In 1908 Maurice Ravel wrote an enchanting piece for solo piano called Ondine or water fairy. Ravel often did orchestral versions of his piano pieces, but not this one. He left it as a piano solo. However, that hasn't stopped others from trying. On Tuesday's Performance Today we'll hear a fascinating musical experiment. The Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra had Louis Lortie play Ravel's solo piano version. Then, without a break, they played a 1990 orchestration of the piece. We'll hear them back to back, just as they were done on stage in Brazil.
Episode Playlist
Hour 1
Ralph Vaughan Williams: "Fantasia on Greensleeves"
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra
Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la Nuit - Ondine (piano)
Louis Lortie, piano (from a concert with the Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra)
Sao Paulo Concert Hall, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Maurice Ravel: Gaspard de la Nuit - Ondine (Orchestral Version)
Sao Paulo Symphony Orchestra; Yan Pascal Tortelier, conductor
Sao Paulo Concert Hall, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Vincent d'Indy: Chanson et Danses, Op. 50
Ensemblekonzert Saarbrucken
Saar Academy of Music, Saarbrucken, Germany
Johann Sebastian Bach: Oboe Concerto in A major, BWV 1055
Albrecht Mayer, oboe d'amore
Carnegie Hall, New York City, New York
Hour 2
Traditional: Holy Manna
Anonymous 4
Traditional: Amanda
Anonymous 4
Francis Poulenc: Flute Sonata
Ransom Wilson, flute; Andre-Michel Schub, piano
Alice Tully Hall, New York City, NY
Einojuhani Rautavaara: Sydameni laulu (My Heart's Song)
YL Male Voice Choir (Ylioppilaskunnan Laulajat); Matti Hyokki, conductor
Orchestra Hall; Minneapolis, MN
Hildegard von Bingen: Antiphon: O rubor sanguinis (O redness of the blood)
Anonymous 4: Ruth Cunningham, Marsha Genensky, Susan Hellauer, Jacqueline Horner-Kwiatek
Spivey Hall, Morrow, Georgia
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21
New York Philharmonic; Kurt Masur, conductor
Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York City, NY
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About Performance Today®
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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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