American Public Media’s Performance Today® is America’s most popular classical music radio program and a winner of the 2014 Gabriel Award for artistic achievement. The show is broadcast on hundreds of public radio stations across the country, including at 1 p.m. central weekdays on Minnesota Public Radio. More information about our stations can be found at APM Distribution.
Felix Mendelssohn has a reputation as a composer who had wonderful facility, but not necessarily mastery. On Thursday's Performance Today we'll hear music that challenges that reputation of faint praise; Mendelssohn's Piano Trio in C minor.
The 2014 Gilmore Artist Award goes to 28-year-old Polish pianist Rafal Blechacz.
The final section of Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 has been a conductor's conundrum since it premiered in 1937. Do you play it fast and loud as a life-affirming statement for a downtrodden people, or do you play it slower to emphasize the irony of people rejoicing through tears? On Wednesday's Performance Today we'll hear this ambiguous piece performed by the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic.
On Tuesday's Performance Today, Valerie Coleman and the Imani Winds visit the PT studios and perform music evocative of Southern charm and comfort.
On Monday's Performance Today we'll hear violinist Leonidas Kavakos speak about and perform a rarely-played, intensely demanding piece; the Violin Concerto No. 2 by Polish composer Karol Szymanowski.
The fourth season of "Downton Abbey" begins on Sunday, and in anticipation we'll hear from Scottish composer John Lunn, who has written music for the series. And since "Downton Abbey" is set in early 20th century England, we'll also sample some early 20th century English music on this weekend's Performance Today.
The fourth season of "Downton Abbey" begins this weekend, so on Friday's Performance Today we'll hear from Scottish composer John Lunn, who has written music for the series. And since "Downton Abbey" is set in early 20th century England, we'll sample some early 20th century English music as well.
On Thursday's Performance Today we'll hear some of the most memorable concert moments ever recorded, including Vladimir Horowitz at Carnegie Hall in 1965, Leonard Bernstein celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, and cellist Mstislav Rostropovich performing in the USSR in 1990.
On New Year's Day 1886, Franz Liszt wrote "this will be an unlucky year for me." How did he know? On Wednesday's Performance Today we'll have lots of celebratory music for the new year, and a story about a composer who made a New Year's prediction that turned out to be spot on.
