A concert celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Croatian chamber ensemble with music by Ravel, Boccherini, Elgar and a premiere by Srdan Dedic. Presented by Jonathan Swain.
Guitar Quintet No. 4 in D
Boris Pergamenshikov (cello), RTV Luxembourg Symphony Orchestra, Leopold Hager (conductor)
John Elwes (tenor), Jules Bastin (bass), La Petite Bande, Gustav Leonhardt (conductor)
Janos Balint (flute), Jeno Kevehazi (horn), Peter Fuzes (horn), Sandor Endrodi (horn), Tibor Maruzsa (horn)
Olga Pasiecznik (soprano), Alberto Mizrahi (narrator), Daniel Olbrachski (narrator), Chorus of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic, Bialystok, Violetta Bielecka (director), Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra Katowice, Gabriel Chmura (conductor)
Murder on the Orient Express - music from the film (arr. Lindup)
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's classical breakfast show, featuring listener requests, a Bach cantata in our regular Bach Before 7 slot and Light in the Darkness: specially chosen pieces to greet the sunrise and to reflect on the special quality of light that’s associated with this time of year as part of Radio 3’s Light in the Darkness season, illuminating winter.
1100 Essential Five – this week we bring you five pieces of music inspired by stars.
Johann Sebastian Bach is often acknowledged as one of the greatest composers of all time and yet, during his lifetime, he was often more famous as an organist. Bach became very much in demand as a performer and a teacher. He was often asked to advise on the design and renovation of expensive church instruments. He composed a great deal of music for organ and was particularly productive during his twenties and early thirties when working at the court in Weimar. All this week Donald Macleod examines Bach’s life and music through the lens of his life-long fascination with the organ, focusing particularly on his time in Weimar and exploring his role as performer organist, teacher, servant, entrepreneur and composer
Much of what we know about Bach's early career has been preserved in the accounts and contracts written at the institutions where he worked. In this programme Donald Macleod explores what these sources can tell us about Bach and the world of business. Bach had already demonstrated his ambitious and determined nature from an early age; aged 20, he had undertaken a walk of 250 miles to hear the greatest organ virtuoso of the day, Buxtehude. Bach remained in Lübeck far longer than he should have, and was taken to task on his return for abandoning his duties. Bach argued that his visit to hear Buxtehude had greatly helped him develop as a musician. He quickly worked through appointments at Arnstadt, Mühlhausen, and then Weimar. Each new job brought better prospects and an improved salary. Bach negotiating skills extended to using a job offer from Halle to bargain for in increase his salary and status from his current employer, the Duke of Saxe-Weimar.
In the third concert this week from LSO Luke's in London, Alina Ibragimova performs two iconic works for solo violin: Bach's Partita No 2 and Bartok's Sonata for violin solo.
Bach: Partita No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004
Professor Brian Cox and the BBC Symphony Orchestra carry us across the universe: music by Sibelius, Ives and Mahler with the BBC SO's principal guest conductor, Dalia Stasevska. Hannah French presents this programme as part of BBC Radio 3’s Light in the Darkness season, with commentary from Professor Brian Cox.
Sibelius: Symphony No 5 (third movement, arr. Iain Farrington)
Mahler: Adagio, from Symphony No 10 (arr. Castelletti)
Last June London's Wigmore Hall played host to the first live concert broadcasts since the start of the Covid lockdown. In this programme of highlights from the moving month-long series, Andrew McGregor introduces pianist Imogen Cooper in Schubert's 12 German Dances, D790, cellist Steven Isserlis and pianist Mishka Rushdie Momen in Schumann's Three Romances, and tenor Mark Padmore and pianist Mitsuko Uchida in Schubert's great song-cycle Winterreise.
From meeting Clara Schumann to the piano playing doctor's wife in Middlemarch - Fiona Shaw, Ellie Kendrick and Philip Bretherton read from the novels, letters and journals of George Eliot, as well as responses to her and her work from the likes of Henry James and Virginia Woolf. The music is what she might have chosen to listen to including pieces by Clara Schumann, Bach, Liszt, Haydn, Handel and Purcell.
George Eliot played the piano all her life, was passionate about music and alludes to it many times in her novels and diaries. In her journal she talked of ‘music that stirs all one’s devout emotions blends everything into harmony – makes one feel part of one whole, which one loves all alike, losing the sense of a separate self’.
She knew and was friends many composers including Richard Wagner, Franz Liszt and Anton Rubenstein. In 1854 Eliot was travelling across Europe and met a famous pianist and composer in Weimar. It was Clara Schumann, described by Eliot as ‘an interesting, melancholic creature’. In Eliot’s novel, Daniel Deronda, she quotes from Rossini’s Otello, where he set to music Dante’s words:
On the Free Thinking website Fiona Shaw shares her insights into George Eliot's Mill on the Floss with a panel chaired by Shahidha Bari https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000bf70
W.L. Courtney - on George Eliot
Performer: Rodney Gilfry, Donna Brown, The Monteverdi Choir, John Eliot Gardiner (conductor)
W.L. Courtney
Performer: Anne Soffie van Otter, The Choir of the English Concert, Trevor Pinnock (conductor)
From the 2020 BBC Proms, another chance to hear Benjamin Grosvenor perform Shostakovich’s First Piano Concerto with the Philharmonia Orchestra and conductor Paavo Jarvi, bookended by Ravel’s neo-baroque masterpiece Le tombeau de Couperin and Mozart’s titanic Symphony No 41.
The sophisticated, transfigured baroque dances of Ravel’s Le tombeau de Couperin offset Shostakovich’s boisterous Piano Concerto No 1, with its cheeky sprinkling of quotations from classical giants Beethoven and Haydn among others.
These two works of neo-baroque and neo-classical influences are followed by Mozart’s final symphony, the ‘Jupiter’, a high point of the ‘true’ classical-period canon. Nicknamed posthumously for its majestic first movement and epic finale, the work is a summation of Mozart’s entire symphonic output with its unique blend of grandeur and subtlety.
Leading contemporary chamber ensemble the London Sinfonietta returns to the Royal Albert Hall for a showcase of Minimalist classics, including music by two giants of the 20th and 21st centuries, Steve Reich and Philip Glass.
Nancarrow arr. Yvar Mikhashoff Player Piano Study No. 6
Nancarrow arr. Yvar Mikhashoff Player Piano Study No. 9
Ross Sutherland takes us to the birth of modern art as he traces the extraordinary life of Arthur Cravan. Cravan's anarchic art heralded Dada, surrealism, situationism, punk rock and alternative comedy. His whole life was an extravagant show and his influence spreads right across the 20th century.
Cravan went through life using multiple mysterious personas. He was the nephew of Oscar Wilde, a boxing champion, a notorious art critic, a scandalous performer, a deserter, the husband of modernist poet Mina Loy, and was pursued by the CIA.
This mystery story, led by writer Ross Sutherland, tracks across twenty countries as Cravan's outlandish persona shifts between incarnations. Ross's journey leads him to Cravan's greatest riddle of all - his disappearance in the Gulf of Mexico.
In this episode, Ross investigates how Cravan used his art to evade the authorities as the First World War began.
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
THURSDAY 24 DECEMBER 2020
THU 00:30 Through the Night (m000qkm2)
Christmas around the World
Brass Consort Koln gives a concert of Christmas music from Italy, England, Norway and Russia. Presented by Jonathan Swain.
12:31 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695), Fred Mills (arranger)
Sonata for two trumpets and brass
Brass Consort Koln
12:36 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741), Johann Sebastian Bach (arranger), David Baldwin (arranger)
Concert in D Minor
Brass Consort Koln
12:47 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741), Peter Monkediek (arranger)
Violin Concerto No 4 in F minor, RV 297 'The Four Seasons - Winter (Largo)
Brass Consort Koln
12:50 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907), Alan Civil (arranger)
Suite for Brass Quintet
Brass Consort Koln
01:01 AM
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893), Markus Theinert (arranger)
The Nutcracker Suite, op 71a
Brass Consort Koln
01:09 AM
Giles Farnaby (c. 1563 - 1640), Elgar Howarth (arranger)
Fancies, Toyes and Dreams
Brass Consort Koln
01:18 AM
Traditional
Three Carols
Brass Consort Koln
01:27 AM
Traditional
Las Mandolinas
Brass Consort Koln
01:29 AM
Traditional, Fred Deltz (arranger)
Silent Night
Brass Consort Koln, Audience
01:33 AM
Michael Haydn (1737-1806)
Responsoria ad Matutinum in Nativitate Domini MH.639
Ex Tempore, Judith Steenbrink (violin), Sara Decorso (violin), David Van Bouwel (organ), Florian Heyerick (director)
01:45 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano sonata no 29 in B flat, op 106 'Hammerklavier'
Kabi Laretei (piano)
02:31 AM
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
A Ceremony of Carols, Op 28
Polyphonia, Ivelin Dimitrov (conductor), Ivelina Ivancheva (piano)
02:55 AM
Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921)
Symphony No.3 in C minor Op.78 "Organ Symphony"
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Michel Plasson (conductor), Kaare Nordstoga (organ)
03:30 AM
William Byrd (1543-1623)
The Bells for keyboard (MB.
27.38)
Colin Tilney (harpsichord)
03:38 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet in D major, K 155
Australian String Quartet
03:47 AM
Ruth Watson Henderson (1932-)
Cantate Domino for divisi soprano & alto voices, trumpet & piano
Kimberley Briggs (soloist), Carrie Loring (soloist), Linda Tsatsanis (soloist), Carolyn Kirby (soloist), Robert Venables (trumpet), Claire Preston (piano), Elmer Iseler Singers, Lydia Adams (conductor)
03:53 AM
Richard Wagner (1818-1883)
Siegfried Idyll for small orchestra
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Arvid Engegard (conductor)
04:12 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Oboe Concerto in G minor
Hans-Peter Westermann (oboe), Camerata Koln
04:22 AM
Josef Suk (1874-1935)
Meditation on an old Czech hymn "St Wenceslas" (Op 35a)
Signum Quartet
04:31 AM
Petar Dinev (1889-1980)
Tropar za Rozhdestvo (Troparion of the Nativity)
Holy Trinity Choir, Plovdiv, Vessela Geleva (conductor)
04:32 AM
Anonymous
Natali regis glorie (hymn)
Zefiro Torna
04:35 AM
Hilda Sehested (1858-1936)
Tre Fantasistykker (3 Fantasy pieces) (1908)
Nina Reintoft (cello), Malene Thastum (piano)
04:46 AM
Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713)
Concerto grosso in G minor, Op 6 No 8, 'per la notte di Natale'
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Roy Goodman (conductor)
05:01 AM
Denes Agay (1911-2007)
5 Easy Dances for flute, oboe, clarinet in Bb, bassoon, horn
Tae-Won Kim (flute), Sang-Won Yoon (bassoon), Kawng-Ku Lee (horn), Hyon-Kon Kim (clarinet), Hyong-Sup Kim (oboe)
05:09 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
The Snow is Dancing - from Children's Corner
Roger Woodward (piano)
05:12 AM
Traditional, Steven Wingfield (arranger)
3 Bulgarian Dances arr. Wingfield for violin and guitar
Moshe Hammer (violin), William Beauvais (guitar)
05:19 AM
Alexina Louie (b.1949)
Songs of Paradise
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Kazuhiro Koizumi (conductor)
05:34 AM
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Quatre motets pour le temps de Noel
Talinn Music High School Chamber Choir, Evi Eespere (director)
05:45 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Le Tombeau de Couperin
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Antoni Ros-Marba (conductor)
06:04 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Quartet for strings (Op.77`1) in G major Hob III/81 "Lobkowitz"
Fine Arts Quartet
THU 06:30 Breakfast (m000ql1b)
Thursday - Petroc's classical picks
Join Petroc and the team for a special Christmas Eve edition of the Radio 3 Breakfast show, with listener requests, a Bach cantata in our regular Bach Before 7 slot and Light in the Darkness: specially chosen pieces to greet the sunrise and to reflect on the special quality of light that’s associated with this time of year as part of Radio 3’s Light in the Darkness season, illuminating winter.
Email 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
THU 09:00 Essential Classics (m000ql1d)
Suzy Klein
Essential Classics - the best in classical music, with Suzy Klein
0915 Your ideas for companion pieces on the Essential Classics playlist.
1010 Well-known musicians reveal their favourite performers.
1100 Essential Five – this week we bring you five pieces of music inspired by stars.
1130 Slow Moment - time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
THU 12:00 Composer of the Week (m000l2v3)
JS Bach (1685-1750)
Pupil and Teacher
Donald Macleod looks at what it might have been like to learn the organ alongside the great JS Bach.
Johann Sebastian Bach is often acknowledged as one of the greatest composers of all time and yet, during his lifetime, he was often more famous as an organist. Bach became very much in demand as a performer and a teacher. He was often asked to advise on the design and renovation of expensive church instruments. He composed a great deal of music for organ and was particularly productive during his twenties and early thirties when working at the court in Weimar. All this week Donald Macleod examines Bach’s life and music through the lens of his life-long fascination with the organ, focusing particularly on his time in Weimar and exploring his role as performer organist, teacher, servant, entrepreneur and composer.
In this programme Donald Macleod explores Bach's experiences as an organ student and, later, as a a highly sought after teacher. Bach’s own education in music was sometimes fraught. His older brother wouldn’t allow the young Johann Sebastian to explore a book of keyboard pieces he owned, so Bach secretly purloined the book at night and studied it by moonlight. Bach would eventually have pupils of his own and his reputation grew to such a pitch that pupils would travel to study with him from all over the German-speaking lands. His students would often live in with Bach's family, and the composer would charge them accordingly! Whilst in Weimar, Bach trained a number of organists and his pupils would often take on extra duties like copying out music or pumping the bellows of the organ.
Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582
Karl Richter, organ
Toccata, Adagio and Fugue in C major, BWV 564
Lionel Rogg, organ
Brandenburg Concerto No 2, BWV 1047
The English Concert
Trevor Pinnock, director
The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 (Prelude and Fugue in C major), BWV 867
Andras Schiff, piano
The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 (Prelude and Fugue in C minor), BWV 847
Andras Schiff, piano
Produced by Luke Whitlock, for BBC Wales
THU 13:00 Radio 3 Lunchtime Concert (m000ql1g)
Alina Ibragimova and Friends (4/4)
In the last of this week's concerts from LSO Luke's in London, Alina Ibragimova welcomes back her colleagues in the period instrument string quartet Chiaroscuro for an early quartet by Beethoven that carries a few hints of what was to come, before they are all joined clarinettist Katherine Spencer for Mozart's sublime, evergreen Clarinet Quintet.
Presented by Georgia Mann.
Beethoven: String Quartet in B flat, Op 18 No 6
Mozart: Clarinet Quintet in A, K581
Chiaroscuro
Katherine Spencer (clarinet)
Recorded at LSO St Luke's, London, on 6 November 2020.
THU 14:00 Afternoon Concert (m000ql1j)
These Little Limbs
BBC SO and Singers perform Berlioz's the Childhood of Christ and Finzi's Dies Natalis: music for Christmas Eve that celebrates the divine wonder of infancy, part of BBC Radio 3’s Light in the Darkness season. Interspersed with recent recordings by the wind, brass and string sections of the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Presented by Hannah French.
Copland: Ceremonial Fanfare
BBC SO brass
Conductor Ryan Bancroft
Hector Berlioz: L'Enfance du Christ
Karen Cargill (mezzo-soprano)
Robert Murray (tenor)
Etienne Dupuis (baritone)
Matthew Rose (bass)
BBC Singers
BBC Symphony Chorus and Orchestra
Conductor Edward Gardner
c.
3.40pm
Jonathan Harvey: Serenade (in Homage to Mozart)
BBC SO wind
Conductor Douglas Boyd
c.
3.55pm
Henri Tomasi: Fanfares Liturgiques
BBC SO brass
Conductor Anthony Weeden
c.
4.10pm
Tippett: Little Music for Strings
Finzi: Dies Natalis
Alessandro Fisher (tenor)
BBC SO strings
Conductor Martyn Brabbins
THU 17:00 New Generation Artists (m000ql1l)
Winter Series - Programme 3
Kate Molleson presents the third programme in her winter series celebrating the talents of Radio 3's internationally-acclaimed young artist scheme.
Today, Elisabeth Brauss plays the piano variations that Mendelssohn composed in memory of Beethoven and cellist Anastasia Kobekina teams up with two recent members of the scheme to play Mozart at the Aldeburgh Festival's Big Chamber Weekend. Also today ,Alessandro Fisher sings two of Rodrigo's charming Christmas songs for tenor and guitar.
Rodrigo: Coplillas de Belen (3 Villancicos no.2)
Alessandro Fisher (tenor), Thibaut Garcia (guitar)
Schumann: Kind im Einschlummern and Der Dichter Spricht from Kinderszenen
Eric Lu (piano)
Mozart: Divertimento in E flat major K.563
Aleksey Semenenko (violin), Eivind Ringstad (viola), Anastasia Kobekina (cello)
Mendelssohn: Variations sérieuses in d minor Op. 54
Elisabeth Brauss (piano)
Barber: Hermit Songs: No. 2 "Church Bell at Night"_
James Newby (baritone) Joseph Middleton (piano)
Ireland: The Holy Boy
Timothy Ridout (viola), James Baillieu (piano)
Rodrigo: Pastorcito Santo (3 Villancicos no.1)
Alessandro Fisher (tenor), Thibaut Garcia (guitar)
Established two decades ago, Radio 3's New Generation Artists scheme is internationally acknowledged as the foremost scheme of its kind. The BBC New Generation Artists Scheme is not itself a prize, rather it offers a unique two year platform on which artists can develop their prodigious talents. Not surprisingly, the list of alumni reads like a Who’s Who of the most exciting musicians of the past two decades.
THU 18:15 Words and Music (m00061lp)
Bloomsday
Ulysses, James Joyce's groundbreaking novel of 1922 is the inspiration for this programme. A modernist retelling of The Odyssey, principally following the characters of Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom through the city of Dublin across one day (16th June 1904), we track the novel's own winding journey through Ireland's capital, from the shoreline of Sandycove, to the Freemason's Journal, the National Library of Ireland, Davy Byrne's Pub, right through to Molly Bloom's bed in Eccles Street.
As we travel through the city, Stanley Townsend and Kathy Kiera Clarke read extracts from Ulysses itself as well as a host of other works - some referenced directly in Joyce's text such as the Iliad and Shakespeare's Hamlet, plus other writings inspired by Joyce's work. The programme also reflects Joyce's huge passion for music, with works by Wagner, Mozart, Rossini, Vincenzo Bellini and Friedrich von Flotow representing the author's love of opera. Elsewhere we hear two music-hall favourites alluded to throughout Ulysses - James Lynam Molloy's 'Love's Old Sweet Song' and 'Those Lovely Seaside Girls' by Harry B. Norris. Classic Irish folk songs also feature alongside songs by Radiohead and Dublin post-punk band Fontaines D.C., and listen out for a very special traditional number called 'Carolan's Farewell', played on the guitar once owned by none other than James Joyce himself.
You can find a discussion about James Joyce’s book Finnegan's Wake on BBC Radio 3's Free Thinking website – Matthew Sweet’s guests include Eimear McBride and New Generation Thinker Eleanor Lybeck:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00061kl
Readings:
Ulysses - James Joyce
Lycidas - John Milton
My Grief on the Sea - Douglas Hyde
Iliad - Lotus Eaters episode - Homer, trans. Alexander Pope
Hamlet - William Shakespeare
Excerpt from the introduction to the ‘Dictionary to Dublin’, 1907 - E. MacDowel Cosgrave
James Joyce Interviews and Recollections’ - E H Mikhail
'All About People' - gossip column The Princess's Novelettes magazine, 16th June 1904
Finnegans Wake - James Joyce
Big Fish - Daniel Wallace
The Sixteenth of June - Maya Lang
Producer: Nick Taylor
01
00:01:45 James Lynam Molloy
Loves Old Sweet Song
Performer: Ruby Murray
02
00:02:31
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 1 (Telemachus), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
03
00:02:49 Sir Hamilton Harty
Variations on a Dublin air for violin and orchestra
Performer: Ralph Holmes (violin), Ulster Orchestra, Bryden Thomson (conductor)
Duration 00:00:03
04
00:05:52
John Milton
Lycidas, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:01
05
00:07:02 Trad, John Feeley
The Immigrants Song
Performer: John Feeley (guitar)
Duration 00:00:01
06
00:07:33
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 2 (Nestor), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
07
00:08:01 The Dubliners
Rocky Road to Dublin
Performer: The Dubliners
Duration 00:00:02
08
00:10:37
Douglas Hyde
My Grief on the Sea, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
09
00:10:52 Radiohead
How To Disappear Completely
Performer: Radiohead
Duration 00:00:05
10
00:16:41
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 4 (Calypso), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
11
00:17:46 Johann Sebastian Bach
Cello Suite No 1 - Prelude
Performer: Karen Ashbrook (dulcimer)
Duration 00:00:03
12
00:21:08
Homer, trans. Alexander Pope
The Iliad - Lotus Eaters episode, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:01
13
00:22:29 James Lynam Molloy
Loves Old Sweet Song
Performer: Kathryn Rudge (mezzo-soprano), James Baillieu (piano)
Duration 00:00:03
14
00:22:36
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 5 (Lotus Eaters), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:03
15
00:26:22
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 7 (Aeolus), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
16
00:26:26 Friedrich von Flotow
Martha Overture
Performer: Johannes Schuler (conductor), Staatskapelle Berlin
Duration 00:00:01
17
00:26:26 Frédéric Chopin
4 Mazurkas for piano (Op.6), no.3 in E major
Performer: Vladimir Ashkenazy
Duration 00:00:01
18
00:29:20
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 8 (Lestrygonians), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
19
00:30:13 Vincenzo Bellini
La Sonnambula, Act 1: Come per me sereno
Performer: Edita Gruberova (soprano), Münchner Rundfunkorchester, Kurt Eichorn (conductor)
Duration 00:00:02
20
00:32:56
William Shakespeare
Hamlet, Act 1 Scene 5, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
21
00:33:51
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 9 (Scylla and Charybdis), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:02
22
00:34:40 Dmitry Shostakovich
Hamlet - suite from the film music Op.116a: no.2; Ball at the palace
Performer: Dmitry Yablonsky (conductor), Russian Philharmonic Orchestra
Duration 00:00:03
23
00:37:14
E. MacDowel Cosgrave
Excerpt from the introduction to the Dictionary to Dublin, 1907, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:03
24
00:37:41 Traditional Irish/Chris Hazell
Molly Malone In Dublins Fair City
Performer: Bryn Terfel (baritone), London Voices (choir), London Symphony Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth (conductor)
Duration 00:00:02
25
00:38:14
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 10 (Wandering Rocks), read by Stanley Townsend and Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
26
00:39:22
E H Mikhail
James Joyce Interviews and Recollections, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
27
00:40:02 Friedrich von Flotow
Martha - M'appari
Performer: Kevin McDermott (tenor), Ralph Richey (piano)
Duration 00:00:02
28
00:40:46
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 11 (Sirens), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
29
00:42:28 Trad, T Bone Burnett, Gillian Welch
Didn't Leave Nobody But The Baby
Performer: Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch
Duration 00:00:01
30
00:44:26
Anon
'All About People' - gossip column The Princess's Novelettes magazine, June 1904, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:01
31
00:45:16 Harry B. Norris
Those Lovely Seaside Girls
Performer: Kevin McDermott (tenor), Ralph Richey (piano)
Duration 00:00:01
32
00:46:50
James Joyce
Finnegans Wake - Anna Livia Plurabelle, read by James Joyce and Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:01
33
00:47:59 Richard Wagner
Lohengrin - Act 3 Prelude
Performer: Daniel Barenboim (conductor), Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Duration 00:00:02
34
00:50:39
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 15 (Circe), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:02
35
00:51:14 Stephen Adams
The Holy City
Performer: Jeanette MacDonald
Duration 00:00:02
36
00:51:35 Hank Williams
Ramblin Man
Performer: Isobel Campbell
Performer: Mark Lanegan
Duration 00:00:03
37
00:55:16 Gioachino Rossini
Allegretto "Del pantelegrafo" (1860)
Performer: Alessandro Marangoni (piano)
Duration 00:00:03
38
00:55:36 Gioachino Rossini
Allegretto "Un rien" (1860)
Performer: Alessandro Marangoni (piano)
Duration 00:00:03
39
00:55:37
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 16 (Eumaeus), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
40
00:56:43 John Dowland
The Earl of Essex's Galliard
Performer: Jacob Heringman (lute), Rose Consort of Viols
Duration 00:00:01
41
00:58:15
Daniel Wallace
Big Fish, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:01
42
00:59:06
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 17 (Ithaca), read by Stanley Townsend
Duration 00:00:01
43
00:59:38 Amilcare Ponchielli
La Gioconda - Act 3 sc.2 - Dance of the hours
Performer: Ondrej Lenard (conductor), Czecho-Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra
Duration 00:00:07
44
01:06:53
James Joyce
Ulysses: Part 18 (Penelope), read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
45
01:07:09 Rebecca Saunders
Mollys Song 3 shades of crimson
Performer: musicFabrik, Stefan Asbury
Duration 00:00:01
46
01:08:58 Trad, John Feeley
Carolans Farewell
Performer: John Feeley
Duration 00:00:02
47
01:11:10
Maya Lang
The Sixteenth of June, read by Kathy Kiera Clarke
Duration 00:00:02
48
01:11:53 Fontaines D.C.
Boys In The Better Land
Performer: Fontaines D.C.
Duration 00:00:01
THU 19:30 BBC Proms (m000ql1p)
Handel's Messiah
It’s hard to reckon today that, when he came to write Messiah in the 1740s, Handel’s reputation with London audiences was at an all-time low, his last few operas having failed to win over audiences. In the face of this, he decamped to Ireland, writing much of Messiah in Dublin, where its premiere took place in 1742.
It was a success from the start, with women being asked by the Musick Hall’s management to wear dresses ‘without Hoops’ in order to allow ‘room for more company’. Almost 50 years later, an eyewitness at a 1791 performance in Westminster Abbey reported, that ‘when the powerful musical surge of the “Halleluja” [Chorus] rushed forth, and the entire audience, from the king to the lowliest person, stood up … hardly an eye remained dry’.
Messiah’s enduring popularity has meant that its interpretations have come in a vast array of flavours, from monster Come and Sing events with a cast of thousands, to smaller-scale, period-instrument performances with intimate forces. This performance conducted by Trevor Pinnock at the BBC Proms in 2000, falls into the latter camp.
Sean Rafferty introduces this archive performance, and talks to Trevor Pinnock between parts 1 and 2.
Handel: Messiah
Hillevi Martinpelto soprano
Monica Groop mezzo-soprano
Kurt Streit tenor
Nathan Berg bass-baritone
Choir of the English Concert
The English Concert
Trevor Pinnock conductor
(From BBC Proms 2000, 5 August)
THU 22:30 The Escape Artist (m000ql1r)
The Missing and the Lost
Ross Sutherland takes us to the birth of modern art as he traces the extraordinary life of Arthur Cravan. Cravan's anarchic art heralded Dada, surrealism, situationism, punk rock and alternative comedy. His whole life was an extravagant show and his influence spreads right across the 20th century.
Cravan went through life using multiple mysterious personas. He was the nephew of Oscar Wilde, a boxing champion, a notorious art critic, a scandalous performer, a deserter, the husband of modernist poet Mina Loy, and was pursued by the CIA.
This mystery story, led by writer Ross Sutherland, tracks across twenty countries as Cravan's outlandish persona shifts between incarnations. Ross's journey leads him to Cravan's greatest riddle of all - his disappearance in the Gulf of Mexico.
In this episode, Ross investigates Cravan's relationship with modernist poet Mina Loy.
Writer and Presenter: Ross Sutherland
Produced for the BBC by Melvin Rickarby
Music by Jeremy Warmsley
THU 23:00 The Night Tracks Mix (m000ql1t)
Music for night owls
Sara Mohr-Pietsch with a magical sonic journey for late-night listening.
THU 23:30 Unclassified (m000ql1w)
An Unclassified Christmas
Elizabeth Alker with serene, soothing, seasonal and strange sounds for Christmas. There's brand new music from Erland Cooper, writing for choir for the first time, a classic Mogwai festive number, Anna Meredith's musical response to Vivaldi's Winter, and a piece for Christmas day from Aidan O'Rourke's 365 project. Plus tracks by Kelly Lee Owens, Jon Hopkins, Zoe Keating and Matthew Herbert.
Unclassified is a late-night listening party, a place for curious ears to congregate, disconnect from all other devices and get lost in some new sounds. It's a home for composers whose work cannot easily be categorised, artists who are as comfortable in a grimy basement venue as they are in a prestigious concert hall.
FRIDAY 25 DECEMBER 2020
FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m000ql1y)
Festive Music from Aachen
WDR Radio Orchestra celebrates Advent. With Jonathan Swain.
12:31 AM
Traditional
Macht hoch die Tür
Chorwerk Ruhr, Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir
12:33
George Frideric Handel
Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, from 'Solomon'
WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye (conductor)
12:36
Johann Sebastian Bach
Ave Maria
Polina Pastirchak (soprano), WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
12:39
Trad.
Maria durch ein Dornwald ging
Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir
12:42
Sergei Rachmaninov
Vocalise
Harriet Krijgh (cello), WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
12:46
Jacques Arcadelt
Ave Maria
Chorwerk Ruhr
12:48
George Frideric Handel)
Tochter Zion, freue dich
Chorwerk Ruhr, Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir
12:51
Camille Saint-Saens
Prelude (Oratorio de Noël)
WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
12:54
Georges Bizet
Agnus Dei
Polina Pastirchak (soprano), WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
12:58
Franz Xaver Gruber
Silent Night, Holy Night
Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir, Chorwerk Ruhr
01:02
Johann Sebastian Bach
Air (Orchestral Suite No 3 in D, BWV 1068)
WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
01:05
Trad.
Sei uns willkommen, Herre Christ
WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
01:08
George Frideric Handel
Hallelujah Chorus (Messiah)
Chorwerk Ruhr, Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir, WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye
01:12
Trad.
Veni Veni Emmanuel
Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir
01:14
Cesar Franck
Panis Angelicus
Polina Pastirchak (soprano), WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye (conductor)
01:19
Trad.
O Heiland, reiss die Himmel auf
Chorwerk Ruhr
01:24
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
December (The Seasons)
WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye (conductor)
01:28
Trad.
O du fröhliche, o du selige
Polina Pastirchak (soprano), Chorwerk Ruhr, Aachen Cathedral Girls' Choir, WDR Radio Orchestra, Enrico Delamboye (conductor)
01:31
Johannes Brahms
25 Variations and fugue on a theme by G F Handel for piano, Op 24
Simon Trpceski (piano)
01:57
Antonin Dvorak
Piano Quintet in A major, Op 81
Menahem Pressler (piano), Orlando Quartet
02:31
Alessandro Scarlatti
Cinque Profeti
Barbara Schlick (soprano), Heike Hallaschka (soprano), Kai Wessel (alto), Christoph Pregardien (tenor), Michael Schopper (bass), Vokalensemble La Stagione, Michael Schneider (director)
03:31
Charles Trenet
Noel
Les chanteurs de Saint-Coeur-de-Marie, Richard Pare (harpsichord), Claude Gosselin (conductor)
03:34
Andrew Ford
Wassails and Lullabies
Anne Cooke (soprano), Matthew Baker (bass), Ian Cleworth (percussion), Rebecca Lagos (percussion), Brian Nixon (percussion), Sydney Philharmonia Motet Choir, Antony Walker (conductor)
03:53
Frank Bridge
Sir Roger de Coverley
BBC Concert Orchestra, David Hill (conductor)
03:58
Peter Warlock
Bethlehem Down
BBC Singers, BBC Concert Orchestra, David Hill (conductor)
04:03
Trad.
La Vileem colo jos (Down there in Bethlehem)
Angela Gheorghiu (soprano), Romanian Madrigal Choir, Romanian National Radio Orchestra, Tiberiu Soare (conductor)
04:06
Bo Holten
Nowell Sing We Now
Micaela Haslam (soprano), BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)
04:10
Giuseppe Torelli
Concerto a quattro in forma Pastorale per il Santo Natale
Tafelmusik, Jeanne Lamon (conductor)
04:17
Carlos Salzedo
Concert Variations on "O Tannenbaum"
Judy Loman (harp)
04:21
Trad.
Deck the Hall
Les chanteurs de Saint-Coeur-de-Marie, Richard Pare (harpsichord), Claude Gosselin (conductor)
04:23
Mel Torme
Christmas Medley
Louis Quilico (baritone), Gino Quilico (baritone), Toronto Children's Chorus, Judy Loman (harp), Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Jean Ashworth Bartle (conductor)
04:31
Johann Sebastian Bach
Sinfonia from Christmas Oratorio
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ketil Haugsand (conductor)
04:37
Michael Haydn
Cantata: Run ye shepherds, to the light
Wolfgang Brunner, Salzburger Hofmusik
04:46
Marcel Samuel-Rousseau
Variations Pastorales sur un vieux Noel
Erica Goodman (harp), Amadeus Ensemble
04:55
Trad.
A u sviecie nam navina byla
Belarussian Radio Academic Chorus, Pavel Shepelev (conductor)
04:57
Traditional Belarusian
Heaven and Earth
Belarusian Radio Academic Choir, Pavel Shepelev (conductor)
04:58
Valery Kalistratov
Kalyada
Belarusian Radio Academic Choir, Pavel Shepelev (conductor)
05:00
Christian Friedrich Ruppe
Christmas Cantata
Francine van der Hayden (soprano), Karin van der Poel (mezzo soprano), Otto Bouwknegt (tenor), Mitchell Sandler (bass), Ensemble Bouzignac, Musica ad Rhenum, Jed Wentz (conductor)
05:32
Robert Schumann
Symphonische Etuden
Beatrice Rana (piano)
05:57
Sergey Prokofiev
Cinderella - Suite No 1
San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas (conductor)
06:25
Adolphe Adam
Cantique de Noel
Gino Quilico (baritone), Judy Loman (harp), Toronto Children's Chorus, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Jean Ashworth Bartle (conductor)
FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m000qkrz)
Petroc’s Christmas Breakfast
Join Petroc and the team for a Christmas Day special, with Paul Guinery at the piano and featuring listener requests.
FRI 09:00 Essential Classics (m000qks3)
Suzy Klein
Essential Classics - the best in classical music, with Suzy Klein
0915 Your ideas for companion pieces on the Essential Classics playlist.
1010 Well-known musicians reveal their favourite performers.
1100 Essential Five – this week we bring you five pieces of music inspired by stars.
1130 Slow Moment - time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
FRI 12:00 Composer of the Week (m000l2z9)
JS Bach (1685-1750)
Bach the Composer
Donald Macleod surveys Johann Sebastian Bach’s development as a composer whilst in Weimar.
Johann Sebastian Bach is often acknowledged as one of the greatest composers of all time and yet, during his lifetime, he was often more famous as an organist. Bach became very much in demand as a performer and a teacher. He was often asked to advise on the design and renovation of expensive church instruments. He composed a great deal of music for organ and was particularly productive during his twenties and early thirties when working at the court in Weimar. All this week Donald Macleod examines Bach’s life and music through the lens of his life-long fascination with the organ, focusing particularly on his time in Weimar and exploring his role as performer organist, teacher, servant, entrepreneur and composer
In this programme Donald Macleod looks at how Bach evolved as a composer during his years at the Weimar court where he had a rich array of instrumental forces at his disposal. As well as writing for his employer, Bach also composed a great deal of music for his family to perform at home. He also often turned to instruments that were archaic even at the time, like the viola da gamba, recorder and lute. One of his primary friendships during this period was with his cousin Walther, who was an organist at the town Church. Walther and Bach enjoyed exploring together the music that Prince Johann Ernst had brought back to Weimar from his Grand Tour in Italy. Bach and Walther drank in works by Albinoni, Corelli, Frescobaldi and, especially, Vivaldi. These Italian influences started to creep into Bach’s own music.
Lute Suite in E minor, BWV 996
Sean Shibe, guitar
Concerto in D minor, BWV 596 (Vivaldi Violin Concerto Op 3 No 11)
Christopher Herrick, organ
Mass in B minor, BWV 232 (Osanna in excelsis, Agnus Dei, Dona Nobis Pacem)
Robin Blaze, alto
Bach Collegium Japan Chorus and Orchestra
Masaaki Suzuki, director
Prelude and Fugue in D major, BWV 532
Wolfgang Ruebsam, organ
Produced by Luke Whitlock, for BBC Wales
FRI 13:00 A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (m000qks5)
Christmas 2020
Recorded on Christmas Eve in the candlelit chapel of King's College, Cambridge. Christmas carols and hymns sung by the world-famous chapel choir.
Once in Royal David’s City (Henry John Gauntlett, Sir David Willcocks, Arthur Henry Mann, Sir Stephen Cleobury)
Bidding Prayer read by the Dean
Adam lay ybounden (Boris Ord)
First lesson: Genesis 3: vv 8-15, 17-19 read by a Chorister
The Truth from Above (Ralph Vaughan Williams/ arr. Christopher Robinson)
Second lesson: Genesis 22: vv 15-19 read by a Choral Scholar
How shall I fitly meet thee? (J.S. Bach)
A tender shoot (Otto Goldschmidt)
Third lesson: Isaiah 9: vv 2, 6-7 read by the Chaplain
In the bleak midwinter (Harold Darke)
Of the Father’s heart begotten (arr. Sir David Willcocks)
Fourth lesson: Isaiah 11: 1-4a, 6-9 read by a Fellow
The holly and the ivy (arr. Witold Lutoslawski)
A maiden most gentle (Andrew Carter)
Fifth lesson: Luke 1: vv 26-35, 38 read by a member of College staff
In dulci jubilo (Robert L. de Pearsall, arr. Daniel Hyde)
The angel Gabriel (Philip Moore)
Sixth lesson: Luke 2: vv 1-7 read by a representative of the City of Cambridge
Sussex Carol (arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams)
Away in a manger (arr. David Hill)
Seventh lesson: Luke 2: vv 8-17 read by the Director of Music
While shepherds watched (arr. Nicholas Marston)
The shepherds’ cradle song (Charles Macpherson)
Eighth lesson: Matthew 2: vv 1-12 read by the Vice-Provost
As I sat on a sunny bank (Elizabeth Poston)
Ninth lesson: John 1: vv 1-14 read by the Provost
O come all ye faithful (arr. Daniel Hyde, Christopher Robinson, David Hill)
Blessing
Still, still, still (arr. Bob Chilcott)
Hark! The herald angels sing (arr. Sir Philip Ledger)
In dulci jubilo BWV 729 (J.S Bach)
Improvisation on ‘Adeste, Fideles’ (Francis Pott)
Daniel Hyde, Director of Music
Matthew Martin, Organist
Revd. Dr. Stephen Cherry, Dean
For millions listening on radio and online around the world, A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, from the candlelit Chapel of King's College, Cambridge, marks the beginning of Christmas. It is based around nine Bible readings that tell the story of the loving purposes of God. They are interspersed with carols old and new, sung by the world-famous chapel choir. In a normal year, the choir would also lead the congregation in traditional Christmas hymns, but this Christmas Eve there was no congregation present. With Covid restrictions and the need for social distancing within the choir, a number of new arrangements have been made which capitalise on the rare opportunity to hear these ever-popular hymns in versions for choir only.
As is so often the case, this year's service marks the musical contribution (through their arrangements and descants) of several former Directors of Music, including Sir David Willcocks, Sir Philip Ledger and Sir Stephen Cleobury, as well as the current Director, Daniel Hyde.
Significant 20th-century composer Elizabeth Poston features in the service, as well as arrangements by Witold Lutoslawski and former chorister Bob Chilcott.
Producer: Philip Billson
FRI 15:00 Sound Walk (m000qks7)
Sunrise Sound Walk: The Pilgrim's Path to Holy Island
At first light, as winter touches Northumberland, Horatio Clare sets out on the Pilgrim’s Path to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne. With a falling tide and a rising sun he walks east across the tidal flats from the mainland to the island, once home to Cuthbert - monk and abbot of the island’s priory and patron saint of Northumbria.
The first of two programmes walking the North Sea coast. As the rising December sun brings warmth and light to the coast in the depths of winter, Horatio takes delight in the minute detail of the plants, the wildlife, the sounds and wide East Coast vistas he experiences on the walks. Suffused with music reflecting the feel and mood of the coastline, he captures the ever-changing light and shifting seas and sands of these liminal places.
FRI 16:00 My Problem with... (m000qks9)
Handel
Harpsichordist and broadcaster Mahan Esfahani confesses he doesn’t care for, or even respect, the music of Handel. A composer whose music brings joy to so many, whose music oils the wheels of hundreds of choral societies and makes the careers of greater singers and conductors. Who in their right mind would have a problem with him?
You’ll be pleased to hear that Mahan is seeking professional help, from a musician who will try to show him the path to enlightenment. This week, his guest is singer Dame Sarah Connolly, a leading global exponent of Handel’s music on stage; she’s also been there at the battlefront making a case for his music and re-inventing a composer whose operatic work only recently came back to the mainstream.
Together they chew through the issues of Handel’s need to always be liked and to be popular, sometimes at the expense of being good; why his music is so repetitive; why he steals melodies from other composers and Mahan’s biggest bugbear, the bloated national quality of his music.
Produced by Rebecca Gaskell
A Reduced Listening Production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 17:00 New Generation Artists (m000qksd)
Winter Series - Programme 4
Kate Molleson presents a Christmas Day treat of Romantic music as performed recently by some of the most talented artists of the younger generation. The captivating Russian cellist, Anastasia Kobelina won many hearts with her soulful performances of Rachmaninov's ravishing sonata both in Stratford and at London's Wigmore Hall. And, only a few nights later, the soprano Katharina Konradi made the romantic yearnings of Tchaikovsky her own in a an evening to remember.
Liszt: Etudes d'execution transcendante S.139 for piano - No 11. Harmonies du soir
Alexander Gadjiev (piano)
Tchaikovsky: At the ball Op. 38 No. 3, Do not believe, my friend Op 6 no 1, It was in the early spring Op. 38 No. 2, Cradle song Op. 16 No. 1
Katharina Konradi (soprano), Joseph Middleton (piano)
Rachmaninov: Cello Sonata Op. 17
Anastasia Kobekina (cello), Luka Okros (piano)
Rachmaninov: Vocalise
Anastasia Kobekina (cello), Luka Okros (piano)
Established two decades ago, Radio 3's New Generation Artists scheme is internationally acknowledged as the foremost scheme of its kind. It exists to offer a platform for artists at the beginning of their international careers. Each year six musicians join the scheme for two years, during which time they appear at the UK's major music festivals, enjoy dates with the BBC orchestras and have the opportunity to record in the BBC studios. The artists are also encouraged to form artistic partnerships with one another and to explore a wide range of repertoire, not least the work of contemporary and women composers. In recent years Radio 3's New Generation Artists have appeared at many of the UK's music festivals and concert halls. The BBC New Generation Artists Scheme is not itself a prize, rather it offers a unique two year platform on which artists can develop their prodigious talents. Not surprisingly, the list of alumni reads like a Who’s Who of the most exciting musicians of the past two decades.
FRI 18:15 Words and Music (m000k26l)
Dickens's World
Charles Dickens: tireless novelist, journalist, amateur theatricalist, traveller, socialiser, and liver of life. To mark the 150th anniversary in 2020 of the death of this literary titan, actor Sam West reads from the letters Dickens sent to correspondents including other greats of the time like Mrs Gaskell and Wilkie Collins; close friends such as actor William Macready and artist Daniel Maclise; and his wife and children at home as he travelled extensively giving public readings to his thousands of adoring fans.
Including observations of his first trip to America at the height of slavery in 1842, reflections on the incumbent British government and the prevailing class system, his traumatic account of the 1865 Staplehurst Rail Crash, guidance for his youngest son on departing for Australia, and the story of hunting a ghost with a shot gun, which turned out to be a sheep.
With music by Haydn, Beethoven, Kathryn Tickell, The Divine Comedy, and Michael Nyman.
Producer: Ruth Thomson
On the Free Thinking programme website you can find an episode with Matthew Sweet discussing the writing of Dickens with novelist Linda Grant, New Generation Thinker Laurence Scott and Lucy Whitehead from Cardiff University:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000jt6c
Readings:
A Tale of Two Cities
Furnival's Inn, Wednesday Evening, 1835. To Miss Hogarth (future Mrs Charles Dickens)
Greta Bridge, February 1st, 1838. To Mrs Charles Dickens
Baltimore, March 22nd, 1842. To Mr W C Macready
Villa Di Bagnarello, Albaro, July 22nd, 1844. To Mr Daniel Maclise
Devonshire Terrace, January 31st, 1850. To Mrs Gaskell
Tavistock House, January 3rd, 1855. To Monsieur de Cerjat
Folkestone, Oct. 4th, 1855. To Mr W C Macready
Gad's Hill Place, Rochester, Kent, Oct. 15th, 1859. To Monsieur Regnier
Tavistock House, May 3rd, 1860. To Monsieur de Cerjat
Office of "All the Year Round," Oct. 24th, 1860. To Mr Wilkie Collins
Gad's Hill Place, Tuesday Night, Oct. 14th, 1862. To Mr Wilkie Collins
57 Gloucester Place, Hyde Park, Feb. 23rd, 1864. To Mr Marcus Stone
Gad's Hill Place, Higham by Rochester, Kent, June 13th, 1865. To Mr Thomas Mitton
1868, to Mr. Edward Dickens (his youngest son) on his departure for Australia
Anon - Announcement of the Death of Mr Charles Dickens, Manchester Guardian, Friday 10th June 1870
01 John Adams
Short Ride in a Fast Machine
Orchestra: Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Marin Alsop
Duration 00:01:10
02
00:00:13
Charles Dickens
A Tale of Two Cities, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:00:31
03
00:01:02
Charles Dickens
Furnival's Inn, Wednesday Evening, 1835. To Miss Hogarth (future Mrs Charles Dickens), read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:04
04
00:02:01 Joseph Haydn
Symphony no. 104 in D major H.
1.104 London (4th Mvt)
Orchestra: London Classical Players
Conductor: Sir Roger Norrington
Duration 00:06:35
05
00:08:29 Kathryn Tickell
The Road to the North
Performer: Kathryn Tickell
Duration 00:02:20
06
00:08:30
Charles Dickens
Greta Bridge, February 1st, 1838. To Mrs Charles Dickens, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:06
07
00:10:52 Trad.
Shortnin Bread
Performer: Smiley Hobbs
Performer: Pete Kuykendall
Performer: Mike Seeger
Duration 00:00:49
08
00:10:52
Charles Dickens
Baltimore, March 22nd, 1842. To Mr W C Macready, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:02:40
09
00:13:03 John Philip Sousa
The Liberty Bell
Orchestra: Eastman Wind Ensemble
Conductor: Frederick Fennell
Duration 00:02:28
10
00:15:42 Ottorino Respighi
Ancient Airs and Dances Suite No 3 Italiana
Orchestra: I Solisti Veneti
Conductor: Claudio Scimone (conductor)
Duration 00:03:18
11
00:15:46
Charles Dickens
Villa Di Bagnarello, Albaro, July 22nd, 1844. To Mr Daniel Maclise, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:49
12
00:18:57
Charles Dickens
Devonshire Terrace, January 31st, 1850. To Mrs Gaskell, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:05
13
00:19:35 Carl Davis
Cranford Theme
Orchestra: Studio Orchestra
Conductor: Carl Davis
Duration 00:02:18
14
00:21:52
Charles Dickens
Tavistock House, January 3rd, 1855. To Monsieur de Cerjat, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:37
15
00:23:30 Max Steiner
The Charge of the Light Brigade March
Orchestra: National Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Charles Gerhardt
Duration 00:02:38
16
00:26:06
Charles Dickens
Folkestone, Oct. 4th, 1855. To Mr W C Macready, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:48
17
00:27:55 Ludwig van Beethoven
Variations on Rule Britannia
Performer: Olli Mustonen
Duration 00:04:11
18
00:32:04
Charles Dickens
Gad's Hill Place, Rochester, Kent, Oct. 15th, 1859. To Monsieur Regnier, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:00:57
19
00:33:00 François-Joseph Gossec
Le triomphe de la republique Tambourin
Music Arranger: Charles Gerhardt
Performer: James Galway
Orchestra: National Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Charles Gerhardt
Duration 00:01:22
20
00:34:21
Charles Dickens
Tavistock House, May 3rd, 1860. To Monsieur de Cerjat, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:02:04
21
00:36:27 George Frideric Handel
The Harmonious Blacksmith
Performer: Mie Miki
Duration 00:04:52
22
00:41:13
Charles Dickens
Office of "All the Year Round," Oct. 24th, 1860. To Mr Wilkie Collins, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:02:25
23
00:43:39 Michael Nyman
Chasing Sheep is Best Left to Shepherds
Orchestra: Michael Nyman Band
Conductor: Michael Nyman
Duration 00:02:33
24
00:46:12
Charles Dickens
Gad's Hill Place, Tuesday Night, Oct. 14th, 1862. To Mr Wilkie Collins, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:01:19
25
00:47:32 Randy Newman
You Got A Friend in Me
Performer: Randy Newman
Duration 00:02:05
26
00:49:34
Charles Dickens
57 Gloucester Place, Hyde Park, Feb. 23rd, 1864. To Mr Marcus Stone, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:00:54
27
00:50:29 The Divine Comedy
Our Mutual Friend
Performer: The Divine Comedy
Duration 00:05:57
28
00:56:26 Arthur Honegger
Pacific 231
Orchestra: Czech Philharmonic
Conductor: Serge Baudo
Duration 00:03:57
29
00:56:34
Charles Dickens
Gad's Hill Place, Higham by Rochester, Kent, June 13th, 1865. To Mr Thomas Mitton, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:03:27
30
01:00:24 Tan Dun
8 Memories in Watercolour: No. 7, Floating Clouds
Performer: Warren Lee
Duration 00:02:26
31
01:02:47
Charles Dickens
1868, to Mr. Edward Dickens (his youngest son) on his departure for Australia, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:02:55
32
01:05:42 Joseph Haydn
The Seven Last Words of our Saviour on the Cross H.20.1b: Largo
Performer: Casals Quartet
Duration 00:06:29
33
01:12:11
Anon
Announcement of the Death of Mr Charles Dickens, Manchester Guardian, Friday 10th June 1870, read by: Sam West
Duration 00:00:38
FRI 19:30 BBC Proms (m000qksh)
Proms 2020
Baroque Doubles: Nicola Benedetti with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
The cavernous Royal Albert Hall auditorium is an ideal space to explore the clean harmonies and decorative melodies of the baroque concerto. Period instrument ensemble the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment is joined by leading violinist Nicola Benedetti to perform double violin concertos by Vivaldi and Bach. In addition to one of only three concertos Vivaldi wrote for two oboes, we hear concerti grossi by Handel and Newcastle-born Charles Avison.
Presented by Martin Handley from the Royal Albert Hall.
Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto in D major for two violins, RV 513
George Frideric Handel: Concerto grosso in B flat major, Op 3 No 2
Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto in D minor for two violins, RV 514
George Frideric Handel: Radamisto – Passacaglia
Antonio Vivaldi: Concerto in A minor for two oboes, RV 536
Charles Avison: Concerto grosso No 5 in D minor (after Scarlatti)
Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto in D minor for two violins, BWV 1043
Nicola Benedetti (violin)
Kati Debretzeni (violin in Vivaldi, RV 514)
Rudolfo Richter (violin in Vivaldi, RV 513)
Matthew Truscott (violin in Bach)
Katharina Spreckelsen (oboe)
Sarah Humphrys (oboe)
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Jonathan Cohen (director/harpsichord)
FRI 21:10 Radio 3 in Concert (m000qksk)
On Christmas Night with the BBC Singers and BBC Concert Orchestra
Two contrasting pieces of narration set to music. The BBC Singers and conductor Nicolas Chalmers present Hymn - Alan Bennett's early musical recollections, originally set to music written for string quartet by George Fenton. Hymn has been arranged for the BBC Singers by Clare Wheeler, with additional material by Jonathan Manners and Paul Spicer. The BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor David Hill then perform Richard Allain's musical setting of A Christmas Carol with narration by Stephen Fry.
Alan Bennett/George Fenton: Hymn (arr. Clare Wheeler)
BBC Singers
Alan Bennett - narrator
Nicholas Chalmers - conductor
Richard Allain: A Christmas Carol
BBC Concert Orchestra
Stephen Fry - narrator
David Hill - conductor
FRI 22:30 The Escape Artist (m000qksm)
The Lover and the Echo
Ross Sutherland takes us to the birth of modern art as he traces the extraordinary life of Arthur Cravan. Cravan's anarchic art heralded Dada , surrealism, situationism, punk rock and alternative comedy. His whole life was an extravagant show and his influence spreads right across the 20th century.
Cravan went through life using multiple mysterious personas. He was the nephew of Oscar Wilde, a boxing champion, a notorious art critic, a scandalous performer, a deserter, the husband of modernist poet Mina Loy, and was pursued by the CIA.
This mystery story, led by writer Ross Sutherland, tracks across twenty countries as Cravan's outlandish persona shifts between incarnations. Ross's journey leads him to Cravan's greatest riddle of all - his disappearance in the Gulf of Mexico.
In this episode, with Ross hitting a series of blank walls in his research, he attempts to find search the elusive Roger Conover, an authority on Arthur Cravan.
Writer and Presenter: Ross Sutherland
Produced for the BBC by Melvin Rickarby
Music by Jeremy Warmsley
Excerpt from Cravan's Weird Seance courtesy of Daniel Oliver
FRI 23:00 Late Junction (m000qksp)
Christmas night with Saul Williams
Join Verity Sharp on Christmas evening by the fire with her special guest, acclaimed poet, actor, and musician Saul Williams. Saul dives deep into the outer recesses of his far-ranging tastes, to curate a late-night Christmas playlist unlike any other – and to share fireside stories from a life lived at the intersection of music, art and activism. As Christmas draws to a close, we’ll hear an intimate spoken word performance from Saul, who is revered for blurring the line between hip hop and poetry.
Elsewhere Verity shares sounds that celebrate light as part of Radio 3’s Light in the Darkness season, from Appalachian rising sun melodies to Norwegian jazz inspired by chiaroscuro, the Italian term for the balance of light and dark in art.
For the occasion, the artist Leafcutter John will perform on his homemade light-controlled instrument, a musical interface that is triggered by light. Sounds are created when light is shone upon the interface, sending information from the sensors to his computer and modular synth. He demonstrates his invention with a piece from his recent album but with a seasonal twist: he plays it with Christmas lights.
Produced by Katie Callin and Frank Palmer.
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3.