History isn't absolutely clear on this point, but we're pretty sure today is Ludwig van Beethoven's birthday. Most of us have the image of the older Beethoven in our heads: stone deaf, isolated, angry, tormented. Some of that late Beethoven is in the show today, but also some early Beethoven, like a charming little Sonatina for recorder and guitar from the Minnesota Beethoven Festival. Plus Beethoven's massive oddity for orchestra, chorus, and piano soloist: the Choral Fantasy, from a concert in San Francisco.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Ludwig van Beethoven: Third movement from Piano Trio in E-flat, Op. 63
The Beethoven Project Trio
Ludwig van Beethoven: Sonatina in C for Recorder and Guitar, WoO 44a
Michala Petri, recorder, Lars Hannibal, guitar
Minnesota Beethoven Festival, Winona, Minnesota
Andre Jolivet: Pastorale de Noel for Flute, Bassoon, and Harp
Monica Raga, flute, Vicente Alario, bassoon, Beatriz Millan, harp
Teatro Monumental, Madrid, Spain
Ludwig van Beethoven: Excerpt from Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat, Op. 110
Andras Schiff, piano
Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles
Ludwig van Beethoven: Fantasia, Op. 80 (Choral Fantasy)
Louis Lortie, piano, the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Symphony Chorus, Kurt Masur, conductor
Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco
Sammy Cahn: Let it Snow
The Lubbock Symphony Orchestra Brass Quintet
St. John's United Methodist Church, Lubbock, Texas
Matthew Nielsen: It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
The Brigham Young University Singers, Ronald Staheli, conductor
Harris Fine Arts Center, Provo, Utah
Hour 2
Ludwig van Beethoven: Second movement from Septet in E-flat, Op. 20
Thomas Zehetmair, violin, and friends
Ole Bull: Excerpts from La Melancholie
Berit Opheim, singer, Arve Tellefsen, violin, Sveinung Bjelland, piano
Bergen International Festival, Bergen, Norway
Peter Warlock: Bethlehem Down
The RTE National Symphony Orchestra, Gavin Maloney, conductor
National Concert Hall, Dublin, Ireland
Ludwig van Beethoven: Violin Sonata in A Minor, Op. 23
Midori, violin, Ozgur Aydin, piano
Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Itzehoe, Germany
9th Century Chant: Creator of the Stars of Night
Men of Renaissance, St. John's Choir
St. John's Baptist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina
Johann Sebastian Bach: Break Forth, O Beauteous Morning Light, from the Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248
The Swedish Radio Chorus and Orchestra, Mika Eichenholz, conductor
Berwaldhallen, Stockholm, Sweden
Ludwig van Beethoven: Rondino in E-flat, WoO 25
The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Carnegie Hall, New York City
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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.
Performance Today® features live concert recordings that can’t be heard anywhere else, highlights from new album releases, and in-studio performances and interviews. Performance Today® is based at the APM studios in St. Paul, Minnesota, but is frequently on the road, with special programs broadcast from festivals and public radio stations around the country. Also, each Wednesday, composer Bruce Adolphe joins host Fred Child for a classical musical game and listener favorite: the Piano Puzzler.
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