Performance Today®

with host Valerie Kahler

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.

All Episodes

Jennifer Higdon: blue cathedral

Jennifer Higdon: blue cathedral

Composer Jennifer Higdon wrote 'blue cathedral' in 2000. It was inspired by an imaginary vision of a glass cathedral in the sky. We'll take you to the Grand Teton Music Festival for a musical journey to Higdon’s ‘blue cathedral’ on today's show.

Jean Cras: Trio for Strings

Jean Cras: Trio for Strings

French composer Jean Cras was from Brittany, that large, rocky peninsula directly west of Normandy. Brittany's history is deeply connected to the Celtic world, and Cras’s music often reflects a Celtic sensibility, the sounds of the sea, and the rhythms of the old world. Today, we'll hear the Black Oak Ensemble perform Jean Cras’s playful and inventive String Trio at a concert hosted by the Flagler Museum in Palm Beach, Florida.

Stephen Hough and the joy of creation

Stephen Hough and the joy of creation

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.

PT Weekend: Gabriela Ortiz

PT Weekend: Gabriela Ortiz

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.

Music from the heart

Music from the heart

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.

Rebecca Clarke: Dumka

Rebecca Clarke: Dumka

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.

John’s Book of Alleged Dances

John’s Book of Alleged Dances

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.

Henriëtte Bosmans

Henriëtte Bosmans

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.

Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz

Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz

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.

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