Performance Today®

Grazyna Bacewicz was a composer in Poland in the mid-20th century. Even during the Second World War, she was part of an underground concert scene. We'll hear a piece she wrote in Warsaw in the middle of 1943 on this episode of Performance Today.

In 2016, pianist and composer Gabriela Montero wrote what she describes as "a portrait of Latin American in all its splendor." On today's show, we'll hear Montero's Piano Concerto No. 1 ("Latin Concerto") with Carlos Miguel Prieto conducting the Orchestra of the Americas.

Cellist Sterling Elliott is a 2021 Avery Fisher Career Grant recipient and the winner of the Senior Division of the 2019 National Sphinx Competition. He is also a 2022 Performance Today Young Artist in Residence! Join us today for music and conversation with Sterling Elliott.

Astor Piazzolla's music defies category. It's inspired by the tango dance music he grew up with, but he added classical and jazz elements and gave his band members room to add their own ideas and improvisations. On today's show, we'll hear a recording of "Concierto Para Quinteto," from what Piazzolla said was the greatest album of his life.

Composer James Pecore spent part of this last summer at the 2022 Emerging Composers Intensive (ECI) in Carmel Valley, California. Pecore loves telling stories through music and appreciates the intimacy that stories can build between people. On this weekend's episode, we'll hear Pecore's new piece, "Early Loves."

Ethiopian-Hungarian violinist Samuel Nebyu recently played at the Lucerne Festival in Switzerland…and his entire concert was music by composers of African descent. Join us today for highlights from that concert in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Composer Kian Ravaei was captivated by a simple melody by Dvorak. He wrote it down in his sketchbook and returned to it when asked to write his own new piece. We'll hear the world premiere of the Fantasy Variations (on a theme by Dvorak) by Kian Ravaei on today's episode.

Composer James Pecore spent part of this last summer at the 2022 Emerging Composers Intensive (ECI) in Carmel Valley, California. Pecore loves telling stories through music and appreciates the intimacy that stories can build between people. We'll hear Pecore's new piece, "Early Loves," on today's show.

The 2022 Emerging Composers Intensive (ECI) took place on the campus of Hidden Valley Music Seminars in Carmel Valley, California. ECI is a workshop for up-and-coming composers ranging in age from late teens to early 30s. On today's show, we'll hear "The Bell Tower," a new piece by 22-year-old composer Sophie Fay.