Shawn E. Okpebholo: Two Black Churches

Stephen Hough is a phenomenal pianist, but he’s also a prolific writer. He's an award-winning poet, has published a novel, and most recently, a memoir titled "Enough: Scenes from Childhood." Join us for music and conversation with Hough on today's episode of Performance Today.

Violinist Juan Ramírez has been a member of the Atlanta Symphony for almost 50 years. He is also an avid gardener with a particular passion for chili peppers.  When he's not tending his peppers or practicing his violin, he's composing. On today's show, we'll hear a piece he wrote in 2002: Suite Latina by Juan Ramírez.

Composer and pianist Conrad Tao made his first Performance Today appearance at the age of 12 when Tao played his piano variations on Happy Birthday as a special birthday present for conductor David Zinman. Since then, we've heard him regularly as a pianist, as a composer...and even occasionally as a violinist. Conrad Tao plays three piano preludes by Sergei Rachmaninoff on today's show.

During Yom Kippur, cantors sing the Kol Nidre, a musical prayer for forgiveness that has captured the attention of several composers. We’ll hear an adaptation of Kol Nidre by Max Bruch on today’s show.

The Puna de Atacama (Atacama Plateau) region of Argentina and Chile is a dry landscape with tumbleweeds and animals like alpacas, llamas, and vicuñas. It's both rugged and beautiful. Painters often capture the Puna de Atacama in soft pastels or watercolors. In 1934, Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera expressed this place in music. We'll take you to hear 'Impressions of the Puna' by Alberto Ginastera at this year's Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo, California.

English composer Ruth Gipps was born in 1921. Gipps founded two orchestras focusing on music by living composers, and she fought for the place of women among contemporary composers, conductors, and performers until her death in 1999.

Forty years ago, conductor Giovanni Antonini helped launch a musical movement by playing works from 300 years ago as we think they might have been originally played. Antonini and his group, Il Giardino Armonico, are on the way in concert on today's episode of PT.

The Puna de Atacama (Atacama Plateau) region of Argentina and Chile is a dry landscape with tumbleweeds and animals like alpacas, llamas, and vicuñas. It's both rugged and beautiful. Painters often capture the Puna de Atacama in soft pastels or watercolors. In 1934, Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera expressed this place in music. We'll take you to hear 'Impressions of the Puna' by Alberto Ginastera at this year's Festival Mozaic in San Luis Obispo, California.

It's not from England, and it's not a horn, but we call it the English horn. It was invented in Germany and is a close cousin of the oboe. We've got a gorgeous solo for the deceptively named English horn on this episode of Performance Today.

Spanish composer (and virtuoso pianist) Joaquin Rodrigo was blind from age three. He wrote his music in Braille, and his wife Victoria helped translate it to traditional notation. Remarkably, Rodrigo did not play the guitar…yet he wrote one of the world’s most iconic guitar concertos. On today's show, guitarist Jason Vieaux plays Joaquin Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, backed by the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra and conductor Michael Butterman.