Performance Today®

The Chinese lute, or pipa, has been around for more than two thousand years. On Tuesday's Performance Today, we'll hear a 21st century composition for pipa performed by Wu Man and the Buffalo Philharmonic.

If you go to a concert and clap between movements of a symphony some audience members might shoosh you or even scold you. When Antonin Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 premiered in 1893, the Carnegie Hall audience gave a standing ovation at the end of EVERY movement. Hear the New York Philharmonic perform Dvorak's triumphant ninth, the New World Symphony, on Monday's Performance Today.

During the First World War, Maurice Ravel composed a work and dedicated each movement to a fallen friend or colleague. On this weekend's Performance Today, we'll hear Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin, from a concert in Helsinki, Finland. Guest-hosted by Jade Simmons.

Sol Gabetta plays cello with intelligence, emotion, and a lively wit. She lives in Switzerland, and her career is mainly in Europe. But on Friday's Performance Today, we'll hear from a concert Sol Gabetta gave here in the states with the Houston Symphony.

Sixteen-year-old Ray Ushikubo has been playing both the piano and violin for nearly 10 years. Since his first solo orchestral debut at the age of 10, he has performed with world-renowned artists and orchestras, including pianist Lang Lang, and the Los Angeleles Chamber Orchestra. On Thursday's Performance Today, we'll hear Ray Ushikubo play "Love Song," by Josef Suk.

Despite their tragic ending, Romeo and Juliet have become one of the most famous couples of all time. On Wednesday's Performance Today, we'll celebrate the romance and music of Valentine's Day with selections from Romeo and Juliet, by Sergei Prokofiev. Elena See guest-hosts.

Hurricane Harvey devastated Houston last summer, and the people are still rebuilding and healing. On Tuesday's Performance Today, the River Oaks Chamber Orchestra premieres a fanfare celebrating Houston's resilience and courage: "Anthem of Hope: Houston Strong" by Anthony DiLorenzo.

During the First World War, Maurice Ravel composed a work and dedicated each movement to a fallen friend or colleague. At first, Ravel was criticized because the music has a bright, reflective quality; his response was "The dead are sad enough, in their eternal silence." On Monday's Performance Today, we'll hear Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin, from a concert in Helsinki, Finland. Guest-hosted by Jade Simmons.

For the Ebene Quartet, great music has no boundaries; they love playing a huge range of music. On this weekend's Performance Today, we'll hear the Ebene Quartet play and improvise on a jazz classic: Milestones by Miles Davis.