Performance Today®

Composer Inocente Carreño was born in 1919 on a little Venezuelan island called Margarita. On today's show, hear the music he wrote in tribute to his beloved home island: "Margariteña" by Inocente Carreño.

Join us today for the world premiere performance of a concerto that composer Michael Abels wrote for Slovenian guitarist Mak Grgic. We'll hear the story behind the piece and how it became an emotional collaboration inspired by the idea of finding beauty in troubled environments.

Compared to Antonin Dvorak's big hits, his Poetic Tone Pictures collection has flown mostly under the radar. It's a collection of musical poetry, and each piece reflects a different mood or "picture." Pianist Leif Ove Andsnes says it's gorgeous, and we'll hear him play it on today's show.

In the early 1900s, English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams was deeply inspired by a hymn written four centuries earlier. Join us today to hear a Buffalo Philharmonic performance of Vaughan Williams' Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis.

James Ehnes loves to play Sergei Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2. Ehnes says the piece has "…such a unique mix of lyricism and virtuosity...there's nothing quite like it in the repertoire." Join us today to hear James Ehnes play Prokofiev's second concerto in concert with the Minnesota Orchestra.

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.

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 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.

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.