SUNDAY 27 OCTOBER 2019

SUN 00:00 Geoffrey Smith's Jazz (m0009rg0)
Finale

In a grand finale to the series, Geoffrey Smith presents an all-star array of some of his favourite tracks and performers, from Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday and Lester Young to Duke Ellington, Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins.


SUN 01:00 Through the Night (m0009rg2)
Prokofiev from Sweden

Hilary Hahn is the soloist in Prokofiev's first violin concerto with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. John Shea presents.

1:01 am (BST)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Divertimento in B flat major (K.439b`2)
Bratislava Wind Trio

1:17 am (BST)
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Kinderszenen, Op 15
Havard Gimse (piano)

1:37 am (BST)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite for orchestra no.3 in D major (BWV.1068)
Erik Niord Larsen (oboe), Roar Brostrom (oboe), Ole Edvard Antonsen (trumpet), Lasse Rossing (trumpet), Jens Petter Antonsen (trumpet), Rolf Cato Raade (timpani), Risor Festival Strings, Andrew Manze (conductor)

1:01 am (GMT)
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony No. 1 in D, op. 25 ('Classical')
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Lahav Shani (conductor)

1:16 am
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Violin Concerto No. 1 in D, op. 19
Hilary Hahn (violin), Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Lahav Shani (conductor)

1:38 am
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Sarabande, from 'Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004'
Hilary Hahn (violin)

1:43 am
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony No. 5 in B flat, op. 100
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Lahav Shani (conductor)

2:29 am
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
12 Studies for piano (Op 25)
Daniil Trifonov (piano)

3:01 am
Felix Nowowiejski (1877-1946)
Missa pro pace (Op 49 no 3)
Polish Radio Choir, Andrzej Bialko (organ), Wlodzimierz Siedlik (conductor)

3:39 am
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
String Quartet No. 1 (Op. 27) in G minor
Ensemble Fragaria Vesca

4:13 am
Fredrik Pacius (1809-1891)
Overture from the Hunt of King Charles (1852)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste (conductor)

4:21 am
Milko Lazar (b.1965)
Prelude (Allegro moderato)
Mojca Zlobko-Vajgl (harp), Bojan Gorisek (piano)

4:30 am
Samuel Capricornus (1628-1665)
Sonata (Continuation der neuen wohl angestimmten Taffel-Lustmusic (1671))
Musica Aeterna Bratislava, Peter Zajícek (director)

4:36 am
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Abegg variations Op.1
Annika Treutler (piano)

4:44 am
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Lascia la spina, from Il Trionfo del tempo e del disinganno
Julia Lezhneva (soprano), Wroclaw Baroque Orchestra, Giovanni Antonini (conductor)

4:52 am
Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725)
Concerto Grosso No 1 in F minor
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Jeanne Lamon (conductor)

5:01 am
Juliusz Zarebski (1854-1885)
Polonaise triomphale in A major, Op 11
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Pawel Przytocki (conductor)

5:10 am
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Ballade for piano no. 1 (Op.23) in G minor
Zbigniew Raubo (piano)

5:19 am
Orlande de Lassus (1532-1594)
Magnificat 'Praeter rerum seriem'
King's Singers

5:28 am
Jean-Marie Leclair (1697-1764)
Badinage & Chaconne from Deuxieme Recreation de musique d'une execution facile
Les Ambassadeurs, Alexis Kossenko (director)

5:37 am
Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921), arr. Eugene Ysaye
Caprice d'après l'étude en forme de valse de Saint-Saëns
David Petrlik (violin), Renata Ardasevova (piano)

5:46 am
Plamen Djourov (b.1949)
Two Ballades, Nos. I & IV
Eolina Quartet

5:56 am
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Gammelnorsk Romance met Variasjoner (Op.51) (1890, orch 1900)
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Ole Kristian Ruud (conductor)

6:20 am
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Violin Sonata No.2 in A major Op.12 No.2
Mats Zetterqvist (violin), Mats Widlund (piano)

6:37 am
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Music for the Royal Fireworks
Collegium Aureum


SUN 07:00 Breakfast (m0009qym)
Sunday - Martin Handley

Martin Handley presents Radio 3's classical breakfast show including a Sunday morning Sounds of the Earth slow radio soundscape.

Email 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk


SUN 09:00 Sunday Morning (m0009qyp)
Sarah Walker with an exhilarating musical mix

Sarah Walker chooses three hours of attractive and uplifting music to complement your morning, and puts a musical spin on events.

There are pairs of all sorts on show today: pairs of hands at the piano enjoying the fun created by Percy Grainger, pairs of violins playing sensual lines by Handel and a pair of intriguing medieval musicians that have Sarah disappearing down - as she calls it - the internet rabbit hole.

Sarah also contrasts a tiny symphony by William Boyce with an expansive orchestral characterisation by Sergei Prokofiev. She plays traditional Syrian music by way of Lancaster and hears the richness of Rachmaninov unroll as pianist Daniil Trifonov joins forces with the Philadelphia Orchestra and conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin.

A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3


SUN 12:00 Private Passions (m0009qyr)
Venki Ramakrishnan

Sir Venki Ramakrishnan is President of the Royal Society and was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2009 for his research into the ribosome – the mysterious ancient molecule that decodes DNA, what he terms ‘the mother of all molecules’. He’s what you might call a science all-rounder: he gained a PhD in Physics before turning to Biology, and his Nobel Prize was in Chemistry. Born in India, he moved to the US as a postgraduate student, and in 1999 came to Britain to work at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge.

Alongside science Venki Ramakrishnan has another passion – for music, and, in particular, chamber music, which grew out of the Indian classical music he heard as a child. His son Raman is the cellist with the Horszowski Trio and we hear their performance of music by Schubert, as well as a Brahms piano quartet and a Beethoven cello sonata, reflecting both Raman's and Venki’s deep engagement with that instrument.

Venki's other great love is for the violin, and he chooses music by Mozart alongside Bach's Double Violin Concerto - which Venki himself played whilst learning the violin as a graduate student in the USA.

He talks to Michael about the central role of music in his life, about how he would reform the Nobel Prizes in science, and why he swapped the mountains of Utah for the fens of East Anglia.

Producer: Jane Greenwood
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 3


SUN 13:00 Radio 3 Lunchtime Concert (m0009k9d)
Adventures with a viola

From Wigmore Hall, London, presented by Andrew McGregor.

Lawrence Power is one of today’s foremost violists, in demand worldwide as a recitalist, concerto soloist and chamber music partner. Along with his long-time recital partner, the pianist Simon Crawford-Phillips, he brings a programme of stunning variety with music spanning over 300 years. Fervent champions of contemporary music, they include the UK premiere of a new work by Thomas Adès, co-commissioned by the Verbier Festival, Moritzburg Festival, BBC, UKARIA and supported by the Viola Commissioning Circle.

Arthur Benjamin: Le Tombeau de Ravel
Thomas Adès: 3 Berceuses (UK première)
Poulenc: Violin Sonata
Plus works by François Couperin, Ravel & Stravinsky

Lawrence Power (violin and viola)
Simon Crawford-Phillips (piano)


SUN 14:00 The Early Music Show (b07ht30g)
New York City (1/2)

Hannah French visits New York for the first of two programmes, in which she learns about the vibrant early music scene in the city. She meets Gene Murrow of the Gotham Early Music Scene, Julian Wachner - music director of Trinity Wall Street, and Gwendolyn Toth of the ensemble Artek, and she chats to violinist Robert Mealy about his work with the ensemble Quicksilver.

01 00:00:51 anon
La Quarte Estampie Royal (excerpt)
Ensemble: New York Ensemble for Early Music
Director: Frederick Renz
Duration 00:00:33

02 00:02:03 anon
La Quinte Estampie Royal
Ensemble: New York Ensemble for Early Music
Director: Frederick Renz
Duration 00:01:37

03 00:05:34 Johannes Le Grant
Entre vos nouviaux mariés
Singer: Sylvia Rhyne
Singer: Eric Redlinger
Duration 00:01:29

04 00:07:43 Guillaume de Machaut
Phyton le merveilleus serpent (excerpt)
Ensemble: Trefoil
Duration 00:00:51

05 00:08:40 Georg Philipp Telemann
Concerto in D for trumpet, violin & strings, TWV.53:D5 (3rd mvt)
Orchestra: Rebel
Director: Jörg-Michael Schwarz
Duration 00:05:03

06 00:16:29 Claudio Monteverdi
Orfeo (Act I) (excerpt)
Ensemble: Artek
Director: Gwendolyn Toth
Duration 00:00:50

07 00:19:52 Claudio Monteverdi
Ch’io t’ami (Madrigals, Book 5)
Ensemble: Artek
Director: Gwendolyn Toth
Duration 00:02:12

08 00:22:43 Johann Sebastian Bach
Jesu, meine Freude, BWV.227 (opening chorus)
Choir: Choir of Trinity Wall Street
Orchestra: Trinity Baroque Orchestra
Director: Julian Wachner
Duration 00:01:08

09 00:27:57 Johann Sebastian Bach
Lobet den Herrn, alle Heiden, BWV.230 (opening chorus) (excerpt)
Choir: Choir of Trinity Wall Street
Orchestra: Trinity Baroque Orchestra
Director: Julian Wachner
Duration 00:01:58

10 00:32:41 George Frideric Handel
Israel in Egypt (Overture & Your harps & cymbals sound)
Choir: Choir of Trinity Wall Street
Orchestra: Trinity Baroque Orchestra
Director: Julian Wachner
Duration 00:09:20

11 00:44:05 Giovanni Battista Fontana
Sonata decimaquarta
Ensemble: Quicksilver Baroque Ensemble
Duration 00:06:40

12 00:53:41 Johann Vierdanck
Sonata decimaquarta
Ensemble: Quicksilver Baroque Ensemble
Duration 00:05:09


SUN 15:00 Choral Evensong (m0009kgp)
Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban

From the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban.

Introit: Hail gladdening light (Wood)
Responses: Smith
Psalm 115 (South)
First Lesson: Hosea 14 vv.1-9
Office hymn: O gladsome light (Nunc Dimittis)
Canticles: Collegium Regale (Wood)
Second Lesson: James 2 vv.14-26
Anthem: I will move thee (Alec Roth)
Hymn: Praise to the holiest in the height (Chorus Angelorum)
Voluntary: Prelude and Fugue in E (Henry Martin)

Andrew Lucas (Master of the Music)
Tom Winpenny (Organist)


SUN 16:00 Jazz Record Requests (m0009qyt)
27/10/19

Alyn Shipton presents jazz records from across the genre, as requested by Radio 3 listeners, including music by JJ Johnson, Roland Kirk and Johnny Dodds.

DISC 1
Artist Stan Getz / J J Johnson
Title Billie’s Bounce
Composer Parker
Album At The Opera House
Label Verve
Number 831 272-2 Track 5
Duration 7.57
Performers Stan Getz, ts; J J Johnson, tb; Oscar Peterson, p; Herb Ellis, g; Ray Brown, b; Connie Kay, d. 1957

DISC 2
Artist Freddie Hubbard
Title Blues for Alvena
Composer Wilson
Album Groovy
Label Fontana
Number 833290 S 1 T 2
Duration 7.19
Performers Freddie Hubbard, t; Willie Wilson, tb; Pepper Adams, bars; Duke Pearson, p; Thomas Howard, b; Lex Humphries, d. Rec 1961

DISC 3
Artist Wendy Kirkland
Title Playground
Composer Malone
Album The Music is on me…
Label Wendy Kirkland
Number Track 5
Duration 5.45
Performers: Wendy Kirkland, p, v; Roger Beaujolais, vib; Pat Sprakes, g; Paul Jefferies, b; Steve Wyndham, d. 2019.

DISC 4
Artist Roland Kirk
Title Spring will Be A Little Late This Year
Composer Loesser
Album Roland Kirk’s Finest Hour
Label Verve
Number 549676-2 Track 4
Duration 4.07
Performers Roland Kirk, ts; Hank Jones, p; Wendell Marshall, b; Charlie Persip, d.

DISC 5
Artist Wooden Joe’s New Orleans Band
Title Shake It and Break It
Composer trad
Album New Orleans Revival
Label Marshall Cavendish
Number CD045 Track 15
Duration 3.36
Performers: Wooden Joe Nicholas, t; Albert Burbank, cl; Lawrence Marrero, bj; Austin Young, b. 10 May 1945.

DISC 6
Artist Johnny Dodds
Title Memphis Shake
Composer H Clifford
Album Clarinet Stomp
Label Bluebird
Number ND 82293 Track 10
Duration 3.16
Performers Johnny Dodds, cl; Lockwood Lewis, as; Clifford Hayes vn; Cal Smith, Emmitt Perkins, Curtis Hayes, bj; Earl McDonald, H Clifford, jugs. 11 Dec 1926.

DISC 7
Artist Saints Jazz Band
Title Black and Blue
Composer Waller / Razaf
Album Swingin’ With the Saints
Label Lake
Number 147 Track 13
Duration 2.57
Performers: Mick McNama, t; Fred Fydler, tb; Alan Radcliffe, cl; John Fish, p; Reg Kenworthy, b; John Mills, d. Feb 1959. 39.09

DISC 8
Artist Turning Point
Title May Day Morn
Composer J Clyne
Album Silent Promise
Label Gull
Number GULP 1027 S T 3
Duration 5.39
Performers Dave Tidball, reeds; Brian Miller, kb; Jeff Clyne, b; Paul Robinson, d. 1978.

DISC 9
Artist Ted Beament
Title In The Groove
Composer Beament
Album In The Groove
Label Norma
Number CD 004 Track 1
Duration 5.18
Performers: Ted Beament, p; Alec Dankworth, b; Winston Clifford, d. 2019.

DISC 10
Artist Keith Jarrett
Title My Song
Composer Jarrett
Album My Song
Label ECM
Number 821 406-2 Track 2
Duration 6.09
Performers Keith Jarrett, p; Jan Garbarek, ss; Palle Danielsson, b; Jon Christensen, d. 1977


SUN 17:00 The Listening Service (b0b0wrpd)
How does video game music work?

Bleep... bleep.... bleeeeep

It's amazing how a few electronic bleeps can tell us so much about what's going on in a video game without us even being aware of it

But music in video games has come a long way from the arcades, from the bleeps and bloops of Space Invaders and Super Mario to epic orchestral scores of the Legend of Zelda and Bioshock, Tom Service goes on an interactive odyssey to discover the secrets behind our favourite video game music. Along the way he meets composer Jessica Curry and video game expert Tim Summers who tell us what's really happening in the music when we're playing, the composer tricks of the trade and how video games can get new audiences closer to classical music.

bleeeeeeep... GAME OVER.


SUN 17:30 Words and Music (b01n11dy)
The Worst Form of Government

This week's Words and Music explores the theme of democracy. Democracy is the worst form of government, except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time. Winston Churchill's now famous quote underpins today's edition. Democracy is hailed as a force for good - promoting freedom, equality and self-governance - but has been used and misused for personal gain and political oppression. Nelson Mandela describes his astonishment in his memoir Long Walk to Freedom, on meeting Inuits from Northern Europe, that people from 'the top of the world' should have any knowledge of his political struggle at the southern tip of Africa. Television, he writes, had become a force for promoting democracy.

Throughout the programme, we hear the voices of colonised and marginalised peoples as they struggle for their right to be heard, their right to vote, and their right to live a free life.

With music from Copland & Shostakovich to Somalian poet and rapper K'naan, and readings performed by Lisa Dillon and Ray Fearon.

Producer: Gavin Heard

Aeschines: Democracy
Langston Hughes: Democracy
Emma Lazarus: The New Colossus
Walt Whitman: Election Day November 1884
Dorianne Laux: Democracy
John Adams: Letter
Arthur Rimbaud: Democracy
Nelson Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
Mahmoud Darwish: The Girl/The Scream
William Shakespeare: Caesar
George Szirtes: Unter den Linden
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper: Songs for the People

01 00:00:56 Francis Poulenc
Dialogues Des Carmélites - Salve Regina
Orchestra: Orchestre de l’Opéra de Lyon
Choir: Choeur de l'Opéra de Lyon
Conductor: Kent Nagano
Duration 00:06:57

02 00:01:05
Aeschines
Democracy from 'Against Timarchus', read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:01:12

03 00:07:56
Langston Hughes
Democracy, read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:00:30

04 00:08:28 Tan Dun
Symphony 1997: Heaven, Earth, Mankind - 1 Song Of Peace (Prelude)
Performer: Yo‐Yo Ma
Choir: Yip’s Children’s Choir
Ensemble: Imperial Bells Ensemble of China
Orchestra: Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Tan Dun
Duration 00:03:53

05 00:12:25
Emma Lazarus
The New Colossus, read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:00:55

06 00:13:20 Manu Chao
Politik Kills
Performer: Manu Chao
Duration 00:03:00

07 00:16:22
Walt Whitman
Election Day November 1884, read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:01:30

08 00:17:53 Edward Elgar
Pomp and Circumstance Op.39 - March No.3 in C Minor
Orchestra: Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Conductor: Alexander Gibson
Duration 00:05:32

09 00:23:25 John Denver
Bread And Roses
Performer: Judy Collins
Duration 00:03:02

10 00:26:30
Dorianne Laux
Democracy, read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:02:45

11 00:29:18 Frederic Rzewski
The People United Will Never be Defeated
Performer: Ralph van Raat (piano)
Duration 00:05:16

12 00:34:08
John Adams
Letter to John Taylor, 17 December 1814, read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:00:42

13 00:34:45 François-Joseph Gossec
Marche lugubre
Orchestra: Orchestre d'Harmonie des Gardiens de la Paix de la Préfecture de Police de Paris
Conductor: Claude Pichaureau
Duration 00:05:25

14 00:38:18
Arthur Rimbaud
Democracy, read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:00:49

15 00:40:17
Nelson Mandela
Long Walk to Freedom, read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:01:05

16 00:41:23 Aynur Do?an ?
Rewend
Performer: Aynur Do?an ?
Duration 00:05:00

17 00:46:31
Mahmoud Darwish - Translation: C Forche & M Akash
The Girl/The Scream, read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:01:16

18 00:47:50 Dmitry Shostakovich
Quartet No.8 - Largo
Performer: Kronos Quartet
Duration 00:04:46

19 00:52:36
William Shakespeare
Julius Caesar, Act III, Scene II [Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears], read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:02:24

20 00:55:08 Youssou Ndour
Xale/Our Young People
Performer: Youssou Ndour
Duration 00:04:13

21 00:59:23 Benjamin Britten
Five Flower Songs, Op. 47 - Advance Democracy
Choir: Lichfield Cathedral Choir
Choir: The Finzi Singers
Conductor: Paul Spicer
Duration 00:02:47

22 01:02:10 Aaron Copland
Lincoln Portrait
Performer: London Symphony Orchestra, Wyn Morris (Conductor)
Duration 00:01:34

23 01:03:46
George Szirtes, New & Collected Poems (Bloodaxe Books, 2008)
Unter den Linden, read by Ray Fearon
Duration 00:00:39

24 01:04:29 Edward Elgar
Variations on an Original Theme, Op. 36 "Enigma": Variation 9, Nimrod
Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Adrian Boult
Duration 00:03:47

25 01:08:20
Frances Ellen Watkins Harper
Songs for the People, read by Lisa Dillon
Duration 00:01:19

26 01:09:40 K’naan
Wavin' Flag
Performer: K’naan
Duration 00:03:39


SUN 18:45 Between the Ears (m0009qyz)
The M1 Symphony

The dynamic, often dramatic, life of the M1 in words, sounds and a thrilling new work performed by the BBC Philharmonic, as Britain’s first major motorway marks its 60th anniversary.

In a powerful composition specially commissioned by BBC Radio 3, The M1 Symphony depicts how the M1 has transformed the British landscape and millions of lives. A place of routine and drama, where a momentary lapse can change everything, with terrifying speed.

Documentary producer Laurence Grissell and composer Alex Woolf first collaborated last year on The NHS Symphony. Their new work explores a very different but no less transformative feature of British life.

When it was opened 60 years ago, the M1 was truly revolutionary. No roundabouts, no crossroads, no traffic lights, just one continuous road connecting north and south. It dramatically cut traffic jams and journey times.

But from day one, the M1 would extract a high human and environmental cost.

A life-changing collision, an endangered ancient woodland and the soul-destroying frustrations of the daily commute form part of this unique tapestry of new interviews, archive recordings, ambient sounds and original music.

Conductor: Mark Heron
Composer: Alex Woolf
Music producer: Sarah Devonald
Producer: Laurence Grissell


SUN 19:30 Drama on 3 (m0009d7w)
Summerhall 2019 (3/3)

THE LADIES ROOM by Gemma Bedeau

In Gemma Bedeau’s first drama for radio, she invites us to join three friends on a girls’ night out in the Ladies room of a favourite nightclub. This is usually a safe space where women help you back into your jumpsuit and offer advice about how to get over your ex-boyfriend. But on this particular evening, Amy, Becca and Keisha can no longer avoid dealing with the past. A little too much alcohol stirs up old resentments, turning this Ladies room into more of a crucible than a retreat. These women must come apart in order to come together again.

Becca Rhea Bailey
Keisha Lisa Livingstone
Amy Lois Chimimba
Writer Gemma Bedeau
Post production sound design Eloise Whitmore
Producer/Director Melanie Harris
Executive producer Jeremy Mortimer

A Sparklab Production for BBC Radio 3 at Summerhall

alt-delete by Frances Poet

LAYLA ..... Rehanna Macdonald
MARISA ..... Saskia Ashdown
ENGLAND_UNTIL_I_DIE ..... Cal MacAninch
ANGEL_ROSIE ..... Karen Bartke
MR RUMBELOW/TOUR GUIDE ..... Stuart McQuarrie

A BBC Scotland production directed by Gaynor Macfarlane

Faking It by Owen Whitelaw

MOIRA/HELEN ..... Gayanne Potter
BRIAN/JOHN ..... Robert Jack
JENNIFER ..... Jessica Hardwick
DETECTIVE ..... Gavin Mitchell
A BBC Scotland production directed by Bruce Young

Recorded live at Summerhall as part of Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019


SUN 21:00 Radio 3 in Concert (m0009qz1)
Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio and Dvorak's Stabat Mater

The best concerts across Europe - Fiona Talkington introduces Rossini's Thieving Magpie overture from Bad Kissinger, Tchaikovsky's Piano Trio performed by the Marvin Trio in Oberstdorf and Dvořák's Stabat mater from the Rostock Bach Festival, conducted by Markus Johannes Langer.

Rossini: Overture 'La gazza ladra'
Ural Philharmonic Orchestra
Dmitry Liss (conductor)

Tchaikovsky: Piano Trio in A minor, Op. 50
Marvin Trio

Dvořák: Stabat mater
Soloists
Allhelgona Motet Choir, Lund
Rostock Motet Choir
Figural Choir, St John's Church, Rostock
North German Philharmonic, Rostock
Markus Johannes Langer (conductor)


SUN 23:30 Slow Radio (m0009qz3)
Downtown Nashville, Tennessee

Think of the American South and one man-made sound plays out evocatively across the landscape: the horn of a passing freight train. For a century and a half it's been almost synonymous with the idea of America, particularly where the rural blends with the urban. In the city of Nashville, Tennessee - 'music city' - the last century has been accompanied by another signature sound: the honky tonk bar.

In this leisurely half hour, we witness the musical arrival of a freight train as it crosses the public highway into downtown Nashville. The rattle of the tracks and sonorous horn dissolve into the sounds of Broadway, the strip where every premises has windows open onto the street, spilling music out to draw tourists in. And between the bars, buskers plug the gaps.

It takes about half an hour to walk up and down Broadway from the Cumberland River - past honky tonks throbbing with Dolly Parton and Lynyrd Skynyrd covers, street renditions of Louis's Wonderful World and pedal-powered bars pumping out hits for bachelorette parties.

The sounds which compete for our attention within this cacophony provide as vivid a snapshot of contemporary Nashville as the freight train horn that sits so snugly within this cityscape, framing the downtown walk.

Produced by Hannah Dean with recordings by Alan Hall.
A Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 3.