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.
Pianist and composer Stephen Hough took a twenty-year break from composing until a nudge from John Corigliano brought him back to the page. Now, Hough says he’s abandoned the pressure to be perfect, writing "nonstop" for the pure joy of creating. We’ll hear him perform his 2019 Partita on today’s show, recorded live at Spivey Hall in Morrow, Georgia.
Today, we explore the spiritual and creative ideas behind the music of Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz. We'll hear from Ortiz's "Altar de Cuerda”, music she envisions as an altar—a space to elevate music—where the solo violin floats above the orchestra and the ethereal sound of tuned crystal glasses. Today’s performance features violinist Susie Park and the Minnesota Orchestra, conducted by Paolo Bortolameolli.
Violinist Bella Hristova and composer David Ludwig were married in 2015. In the months leading up to the wedding, Ludwig wrote a piece for Hristova—not a 2-minute bonbon for the reception, but a full concerto for solo violin and orchestra. On today's episode, we'll hear Bella Hristova play Ludwig's concerto with JoAnn Falletta conducting the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.
In Ukrainian, the word "dumka" means "thought" or “notion." In music, a dumka is a somewhat dreamlike dance that often revisits a bittersweet reflection on life's sadness. Today, we’ll hear English composer Rebecca Clarke’s ‘Dumka’ from a concert presented by the Fabian Concert Series in Macon, Georgia.
In 1994, John Adams composed a series of what he calls "alleged" dances. Why alleged? As Adams puts it, "the steps for them have yet to be invented. They cuss, chaw, hock hooeys, scratch, and talk too loud." On today's program, we'll take you to a concert in Cleveland to hear Adams’ quirky set for string quartet and prepared piano loops: John’s Book of Alleged Dances.
On today's show, we explore music by Dutch composer Henriëtte Bosmans. Join us at a concert in Wismar, Germany, to hear a performance of Bosmans's String Quartet, a piece from a time when in-home concerts were a matter of necessity for artists whose work had to be kept undercover.
Today, we explore the spiritual and creative ideas behind the music of Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz. We'll hear from Ortiz's "Altar de Cuerda”, music she envisions as an altar—a space to elevate music—where the solo violin floats above the orchestra and the ethereal sound of tuned crystal glasses. Today’s performance features violinist Susie Park and the Minnesota Orchestra, conducted by Paolo Bortolameolli.
Florence Price used the scaffolding of European classical forms to build music that reflected African-American traditions. One of her favorite expressions of that tradition is the juba dance—a lively, percussive good time. We’ll hear the juba dance and the rest of the Symphony No. 3 by Florence Price on today’s episode.
YourClassical’s Performance Today, America’s most popular classical music radio show, announces the four distinguished young musicians who have been selected as part of the 2026 Performance Today Young Artists in Residence program.
