Performance Today®

The jota is a rhythmic Spanish dance that often features the clacking sound of castanets. Today we’ll hear a jota by José White Lafitte (1836-1919), with violinist Samuel Nebyu playing the tune and percussion at the same time.

All of us at PT are proud because two of our former PT Young Artists are part of a new powerhouse trio. On today's show, we'll hear a concert from Chicago with the new Trio Ad Libitum: Tim Petrin, Jordan Bak, and the equally talented Elizabeth Fayette.

Pianist and cultural activist Lara Downes co-hosts an hour with Fred Child to kick off Women's History Month. They'll explore Downes's recent performances from Detroit and Brevard and take an exclusive sneak peek at her upcoming release on the Pentatone label.

In the fall of 2022, pianist Gabriela Montero opened the first season of what's called Gabriela Montero at Prager, a long-term artist residency hosted by the Prager Family Center for the Arts in Easton, Maryland. Montero curates and hosts a concert series with A-list artists from around the world in an intimate concert space at Prager. We'll take you there to hear Gabriela Montero perform Sergei Prokofiev's "Sarcasms" on today's show.

Levko Revutsky's Symphony No. 2 is recognized as the first national symphony inspired by Ukrainian culture. In 2020, Revutsky's first edition was rediscovered after being lost for almost a century. Hear that first edition of Levko Revutsky’s Symphony No. 2 on this edition of Performance Today.

Pianist and cultural activist Lara Downes co-hosts an hour with Fred Child to kick off Women's History Month. They'll explore Downes's recent performances from Detroit and Brevard and take an exclusive sneak peek at her upcoming release on the Pentatone label.

Mexican composer Juan Pablo Contreras wrote a piece inspired by the musical culture of his home state of Jalisco. On today's show, we'll take you to a concert presented by ROCO in Houston to hear Mariachitlán (Mariachi-land) by Juan Pablo Contreras.

Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine planned their current tour of the U.S. more than two years ago, well before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. These concerts have taken on more meaning as an artistic response to the brutal war imposed on their home country. On today's show, we'll take you to a recent concert at the University of Georgia in Athens to hear the Lviv National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine play the Tragic Overture by Johannes Brahms.

The young Aaron Copland went to Paris to study composition, and his teacher told him, "You'll do your best work if you explore what it means to be American." The 25-year-old Copland took that advice and returned to New York. We'll hear pianist John Novacek play Copland's Four Piano Blues on today's show. Plus, Bruce Adolphe has this week’s Piano Puzzler.

In 2020, composer Shawn E. Okpebholo published a piece that reflects on two acts of racial violence, events separated by more than fifty years. The music serves as a tribute to the resilience and perseverance of the African American community in the face of adversity. On today's show, we'll hear "Two Black Churches" by Shawn E. Okpebholo.