New at Noon: November 12, 2025

Kharkiv-born composer Sergei Bortkiewicz, lived through the turmoil and horrors of the early 20th century: the First World War, the Russian Revolution, and the Second World War. HIS elegant, dreamy music is—a stark contrast to the chaos that surrounded his life and career. Bortkiewicz fled to Constantinople as the Ottoman Empire was collapsing, and then to Vienna, which was then overtaken by fascism, annexed by Nazi Germany, and at war. He was never able to really rebuild his career, and a lot of his music was destroyed when his German publisher’s headquarters were bombed.   Pianist Anna Shelest born also born in Kharkiev, some 30 years after the composer’s death has recorded his music on her new CD called, “ A ROMANTIC FROM KHARKIV.”  Listen today at 12:00 to h ear her perform his 1st Piano Concerto with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Neeme Jarvi, NEW at NOON on 90.9 WGUC.