Pianist Dizhou Zhao is winner of numerous competition prizes, and is also a winner of Astral Artist's 2012 National Auditions. On Tuesday's Performance Today, hear Dizhou Zhao play "Sonatina" by Liqing Yang... it's a beautiful work by one of the great Chinese composers of the 20th century
In 2004, the executor of an estate in Switzerland found a dusty old book of hand-written music... music that he recognized! It was the score that Sergei Rachmaninoff had used to conduct the premiere of his Symphony No. 2 in 1908. On Tuesday's Performance Today, take a seat with us at Jones Hall in Houston, and hear the Houston Symphony perform Symphony No. 2, by Sergei Rachmaninoff.
For 27 years, Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach wrote relatively conservative music for the court of King Frederick the Great. Then, in 1768, the composer was permitted to break out of the box. He moved to Hamburg, and his music began to sound strikingly modern. On Saturday's Performance Today, hear C.P.E. Bach's Sinfonia in C major, from a concert in Athens, Georgia.
21st century composer Thierry Escaich uses traditional melodies as a starting point, then moves them to unexpected territory. On Friday's Performance Today, hear the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra perform the world premiere of "Psalmos, Concerto for Orchestra" by Thierry Escaich.
In 1915, Manuel de Falla wrote music based on an old Spanish legend. It's a classic boy-meets-girl story... except the girl is haunted by her dead husband. On Thursday's Performance Today, the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet plays Falla's El Amor Brujo ("Love, the Sorcerer").
Pianist Marc-Andre Hamelin loves playing a particular piano sonata by Franz Schubert. He says, "It's one of my greatest friends... I can't do without it." On Wednesday's Performance Today, hear Marc-Andre Hamelin play Schubert's Piano Sonata in B-Flat Major from a concert in Fort Worth, Texas.
A few years ago violinist Hilary Hahn made some cold calls asking big-name composers for one-of-a-kind encores. Hear a happy result of those cold calls on Tuesday's Performance Today.
The Calder Quartet have been together for nearly 20 years, so they like to spice things up. They play at traditional concert venues, but also perform in places like rock clubs. On Monday's Performance Today, learn more about the Calder Quartet, and hear them perform Debussy's one and only string quartet.
Timotheos Petrin left his home country of Greece to go to the Curtis Institute in Philadelphia... and he's starting to feel at home. On Friday's Performance Today, join us for a discussion with cellist Timotheos Petrin, and hear him play music by Mendelssohn and Rachmaninoff.
