Loving parents usually try to steer their children away from making the same mistakes they did. Thankfully, children don't always listen. Vanessa Perez's mother was a pianist who suffered from terrible stage fright, who thought that the life of a musician was just too hard. So when Vanessa asked for piano lessons, her mother said no. Eventually, she gave in, and Vanessa is now enjoying the life of a concert artist that had eluded her mother. We'll meet Vanessa Perez in today's show.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Bela Bartok: Fourth movement from Concerto for Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra, Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
Tomas Breton: Prelude from La Verbena de la Paloma
Los Romeros
92nd Street Y, New York City
Jeremy Cavaterra: Fantasy on Arturo Marquez's Danzon No. 2
The Salastina Music Society
Colburn School of Music, Los Angeles
The Piano Puzzler: This week's contestant is Jay Williams from Marietta, Georgia
Bela Bartok: Fifteen Hungarian Peasant Songs, BB 79, Sz. 71
The Budapest Festival Orchestra, Ivan Fischer, conductor
Carnegie Hall, New York City
Sergei Prokofiev: Finale from Symphony No. 1 in D, Op. 25
The Orchestra of St. Luke's, Ivan Fischer, conductor
DiMenna Center for Classical Music, New York City
Hour 2
Frederic Chopin: Preludes No. 9 in E and No. 13 in F-sharp, Op. 28
Vanessa Perez, piano
Johann Sebastian Bach: Gigue from Solo Violin Partita No. 3 in E, BWV 1006
Hilary Hahn, violin
Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
George Frideric Handel: Aria, Laschia ch'io Pianga (Let me Weep)
Albrecht Mayer, oboe, the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Carnegie Hall, New York City
Perfchat with Vanessa Perez: Perfchat
Isaac Albeniz: Granada, from Suite Espagnole
Vanessa Perez, piano
NPR Studio 4A, Washington, D.C.
Heitor Villa-Lobos: Excerpts from Prole do Bebe No. 1 (The Family of Baby Dolls)
Vanessa Perez, piano
NPR Studio 4A, Washington, D.C.
Frederic Chopin: Four Preludes, Op. 28
Vanessa Perez, piano
NPR Studio 4A, Washington, D.C.
Anatol Liadov: Baba Yaga, Op. 56
The Houston Symphony Orchestra, Hans Graf, conductor
Spring For Music, New York City
Leonard Bernstein: Mambo from West Side Story
The Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, William Eddins, conductor
Spring For Music, 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.
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