Poster man in chair with legs crossed
Paul Burgett, former chair of the Gateways Music Festival
J. Adam Fenster
Performance Today®

The late great Paul Burgett

Paul Burgett was a leader in classical music. He was known for his warm spirit and as a visionary behind the Gateways Music Festival, an event celebrating classical musicians of African descent. On today's show, join us as we remember the late great Paul Burgett, as well as a concert highlight from the Gateways Music Festival.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Antonin Dvorak: Polonaise from Rusalka
Minnesota Orchestra; Eiji Oue, conductor
Album: Exotic Dances from the Opera
Reference Recordings RR-71CD

Jean Sibelius: En Saga
Minnesota Orchestra; Osmo Vanska, conductor
Regina Mundi Roman Catholic Church, Soweto, South Africa

Piano Puzzler: Contestant: Judy Delaney from Rochester, NY

Leos Janacek: String Quartet No. 1 "Kreutzer Sonata"
Parker Quartet
John Knowles Paine Hall, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA

Hour 2

Franz Liszt: 28 Grandes etudes de Paganini, S. 141: No. 3 in G-Sharp Minor "La campanella"
Yekwon Sunwoo, piano
Album: Crossing Spheres: Works by Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, and Tchaikovsky
Genuin 17475

Robert Beaser: Chaconne
Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
Grand Teton Music Festival, Walk Festival Hall, Jackson Hole, WY

Richard Strauss, arr. Percy Grainger: Ramble on the Last Love Duet from Der Rosenkavalier
Yekwon Sunwoo, piano
Strings Music Festival, Strings Pavilion, Steamboat Springs, CO

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto No. 2: Mvts. 2-3
Stewart Goodyear, piano
Gateways Music Festival Orchestra; Michael Morgan, conductor
Gateways Music Festival, Eastman Theatre, Kodak Hall, Rochester, NY

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

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Latest Performance Today® Episodes

2025 Classical Woman of the Year: Jessie Montgomery

2025 Classical Woman of the Year: Jessie Montgomery

‘Performance Today’ has selected performer and composer Jessie Montgomery as the 2025 Classical Woman of the Year. This annual award recognizes women who have made significant contributions to the classical music art form and have inspired our listeners. Find out more!

Three Generations of Burt Family Carols

Three Generations of Burt Family Carols

In the 1920s, Bates Burt started composing an annual Christmas carol for the family Christmas card. The tradition continued down the family line. 50-plus carols later, his great-granddaughter Abbie Burt Betinis created a medley out of some of the best. Tune in to hear ‘Three Generations of Burt Family Carols’ on today’s episode.

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Yevgeny and Bella Sudbin

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On today's show, we're featuring a special family collaboration. Pianist Yevgeny Sudbin and his daughter, Bella, perform together, playing Sudbin's arrangement of a popular holiday favorite for piano four hands.

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PT Weekend: The tranquility of Winter

PT Weekend: The tranquility of Winter

As the season brings us the longest nights of the year, join us for music inspired by the stillness and splendor of winter. Find peace in the season's enveloping tranquility on today's show.

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The stillness and splendor of winter

The stillness and splendor of winter

As the season brings us the longest nights of the year, join us for music inspired by the stillness and splendor of winter. Find peace in the season's enveloping tranquility on today's show.

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Mompou's "music of evaporation"

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The Miró Quartet

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The Miró Quartet has been performing together for 30 years, but they hadn't released a holiday album... until now. Today, we'll hear some highlights from their new recording, 'Hearth,' which features some holiday classics arranged by Clarice Assad, Reena Esmail, Anna Clyne, and Sam Lipman.

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Germaine Tailleferre

Germaine Tailleferre

Germaine Tailleferre was determined to be a musician, and her father tried to stop her. She rebelled so completely that she even changed her name and went on to a 70-year career as a composer. We'll hear the String Quartet by French composer Germaine Tailleferre on today's show.

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PT Weekend: Emilie Mayer

PT Weekend: Emilie Mayer

On today's show, we explore the fascinating career of German composer Emilie Mayer. Join us at a concert in Houston for a ROCO performance of Mayer's Symphony No. 4, a piece she composed in 1850 that was only recently reconstructed by German composer and arranger Andreas Tarkmann.

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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.

Hosted by Valerie Kahler, 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.

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