Performance

A few years ago, composer Rick Sowash set a poem to music, creating a song. And then he turned that song into a musical conversation between flute and cello. On today's show, hear the Sylvan Trio perform the end result: Seasonal Breezes, by Rick Sowash.

Composer Robert W. Butts he was working on a new piece when he took a break to attend a concert of Irish music. When the musicians started playing jigs, he decided that that sound—celebratory Celtic dance music—was just what he needed in his final movement. On today's show, hear the Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey perform Robert W. Butts' new Viola Concerto. It's classical music with a Celtic kick.

They're four of the finest classical guitarist soloists of our time, and together, they're redefined what's possible in the world of guitar. On today's show, hear the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet's take on music from Renaissance England, from a concert in Colorado Springs.

Pianist Connor Chee is a member of the Navajo nation. He wanted to preserve traditional songs his grandfather sang, but they wouldn't fit neatly into standard musical notation...so Chee wrote his own music, based on those old songs. Hear Connor Chee's "Navajo Vocables" on this edition of Performance Today.

An orchestra of talented young players from Cuba recently traveled to Berlin. Join us today for a highlight from that extraordinary concert. It's the Havana Lyceum Orchestra, on this edition of Performance Today.

In the hands of a great pianist, Sergei Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 is romantic, expressive and wildly virtuosic. Powerhouse pianist Simon Trpceski brings this piece to life from a concert in Norway on the next Performance Today, from APM.

Composer Sheridan Seyfried wrote a double concerto for two violin-playing brothers, Timothy and Nikki Chooi. Seyfried wanted to express their special bond AND their individual personalities. On today's episode, hear an expression of what it means to be family: Sheridan Seyfried's Concerto for Two Violins and Orchestra.

Composer Scott Joplin is known for his rags, but he also left a fascinating opera called Treemonisha. It wasn't fully staged until long after he died. Joplin was awarded a posthumous Pulitzer for the work in 1976. We'll hear highlights from Scott Joplin's Treemonisha from a concert in Italy on the next Performance Today, from APM.

Pianist Connor Chee is a member of the Navajo nation. He wanted to preserve traditional songs his grandfather sang, but they wouldn't fit neatly into standard musical notation...so Chee wrote his own music, based on those old songs. Hear Connor Chee's "Navajo Vocables" on this edition of Performance Today.

Every week on our Piano Puzzler, composer Bruce Adolphe re-writes a familiar tune in the style of a great composer. One of our listeners calls in, tries to guess the tune and the composer whose style Bruce is mimicking. Tune in and play along with our weekly musical game: the Piano Puzzler.