The piano is essentially a percussion instrument. You press a key, a hammer hits the corresponding string, and a note is produced. But is that all there is? There must be more to playing the piano than that. Today, we'll hear from two terrific pianists, Shai Wosner and Garrick Ohlsson. Ohlsson weighs in on the difficulties of the piano, calling it "a box full of diminuendos." But with Ohlsson and Wosner in the driver's seat, we prefer to think of it as a box full of exquisite possibilities.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Third movement from Quatrieme Concert
Trio Sonnerie
Johannes Beausseron: Antiphon Regina Coeli (Queen of Heaven)
The Brabant Ensemble, Stephen Rice, conductor
Utrecht Early Music Festival, Utrecht, the Netherlands
Manuel Ponce: Estrellita (Little Star)
Laura Oltman and Michael Newman, guitars
Grand Canyon Music Festival, Grand Canyon, Arizona
Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor, Op. 27, No. 2 (Moonlight)
Shai Wosner, piano
Oregon Bach Festival, Eugene, Oregon
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Overture and Suite from Castor and Pollux
The Arion Baroque Orchestra, Christophe Rousset, conductor
Museum of Fine Arts, Montreal, Quebec
Hour 2
Astor Piazzolla: Adagio from Suite for Oboe and String Orchestra
Andres Spiller, oboe, the Camerata Bariloche Chamber Orchestra of Argentina
Traditional Corsican: Maria
Barbara Furtuna and L'Arpeggiata
Zankel Hall, New York City
Astor Piazzolla: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg, violin and leader, the New Century Chamber Orchestra
Herbst Theatre, San Francisco
George Frideric Handel: Keyboard Suite in B-flat, Vol. 2, No. 1
Garrick Ohlsson, piano
Strathmore Music Center, North Bethesda, Maryland
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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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