Before Rick Steves became one of America’s best-known travel teachers, he was a piano teacher.

In this episode of One Symphony, conductor Devin Patrick Hughes sits down with Rick Steves for a wide-ranging conversation about classical music, travel, culture, and the surprising connections between them.

Rick shares how teaching piano helped shape his approach to teaching travel, why understanding the context behind a piece of music can transform the way we hear it, and what the music of a place can reveal that its museums, food, architecture, and history sometimes cannot.

Their conversation travels from flamenco in Spain and fado in Portugal to Grieg in the Norwegian fjords, Smetana and Czech identity, Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” and the role music played in shaping the national identities of Europe.

Rick and Devin also explore travel as a journey from tourist to traveler to pilgrim, the value of culture shock, and how both music and travel can take us outside ourselves and deepen our understanding of other people.

They also discuss Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey, which Rick describes as a concert “designed for people who didn’t know they liked classical music.”

Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey — Colorado performances:

October 8 | Symphony of the Rockies | Denver https://www.symphonyrockies.org/events

October 9 | Boulder Symphony & Music Academy | Boulder https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/rick-steves-europe-a-symphonic-journey

Learn more about Rick Steves: https://www.ricksteves.com/

Learn more about A Symphonic Journey: https://www.ricksteves.com/symphony

One Symphony is hosted by conductor Devin Patrick Hughes.