Poster Fred Child
Fred Child
MPR

Performance Today®

with host Fred Child

All Episodes

PT Weekend: The Piano Puzzler...and a special announcement

PT Weekend: The Piano Puzzler...and a special announcement

Composer Bruce Adolphe joins us weekly for a musical game, our Piano Puzzler. Bruce re-writes a familiar tune in the style of a great composer. We get one of our listeners on the phone who tries to guess the hidden tune and the composer whose style Bruce is imitating. Play along with the PT Piano Puzzler on this episode of Performance Today. Plus, Fred Child speaks with Gabriela Montero and makes a special announcement.

2023 Classical Woman of the Year: Gabriela Montero

2023 Classical Woman of the Year: Gabriela Montero

Performance Today has selected acclaimed Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero as the 2023 Classical Woman of the Year. This annual award recognizes women who have made significant contributions to the classical music art form and have inspired our listeners.

Gabriela Montero

Gabriela Montero

Gabriela Montero is a pianist, improviser, educator, mentor, composer, and human rights advocate—a woman of great personal integrity. Tune in today to hear why Gabriela Montero is our 2023 PT Classical Woman of the Year.

Kayhan Kalhor

Kayhan Kalhor

At age seventeen, composer Kayhan Kalhor left his home in Iran, fled for safety, and walked over two thousand five hundred miles to Italy alone, with just a small backpack and his beloved kamancheh (spiked fiddle). We'll hear music Kalhor wrote for Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble on today’s show.

Bruce Adolphe and the Piano Puzzler

Bruce Adolphe and the Piano Puzzler

Composer Bruce Adolphe joins us weekly for a musical game, our Piano Puzzler. Bruce re-writes a familiar tune in the style of a great composer. We get one of our listeners on the phone who tries to guess the hidden tune and the composer whose style Bruce is imitating. Play along with the PT Piano Puzzler on this episode of Performance Today.

Arnold Schoenberg: Transfigured Night

Arnold Schoenberg: Transfigured Night

Like any good story, music can express many emotions: moments of tenderness, passion, fear, and frustration. All those emotions shared without a single word...that's the power of music. Today we'll hear Transfigured Night by Arnold Schoenberg from a concert presented by the Kingston Chamber Music Festival in Philadelphia.

Air in Motion

Air in Motion

Pierre Jalbert wrote a piece for Carol Wincenc to celebrate her 50th anniversary season. He wove little messages into the music, honoring Carol and the number 50. On today's show, Carol Wincenc and the Escher String Quartet perform the world premiere of "Air in Motion" by Pierre Jalbert from a concert at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York City.

PT Weekend: Leland Ko

PT Weekend: Leland Ko

On today's show, we'll introduce you to cellist Leland Ko in our latest installment of the 2023 PT Young Artists in Residence series. Leland and pianist Adria Ye join Fred Child for music and conversation at our studio in St. Paul.

Ukrainian pianist Margaryta Golovko

Ukrainian pianist Margaryta Golovko

Pianist Margaryta Golovko was born and raised in Ukraine. She has expressed her love of her home country this past year by playing as much Ukrainian music as possible. On today’s show, we’ll take you to a concert in Moldova to hear Margaryta Golovko play the “Slavic Concerto” by Ukrainian composer Boris Lyatoshynsky.