FEBRUARY 9th -- FEBRUARY 15th, 2002

KORVA COLEMAN IS HOST

Saturday, FEBRUARY 9th

Hour 1 -- Only a taste, we promise: Two bassoonists get together to play
arias from Rossini's "The Barber of Seville." Michael Kroth and Alejandro
Vieira are in concert from the Colorado College Summer Music Festival.

Hour 2 -- Romantic Hanson: From a concert in Atlanta, Michael Christie
conducts the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra in American composer Howard
Hanson's most popular and enduring work: his "Romantic" Second Symphony.

Sunday, FEBRUARY 10th

Hour 1 -- Late-Blooming Brahms? Johannes Brahms tinkered with writing
string quartets for two decades before he came up with a piece he'd let the
public hear.  We'll hear the work that finally satisfied him: the Quartet
in C minor, Op. 51, No. 1.  It's a performance by the Emerson String
Quartet, from the Aspen Music Festival.

Hour 2 -- Young Artists in Duet: We'll hear from two of PT's recent
Young Artists in Residence.  It's a duet from Adam Neiman and Jeremy Denk,
performed at last month's "Winter Interlude," a mini-festival put on by the
Seattle Chamber Music Society.  They played the Concertino for Two Pianos,
by Dmitri Shostakovich.

FRED CHILD IS HOST

Monday, FEBRUARY 11th

Hour 1 -- Our concert tour this hour takes us from Boston to Atlanta to
Chicago for music of the Baroque.

Hour 2 -- Spanish guitar: Classical guitarist Jason Vieaux introduces his
own performance of Joaquin Rodrigo's "Concierto de Aranjuez." Starting next
Monday, Jason will be Performance Today Young Artist in Residence, bringing
you a series of live performances, direct from NPR's Studio 4A.

Tuesday, FEBRUARY 12th

Hour 1 -- The OTHER Diabelli variations: A music publisher in Beethoven's
day asked fifty composers to write variations on a little waltz.  Beethoven
ended up contributing 33 variations, even though he supposedly hated
the theme.  Our piano sleuth Joseph Smith introduces some of the other
variations by lesser-known composers ...  he even plays a game of "guess
the composer" with Fred.

Hour 2 -- The Berlin Philharmonic, conductor Claudio Abbado and violinist
Joshua Bell are the anchors of this hour, as we travel from Germany to
Miami in search of moving concert performances.

Wednesday, FEBRUARY 13th

Hour 1 -- Classical Music meets the fashion industry: On January 30th,
the fashion designer Issey Miyake hosted a gala at the new store designed
by Frank Gehry in Tribeca.  The entertainment was the world-class, but
definitely not fashion set Norwegian pianist Leif-Ove Andsnes.  Dean
Olsher, host of the WNYC program "The Next Big Thing," reflects on this
meeting between fashion and classical music, and we'll hear Leif Ove
Andsnes play Grieg on the scene, amid the mannequins and champagne.

Hour 2 -- Eastman Winds at 50: The Eastman Wind Ensemble is celebrating
its golden anniversary this month with a series of concerts and workshops.
Conductor Donald Hunsberger joins Fred to introduce music from the
Ensemble's gala concert last Friday night in Rochester, New York.

Thursday, FEBRUARY 14th

Hour 1 -- "Romeo and Juliet" for Valentine's Day: Conductor Michael
Tilson Thomas introduces the New World Symphony's recent performance
of Tchaikovsky's "Romeo and Juliet."

Hour 2 -- Sharks and Jets in the PT 50: Our new feature continues as
Ted Libbey recommends another essential classical recording for your home
music library.  This week Ted adds the original Broadway cast recording
of Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story."

KORVA COLEMAN IS HOST

Friday, FEBRUARY 15th

Hour 2 -- Pianist Adam Neiman loves Rachmaninoff above all other composers.
He'll explain why as he joins Korva to introduce his own performance of
Rachmaninoff's Second Piano Concerto.

A PEEK AT NEXT WEEK: Jason Vieaux, acclaimed classical guitarist, will be
our PT Young Artist in Residence the week of Feb.  18-22.  Join us daily
in the second hour of the show as Jason performs live in NPR's Studio 4A.
Guest artists will include Soovin Kim, violin; Gary Shocker, flute; and
the Shanghai String Quartet.  Fred Child will join in on the castanets.

AND ON THE PERFORMANCE TODAY WEBSITE: Check out the latest addition to
the new PT 50, our list of essential classical recordings on CD ...  Hear
an interview with contemporary composer John Tavener ...  Listen to critic
Terry Teachout's remembrance of harpsichordist Igor Kipnis ...  Hear the
ensemble Windscape perform live in NPR's Studio 4A ...  Order your copy of
"Peter and the Wolf: A Special Report" ...  You'll find it all at
http://www.npr.org/programs/pt

NOTE: SCHEDULE IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.  FOR EXACT BROADCAST TIMES, CONTACT
YOUR LOCAL PUBLIC RADIO STATION, GO TO OUR WEBSITE, OR CALL PERFORMANCE
TODAY AT (202) 513-2370.

Susanna Beiser <[log in to unmask]>