concludes her four-day exploration of both of Brahms' piano concertos.