This is Aspen Public Radio broadcasting on k.j. Exacerbation and k.c. Jakes Carbondale also broadcasting via Pitkin County translators k 216 b. F. In Aspen k 215 a c. And b. C. In Snowmass Village and Thomasville k 218 f g and k 207 d.t. The salt k 209 the why would he Creek k 218 f e Redstone k 2070 Glenwood Springs and on khan cast cable on Channel 8. Daniel shoe is 19 years old among the youngest competitors at the Cliburn Piano Competition which begins in 2 weeks so what's his frame of mind heading into the biggest competition of his life if I get to live it in the 1st round which I'm expecting I'm not going to sit here lie to you and be like oh I'll be fine it's a learning experience of move forward I want to be really for like 2 weeks maybe but then after a while I'll just get back to practicing and get back to the grind from a.p.m. American Public Media this is performance today I'm Fred Child coming up a preview of the 2017 Cliburn competition and we'll hear this gold medal performance from the recent Cliburn junior competition. Live from n.p.r. News in Washington I'm Lakshmi saying the big question looming over President Trump's decision to fire the head of the f.b.i. Is why now just days after the White House expressed confidence in James Comey deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders now says the dismissal had been brewing from day one of the Trump administration the president over the last several months lost confidence in Director Comey video Jay lost confidence in Director Comey bipartisan members of Congress made it clear that they had lost confidence in Director coming President Trump says he was unhappy with coneys handling of a probe into how his presidential rival Hillary Clinton handle classified e-mails during her time as secretary of state but both Democrats and Republicans in Congress are questioning that account and asking why fire Komi Now some of the leading lawmakers say dismissal fuels allegations of a White House attempt to muzzle the investigation into Russian interference in last year's presidential election and possible ties to the Trump campaign Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland capture the general sentiment of his Democratic and some of his Republican colleagues on Capitol Hill today this firing of f.b.i. Director call me stinks to high heaven he was in the middle of an investigation to determine whether there was coalition between the Trump campaign and the Russians and he gets fired in the middle of it the Senate Intelligence Committee has asked the former f.b.i. Director to meet in a closed session next Tuesday it is uncertain if Komi will be there the setting turn of events around and Komi of the implications for the probe into Russian collusion are playing out as Russia's top envoy is in Washington d.c. Today President met with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says his talks with were quote very very good when asked of Coney's firing affected his talks with the Russian officially said Not at all both men say they discuss the civil war in Syria where Russia supports the Assad regime. Problems continue to mount in the u.s. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico N.P.R.'s Greg Allen reports a new study says nearly all of the tap water available to the island's roughly 3 and a half 1000000 Americans violates federal safety standards a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council says many municipal water systems in Puerto Rico on tested regularly among those that are tested n.r.d.c. Said it found the nation's highest rate of drinking water violations more than 2400000 people in the u.s. Territory draw their water from systems which contain bacteria or other contaminants and almost none of the municipal water systems on the island test for lead contamination the environmental group is calling on federal Commonwealth and local authorities to make a major investment in the island's water infrastructure and upgrade testing for contaminants Meanwhile Puerto Rico's governors ordering massive spending cuts to balance the budget while the island works to renegotiate its more than 70000000000 dollar public debt Greg Allen n.p.r. News this is n.p.r. The parents of more than 80 Nigerian schoolgirls Boko Haram Islamist militants recently released say they are still waiting to be reunited with their daughters the Associated Press reports families have not heard details yet from government officials in Nigeria community leaders reportedly headed from the capital to the town of Chibok with pictures of the girls who were freed over the weekend so that their parents could recognize them and identify them it's been 3 years since they've seen their daughters who are among 276 kidnapped from Chibok dozens are still unaccounted for. Japanese auto giant Toyota motor is posting lower than expected quarterly profit citing poor exchange rates despite strong sales from Tokyo John Matthews reports it is the 1st time in 5 years at the company has not seen an increase in profits it's another good year for sales figures at Toyota they've sold 10 and a quarter 1000000 cars in the fiscal year ending March of 2017 but this year is the 1st in half a decade that they're seeing profits dipped below past performance and below expectations post a quarterly profits around $3500000000.00 for January to March which is down a little more than 6 and a half percent from the same time last year one big reason for the slower growth is the stronger yen versus the dollar making import goods less competitive in the u.s. For next year the automaker expects even less favorable exchange rates and for sales to tighten up in markets like North America for n.p.r. News I'm John Matthews in Tokyo the Dow was down 42 points 220930 3 I'm Lakshmi saying n.p.r. News support for n.p.r. Comes from n.p.r. Stations other contributors include c 3 i.o.t. Bringing cloud computing artificial intelligence machine learning and I ot big data solutions to commercial industrial and government business processes learn more at c 3 i.o.t. Dot com. From a.p.m. American Public Media this is performance today I'm Fred Child taking you to concerts around the world let's go to a concert at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis we're about to hear the Minnesota Orchestra play music by Johann Sebastian Bach there are so many things that Bach did so well I mean the man wrote about 2000 pieces of music he developed and codified harmony and form and counterpoint in Western music and he wrote works that just seemed to be more loved and appreciated as the centuries go by but still the man had a few failures in life for example he failed a job application in $721.00 Bach was hoping to get hired by the Margrave of Brandenburg he sent a resume in the form of half a dozen concertos will Bach never heard back from the Margrave no call no email nothing the manuscript was sold for what would now be $24.00 and the music was forgotten for a century it was rediscovered in $849.00 published the next year and has been a favorite ever since the Brandenburg Concertos might have failed as a job application but they are such great music and let's hear the 1st of the set a small Venzke conducting members of the Minnesota Orchestra playing the Brandenburg Concertos number one by Johann Sebastian Bach. Lou. Lou. the BUSY BUSY BUSY. For. A little go. Little. Oh. 'd please let. I. Thank. You. Luol what. Floor load. Lulu. Was. And. the 'd the the the. The RINGBACK the. The the. Whole. Great solo lines in the Brandenburg Concertos number one by Johann Sebastian Bach Peter Maguire featured on the violin along with horn players Michael Gast and Brian Jensen and Dr Oz small Venzke lead the Minnesota Orchestra on stage at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis the 1st of the Brandenburg Concertos by Bach. Among the many musical treats on our website you'll find free downloads in fact a new one handpicked for your classical music collection every week day and yet they're actually free look for the Daily Download at your classical dot org. Coming up in just a moment will be here with this week's piano puzzler. You're listening to a.p.m. Performance today. Time for another piano puzzler Bruce Adolph is here with me in the modern Weyerhaeuser music studio Hi Bruce. My friend every week Bruce takes a familiar tune and he rewrites that tune in the style of a great composer we get one of our listeners on the phone who tries to name the hidden tune and the composer whose style Bruce is imitating Mike Freiburg is on the phone from Golden Valley Minnesota Mike welcome to Petey thank you thank you great to have you Mike tell me about your musical background Well I've played piano since probably about 2nd grade I was classically trained for college I thought about getting a music degree but I became a lawyer and politician and that for some reason I am still playing though I play chamber music whenever I can frequently play with my dad who is an amateur violist he was actually on your show about 6 years ago sometimes he and I go to the adult senior music camp at Interlochen when my schedule makes it work and Mike just so folks know who you are you're a member of the Minnesota House of Representatives and you made not only local but national news after the singer songwriter prince died when you played piano Purple Rain a Prince tribute on the floor of the Minnesota House of Representatives Yes I guess they did. Well I mean in Minnesota I mean Prince is a really big deal so we were going to do a resolution honoring him which is basically a bunch of politicians giving speeches and I sort of felt like and we need to do something a little more so I sort of tried to work up a piano rendition of Purple Rain and we performed it on the House floor you know it was a really touching moment for Prince fans in Minnesota and all around the world so thank you very much for that yeah nose and honor. Well it's an honor to have you Mike Freiburg on the piano puzzler Bruce will play the piano puzzler your job will be to try to name the hidden tune and the composer whose style Bruce is mimicking. I don't know what's coming either so if you happen to get stuck you and I can brainstorm on this together that sound good that sounds good Ok Mike here is Bruce Adolph with your piano puzzler. Well I almost fell off the piano during. My severely played Mike what do you think when you hear that piano puzzler well at the beginning it sounded like the opening of Beethoven's 3rd Piano Concerto. I grew less confident of that as it went on but I'm still going to say Beethoven Absolutely yes that's totally Beethoven as it can be and be something else. Ok so the style of look they've been Beethoven Eisley done and that's really the the main thing about the piano puzzler is recognizing that that sound and style of some of the great composers So with that out of the way was there a tune in there that you recognized there was this is the part I was most worried about but I think I recognized put it on the Ritz absolutely confident it was all over the place a. Very nicely put in there yeah it was put. Interesting strange funny rhythmic combination of the the Latin rhythms of putting on the Ritz and that kind of rhythmic displacement with the Beethoven it was a little bizarre doing this but on the other hand Beethoven love syncopation something like this. I mean he would there's no reason Beethoven wouldn't have put that rich on. Whether particular quotes particular pieces you're referring to the Opus 10 number one a piano sonata does have quite a few of these things it has. Thought we should have put it on but it's. First that's very common phrase but this. Whole thing. Just that. That's exactly from Opus 10 number one and these octaves. Which have a moving. Parts underneath it not exactly those notes of course but that's also from the Beethoven but that's that's a lot of quotes very much the pianistic sound in the style of Beethoven Yes P's Well now that we know thanks to Mike Freiburg calling in from Golden Valley Minnesota we know it was put on the Ritz in the style of Beethoven Bruce could we hear this one more time to give it another try. The poor. The or. The in. The in. The in. The the. The in. And I love that little tag on the end you think it's over and there's that that Hank actually is a reference to a different Beethoven's. The Tempest Sonata and it returns in d. Minor and there is something like that again. And there are lots of little Beethoven tags lying around in his music and so I felt like I had to do you picked up one of those tags Yes that's right you know those are hard to remove in the store but when you get to. Put on the Ritz in the style of Beethoven this week's piano puzzler and Mike Freiburg on the line from Golden Valley Minnesota perfectly done you name the tune you name the composer 100 percent on this week's piano puzzler Well I'm I'm stunned but I'm honored. Really nice to have you calling in Mike Freiburg and when you're not playing on the air how do you listen to piano puzzlers either can't stand Minnesota Public Radio or through the podcast the podcast which you can find on the p.t. Page at your classical dot au Archie or on i Tunes or wherever you like to get your podcasts Mike Freiberg thank you so much for playing this week's piano puzzler Thank you Fred and Bruce I'll see you next week bye for it. Bruce Adolph is on the air every week with his piano puzzlers and we have lots of puzzlers that you can listen to anytime you like on the p.t. Page at your classical dot org including a preview of next week's puzzler listen as many times as you like send us your guess about the hidden tune and the composer every week I'll give an on air shout out to one of our listeners who submits a correct guess congratulations to the tag team pair of Bobby and Glen Killen's are from Simpsonville South Carolina and they listen online together and recognized putting on the Ritz in the style of Beethoven the piano puzzler previewed no one going up today on the p.t. Page at your classical dot org. Our caller this week Mike Freiburg recognize the style of Beethoven pretty much instantly and Bruce Adolph was borrowing directly from Beethoven's Piano Sonata number 5 and let's hear the final movement played by Alfred Brendel. The blue all. Or or. All all all the the all eyes on the ball all the I'm all the of. The ball. The old. The old. The old. The old all the of the of. The Old Hall. All. The. Classic recording by the great pianist Alfred Brendel the final movement from Beethoven's Piano Sonata number 5 that music was part of the inspiration for Bruce Adolph in this week's piano Pozner our piano puzzler is supported by Lumosity with a 10 minute fit tests to challenge memory attention and problem solving training programs that draw from 50 brain games and tools to compare scores with global averages learn more at the Maasai dot com. In a moment to preview the upcoming Cliburn piano competition plus the musical solitude of the mountains. You're listening to 8 pm performance today. I am I can only history coach of the Aspen Historical Society on display at the Wheeler stall or museum a wood saw circa 1890 So here's the story following Aspen silver mining boom in the late 880 s. What had been a more transient mining camp rapidly transitioned into an urban ised industrialised Center with this growth in population and prosperity came great demand for natural resources in his book Aspen the history of a silver mining town 87993. Rights of the demand for timber into the Eden like Valley of the Roaring Fork came all of the by products of late 1903 American industrial life including the systematic cutting of timber on the sides of the mountains to meet the ravenous appetite of the mines that left the surrounding hillsides as bare as a stretch of Arctic tundra so that it best 1st to worst decide for yourself I'm Mike Banani for Aspen Public Radio. In a few minutes we'll get a preview of the 2017 Van Cliburn Piano Competition which begins in 2 weeks in Fort Worth Texas right now we're about to hear from a 29 year old Norwegian violinist Her name is wrong held hem sing and she grew up in the heart of central Norway playing her country's folk music. That's wrong held him say playing traditional Norwegian music on the heart of anger felt she also plays classical violin and she told Radio Finland she loves both his quiet very very fine it's great to have these 2 d. Friends on the scene Oh to like that on and on that folk music line and that's part of my identity as a musician the sound of the heart anger fiddle that we're sampling This is from a war just video wrong held him saying playing while walking around the Norwegian countryside in the afternoon sun check out the video on the p.t. Facebook page we are performance today let's hear her play a short piece by in 1000 century Norwegian violinist right now a gentleman who also loved to go back and forth between folk and classical his name was all a bowl wrong held a ham sing gave this concert at the stressing in festival in Germany alongside pianist Tor Aspen OS pos she's playing a piece called solitude of the mountains by Ole Bull. Moving you. Were. 6 moving. Thing. 6 earlier. You were. Told. The old. Mood. The great Norwegian violinist of the 1800s only bull loved his country and loved the countryside including the mountains he wrote that piece it's called solitude of the mountain so we heard Norwegian violinist Ron held him saying alongside Norwegian pianists 2 or Aspen Aspas they gave that concert at the shrine sing in festival in fessing in Germany solitude of the mountains by all aboard. Well there won't be a lot in the way of solitude for a group of about 30 pianists in Fort Worth Texas beginning in 2 weeks the 2017 Van Cliburn piano competition begins on the 25th 2 and a half weeks of great music for audiences and intense pressure and scrutiny for 30 young pianists all between 18 and 30 years old James Kim is host and producer of the podcast called the competition he's been joining us with Cliburn updates and he's back again today James welcome back to p.t. Thanks for having me back Fred and you spoke with the 2nd youngest of the Cliburn competitors this year Daniel she was 19 he's from San Francisco how is Daniel shoe feeling about being in the biggest piano competition on the planet. Well he thinks he will not make the next cut which seriously shocking. Because he's accomplished a lot so he entered the Curtis Institute of Music when he was at the age of 10 which to get into Curtis is a very impressive feat because they only accept about 2 or 3 people every year he wants to keep the expectations low because he also doesn't want to get a little full of himself which might affect his performance and this is what he had to say if I get to live it in the 1st round which I'm expecting to be I'm not going to sit here and lie to you and be like oh I'll be fine it's a learning experience I move forward I want to be really for like 2 weeks maybe. But then after a while just get back to practicing and get back to the great you know. A love that honestly I'm not going to be fine with it felt like they're trying to impress 9 jury members and you spoke with one of the members of the jury Pamela Mia Paul is a pianist James did she tell you what she's looking for listening for she did yes so she was one of the jury members for the screening audition round she is a teacher at the University of North Texas and she's actually competed in the Van Cliburn before and when I spoke with her on Skype a couple months ago this is what she had to say and what she's looking for in a contestant well losing the top is very easy and I've used one of the expressions that I've used when I've spoken about this has been when I'm sitting there and listening to somebody play I want to feel as though I really want to hear you again I'm really curious about what else you have to say with other repertoire people at the bottom either did things that seem to really distort the music or they were somehow in some way either physically or musically or both they were they came across as artificial what I mean by physically Well there is a school of unfortunate thought among some young pianists that you have to make gestures to prove how exciting you are or you have to make faces that indicate you're looking for great inspiration and you're so a musical and you know a panel of professional musicians spots that right away and thinks no way just say it to us through the way you're playing music. Yeah what's interesting is she actually said that she judges based on appearance too specifically for women she's very critical and what they're wearing and if it's appropriate for the stage is she as critical about what the men are wearing. I guess fortunately for them it's just basically a tuxedo while lots of storylines will play out beginning May 25th at the 2017 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition comes around once every 4 years that's coming up beginning in about 2 weeks James Kim a host and producer of the podcast the competition currently covering the build up to the Cliburn International competition James thanks for another update thanks again Fred you can find the Podcast the competition on the p.t. Page go to your classical dot org click on performance today back in 2015 the Cliburn held their 1st ever junior competition for teenagers the winner was a 17 year old from Kazakhstan Aleem Base him by a of let's hear one of his competition performances in Fort Worth Aleem basin by of playing a prelude in g. Major by rock modern off. For. Poor. Thank you Lou in g. Major Sergey Roc Montana a leave base in via was 17 years old when he gave that concert 2 years ago during the Van Cliburn junior Piano Competition in Fort Worth Texas basin by of went home to London with the gold medal $10000.00 in cash plus a $2000.00 scholarship. Aleem Basin via have grew up in Kazakhstan he began playing piano when he was 5 when his father gave him a toy piano well he loved the toys so much he pretty quickly moved on to the real thing but Aleem says he's had another passion competing for his attention I started born Toensing of the age of 7 prizes. However I did have to make a choice and I chose music. Bio says he still finds time to waltz for fun but he's devoting himself to becoming the best pianist he can be a lean bass him by have now 19 years old a student at the Royal Academy of Music in London he won the Cliburn junior competition 2 years ago the big one the quadrennial Van Cliburn International Piano Competition begins in 2 weeks and yes of course we will have complete coverage for you right here on p t. You can hear a lame day symbiote play that Rockmart off again on the p.t. Page where our shows are archived as streaming audio on demand for 30 days after broadcast go to your classical dot org click on performance today. I'm Fred Child this is performance today from a.p.m. American Public Media.