Poster Johannes Brahms
Johannes Brahms
Wikipedia
Performance Today®

A Final Ovation

The last applause Johannes Brahms ever heard was for his Fourth Symphony. He was dying of cancer. But he went to hear Hans Richter conduct the Vienna Philharmonic. The performance received a big ovation. We'll never know if the echo of that applause was in Brahms' ears when he died a month later. In today's show, Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic earn a big ovation for their performance of Brahms' Fourth Symphony.

NOTE: Through our agreement with the Mozart Week Festival, Hour 2 of today's show is not available for web audio streaming.

Episode Playlist

Hour 1

Edward MacDowell: Second movement from Piano Concerto No. 2, Op. 23
Andre Watts, piano, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Litton, conductor

Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, Gustavo Dudamel, conductor
Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles

Franz Liszt: En Reve
Andre Watts, piano
The Schubert Club, St. Paul

Hour 2

Manuel de Falla: Selections from Seven Popular Spanish Songs
Kim Kashkashian, viola, Robert Levin, piano

Nino Rota: La Passerella
The Zagreb Saxophone Quartet
Hugh Hodgson Concert Hall, Athens, Georgia

Claude Debussy: Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra
Nelson Freire, piano, the London Symphony Orchestra, Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor
Barbican Hall, London, England

Donnacha Dennehy: He wishes his Beloved were Dead, from That the Night Come
Dawn Upshaw, soprano, the Crash Ensemble, Alan Pierson, conductor

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Twelve Variations in B-flat, K. 500
Robert Levin, fortepiano
Mozart Week, Salzburg, Austria

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About Performance Today®

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American Public Media’s Performance Today® is America’s most popular classical music radio program and a winner of the 2014 Gabriel Award for artistic achievement. The show is broadcast on hundreds of public radio stations across the country, including at 1 p.m. central weekdays on Minnesota Public Radio. More information about our stations can be found at APM Distribution.

Performance Today® features live concert recordings that can’t be heard anywhere else, highlights from new album releases, and in-studio performances and interviews. Performance Today® is based at the APM studios in St. Paul, Minnesota, but is frequently on the road, with special programs broadcast from festivals and public radio stations around the country. Also, each Wednesday, composer Bruce Adolphe joins host Fred Child for a classical musical game and listener favorite: the Piano Puzzler.

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