The beauty of Berg, the swans of Sibelius and a showpiece by Chopin

By Dan Margolies,

Published February 21, 2024 at 9:32 AM CST

Violinist Gil Shaham performs with the Kansas City Symphony in Helzberg Hall, September 2022

Nearly two-hundred years after a twenty year old Frédéric Chopin composed his first piano concerto, the work still delights. This week, we'll hear rising piano star George Li perform the piece, plus the eminent violinist Gil Shaham performs Alban Berg's melancholy concerto. We'll also hear the Kansas City Symphony in a recent performance of Jean Sibelius' swan-inspired Symphony No. 5.

An agreement with the Kansas City Symphony allows us to share audio for this program up to four weeks after the program's original air date. You can listen to currently available episodes here.

Hosts

Michael Stern
Dan Margolies

Program

Concerto for Violin and Orchestra
by Alban Berg
Gil Shaham - violin
Live performance, June 2013

Symphony No. 5 in Eb major, Op. 82
by Jean Sibelius
Ruth Reinhardt - guest conductor
Live performance, February 2023

Concerto No. 1 in E minor for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 11
by Frédéric Chopin
Ludovic Morlot - guest conductor
George Li - piano
Live performance, January 2017