To many in the audience sitting in the Champs-Elysees Theater in Paris, what unfolded before them was ghastly, unthinkable, an affront to the senses. Like finding that someone laced your ice cream with jalapeno peppers. Noses wrinkled, ears prickled, and eventually, fists started flying. It was the premiere of the most revolutionary piece of music of the 20th century, Igor Stravinsky's "Rite of Spring." This year marks the centennial of the ballet. We'll revisit that day in Paris 100 years ago, and the riot that ensued. And we'll hear a peaceful performance from New York City.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Felix Mendelssohn: Third movement from Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Minor
Roberto Prosseda, piano, the Liepzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly, conductor
Alan Hovhaness: Mystic Flute
Sahan Arzruni, piano
First Congregational Church of Berkeley, Berkeley, California
Johann Sebastian Bach: Badinerie from Suite No. 2 in B Minor, BWV 1067
Emmanuel Pahud, flute, the Potsdam Chamber Academy, Antonello Manacorda, conductor
Nikolai Hall, Potsdam, Germany
The Piano Puzzler: This week's contestant is Tim Kellogg from Citrus Heights, California
Felix Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64
Augustin Hadelich, violin, the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Karel Mark Chichon, conductor
Congress Hall, Saarbrucken, Germany
Hour 2
Benjamin Britten: Moonlight, from Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes
The Virginia Symphony, JoAnn Falletta, conductor
Igor Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps (the Rite of Spring)
The New York Philharmonic, Alan Gilbert, conductor
Avery Fisher Hall, New York City
Hermannus Contractus: Salve Regina
David James, countertenor
John Dowland: Sir John Souch His Galliard and the King of Denmark Galliard
Hesperion XXI
Fontfroide Music and History Festival, Fontfroide, France
Giuseppe Verdi: La Donna e Mobile, from Rigoletto
Juan Diego Florez, tenor, Vincenzo Scalera, piano
Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain
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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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