Classical Music Playlist, February 18, 2026
In 1773 the 17 year old Mozart had likely seen the printed music for string quartets by Haydn who by that time was a master of string quartet writing. Mozart then gave himself a challenge to live up to the Haydn model and composed six string quartets (Mozart’s “Viennese Quartets” Nos 8-13, known to show some of Haydn’s influence). Ten years later Mozart first met Haydn and the two became fast friends sharing mutual high esteem. At this time Mozart, now more experienced, wrote six more Quartets which he sent to Haydn with a letter of dedication to him. At the premiere of these new quartets Haydn told young Mozart’s father Leopold, “before God and as an honest man I tell you that your son is the greatest composer known to me either in person or by name.” The only Quartet of these six “Haydn Quartets” in a minor key, No. 15 in d-minor (K. 421), is today’s Midday Masterpiece.
6:00 a.m.
Henri-Joseph Rigel
Symphony No. 14 in F major
Concerto Koln
6:10 a.m.
Georg Philipp Telemann
Suite for oboe, trumpet and strings in D major TWV 55: D1
The English Concert; Trevor Pinnock, conductor
6:43 a.m.
Philip Glass
The Truman Show: Truman Sleeps
Valentina Lisitsa, piano
6:45 a.m.
Johannes Brahms
Intermezzo in Eb major Opus 117/1
Orli Shaham, piano
6:51 a.m.
Modest Mussorgsky
KHOVANSHCHINA: Persian Dance
Minnesota Orchestra; Eiji Oue, conductor
7:00 a.m.
Franz Liszt
Hungarian Fantasy
London Symphony Orchestra; Jun'ichi Hirokami, conductor Barry Douglas, piano
7:16 a.m.
Antonin Dvorak
American Suite in A major Opus 98
Prague Philharmonia; Jakub Hrusa, conductor
7:40 a.m.
Franz Waxman
Carmen Fantasy: II. Allegretto (Seguidilla & Chanson boh�me)
Himari, violin; Chelsea Wang, piano
7:45 a.m.
Felix Mendelssohn
A Midsummer Night's Dream: Overture
Boston Symphony Orchestra; Seiji Ozawa, conductor
7:58 a.m.
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Trumpet Concerto in Eb major
National Philharmonic Orchestra; Raymond Leppard, conductor Wynton Marsalis, trumpet
8:16 a.m.
Richard Strauss
DER ROSENKAVALIER: Concert Suite
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra; Andre Previn, conductor
8:40 a.m.
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Piano Trio "Archduke": II. Scherzo in Bb major Opus 97
Esther Abrami Quintet Emanuel Ax, piano; Leonidas Kavakos, violin; Yo Yo Ma, cello
8:48 a.m.
Stanislaw Moniuszko
FLIS (The Raftsman): Overture
Warsaw Philharmonic; Antoni Wit, conductor
9:00 a.m.
Johannes Brahms
String Quintet No. 2 in G major Opus 111
Takacs Quartet Lawrence Power, viola
9:31 a.m.
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Capriccio Espagnol Opus 34
London Symphony Orchestra; Charles Mackerras, conductor
9:47 a.m.
Carl Abel
Symphony No. 3 in D major
Cantilena; Adrian Shepherd, conductor
10:00 a.m.
Jose Moncayo
Sinfonietta
Mexico National Symphony Orchestra; Enrique Arturo Diemecke, conductor
10:11 a.m.
Connor Chee
Navajo Vocable No. 4
Angelica Hairston, harp
10:15 a.m.
Einojuhani Rautavaara
Two Serenades: No. 2: Serenade pour la vie (Serenade for Life)
Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France; Mikko Franck, conductor Hilary Hahn, violin
10:23 a.m.
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Piano Concerto No. 1 in F# minor Opus 1
Los Angeles Philharmonic; Gustavo Dudamel, conductor Yuja Wang, piano
10:50 a.m.
Michael Torke
Javelin
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; Yoel Levi, conductor
11:00 a.m.
Emanuele Barbella
Concerto for Mandolin in D major
Il Giardino Armonico; Giovanni Antonini, conductor Avi Avital, mandolin
11:09 a.m.
Paul Dukas
Symphony in C major
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra; Yan Pascal Tortelier, conductor
11:52 a.m.
Edvard Grieg
Lyric Pieces: Wedding Day at Troldhaugen Opus 65
Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields; Neville Marriner, conductor
11:59 a.m.
George Friederich Handel
Music for the Royal Fireworks HWV 351
The English Concert; Trevor Pinnock, conductor
12:18 p.m.
Gustav Holst
St. Paul's Suite Opus 29/2
City of London Sinfonia; Richard Hickox, conductor
12:32 p.m.
Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 39 in G minor
Heidelberg Symphony; Thomas Fey, conductor
12:52 p.m.
Florence Price
String Quartet in G major: II. Andante moderato - Allegretto in G major
Pacifica Quartet
1:00 p.m.
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Egmont Overture Opus 84
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; Riccardo Chailly, conductor
1:09 p.m.
Alessandro Scarlatti
Concerto Grosso No. 3 in F major
Europa Galante; Fabio Biondi, conductor
1:18 p.m.
Manuel Ponce
Concierto del Sur for guitar and orchestra
Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas; Alondra de la Parra, conductor Pablo Sainz Villegas, guitar
1:45 p.m.
Claude Debussy
Petite Suite
Lyon National Orchestra; Jun Markl, conductor
2:00 p.m.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
String Quartet No. 15 in D minor K 421
Quatuor Mosaiques
2:34 p.m.
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
EUGENE ONEGIN: Waltz
New York Philharmonic; Kurt Masur, conductor
2:42 p.m.
Johannes Brahms
Piano Concerto No. 2: I. Allegro non troppo in Bb major Opus 83
Cleveland Orchestra; George Szell, conductor Leon Fleisher, piano; Jules Eskin, cello
3:00 p.m.
Giacomo Puccini
Preludio Sinfonico in A major
Philharmonic of La Scala; Riccardo Muti, conductor
3:10 p.m.
Miguel Llobet
Six Catalan Folk Songs
Eduardo Fernandez, guitar
3:19 p.m.
Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No. 4 "Italian" in A major Opus 90
San Francisco Symphony; Herbert Blomstedt, conductor
3:49 p.m.
Anton Arensky
Piano Quintet: Scherzo Opus 51
Ying Quartet Adam Neiman, piano
3:59 p.m.
Fela Sowande
African Suite: Selections
Chicago Sinfonietta; Paul Freeman, conductor
4:10 p.m.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 15 in Bb major K 450
English Chamber Orchestra; Murray Perahia, conductor Murray Perahia, piano
4:36 p.m.
Andrew York
Sunburst
Jason Vieaux, guitar
4:41 p.m.
Johannes Hanssen
Valdres March
Boston Pops Orchestra; Arthur Fiedler, conductor
4:45 p.m.
George Friederich Handel
Concerto Grosso "Alexander's Feast" in C major HWV 318
English Baroque Soloists; John Eliot Gardiner, conductor
5:00 p.m.
Joaquin Rodrigo
Concierto Serenata for harp and orchestra
Symphony Orchestra of Seville; Edmon Colomer, conductor Isabelle Moretti, harp
5:25 p.m.
George Enescu
Romanian Rhapsody No. 1 in A major Opus 11
National Orchestra of France; Cristian Macelaru, conductor Yuja Wang, piano
5:29 p.m.
Antonin Dvorak
Poetic Tone Pictures: X. Bacchanalia Opus 85
Leif Ove Andsnes, piano
5:35 p.m.
Carlos Baguer
Symphony No. 12 in Eb major
London Mozart Players; Matthias Bamert, conductor
5:51 p.m.
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
The Tsar's Bride overture
Seattle Symphony; Gerard Schwarz, conductor
5:59 p.m.
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 6 in D minor Opus 104
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra; Neeme Jarvi, conductor
6:27 p.m.
Hector Berlioz
King Lear Overture Opus 4
Staatskapelle Dresden; Colin Davis, conductor
6:44 p.m.
Hayato Sumino
Nocturne II - After Dawn
Hayato Sumino, piano
6:48 p.m.
Olafur Arnalds
Happiness Does not Wait
La Pieta Angele Dubeau, violin
6:52 p.m.
Libby Larsen
Sorrow Song and Jubilee
Apollo Chamber Players
