Poster Mahani Teave, pianist
Mahani Teave, pianist
Photo: Andrea Speer
Performance Today®

Mahani Teave

Mahani Teave grew up on the remote island of Rapa Nui... or Easter Island. As a concert pianist, her career took her all around the world, but she always felt Rapa Nui calling her name. On today's show, learn about Mahani Teave and her mission to share music with the children of her home island.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Overture to the Marriage of Figaro
Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; Bobby McFerrin, conductor
Paper Music
Sony 64600

Astor Piazzolla, arr. Jose Bragato: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires for Piano Trio
Michael Kim, piano; Maureen nelson, violin; Sarah Lewis, cello
Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, Sundin Hall, Hamline University, Saint Paul, MN

Piano Puzzler: Contestant is Jane Johnson of Indianapolis, IN

Ahmed Alabaca: Across the Calm Waters of Heaven
Colour of Music Festival Orchestra; Roderick Cox, conductor
Colour of Music Festival, Martha and John M. Rivers Performance Hall, Gaillard Center, Charleston, SC

Hour 2

Frederic Chopin: Nocturne Op. 72 No. 1 in E minor (posthumous)
Mahani Teave, piano
Rapa Nui Odyssey
Rubicon 1066

Joseph Haydn: Piano Trio No. 44 in E Major, Hob. XV/28
Johnny Gandelsman, violin; Michael Nicolas, cello; Conrad Tao, piano
Bay Chamber Concerts, Rockport Opera House, Rockport, ME

Frederic Chopin: Barcarolle Op. 60 in F sharp Major
Mahani Teave, piano
Rapa Nui Odyssey
Rubicon 1066

Traditional, arr. J.M. Tobar: Ancestral Rapa Nui Song - I he a Hotumatu'a in E flat Major
Mahani Teave, piano
Rapa Nui Odyssey
Rubicon 1066

James Weldon Johnson and John Rosmond Johnson, arr. James Cockerham: Lift Every Voice and Sing
Gateways Music Festival Orchestra; Michael Morgan, conductor
Gateways Music Festival, Kodak Hall at Eastman Theater, Rochester, NY

Love the music?

Donate by phone
1-800-562-8440

Show your support by making a gift to YourClassical.

Each day, we’re here for you with thoughtful streams that set the tone for your day – not to mention the stories and programs that inspire you to new discovery and help you explore the music you love.

YourClassical is available for free, because we are listener-supported public media. Take a moment to make your gift today.

More Ways to Give

Your Donation

$5/month
$10/month
$15/month
$20/month
$

Latest Performance Today® Episodes

VIEW ALL EPISODES

Latest Performance Today® Episodes

George Walker: Lyric for Strings

George Walker: Lyric for Strings

At 26, American composer George Walker wrote a piece in memory of his beloved grandmother. Walker had a long, successful career as a composer, but that piece remains his most performed work. On today’s show, we’ll hear ‘Lyric for Strings’ by George Walker, performed by the Ivalas Quartet at the Skaneateles Festival in upstate New York.

1:59:00
PT Weekend: Samuel Frois

PT Weekend: Samuel Frois

It's time for our next 2025 Young Artist in Residence: violinist Samuel Frois. On today's show, Samuel joins Fred Child at our studio in Saint Paul to perform works by Brazilian composers Heitor Villa-Lobos and Andre Mehmari.

1:59:00
Jessie Montgomery hosts PT with Fred Child

Jessie Montgomery hosts PT with Fred Child

Grammy-winning composer and violinist Jessie Montgomery is PT’s 2025 Classical Woman of the Year, and today she joins Fred Child as a special guest co-host. Tune in today to hear Montgomery share the music that has shaped her unique artistic voice. It's a special hour of music you won't want to miss.

1:59:00
James Lee III

James Lee III

James Lee III is the composer of over 80 works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, piano, vocals, choral ensemble, and more. Lee is currently composer-in-residence with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. In today's program, we'll take you to a concert in South Carolina* to hear Anthony McGill and the Pacifica Quartet play the Quintet for Clarinet and String Quartet by James Lee III.

1:59:00
Respighi's Pines of Rome

Respighi's Pines of Rome

In 1924, Ottorino Respighi captured Rome's pine forests in a tone poem, complete with a recorded nightingale that still sings in performances today. Join us at a concert in Round Top, Texas, to hear Respighi’s musical postcard, The Pines of Rome.

1:59:00
Kevin Puts: Home

Kevin Puts: Home

For composer Kevin Puts, the key of C major is a sonic representation of "home." It's familiar and comforting. In 2019, Puts wrote a string quartet that begins with that familiar key, but goes on to what Puts calls "the search for new and unfamiliar harmonic terrain." He wanted the music to explore the sonic possibilities, but then return to his musical idea of home. Puts knew that, however he got there, the feeling of home would be changed by the journey. Join us today to hear the Miro Quartet play Home by Kevin Puts.

1:59:00
Young Artist in Residence: Samuel Frois

Young Artist in Residence: Samuel Frois

We’re proud to introduce violinist Samuel Frois, the next member of our 2025 cohort of PT Young Artists in Residence. Samuel recently joined Fred Child in our St. Paul studio. Listen to the music and the entire interview here.

37:49
Samuel Frois

Samuel Frois

It's time for our next 2025 Young Artist in Residence: violinist Samuel Frois. On today's show, Samuel joins Fred Child at our studio in Saint Paul to perform works by Brazilian composers Heitor Villa-Lobos and Andre Mehmari.

1:59:00
PT Weekend: Gabriela Montero

PT Weekend: Gabriela Montero

In 2016, pianist and composer Gabriela Montero wrote a concerto reflecting how people perceive Latin America. She says it's not an overtly political piece, but it does express the light and dark sides of the subject. Today, we'll hear Gabriela Montero play her “Latin Concerto” with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in Stockholm. Plus, Bruce Adolphe has this week’s Piano Puzzler.

1:59:00
Lucas Debargue

Lucas Debargue

Pianist Lucas Debargue quit piano lessons in 2005 when he was 15 years old. As recently as 2015, he worked as a cashier at a supermarket. Then, he made an out-of-nowhere splash at the 2015 Tchaikovsky competition in Russia and has had a lively career ever since. Tune in today to hear Lukas Debargue play Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G Major at a concert in Stockholm, Sweden.

1:59:00
VIEW ALL EPISODES

About Performance Today®

To find a station near you on our Stations Listings page, click here.

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.

How do I leave a comment?

Send us a comment here.

About Performance Today®
YourClassical Radio
0:00
0:00