SATURDAY 14 DECEMBER 2024
SAT 00:30 Through the Night (m0025llq)
Brahms and Pejacevic at the 2023 BBC Proms
Pianist Martin Helmchen joins the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conductor Sakari Oramo in Brahms's Piano Concerto no 2 plus the Symphony in F sharp minor by Dora Pejačević. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Piano Concerto no 2 in B flat major, Op 83
Martin Helmchen (piano), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
01:19 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Intermezzo in A major, Op 118 no 2
Martin Helmchen (piano)
01:25 AM
Dora Pejacevic (1885-1923)
Symphony in F sharp minor, Op 41
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
02:08 AM
Andrew York (b.1958)
Sanzen-in
Tornado Guitar Duo
02:14 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Four Songs, Op 17
Davos Festival Women's Choir, Magdalena Hoffmann (harp), Nicolas Ramez (french horn), Francois Rieu (french horn)
02:31AM
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Souvenir de Florence, Op 70
Vadim Repin (violin), Baiba Skride (violin), Andrei Ionita (cello), Victor Fournelle-Blain (viola), Natalie Racine (viola), Anna Burden (cello)
03:06 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Quintet in D major for clarinet, horn, violin, cello and piano
Stephan Siegenthaler (clarinet), Thomas Muller (horn), Matthias Enderle (violin), Patrick Demenga (cello), Hiroko Sakagami (piano)
03:33 AM
Hugo Alfven (1872-1960)
En bat med blommor (A boat with flowers), Op 44
Peter Mattei (baritone), Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Manfred Honeck (conductor)
03:43 AM
Gabriel Faure (1845-1924)
Nocturne for piano in E flat minor, Op 33 no 1
Livia Rev (piano)
03:51 AM
Henry Eccles (c.1675-1745)
Sonata for double bass, continuo and strings
Joel Quarrington (double bass), Eric Robertson (harpsichord), Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Timothy Vernon (conductor)
04:00 AM
Juozas Naujalis (1869-1934)
Caligaverunt oculi mei (My eyes are blinded by tears), motet
Kaunas State Choir, Petras Bingelis (conductor)
04:05 AM
Luka Sorkocevic (1734-1789), arr. Frano Matusic
Symphony no 3 in D major
Dubrovnik Guitar Trio
04:13 AM
Hugo Wolf (1860-1903)
Italian Serenade
Ljubljanski Godalni Quartet
04:21 AM
Giles Farnaby (c. 1563 - 1640), arr. Elgar Howarth
Fancies, Toyes and Dreams
Brass Consort Koln
04:31 AM
Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725)
Recorder Concerto in A minor
Leonard Schelb (recorder), Raphael Alpermann (harpsichord), Akademie fur Alte Musik Berlin, Bernhard Forck (conductor)
04:40 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
3 Pieces from Slatter (Norwegian Peasant Dances), Op 72
Havard Gimse (piano)
04:49 AM
Rudolf Tobias (1873-1918)
Zur Absolution, from Ecclesia (cantata): Wohl dem, dem die Übertretungen vergebe
Eesti Projekt Chamber Choir
04:57 AM
Johan Svendsen (1840-1911)
Violin Romance in G major, Op 26
Julia Fischer (violin), Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Christopher Warren-Green (conductor)
05:05 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
8 Instrumental miniatures for 15 instruments
Canadian Chamber Ensemble, Raffi Armenian (director)
05:13 AM
Alessandro Piccinini (1566-c.1638)
Toccata; Mariona alla vera spagnola, chiaccona
United Continuo Ensemble
05:22 AM
Krzysztof Penderecki (1933-2020)
Largo for cello and orchestra
Claudio Bohorquez (cello), Polish Sinfonia luventus Orchestra, Maximiano Valdes (conductor)
05:46 AM
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Sonata in D major (Wq.83/H.505)
Les Coucous Benevoles
06:03 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet no 2 in G major, Op 18 no 2
Amar Quartet
SAT 06:30 Breakfast (m0025w7s)
Start your weekend the Radio 3 way, with Saturday Breakfast
Join Mark Forrest to wake up the day with a selection of the finest classical and Christmas music, including Corelli's Christmas Concerto, Greensleeves by Vaughan Williams and two Mozarts on a sleighride! And it's time to open the 14th door on our Radio 3 Breakfast Advent Calendar.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Breakfast."
SAT 09:00 Saturday Morning (m0025w7v)
Tom talks to the conductor Kahchun Wong
Tom Service talks to the Halle's new Principal Conductor Kahchun Wong. Plus the best classical playlist, from Tom's favourites to new recordings, and lots of Christmas music.
10.10am
Tom is joined by Kahchun Wong, the new Principal Conductor of the Halle. He talks about growing up in Singapore and his fascination with fusing the musical influences of the East and the West, and especially in Britten’s Prince of the Pagodas, which is first recording with the Halle. He also talks about how conducting Debussy is like surfing Hokusai’s great wave, and his plans for working with the Halle.
11.25am
Tom talks to the composer Ross Brown and the writer, director and panto dame of dames, Johnny McKnight about the art of putting on pantomime. They have been collaborating on pantos since 2011 and, this year, they have created Peter Pan and the incredible Stinkerbell for the Tron Theatre in Glasgow.
SAT 12:00 Earlier... with Jools Holland (m0025w7x)
Jools's musical selection for a Saturday lunchtime
In a new show for Saturday lunchtimes, Jools shares his lifelong passion for classical music, and the beautiful connections with jazz and blues. With fascinating guests each week, who bring their own favourite music and occasionally perform live in Jools's studio.
Today, Jools's choices include music by Holst, Shostakovich and Lully, with performances by Sister Ernestine Washington and soprano Bidu Sayao. His guest is the folk singer and fiddler Eliza Carthy who shares music she loves by Purcell, Handel and Rimsky-Korsakov, and talks about starting out on the fiddle and why dancing the hornpipe should be wild and rhythmic as opposed to dainty and delicate.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Earlier with Jools Holland".
SAT 13:00 Music Matters (m0025w7z)
Music, My Family and Me
David James
Nicky Campbell is joined by a high-profile figure from broadcasting, entertainment and public life to share and explore how classical music has soundtracked their worlds as parents, children and caregivers: with a host of arresting, moving and funny stories from both parties along the way.
In this episode, Nicky is joined by former footballer and music lover, David James, as he recounts the influence his grandmother had on his music taste- and life- as well as his experience of becoming a grandparent himself. And through pieces from Beethoven, Vivaldi, and Copland, David James shares how he turns to music to soothe the rough edges of daily life, in the family and in the locker room.
Produced by Leonie Thomas and Katie Hill
Exec Producer: Steven Rajam
An Overcoat Media Production for BBC Radio 3
SAT 14:00 Record Review (m0025w81)
Wagner's Siegfried Idyll in Building a Library with Gillian Moore and Andrew McGregor
Andrew McGregor with the best new recordings of classical music.
1405
Harpsichordist Joseph McHardy shares his pick of the latest early music releases.
1500
Building a Library
Wagner's Siegfried Idyll with Gillian Moore
"Music was sounding, and what music! After it had died away, R put into my hands the score of his “Symphonic Birthday Greeting." So wrote Richard Wagner's wife Cosima after the first performance of the composer's Siegfried Idyll - written as a surprise birthday present for Cosima which she first heard as she awoke on Christmas morning 1870 while the specially assembled chamber orchestra was playing it on the stairs of the couple's villa. The intensely romantic work is full of personal significance for the Wagners, and much of the music was later incorporated into the third instalment of Wagner's operatic Ring cycle, Siegfried.
Recommended version:
Symphony of the Air
Leopold Stokowski (conductor)
Bridge BRIDGE9074
1545
Record of the Week: Andrew’s top pick.
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Record Review”
SAT 16:00 Sound of Cinema (m0025w83)
Alfred Hitchcock
From the driving energy of North By Northwest to the iconic string stabs of Psycho, music is an integral part of what makes Alfred Hitchcock's films stand out. Matthew Sweet finds out what makes them so good and looks at times when Hitchcock and his composers disagreed.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Sound of Cinema".
SAT 17:00 This Classical Life (m0025w85)
Jess Gillam with... Colin Greenwood
Jess's guest this week is bassist and member of Radiohead, Colin Greenwood. Colin has a not-so-secret love of classical music and comes into the studio armed with arias by Handel, choral music by Eric Whitacre, a Nina Simone classic and more. Fresh from releasing a new book of candid photography of Radiohead in the studio and making music, Colin chats to Jess about life in one of the most influential bands in the world and they share their mutual love of a killer bassline.
SAT 18:00 Opera on 3 (m0025w87)
Jeanine Tesori’s Grounded
Yannick Nézet-Séguin conducts this powerful new opera at the Met in New York, starring Emily D'Angelo as the fighter pilot Jess, grounded by an unplanned pregnancy.
Grounded, the fourth opera by Jeanine Tesori, who's won more awards than any other female theatre composer in American history, was premiered in Washington DC in October 2023 and now comes to the New York Metropolitan Opera. Its heroine Jess, grounded in Las Vegas and reassigned to controlling drones in Afghanistan, feels pressured to be the perfect soldier, the perfect wife to rancher Eric, and the perfect mother, all at the same time.
Presented by Debra Lew Harder and Ira Siff.
The opera includes adult themes, upsetting scenes and very strong language that some listeners may find offensive.
Jess ..... Emily D'Angelo (mezzo-soprano)
Also Jess ..... Ellie Dehn (soprano)
Eric ..... Ben Bliss (tenor)
Sensor ..... Kyle Miller (baritone)
Commander ..... Greer Grimsley (bass-baritone)
Sam, Jess and Eric's daughter ..... Lucy LoBue (treble)
Seatwarmer ..... Timothy Murray (baritone)
Bar Pilot ..... Earle Patriarco (baritone)
Mission Coordinator ..... Christopher Bozeka (tenor)
Ground Control ..... Thomas Capobianco (tenor)
Joint Terminal Attack Controller ..... Paul Corona (bass)
Safety Observer ..... Christopher Job (bass-baritone)
Judge Advocate General ..... Matthew Anchel (bass)
Mall Employees ..... Patrick Miller (tenor), Tyler Simpson (bass-baritone)
Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra
Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Opera on 3".
SAT 21:30 Music Planet (m0025w89)
Mountain music
Passed down across generations, the rich musical traditions of mountain communities have undeniably been shaped and preserved in relation to their geography, from the chosen instrumentation, to certain lyrical motifs, and the distinctiveness of each tradition. In the week of International Mountain Day, Kathryn Tickell explores some high-altitude selections from around the globe. We hear polyphonic singing from the Pyrenees, a trekking song from the Himalayas, and Appalachian folk singer Jean Ritchie playing the mountain dulcimer.
Produced by Gabriel Francis
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: “Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Planet.”
SAT 22:30 New Music Show (m0025w8c)
Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (4/4): Enno Poppe's Streik for 10 drum kits
Tom Service presents the final instalment of music from this year's Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. Keyboard player Zubin Kanga performs the world premiere of Alex Ho's Cyborg Etudes, the duos of Twenty Fingers and GBSR combine for the music of Lithuanian composer Julius Aglinskas, and we hear a complete performance of Enno Poppe's monumental new piece for 10 drum kits, Streik, co-commissioned by hcmf// and performed by Percussion Orchestra Cologne.
To listen using most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play New Music Show”
SUNDAY 15 DECEMBER 2024
SUN 00:30 Through the Night (m0025w8f)
Schoenberg, Gershwin and Rachmaninov
Elim Chan conducts the WDR Symphony Orchestra in Schoenberg's Piano Concerto and Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. Kirill Gerstein is the soloist in this sparkling performance. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Arnold Schoenberg (1874-1951)
Piano Concerto, Op 42
Kirill Gerstein (piano), WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Elim Chan (conductor)
12:50 AM
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
Rhapsody in Blue
Kirill Gerstein (piano), WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Elim Chan (conductor)
01:06 AM
Oscar Levant (1906-1972)
Blame it on my youth (encore)
Kirill Gerstein (piano)
01:10 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Symphonic Dances, Op 45
WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Elim Chan (conductor)
01:45 AM
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
Trauermusik for viola and string orchestra
Rivka Golani (viola), Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis (conductor)
01:53 AM
Kurt Weill (1900-1950), Ira Gershwin (author)
Saga of Jenny (from the musical Lady in the Dark)
Jean Stilwell (mezzo soprano), Robert Kortgaard (piano), Marie Berard (violin), Joseph Macerollo (accordion), James Spragg (trumpet), George Kohler (bass), Andy Morris (percussion), Peter Tiefenbach (conductor)
01:58 AM
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)
Symphony no 3 in E flat major, Op 10
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Hiroyuki Iwaki (conductor)
02:31 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Violin Sonata no 3 in C minor, Op 45
Julian Rachlin (violin), Leif Ove Andsnes (piano)
02:55 AM
Nino Rota (1911-1979)
Divertimento concertante
Marek Romanowski (double bass), Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Pawel Kapula (conductor)
03:18 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Concerto grosso in B flat major, Op 6 no 7, HWV.325
Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, Terje Tonnesen (conductor)
03:32 AM
Gabriel Faure (1845-1924)
Nocturne in B minor, Op 97
Stephane Lemelin (piano)
03:37 AM
Ester Magi (1922-2021)
Murdunud aer (The broken oar)
Estonian National Male Choir, Ants Soots (director)
03:41 AM
Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921)
Danse macabre - symphonic poem, Op 40
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Kjell Seim (conductor)
03:49 AM
Antoine Forqueray (1672-1745)
La Rameau & Jupiter
Teodoro Bau (viola da gamba), Deniel Perer (harpsichord)
03:58 AM
Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912)
Fantasy on Two Ukrainian Themes for flute and orchestra
Yuri Shut'ko (flute), NRCU Symphony Orchestra, Vyacheslav Blinov (conductor)
04:06 AM
Pauline Viardot (1821-1910)
Choeur des elfes
Olivia Robinson (soprano), BBC Singers, Libby Burgess (piano), Grace Rossiter (conductor)
04:13 AM
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908)
Capriccio Espagnol, Op 34
BBC Philharmonic, Yan Pascal Tortelier (conductor)
04:31 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Lobet den Herrn, alle Heiden, BWV.230
Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Ivars Taurins (conductor)
04:37 AM
Josef Suk (1874-1935)
Meditation on an old Czech hymn 'St Wenceslas', Op 35a
Camerata Bern, Antje Weithaas (director)
04:45 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Prelude no 13 in D flat major
Lukas Geniusas (piano)
04:51 AM
Thea Musgrave (b.1928)
Loch Ness - a postcard from Scotland for orchestra
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles (conductor)
05:01 AM
Johann Christoph Pez (1664-1716)
Passacaglia & Aria (presto)
Carin van Heerden (recorder), Ales Rypan (recorder), L'Orfeo Baroque Orchestra, Michi Gaigg (director)
05:09 AM
Bernat Vivancos (b.1973)
Salve d'ecos
Latvian Radio Choir, Sigvards Klava (conductor)
05:19 AM
Frank van der Stucken (1858-1929)
Symphonic prologue to Heinrich Heine's tragedy 'William Ratcliffe'
Flemish Radio Orchestra, Bjarte Engeset (conductor)
05:47 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Concerto for 2 horns and orchestra in D major, TWV.52:D2
Jozef Illes (horn), Jan Budzak (horn), Chamber Association of Slovakian Radio, Vlastimil Horak (conductor)
06:30 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Metamorphosen for 23 solo strings, AV.142
Risor Festival Strings, Christian Tetzlaff (conductor)
SUN 06:30 Breakfast (m0025t8v)
Start your Sunday the Radio 3 way with Mark Forrest
Mark Forrest presents Radio 3’s classical breakfast show with music that captures the mood of Sunday morning. Email 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Breakfast."
SUN 09:00 Sunday Morning (m0025t8x)
Your perfect Sunday soundtrack
Sarah Walker with three hours of classical music to reflect, restore and refresh.
Today Sarah embraces the season with chilly harp writing and shivery harmonies in ‘In freezing winter night’ from Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols and gets emotional with a soaring duet from Bizet’s opera The Pearl Fishers.
There’s a festive feel to the show too, with music by Tamsin Jones which combines ancient harmonies with vibrant rhythms, a performance of Ding Dong Merrily which will take you back to the carol’s 16th Century origins, and John Rutter’s Shepherd’s Pipe Carol with its glittering orchestration.
Plus, Oscar Peterson puts up his Christmas tree…
A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3
SUN 12:00 Christmas around Europe (m0025t8z)
Christmas Around Europe
Christmas Around Europe - a ten hour celebration in a feast of concerts taking us from Barcelona to Reykjavik.
Every year classical music radio stations from across Europe come together to celebrate Christmas with a series of concerts from around the continent. Featuring special performances of Christmas music, many of them broadcast live, the celebration covers a wide variety of music from 16th Century motets and carols from Spain, through traditional seasonal folk music from Finland to Christmas Jazz from Germany and everything in between. This ten hour celebration promises to be a journey of discovery to delight the ears and soul.
Andrew McGregor and Hannah French are your musical tour guides to lead you through the day.
12
00pm Saarbrücken, Germany. The German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra plays Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1 in G minor, op. 13 ('Winter Daydreams'), Dohnányi: Variations on a Children's Song op. 25 and Christmas music by Korngold and Tchaikovsky.
1.00pm Barcelona, Spain. Christmas music from 16th and 17th Century Spain by Joan Cererols, Miquel López and Tomás Luis de Victoria in a reconstruction at Barcelona's Palau de la Música of Compline as it might have been heard during Spain's Golden Age.
2.00pm Prague, Czech Republic. Baroque and Classical chamber music by Zelenka, Anton Zimmermann and Antonín Reichenauer and some Czech traditional music for Christmas played by members of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the Suk Hall of Prague's Rudolfinum.
3.00pm Copenhagen, Denmark. The Danish Radio Vocal Ensemble perform Christmas choral music by Poulenc and Villette and Benjamin Britten's A Ceremony of Carols at the Garrison Church, Copenhagen.
4.00pm Vilnius, Lithuania. The Baltic Way String Quartet perform music by Peteris Vasks, Arvo Pärt, Mikolajus Konstantinas Ciurlionis and Teisutis Makacinas.
5.00pm Munich, Germany. The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus perform Respighi's Lauda per la Natività del Signore and arrangements of traditional Sicilian Christmas carols from ‘Canti Religiosi del popolo siciliano.’
6.00pm Cologne, Germany. Christmas jazz concert with Lynne Fiddmont and the WDR Big Band.
7.00pm Dresden, Germany. The Dresden Chamber Choir perform works by composers including Michael Praetorius, Eccard , Mendelssohn, Brahms and Arvo Pärt.
8.00pm Helsinki, Finland. Emma Salokoski sings traditional seasonal Finnish folk music with the Ilmiliekki Quartet at the Kallio Church, Helsinki.
9.00pm Reykjavik, Iceland. Hallgrím's Church Choir and the Brák Baroque Ensemble perform choral and orchestral music by JS Bach including, soprano Harpa Ósk Björnsdóttir in the cantata Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen and the harpscihordist Halldór Bjarki Arnarson in Bach's Keyboard Concerto in D minor.
SUN 22:00 Ultimate Calm (m0024qwv)
Ólafur Arnalds: Series 3
Calm music for connection ft. Sheku Kanneh-Mason
Music has always been an important part of community and relationships - a way for us to feel connected to each other. It gives us a reason to gather together and helps us relate to one another. Ólafur celebrates that aspect of music with an episode inspired by community, family, friendship and togetherness. He’ll play a selection of soothing sounds including tracks by the likes of Aksuna, Shida Shahabi and the husband-wife duo Windy & Carl, as well as his own collaborative work as part of the duo Kiasmos, with Faroese musician Janus Rasmussen, and his work with the OPIA Community, a travelling festival series, record label and community hub.
Plus the British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason transports us to his musical safe haven. Sheku is no stranger to collaborations, he frequently works with his siblings to create beautiful works together. He shares a piece of music that brings him ultimate calm, a track that reminds him of a sunrise.
Produced by Kit Callin
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3 and Radio 3 Unwind
SUN 23:00 The Night Tracks Mix (m001nw7h)
Music for late-night listening
Sara Mohr-Pietsch with a magical sonic journey for late-night listening. Subscribe to receive your weekly mix on BBC Sounds.
SUN 23:30 Unclassified (m0025t92)
Stars and Shadow
Join Elizabeth Alker with a selection of fresh music from genre-defying artists as we journey through landscapes of ambient and experimental sounds. Along the way, we'll hear from emerging independent producers whose work plays with orchestral textures and classical form as well as the latest sounds from a new generation of contemporary composers who look to embrace the spirit of rock, pop and electronica.
Produced by Geoff Bird
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Unclassified”
MONDAY 16 DECEMBER 2024
MON 00:30 Through the Night (m0025t94)
Handel's Messiah
Santa Cecilia Orchestra and Chorus, conductor John Nelson and soloists perform Handel's Messiah. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Messiah, HWV 56 (Part 1)
Sara Blanch (soprano), Sasha Cooke (mezzo soprano), Krystian Adam (tenor), Anthony Robin Schneider (bass), Santa Cecilia Chorus, Andrea Secchi (director), Santa Cecilia Orchestra, John Nelson (conductor)
01:12 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Messiah, HWV 56 (Parts 2 & 3)
Sara Blanch (soprano), Sasha Cooke (mezzo soprano), Krystian Adam (tenor), Anthony Robin Schneider (bass), Santa Cecilia Chorus, Andrea Secchi (director), Santa Cecilia Orchestra, John Nelson (conductor)
02:08 AM
Johan Halvorsen (1864-1935)
Passacaglia after Handel
Byungchan Lee (violin), Cameron Crozman (cello)
02:15 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Sonata in D minor HWV 367a
Bolette Roed (recorder), Allan Rasmussen (harpsichord)
02:31 AM
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)
Symphony no 7 in D minor, Op 70
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Stefan Asbury (conductor)
03:12 AM
Erik Gustaf Geijer (1783-1847)
Piano Quartet in E minor
Klara Hellgren (violin), Ingegerd Kierkegaard (viola), Asa Akerberg (cello), Anders Kilstrom (piano)
03:42 AM
Alessandro Stradella (1639-1682)
Ardo, sospiro e piango
Emma Kirkby (soprano), David Thomas (bass), Jakob Lindberg (lute), Anthony Rooley (lute), Anthony Rooley (director)
03:49 AM
Frano Parac (b.1948)
Guitar Trio
Zagreb Guitar Trio
03:54 AM
Paolo Tosti (1846-1916), Renato Rascel (1912-1991), Eduardo di Capua (1865-1917), Paolo Conte (b.1937), arr. Guido Rennert
Sempre Italia (medley)
WDR Radio Orchestra, Rasmus Baumann (conductor)
04:02 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Friedrich Schiller (author)
Die Gotter Griechenlands, D.677b
Christoph Pregardien (tenor), Andreas Staier (pianoforte)
04:07 AM
Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894)
Espana - rhapsody
Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis (conductor)
04:13 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Abegg variations Op 1 for piano
Annika Treutler (piano)
04:21 AM
Giuseppe Sammartini (1695-1750)
Sinfonia in F major
Europa Galante, Fabio Biondi (director)
04:31 AM
Victor Herbert (1859-1924)
The Fortune Teller (Excerpts)
Eastman-Dryden Orchestra, Donald Hunsberger (conductor)
04:39 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Ballade for piano no 1 in G minor, Op 23
Zbigniew Raubo (piano)
04:49 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Fürchte dich nicht, ich bin bei dir, BWV.228
Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Ivars Taurins (conductor)
04:58 AM
Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725)
Partite Sopra Follia
Enrico Baiano (harpsichord)
05:06 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), arr. Francesco Squarcia
3 Hungarian Dances
I Cameristi Italiani
05:14 AM
Giacomo Facco (1676-1753)
Sinfonia no 9 in C minor for cello and basso continuo
La Guirlande
05:25 AM
Max Bruch (1838-1920)
Violin Concerto no 2 in D minor, Op 44
James Ehnes (violin), Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
05:50 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Sonata for Piano in G major, H.
16.27
Niklas Sivelov (piano)
06:01 AM
Louis Spohr (1784-1859)
Nonet in F major, Op 31
Kyoko Ogawa (violin), Anne Sophie Van Riel (viola), Alexander Arai-Swale (double bass), Hyunjung Song (oboe), Carlotta Brendel (bassoon), Zuzanna Szambelan (cello), Ronja Macholdt (flute), Astrid den Daas (clarinet), Pauline Zahno (horn)
MON 06:30 Breakfast (m0025tbr)
Classical music to start the day
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's award-winning classical breakfast show with music that captures the mood of the morning. Email your requests to 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
MON 09:30 Essential Classics (m0025tbt)
Your perfect classical playlist
Georgia Mann plays the best in classical music, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites.
1000 Playlist starter – listen and send us your ideas for the next step in our musical journey today.
1030 Essential Carol - introduced by a special guest
1115 Playlist reveal – a sequence of music suggested by you in response to our starter today.
1145 Slow Moment – time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
1230 Album of the Week
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
MON 13:00 Classical Live (m0025tbw)
The Nash Ensemble at 60
Kurt Schwertsik and Johannes Brahms from the Nash Ensemble, live from Wigmore Hall, beginning a week celebrating this prized ensemble's 60th anniversary. Elsewhere today, Fiona Talkington introduces specially made recordings from the Berlin Philharmonic - this week's Orchestra in Focus - and a selection of festive favourites.
1pm
Live from Wigmore Hall, presented by Hannah French
Kurt Schwertsik
Last Days in Old Europe (world premiere)
Johannes Brahms
Horn Trio in E-flat, Op.40
Nash Ensemble:
Richard Watkins (horn)
Benjamin Nabarro (violin)
Alasdair Beatson (piano)
***
from
2pm
Nigel Hess
A Christmas Overture
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
John Rutter (conductor)
Elizabeth Maconchy
There is no rose
Choir of St John's College, Cambridge
Andrew Nethsingha (conductor)
Maurice Ravel
Pavane pour une infante défunte
Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Petrenko (conductor)
Traditional English, arr. Simon Preston
I saw three ships
Choir of Keble College, Oxford
Jeremy Filsell (organ)
Matthew Martin (conductor)
Leroy Anderson
Sleigh Ride
BBC Concert Orchestra
Leonard Slatkin (conductor)
***
from
3pm
Felix Mendelssohn
Violin Concerto in E minor, Op.64
Augustin Hadelich (violin)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Marek Janowski (conductor)
Herbert Howells
A Spotless Rose
Tenebrae (choir)
Nigel Short (conductor)
Traditional English, arr. David Willcocks
God rest you merry, gentlemen
Winchester Cathedral Choir
Simon Bell (organ)
Andrew Lumsden (conductor)
Errollyn Wallen
Mighty River
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
MON 16:00 Composer of the Week (m001g3lb)
JS Bach at Christmas
Leipzig, 1723
Leipzig has a brand new music director, and expectations are running high for the city’s Christmas festivities. With Donald Macleod.
Christmas can be special wherever you live, but to experience a truly Christmassy Christmas, many would say that the only place to go is Germany. Plenty of Britain’s favourite Yuletide traditions originated there and Germany’s citizens have always had a special knack for celebrating this time of year. This was certainly true in JS Bach’s lifetime, and right through his career he produced quantities of amazing Christmas music that we still love and revere today. All this week, Donald Macleod invites us to join Bach and his family during the Christmas season, at five different periods in his life, to see how his story develops and revel in the glorious works he created for Christmastime.
Donald opens his series by dropping in on Bach to find him preparing for his very first Christmas in Leipzig. He’s been in his new job, as the city’s Music Director, for just a few months and the pressure is on! Everyone is watching to see if he can pull out all the stops for the biggest celebration of the year.
Chorale Prelude: Gott, durch deine Güte, BWV 600
John Butt, organ
Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ, BWV 91: Opening Chorus
Bach Collegium Japan Chorus, Bach Collegium Japan, conducted by Masaaki Suzuki
Sehet, welch eine Liebe hat uns der Vater erzeiget, BWV 64: 5. Was die Welt in sich hält
Arleen Auger, soprano; Bach-Collegium Stuttgar;, conducted by Helmuth Rilling
Darzu ist erschienen der Sohn Gottes, BWV 40
Katherine Fuge, soprano; Joanne Lunn, soprano; Robin Tyson, alto; William Towers, alto; James Gilchrist, tenor; Peter Harvey, bass; Monteverdi Choir; English Baroque Soloists; conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner
Prelude & Fugue in E-Flat Major, BWV 852
Wolfgang Rubsam, lute-harpsichord
Magnificat in E-Flat Major, BWV 243a: Movts. 10-16
Julia Doyle, soprano; Joanne Lunn, soprano; Clare Wilkinson, alto; Nicholas Mulroy, tenor; Matthew Brook, bass; Dunedin Consort, conducted by John Butt
MON 17:00 In Tune (m0025tbz)
The classical soundtrack for your evening
Katie Derham introduces live music from the London Community Gospel Choir, who are performing at the Royal Albert Hall. Plus, Anton du Beke has a new Christmas touring show.
MON 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m0025tc1)
Your daily classical soundtrack
Half and hour of back to back classical music to help wind down at the end of a busy day. Today's mix includes some festive favourites such as Britten's Ceremony of Carols, Lauridsen's "O Magnum Mysterium" and a Christmas Lullaby by John Rutter. Woven into the tinsel is some J.S. Bach performed by pianist Víkingur Ólafsson, a concerto by Dora Bright, and Voces8's own take on "Away in a manger".
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Mixtape”
Producer: Helen Garrison
MON 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m0025tc3)
Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Act 2 of Tchaikovsky's great ballet The Nutcracker and Rachmaninov's Third Piano Concerto, with soloist Boris Giltburg and the BSO's new Chief Conductor Mark Wigglesworth. From the Waltz of the Flowers to the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, the vivid images of Tchaikovsky's Christmas favourite complement the dark lyrical soundworld of Rachmaninov's biggest concerto.
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No 3 in D minor, Op 30
Boris Giltburg (piano)
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker (Act 2)
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Mark Wigglesworth
Recorded on 4 December at the Lighthouse, Poole.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
MON 21:45 The Essay (m0025tc5)
Full Moon on Progress St
Recasting Ella: Philanthropist
Full Moon on Progress Street takes a close look at a key moment and song to reveal the hidden lives and interests of some of the most important Black female artists of the 20th century – Ella Fitzgerald, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Dr Rommi Smith, life-long jazz and blues listener, considers a key moment in the creative life of each artist, reappraising what we think we know about them from popular culture. Each essay “flips the script”, to show a different hidden story. All these iconic women are broadly misrepresented - history and discrimination airbrushing their interests, politics, sexualities, creative legacy and passions.
Essay 1 - Recasting Ella: Philanthropist
Ella Fitzgerald was not the racist-caricature “mammy” figure of her popular image. She quietly worked as a political activist and social philanthropist e.g. chairing The Martin Luther King Foundation. In February 1960, Ella “corpsed” on stage, forgetting the words to Mack the Knife (by German-Jewish composer Kurt Weill), live on stage at the Deutschlandhalle in Berlin – the venue inaugurated by Hitler and symbolic of the Nazis. Ella used scat to resurrect her performance, producing an iconic soundtrack which earned her two Grammy Awards. This essay considers the power and politics of scat, and Ella’s brilliant use of it, as a defining expression of freedom.
Dr Rommi Smith is a writer, performer and academic, whose research centres the performances of historical Black jazz and blues women within the context of civil rights. Rommi’s academic work is published by, amongst others, New York University Press and Routledge. Contributors to her research include: five-time Grammy-winning NEA jazz master, Dianne Reeves and five-time Grammy-winning musician, Dr Esperanza Spalding.
A three-time BBC Writer-in-Residence, Rommi is a guest curator of the BBC Radio 4 programme, Poetry Please and a contributor to programmes ranging from Front Row to The Verb, The Essay to Woman’s Hour.
The inaugural British Parliamentary Writer-in-Residence and Poet-in-Residence for Keats House, Hampstead, Rommi was also the Poet-in-Residence for the Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere. Rommi’s fifth collaboration as librettist with the baritone and composer Roderick Williams responds to the oratory of Dr Martin Luther King. It will be performed by the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral in December 2024.
www.rommi-smith.co.uk
@rommismith
Writer and Presenter, Dr Rommi Smith
Producer, Polly Thomas
Exec producer, Eloise Whitmore
A Naked Production for BBC Radio 3
MON 22:00 Night Tracks (m001zmwx)
A bewitching night time soundtrack
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
MON 23:30 'Round Midnight (m0025tc7)
Michael Mwenso's 4/4
‘Round Midnight is presented by award-winning saxophonist Soweto Kinch. This weekday late-night show celebrates the thriving UK jazz scene and spotlights the best new music alongside incredible acts from past decades.
Vocalist and bandleader Michael Mwenso began his career in London, and has long been based in New York, where he leads his group Mwenso & The Shakes - who are in the UK to perform a Christmas concert at Kings Place in London on December 19th. Michael is this week’s guest on the 4/4 series, where musicians share selections from their personal collection. His first pick, is by the great blues singer Bessie Smith.
Plus, there's music from Dowally, Matthew Bourne and Arooj Aftab.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
TUESDAY 17 DECEMBER 2024
TUE 00:30 Through the Night (m0025tc9)
Ehnes Quartet: Beethoven alla Russia
The Ehnes Quartet explores two of Beethoven's legendary Razumovsky Quartets that changed the landscape of writing for string quartet. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet no 8 in E minor, Op 59 no 2 'Razumovsky'
Ehnes Quartet
01:05 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet no 9 in C major, Op 59 no 3 'Razumovsky'
Ehnes Quartet
01:35 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943), Konstantin Balmont (author)
The Bells (Kolokola) for soloists, chorus and orchestra, Op 35
Roumiana Bareva (soprano), Pavel Kourchoumov (tenor), Stoyan Popov (baritone), Sons de la mer Mixed Choir, Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vassil Stefanov (conductor)
02:13 AM
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
1st Movement, Solo Violin Sonata no 1 in D major, Op 115
Arabella Steinbacher (violin)
02:19 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Chant funèbre, Op 5
Musikkollegium Winterthur Orchestra, Roberto Gonzalez-Monjas (conductor)
02:31 AM
Vladimir Peskin (1906-1988)
Trumpet Concerto no 1 in C minor
Giuliano Sommerhalder (trumpet), Roberto Arosio (piano)
02:49 AM
Amy Beach (1867-1944)
Symphony in E minor (Gaelic), Op 32
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Thomas Dausgaard (conductor)
03:32 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Komm, Jesu, komm, BWV.229
Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Ivars Taurins (conductor)
03:41 AM
Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)
Scaramouche
James Anagnoson (piano), Leslie Kinton (piano)
03:51 AM
Arthur Honegger (1892-1955)
Pastorale d'été
Argovia Philharmonic, Rune Bergmann (conductor)
04:00 AM
Chiara Margarita Cozzolani (1602-c.1678)
O quam bonus es - motet for 2 voices
Cappella Artemisia
04:11 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Danse sacree et danse profane for harp and strings
Eva Maros (harp), Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bela Drahos (conductor)
04:21 AM
Cecile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Flute Concertino, Op 107
Maria Filippova (flute), Ekaterina Mirzaeva (piano)
04:31 AM
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Rienzi Overture
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Mariss Jansons (conductor)
04:43 AM
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710-1784)
Sinfonia in F major, F.67
Berlin Academy for Early Music, Stephan Mai (director)
04:55 AM
Arvo Part (b.1935)
The Woman with the Alabaster box
Erik Westberg Vocal Ensemble
05:02 AM
Jacques Ibert (1890-1962)
Trois Pieces breves for wind quintet
Galliard Ensemble
05:09 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Hungarian Rhapsody no 1 for orchestra in F minor
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Sergiu Commissiona (conductor)
05:22 AM
Traditional, Francois Campion (c.1685-1747)
El cant dels ocells; Les Ramages
Zefiro Torna
05:30 AM
Dora Pejacevic (1885-1923)
Life of Flowers, Op 19
Ida Gamulin (piano)
05:50 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Symphony no 3 in A minor, Op 56 "Scottish"
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ari Rasilainen (conductor)
TUE 06:30 Breakfast (m0025ty2)
Classical sunrise
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's award-winning classical breakfast show with music that captures the mood of the morning. Email your requests to 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
TUE 09:30 Essential Classics (m0025ty4)
Great classical music for your morning
Ian Skelly plays the best in classical music, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites.
1000 Playlist starter – listen and send us your ideas for the next step in our musical journey today.
1030 Essential Carol - introduced by a special guest
1115 Playlist reveal – a sequence of music suggested by you in response to our starter today.
1145 Slow Moment – time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
1230 Album of the Week
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
TUE 13:00 Classical Live (m0025ty6)
60 Years of the Nash Ensemble
Fiona Talkington introduces specially recorded performances from the much-loved Nash Ensemble as it marks its 60th anniversary. Elsewhere, Fiona selects concert recordings from the Berlin Philharmonic - this week's Orchestra in Focus - including Martha Argerich as soloist in Beethoven's 2nd Piano Concerto with conductor Daniel Barenboim.
***
1pm
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Quartet No.1 in G minor K.478
Nash Ensemble
Julian Anderson
Tombeau, for soprano and piano trio
Le 3 mai (from Eight Songs from Isolation) for soprano and ensemble
Claire Booth (soprano)
Nash Ensemble
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky
A Night on the Bare Mountain
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Petrenko (conductor)
Judith Bingham
The Clouded Heaven
Choir of St John’s College, Cambridge
Joseph Wicks (organ)
Andrew Nethsingha (conductor)
Peter Warlock
Bethlehem Down
Voces 8
***
2pm
Johann Sebastian Bach
Suite in G minor BWV.995 for lute
Judicaël Perroy (guitar)
Claude Debussy, orch. Colin Matthews
Preludes - Book 1: Des pas sur la neige
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Malcolm Arnold
Commonwealth Christmas Overture, Op.64
BBC Philharmonic
Rumon Gamba (conductor)
***
3pm
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat, Op.19
Martha Argerich (piano)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim (conductor)
Leroy Anderson
A Christmas Festival
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Christopher Bell (conductor)
Peter Warlock
Benedicamus Domino
Tenebrae (choir)
Nigel Short (conductor)
Maurice Ravel
Le Tombeau de Couperin for orchestra
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Sofi Jeannin (conductor)
TUE 16:00 Composer of the Week (m001g3hk)
JS Bach at Christmas
Weimar, 1717
As Bach languishes under arrest in Weimar, he reflects on Christmases past at the royal court there. With Donald Macleod.
Christmas can be special wherever you live, but to experience a truly Christmassy Christmas, many would say that the only place to go is Germany. Plenty of Britain’s favourite Yuletide traditions originated there and Germany’s citizens have always had a special knack for celebrating this time of year. This was certainly true in JS Bach’s lifetime and, right through his career, he produced quantities of amazing Christmas music that we still love and revere today. All this week, Donald Macleod invites us to join Bach and his family during the Christmas season, at five different periods in his life, to see how his story develops and revel in the glorious works he created for Christmastime.
Today, Donald finds Bach imprisoned and facing the prospect of spending Christmas 1717 in captivity! We investigate how he got there and see how Bach’s Christmas obligations evolved during his nearly ten years serving the court in Weimar, and the warring Dukes who presided there.
Wachet! betet! betet! wachet', BWV 70a: Opening chorus
Bach Collegium Japan, directed by Masaaki Suzuki
In dulci jubilo, BWV 608; Lobt Gott, ihr Christen allzugleich, BWV 609; Jesu, meine Freude, BWV 610; Der Tag, der ist so freudenreich, BWV 605
Wolfgang Zerer, organ
Christen, ätzet diesen Tag, BWV 63: 3. Gott, du hast es wohl gefüget & 7. Höchster, schau in Gnaden an
Carolyn Sampson, soprano; Sebastian Noack, bass; Collegium Vocale Gent, directed by Philippe Herreweghe
Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147: 4. Verstockung kann Gewaltige verblenden, 5. Bereite dir, Jesu, noch itzo die Bahn & 6. Wohl mir, daß ich Jesum habe
Lisa Larsson, soprano; Klaus Mertens, bass; Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, directed by Ton Koopman
Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland, BWV 599
Wolfgang Zerer, organ
Prelude and Fugue in D minor, BWV 538
Ton Koopman, organ
TUE 17:00 In Tune (m0025ty9)
Live classical music for your commute
Katie Derham has live music in the In Tune studio from keyboardist and composer, Rick Wakeman. Plus, baritone Christian Gerhaher talks to Katie about an upcoming recital at the Wigmore Hall.
TUE 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m0025tyc)
Classical music for your journey
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites from composers such as Max Richter, Benjamin Britten, Fazil Say, Duke Ellington, Sven Helbig, Xiaogang Ye, and David Willcocks.
Producer: Zara Siddiqi
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Mixtape”
TUE 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m0025tyf)
Bach Motets from Solomon's Knot in Manchester
Elements of JS Bach’s motet style can be traced back to the previous generation of his family, when his father’s cousins Johann Christoph and Johann Michael Bach experimented with soprano chorale cantus firmus and audacious harmonic language at the service of the text. Alongside Johann Sebastian’s well-known masterpieces, Solomon’s Knot perform a number of works by the ‘profund’ and ‘expressive’ Johann Christoph, as JSB himself did in Leipzig in the final years of his life.
Recorded at The Stoller Hall in Manchester on 4th December 2024.
Presented by Mark Forrest.
Johann Christoph Bach (1642-1703): Fürchte dich nicht
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750): Fürchte dich nicht, BWV 228
J.S. Bach: Komm Jesu, komm, BWV 229
J.C. Bach: Lieber Herr Gott, wecke uns auf
J.S. Bach: Der Geist hilft unsrer Schwachheit auf BWV 226
J.C. Bach: Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener
J.S. Bach: Jesu, meine Freude, BWV 227
J.C. Bach: Der Gerechte, ob er gleich zu zeitlich stirbt
J.S. Bach: Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, BWV 225
Solomon's Knot
Jonathan Sells, artistic director
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 In Concert"
TUE 21:45 The Essay (m0025tyh)
Full Moon on Progress St
Big Mama Thornton’s Ball and Chain
Big Mama Thornton was a gender-fluid, masculine-presenting blues woman who first recorded Hound Dog (later recorded by Elvis Presley) and wrote the hit song Ball and Chain (popularised by Janis Joplin). But who was she? This essay examines and unpacks her identity, via a particular studio performance of Ball and Chain by Big Mama Thornton and the Buddy Guy Blues Band in 1970.
This essay series, Full Moon on Progress Street, takes a close look at a key moment and song to reveal the hidden lives and interests of some of the most important Black female artists of the 20th century – Ella Fitzgerald, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Dr Rommi Smith, life-long jazz and blues listener, considers a key moment in the creative life of each artist, reappraising what we think we know about them from popular culture. Each essay “flips the script”, to show a different hidden story. All these iconic women are broadly misrepresented - history and discrimination airbrushing their interests, politics, sexualities, creative legacy and passions.
Dr Rommi Smith is a writer, performer and academic, whose research centres the performances of historical Black jazz and blues women within the context of civil rights. Rommi’s academic work is published by, amongst others, New York University Press and Routledge. Contributors to her research include: five-time Grammy-winning NEA jazz master, Dianne Reeves and five-time Grammy-winning musician, Dr Esperanza Spalding.
A three-time BBC Writer-in-Residence, Rommi is a guest curator of the BBC Radio 4 programme Poetry Please and a contributor to programmes ranging from Front Row to The Verb, The Essay to Woman’s Hour.
The inaugural British Parliamentary Writer-in-Residence and Poet-in-Residence for Keats House, Hampstead, Rommi was also the Poet-in-Residence for the Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere. Rommi’s fifth collaboration as librettist with the baritone and composer Roderick Williams responds to the oratory of Dr Martin Luther King. It will be performed by the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral in December 2024.
www.rommi-smith.co.uk
@rommismith
Writer and Presenter, Dr Rommi Smith
Producer, Polly Thomas
Exec producer, Eloise Whitmore
A Naked Production for BBC Radio 3
TUE 22:00 Night Tracks (m001zmz5)
Sublime sounds for nightfall
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
TUE 23:30 'Round Midnight (m0025tyk)
New Fabienne Ambuehl
‘Round Midnight is presented by award-winning saxophonist Soweto Kinch. This weekday late-night show celebrates the thriving UK jazz scene and spotlights the best new music alongside incredible acts from past decades.
Singer and bandleader Michael Mwenso is back with his second 4/4 selection - tonight he shares a favourite by vocal great Carmen McRae.
Plus, there are tracks from Moonfish, Tim Garland and Jaubi.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
WEDNESDAY 18 DECEMBER 2024
WED 00:30 Through the Night (m0025tym)
Mäkelä and Lozakovich play Brahms's Double Concerto
A unique season finale where the Oslo Philharmonic's chief conductor Klaus Mäkelä pulled out his old cello to perform Brahms's touching Double Concerto with one of the greatest young violinists of our time - Daniel Lozakovich, whilst simultaneously leading the orchestra. Brahms's first Symphony completes the programme. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Double Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor, Op 102
Daniel Lozakovich (violin), Klaus Mäkelä (cello), Oslo Philharmonic, Klaus Mäkelä (conductor)
01:04 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Symphony no 1 in C minor, Op 68
Oslo Philharmonic, Klaus Mäkelä (conductor)
01:52 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Quartet for strings no 1 in C minor, Op 51 no 1
Casals Quartet
02:25 AM
Traditional, arr. Hakon Nystedt
Astri mi Astri
Oslo Chamber Chorus, Hakon Nystedt (director)
02:31 AM
Muzio Clementi (1752-1832)
Excerpts from ’Gradus ad Parnassum’
Michele Campanella (piano)
02:54 AM
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Serenade for tenor horn and string orchestra, Op 31
Benjamin Butterfield (tenor), James Sommerville (horn), Manitoba Chamber Orchestra, Simon Streatfield (conductor)
03:18 AM
Emil Sjogren (1853-1918)
Two Lyrical Pieces
Per Enoksson (violin), Peter Nagy (piano)
03:29 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Overture from Suite no 1 in C major, BWV.1066
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Philippe Herreweghe (conductor)
03:39 AM
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562-1621)
O Domine Jesu Christe
Netherlands Chamber Choir, Unknown, Paul van Nevel (conductor)
03:47 AM
Ferenc Farkas (1905-2000)
5 Ancient Hungarian Dances for wind quintet
Galliard Ensemble
03:57 AM
Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884)
Vltava (Moldau) from 'Ma Vlast'
Orchestre du Conservatoire de Musique du Quebec, Raffi Armenian (conductor)
04:09 AM
Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger (c.1580-1651)
Toccata arpeggiata, Toccata seconda, and Colascione for chittarone
Lee Santana (theorbo)
04:17 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
9 Variations on a minuet by Duport, K573
Christian Ihle Hadland (piano)
04:31 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Violin Concerto in F minor, RV.297 'L'Inverno'
Elizabeth Wallfisch (baroque violin), Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Paul Dyer (director)
04:39 AM
Alphons Diepenbrock (1862-1921)
L'Invitation au voyage
Christa Pfeiler (mezzo soprano), Rudolf Jansen (piano)
04:45 AM
Tauno Pylkkanen (1918-1980)
Suite for oboe and strings, Op 32
Aale Lindgren (oboe), Finnish Radio Orchestra, Petri Sakari (conductor)
04:54 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Hungarian Rhapsody no 1 for piano in E major, S.244 no 1
Jeno Jando (piano)
05:08 AM
Arvo Part (b.1935)
Credo
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Marrit Gerretz-Traksmann (piano), Estonia National Symphony Orchestra, Arvo Volmer (conductor)
05:20 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Symphony no 88 in G major, H.
1.88
Danish Radio Chamber Orchestra, Adam Fischer (conductor)
05:42 AM
Joaquin Rodrigo (1901-1999)
Concierto de Aranjuez
Norbert Kraft (guitar), Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Kazuhiro Koizumi (conductor)
06:04 AM
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757), Walter Gieseking (1895-1956)
Chaconne on a Theme by Scarlatti after Keyboard Sonata in D minor K 32
Joseph Moog (piano)
06:11 AM
Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928-2016)
Cantus Arcticus, Concerto for Birds and Orchestra, Op 61
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste (conductor)
WED 06:30 Breakfast (m0025tfk)
Your classical commute
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's award-winning classical breakfast show with music that captures the mood of the morning. Email your requests to 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
WED 09:30 Essential Classics (m0025tfm)
The best classical morning music
Georgia Mann plays the best in classical music, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites.
1000 Playlist starter – listen and send us your ideas for the next step in our musical journey today.
1030 Essential Carol - introduced by a special guest
1115 Playlist reveal – a sequence of music suggested by you in response to our starter today.
1145 Slow Moment – time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
1230 Album of the Week
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
WED 13:00 Classical Live (m0025tfp)
Schubert's 'Trout' Quintet in Concert
Fiona Talkington marks the 60th anniversary of the celebrated Nash Ensemble with unique concert recordings, including Schubert's 'Trout' Quintet. Elsewhere, pianist Yuja Wang joins Classical Live's Orchestra-in-Focus the Berlin Philharmonic to perform Prokofiev's youthful first Piano Concerto. Elsewhere, reflecting the season, the BBC Singers offer a selection of specially recorded carols by contemporary composers.
***
1pm
Claude Debussy, transc. David Walter
Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune
Maria Theresia von Paradis
Sicilienne
Liv Migdal (violin)
German Chamber Orchestra, Berlin
Gabriel Adorjan (conductor)
Mykola Leontovych, arr. Desmond Earley
Carol of the Bells
Choral Scholars of University College, Dublin
Irish Chamber Orchestra
Desmond Earley (conductor)
Serge Prokofiev
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat major, Op.10
Yuja Wang (piano)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Petrenko (conductor)
William Whitehead
Alleluya, a new work this day is crowned
Philip Lawson
Veni, veni Emmanuel
Kristina Arakelyan
O Adonai (BBC Commission, world premiere)
BBC Singers
Tom Winpenny (organ)
Owain Park (conductor)
***
2pm
Franz Schubert
Piano Quintet in A major D.667 'Trout'
Nash Ensemble
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Franz Schubert
Rondo in A major, D.951
Martha Argerich (piano)
Daniel Barenboim (piano)
WED 15:00 Choral Evensong (m0025tfr)
Llandaff Cathedral
Live from Llandaff Cathedral.
Introit: Drop down ye heavens (Judith Weir)
Responses: Smith
Office hymn: Creator of the stars of night (Conditor alme siderum, arr. John Scott)
Psalms 93, 94 (Atkins, Clark, Ley, Garrett, Moore)
First Lesson: Exodus 3 vv1-6
Canticles: Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis On Plainsong Themes (Gerald Near)
Second Lesson: Acts 7 vv20-36
Anthem: O nata lux de lumine (Morten Lauridsen)
Hymn: O come, O come Emmanuel (Veni Emmanuel)
Voluntary: Toccata on Veni Emmanuel (Andrew Carter)
Stephen Moore (Director of Music)
Aaron Shilson (Assistant Director of Music)
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
WED 16:00 Composer of the Week (m001g3mc)
JS Bach at Christmas
Cöthen, 1721
Bach’s next job takes him away from the church music duties he’s known all his life. Christmases will feel very different in Cöthen. With Donald Macleod.
Christmas can be special wherever you live, but to experience a truly Christmassy Christmas, many would say that the only place to go is Germany. Plenty of Britain’s favourite Yuletide traditions originated there and Germany’s citizens have always had a special knack for celebrating this time of year. This was certainly true in JS Bach’s lifetime and, right through his career, he produced quantities of amazing Christmas music that we still love and revere today. All this week, Donald Macleod invites us to join Bach and his family during the Christmas season, at five different periods in his life, to see how his story develops and revel in the glorious works he created for Christmastime.
Today, Donald takes us to the town of Cöthen where Bach has accepted the post of overseeing musical entertainments at the Prince’s palace. For the first time in his career, Bach is not required to provide music for church services, even at Christmas. However, Bach and his family still find plenty of ways to enjoy a festive and musical Christmas season, especially in 1721 when there’s a very special celebration.
Tritt auf die Glaubensbahn, BWV 152: 1. Sinfonia
Freiburger Barockorchester, directed by Petra Müllejan
Der Himmel dacht auf Anhalts Ruhm und Glück, BWV 66a: 2. Traget ihr Lufte den Jubel von hinnen
Wiebke Lehmkuhl, alto; Mitteldeutsche Hofmusik, directed by Alexander Ferdinand Grychtolik
Brandenburg Concerto No 4: 1. Allegro
Academy of Ancient Music, directed by Richard Egarr.
15 sinfonias for keyboard: No 11 in Gm, BWV 797; No 12 in A, BWV 798; No 13 in Am, BWV 799; No 10 in G, BWV 796
Angela Hewitt, piano
Mein Herze schwimmt im Blut, BWV 199
Nancy Argenta, soprano; Ensemble Sonnerie; directed by Monica Huggett
WED 17:00 In Tune (m0025tfv)
Wind down from the day with classical
Katie Derham is joined for live music in the studio by the Bevan Family Consort. Plus, conductor Gavin Sutherland speaks about Swan Lake from English National Ballet which premieres on BBC TWO on Christmas Day.
WED 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m0025tfx)
Half an hour of the finest classical music
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music including works by Mozart and Schubert, with some festive favourites sprinkled throughout.
Produced by Ella Lee
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Mixtape”
WED 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m0025tfz)
Christmas with the BBC Singers and Abel Selaocoe
The BBC Singers join forces once more with their Artist in Association Abel Selaocoe, for a concert of music for the Christmas season from around the world.
Recorded at Milton Court, London, on 5th December 2024. Presented by Al Ryan.
Arr. Karl Jenkins: Gaudete
Abel Selaocoe: Emmanuele
Ariel Ramírez Arr.: Peter Knight: La Peregrinación
Mateo Flecha: Ríu Ríu Chíu
Abel Selaocoe, arr. Thomas: Ancestral Affirmations
Abel Selaocoe, arr. Thomas: Tsohle Tsohle
William Walton: Make we joy now in this fest
Johannes Eccard: Vom Himmel hoch
Abel Selaocoe: Tshepo
Hieronymus Praetorius: Joseph, lieber Joseph mein
Francis Grier: Alleluia! I bring you news of great joy
Abel Selaocoe: Hlokomela
Michael Praetorius: Ein Kind geborn in Bethlehem
Michael Praetorius: Es ist ein Ros entsprungen
Abel Selaocoe, arr. Thomas: Lerato/Love
Abel Selaocoe, arr. Thomas: iBuyile
Jacobus Handl: Canite tuba
Hans Leo Hasler: Hodie Christus natus est
Christian Onyeji: Amuworo ayi otu nwa
Encore: J.S.Bach arr. Thomas: Sarabande from Cello Suite No. 6 BWV 1012
BBC Singers
Abel Selaocoe - cello/vocals
Sidiki Dembélé - African Percussion
Alan Keary - Double Bass
Fred Thomas - Piano
Grace Rossiter - conductor
WED 21:45 The Essay (m0025tg1)
Full Moon on Progress St
Billie Holliday in Love at MoMA
Billie Holiday performed for rapt audiences at the Museum of Modern Art, bringing the music of night clubs to galleries of high society New York. In a lesser-known performance on June 4th 1941, she was described by the New York Tribune as a “specialist in singing various degrees of blueness.” The event curator was Louise Crane, the partner of celebrated poet Elizabeth Bishop. This essay presents the little-known story of the love triangle between Holiday, Bishop and Crane, through a recounting of that incredible night at MoMA.
This essay series, Full Moon on Progress Street takes a close look at a key moment and song to reveal the hidden lives and interests of some of the most important Black female artists of the 20th century – Ella Fitzgerald, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Dr Rommi Smith, life-long jazz and blues listener, considers a key moment in the creative life of each artist, reappraising what we think we know about them from popular culture. Each essay “flips the script”, to show a different hidden story. All these iconic women are broadly misrepresented - history and discrimination airbrushing their interests, politics, sexualities, creative legacy and passions.
Dr Rommi Smith is a writer, performer and academic, whose research centres the performances of historical Black jazz and blues women within the context of civil rights. Rommi’s academic work is published by, amongst others, New York University Press and Routledge. Contributors to her research include: five-time Grammy-winning NEA jazz master, Dianne Reeves and five-time Grammy-winning musician, Dr Esperanza Spalding. A three-time BBC Writer-in-Residence, Rommi is a guest curator of the BBC Radio 4 programme, Poetry Please and a contributor to programmes ranging from Front Row to The Verb, The Essay to Woman’s Hour.
The inaugural British Parliamentary Writer-in-Residence and Poet-in-Residence for Keats House, Hampstead, Rommi was also the Poet-in-Residence for the Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere. Rommi’s fifth collaboration as librettist with the baritone and composer Roderick Williams responds to the oratory of Dr Martin Luther King. It will be performed by the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral in December 2024.
www.rommi-smith.co.uk
@rommismith
Writer and Presenter, Dr Rommi Smith
Producer, Polly Thomas
Exec producer, Eloise Whitmore
A Naked Production for BBC Radio 3
WED 22:00 Night Tracks (m001znzv)
Harmonious music for nighttime listening
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
WED 23:30 'Round Midnight (m0025tg3)
Another live highlight from Billy Cobham
‘Round Midnight is presented by award-winning saxophonist Soweto Kinch. This weekday late-night show celebrates the thriving UK jazz scene and spotlights the best new music alongside incredible acts from past decades.
Michael Mwenso is guiding us around his record collection all this week. Another of the all-time great jazz singers is his third pick - Betty Carter.
Plus there’s music from Bill Laurance & Michael League, Blue Lab Beats and Vince Guaraldi.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
THURSDAY 19 DECEMBER 2024
THU 00:30 Through the Night (m0025tg5)
The Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra's 80th Jubilee Concert
From Budapest, Liszt, Mendelssohn and Strauss. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Les Préludes, S.97, Symphonic poem no 3
Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Budapest, Tamas Vasary (conductor)
12:47 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Psalm 42 'Wie der Hirsch schreit', Op 42, cantata
Polina Pastirchak (soprano), Hungarian Radio Chorus, Budapest, Zoltan Pad (director), Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Budapest, Janos Kovacs (conductor)
01:12 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Ein Heldenleben, Op 40
Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Budapest, Riccardo Frizza (conductor)
01:57 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
12 Studies Op 25 for piano
Lukas Geniusas (piano)
02:31 AM
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)
Cello Concerto in B minor, Op 104
Truls Mork (cello), Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Andrew Litton (conductor)
03:12 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Am Abend aber desselbigen Sabbats, BWV.42 - cantata
Voces Suaves, Cafebaum
03:40 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Scherzo no 1 in B flat major, D.593
Halina Radvilaite (piano)
03:46 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Mandolin Concerto in C major, RV.425
Avi Avital (mandolin), Zurich Chamber Orchestra, Willi Zimmermann (conductor)
03:54 AM
Stanislaw Moniuszko (1819-1872)
Duet (Halka & Janusz) : "Oh Janusz my darling" from Halka, Act I
Ewa Vesin (soprano), Stanislaw Kufluk (baritone), Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Lukasz Borowicz (conductor)
04:03 AM
Joseph Jongen (1873-1953)
Allegro appassionato, Op 95 no 2
Grumiaux Trio
04:10 AM
William Lawes (1602-1645)
Suite a 4 in G minor
Concordia, Mark Levy (conductor)
04:17 AM
Gabriel Faure (1845-1924)
Fantasy for flute and piano
Lorant Kovacs (flute), Erika Lux (piano)
04:22 AM
Johan Svendsen (1840-1911)
Norwegian artists' carnival, Op 14 (Norsk kunstnerkarneval)
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ari Rasilainen (conductor)
04:31 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
"Giovedi" TWV42:Es2 – from "Pyrmonter Kurwoche"
Albrecht Rau (violin), Heinrich Rau (viola), Clemens Malich (cello), Wolfgang Hochstein (harpsichord)
04:40 AM
Camille Saint-Saens (1835-1921)
Havanaise, Op 83
Vilmos Szabadi (violin), Marta Gulyas (piano)
04:49 AM
Dietrich Buxtehude (1637-1707)
Kantate no 5 Ad Pectus - Sicut modo geniti
La Cetra Vocalensemble Basel, La Cetra Barockorchester Basel, Carlos Federico Sepulveda (conductor)
04:58 AM
Carl Ludwig Lithander (1773-1843)
Rondo for flute and keyboard, Op 8
Mikael Helasvuo (flute), Tuija Hakkila (pianoforte)
05:05 AM
George Enescu (1881-1955)
Prélude à l'unisson, from Orchestral Suite no 1 in C major, Op 9
WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Cristian Măcelaru (conductor)
05:14 AM
Darius Milhaud (1892-1974), arr. Timothy Kain
Scaramouche
Guitar Trek
05:24 AM
Antoine Reicha (1770-1836)
Symphony 'a grande orchestre' in E flat major, Op 41
Capella Coloniensis, Hans-Martin Linde (director)
05:49 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Sonatine
Andre Laplante (piano)
06:01 AM
Bedrich Smetana (1824-1884)
Piano Trio in G minor, Op 15
Suk Trio
THU 06:30 Breakfast (m0025v3r)
Classical rise and shine
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's award-winning classical breakfast show with music that captures the mood of the morning. Email your requests to 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
THU 09:30 Essential Classics (m0025v3t)
Refresh your morning with classical music
Georgia Mann plays the best in classical music, with familiar favourites alongside new discoveries and musical surprises.
1000 Playlist starter – listen and send us your ideas for the next step in our musical journey today.
1030 Essential Carol - introduced by a special guest
1115 Playlist reveal – a sequence of music suggested by you in response to our starter today.
1145 Slow Moment – time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
1230 Album of the Week
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
THU 13:00 Classical Live (m0025v3w)
Mozart's 'Gran Partita' Serenade in Concert
Celebrating 60 years of one of this country's best-loved chamber groups, the Nash Ensemble, Elizabeth Alker introduces specially made recordings, including a performance of Beethoven's Septet and Mozart's great wind serenade, the 'Gran Partita'. Elsewhere, star pianist Beatrice Rana joins Classical Live Orchestra-in-Focus the Berlin Philharmonic in Clara Schumann's Piano Concerto. Elizabeth reflects the season with a garland of contemporary carols from the BBC Singers and a complete performance of Bach's Advent Cantata 'Wachet auf'.
***
from
1pm
Ludwig van Beethoven
Septet in E-flat major, Op.20
Nash Ensemble
***
from
2pm
Johann Sebastian Bach
Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 140
Kathrin Lorenzen (soprano)
Magnus Wennerberg (tenor)
Lars Johansson Brissman (bass)
Swedish Radio Choir
Capella Suecia (ensemble)
Fredrik Malmberg (conductor)
Clara Schumann
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op.7
Beatrice Rana (piano)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Yannick Nézet-Séguin (conductor)
Sasha Johnson Manning
Balulalow
Stephen Cleobury
Joys Seven
Owain Park
O Magnum Mysterium
BBC Singers
Tom Winpenny (organ)
Owain Park (conductor)
***
from
3pm
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Serenade in B-flat major K.361 'Gran Partita'
Nash Ensemble
THU 16:00 Composer of the Week (m001g3ny)
JS Bach at Christmas
Leipzig, 1734
After a decade of providing extraordinary music to Leipzig’s churches, Bach makes plans for his most elaborate Christmas yet. With Donald Macleod.
Christmas can be special wherever you live, but to experience a truly Christmassy Christmas, many would say that the only place to go is Germany. Plenty of Britain’s favourite Yuletide traditions originated there and Germany’s citizens have always had a special knack for celebrating this time of year. This was certainly true in JS Bach’s lifetime and, right through his career, he produced quantities of amazing Christmas music that we still love and revere today. All this week, Donald Macleod invites us to join Bach and his family during the Christmas season, at five different periods in his life, to see how his story develops and revel in the glorious works he created for Christmastime.
Today, Donald returns us to Leipzig, ten years after we previously visited Bach there and saw him eager to impress his new employers. In 1734 we find an altogether more jaded Bach, feeling undermined and under-appreciated. The composer’s famous temper had led to more than one run-in with his employers and colleagues. So what was keeping him in Leipzig? And what prompted him to embark on his most ambitious Christmas project yet?
Christmas Oratorio, BWV248, Part 6: Opening Chorus: Herr, wenn die stolzen Feinde schnauben
Bach Collegium Japan, directed by Masaaki Suzuki
Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV1043: 2. Largo ma non tanto
Simon Standage, violin; Elizabeth Wilcock, violin; The English Concert; directed by Trevor Pinnock
Flute Sonata No 4 in C major, BWV1033: 1. Andante: Presto & 2. Allegro
Barthold Kuijken, flute; Ewald Demeyere, harpsichord
Mass in B minor, BWV 232: Domine Deus & Qui tollis peccata mundi
Christina Landshamer, soprano; Kenneth Tarver, tenor; Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks; Concerto Köln; directed by Peter Dijkstra
Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248, Part 3 (complete)
Monika Frimmer, soprano; Yoshikazu Mera, counter-tenor; Gerd Türk, tenor; Peter Kooij, bass; Bach Collegium Japan; directed by Masaaki Suzuki
THU 17:00 In Tune (m0025v3z)
The biggest names in classical music
Katie Derham has live music from the Salieca Piano Trio. Plus, tenor Pene Pati talks to Katie about his debut at the Royal Opera House.
To listen using most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play In Tune"
THU 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m0025v41)
Classical music to inspire you
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites in a festive edition of The Classical Mixtape. Expect some carols with music by Howells, Joanna Marsh, Vivaldi and Patrick Doyle's soundtrack to Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
Produced by Zerlina Vulliamy.
THU 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m0025v43)
Schütz - The Christmas Story
Celebrated early music ensemble Arcangelo perform a programme of works by Praetorius, Schein and among others Vierdanck, and conclude their concert from the stage of Wigmore Hall in London with Schütz's setting of the nativity story - Die Weihnachtshistorie.
Recorded on Sunday and introduced by Ian Skelly
Schütz: Hodie Christus natus est SWV456
Vierdanck: Sonata No. 28
Praetorius: Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern
Schein: Banchetto musicale - Intrada a4
Schein: Suite No. 10 in D minor from Banchetto musicale: Gagliarda & Allemanda
Schütz: Heute ist Christus der Herr geboren SWV439
Praetorius: Terpsichore - Ballet TMA 268 & La Bourée TMA 32
Schütz: Auf dem Gebirge SWV396
Schein: Suite No. 10 in D minor from Banchetto musicale - Padouana
Schütz: Siehe, es erschien der Engel des Herren SWV403
Schütz: Die Weihnachtshistorie (The Christmas Story) SWV435
Arcangelo
Jonathan Cohen (director)
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 In Concert"
THU 21:45 The Essay (m0025v45)
Full Moon on Progress St
Nina Simone’s Political Romance
This essay revisits Nina Simone’s apolitical, debut headline performance at Carnegie Hall on April 12th, 1963. Playwright Lorraine Hansberry attended and asked her afterwards what she was going to do to support the civil rights movement? Within six months, Simone was performing at the March on Washington and had composed the civil rights’ anthem Mississippi Goddam.
This essay series, Full Moon on Progress Street takes a close look at a key moment and song to reveal the hidden lives and interests of some of the most important Black female artists of the 20th century – Ella Fitzgerald, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Dr Rommi Smith, life-long jazz and blues listener, considers a key moment in the creative life of each artist, reappraising what we think we know about them from popular culture. Each essay “flips the script”, to show a different hidden story. All these iconic women are broadly misrepresented - history and discrimination airbrushing their interests, politics, sexualities, creative legacy and passions.
Dr Rommi Smith is a writer, performer and academic, whose research centres the performances of historical Black jazz and blues women within the context of civil rights. Rommi’s academic work is published by, amongst others, New York University Press and Routledge. Contributors to her research include: five-time Grammy-winning NEA jazz master, Dianne Reeves and five-time Grammy-winning musician, Dr Esperanza Spalding.
A three-time BBC Writer-in-Residence, Rommi is a guest curator of the BBC Radio 4 programme, Poetry Please and a contributor to programmes ranging from Front Row to The Verb, The Essay to Woman’s Hour.
The inaugural British Parliamentary Writer-in-Residence and Poet-in-Residence for Keats House, Hampstead, Rommi was also the Poet-in-Residence for the Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere. Rommi’s fifth collaboration as librettist with the baritone and composer Roderick Williams responds to the oratory of Dr Martin Luther King. It will be performed by the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral in December 2024.
www.rommi-smith.co.uk
@rommismith
Writer and Presenter, Dr Rommi Smith
Producer, Polly Thomas
Exec producer, Eloise Whitmore
A Naked Production for BBC Radio 3
THU 22:00 Night Tracks (m002031w)
Blissful sounds for night owls
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
THU 23:30 'Round Midnight (m0025v47)
AuB's recent single
'Round Midnight is presented by award-winning saxophonist Soweto Kinch. This weekday late-night show celebrates the thriving UK jazz scene and spotlights the best new music alongside incredible acts from past decades.
Vocalist and bandleader Michael Mwenso has been selecting his most treasured recordings all this week in 4/4. Michael's final choice is a festive favourite by Aretha Franklin.
There's also time for music from Nubiyan Twist, John Pope and Rebecca Nash.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
FRIDAY 20 DECEMBER 2024
FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m0025v49)
Schubert from Schwarzenberg
Pianist Paul Lewis plays Schubert Sonatas. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Piano Sonata no 20 in A major, D. 959
Paul Lewis (piano)
01:09 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Piano Sonata no 21 in B flat major, D. 960
Paul Lewis (piano)
01:46 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Quartet no 14 in D minor 'Death and the Maiden', D 810
Ciurlionis Quartet
02:31 AM
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
L'Apotheose de la Danse - orchestral suite of dance music by Rameau
Les Musiciens du Louvre, Marc Minkowski (conductor)
03:09 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Keyboard Trio no 27 in A flat, Hob. XV:14
Esther Hoppe (violin), Christian Poltera (cello), Hiroko Sakagami (piano)
03:31 AM
Ludvig Norman (1831-1885), Nicolaus Hermanni (author)
Rosa rorans bonitatem, Op 45
Eva Wedin (mezzo soprano), Swedish Radio Choir, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Gustav Sjokvist (conductor)
03:39 AM
Hugo Alfven (1872-1960)
Pictures from the Archipelago, Three Piano Pieces, Op 17
Valma Rydstrom (piano)
03:49 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arr. Anton Webern
Ricercar a 6 from 'The Musical Offering', BWV 1079
Basel Chamber Orchestra, Heinz Holliger (conductor)
03:58 AM
Johannes Cornago (fl.1450-1475), Johannes Ockeghem (1410-1497)
Qu'es mi vida, preguntays
Montserrat Figueras (soprano), Hesperion XXI, Jordi Savall (director)
04:03 AM
Nicolas Chedeville (1705-1782)
Recorder Sonata in G minor, Op 13 no 6
Ensemble 1700, Dorothee Oberlinger (director)
04:11 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Ballade no 1 in G minor, Op 23
Shura Cherkassky (piano)
04:20 AM
Toivo Kuula (1883-1918)
Festive March, Op 13
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, George de Godzinsky (conductor)
04:31 AM
Willem De Fesch (1687-1761)
Concerto for 2 flutes and orchestra in G minor, Op 5 no 2
Jed Wentz (flute), Marion Moonen (flute), Musica ad Rhenum
04:40 AM
Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826)
Aufforderung zum Tanz
Niklas Sivelov (piano)
04:49 AM
Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927)
Varnatt (Spring Night)
Swedish Radio Choir, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Stefan Skold (conductor)
04:58 AM
Malcolm Arnold (1921-2006), arr. John P. Paynter
Little Suite for Brass Band no 1, Op 80
Edmonton Wind Ensemble, Harry Pinchin (conductor)
05:06 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), arr. Duncan Craig
Romance in F major, Op 50
Gyozo Mate (viola), Balazs Szokolay (piano)
05:14 AM
Orlande de Lassus (1532-1594)
Pelli meae consumptis carnibus
King's Singers
05:23 AM
Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904)
American Quartet no 12 in F major, Op 96
Escher Quartet
05:47 AM
Fernando Sor (1778-1839)
Fantaisie et variations brillantes sur 2 airs favoris connus
Tomaz Rajteric (guitar)
06:01 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Symphony no 4 in A major, Op 90 'Italian'
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Heinz Wallberg (conductor)
FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m0025t79)
Start the day with classical music
Petroc Trelawny presents Radio 3's award-winning classical breakfast show with the Friday poem and music that captures the mood of the morning.
Email your requests to 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
FRI 09:30 Essential Classics (m0025t7c)
Classical soundtrack for your morning
Georgia Mann plays the best in classical music, featuring new discoveries, some musical surprises and plenty of familiar favourites.
1000 Playlist starter – listen and send us your ideas for the next step in our musical journey today.
1030 Essential Carol - introduced by a special guest
1115 Playlist reveal – a sequence of music suggested by you in response to our starter today.
1145 Slow Moment – time to take a break for a moment's musical reflection.
1230 Album of the Week
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
FRI 13:00 Classical Live (m0025t7f)
The Nash Ensemble's Diamond Anniversary
Elizabeth Alker with unique concert recordings from across the UK and Europe. Includes a celebration of the Nash Ensemble's 60th Anniversary with a special performance of Mozart's Clarinet Quintet. Elsewhere, Elizabeth showcases Classical Live's Orchestra-in-Focus the Berlin Philharmonic as soloist Lisa Batiashvili joins forces with it in a tour-de-force rendition of the Violin Concerto by Brahms. To mark the festive season, the BBC Singers provide a selection of contemporary carols.
***
1pm
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Clarinet Quintet in A major, K.581
Benjamin Britten
3 Divertimenti for String Quartet
Nash Ensemble
Roxanna Panufnik
Glory be to the word
Jamie W. Hall
And is it true?
BBC Singers
Tom Winpenny (organ)
Owain Park (conductor)
***
2pm
Sergey Rachmaninov
Variations on a Theme of Corelli, Op. 42
Nikolai Lugansky (piano)
Cecilia McDowall
Gaude et Laetare
Robert Lucas Pearsall, arr. Stuart Nicholson
In dulci jubilo
BBC Singers
Tom Winpenny (organ)
Owain Park (conductor)
***
2.30pm
Johannes Brahms
Violin Concerto in D major, Op.77
Lisa Batiashvili (violin)
Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra
Daniel Harding (conductor)
***
from
3pm
Harold Darke, arr. Matthew Knight
In the Bleak Midwinter (arr. for brass septet)
Septura (ensemble)
John Francis Wade, descant Philip Ledger
O come, all ye faithful
Westminster Cathedral Choir
Ian Simcock (organ)
James O'Donnell (conductor)
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky
The Sleeping Beauty (excerpts)
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Ryan Wigglesworth (conductor)
John Ireland
The Holy boy (arr. for orchestra)
BBC Concert Orchestra
David Hill (conductor)
FRI 16:00 Composer of the Week (m001g3k2)
JS Bach at Christmas
Leipzig, 1745
Bach resists pressure to give up his status as music director for Christmas services at Leipzig’s University Church. Presented by Donald Macleod.
Christmas can be special wherever you live, but to experience a truly Christmassy Christmas, many would say that the only place to go is Germany. Plenty of Britain’s favourite Yuletide traditions originated there and Germany’s citizens have always had a special knack for celebrating this time of year. This was certainly true in J.S. Bach’s lifetime and, right through his career, he produced quantities of amazing Christmas music that we still love and revere today. All this week, Donald Macleod invites us to join Bach and his family during the Christmas season, at five different periods in his life, to see how his story develops and revel in the glorious works he created for Christmastime.
In this final Programme, Donald follows Bach and his musicians as they’re forced to sprint between churches on Christmas Day, and we see the old composer produce a splendid final Christmas Cantata for the scholars of Leipzig University.
Unser Mund sei voll Lachens, BWV 110: Opening Chorus
Maria Keohane, soprano; Carlos Mena, alto; Julian Prégardien, tenor; Stéphan MacLeod, bass; Ricercar Consort; directed by Philippe Pierlot
A Musical Offering, BWV 1079, Sonata sopr'il Sogetto Reale a Traversa, Violino e Continuo: 1. Largo & 2. Allegro
Barthold Kuijken, flute; Sigiswald Kuijken, violin; Wieland Kuijken, viola; Robert Kohnen, harpsichord
Canonic Variations on 'Vom Himmel hoch, da komm ich her', BWV 769
Simon Preston, organ
Gloria in excelsis Deo, BWV 191
Claron McFadden, soprano; Christoph Genz, tenor; Monteverdi Choir; English Baroque Soloists; directed by Sir John Eliot Gardiner
Puer natus in Bethlehem, BWV 603
Dunedin Consort, directed by John Butt
FRI 17:00 In Tune (m0025t7j)
In Tune - the Christmas edition
Katie Derham spreads yuletide cheer in this special edition of In Tune, featuring festive performances from our studios in London and Salford by the show's greatest artists and friends, including live appearances by the Frank Dupree Trio, Gesualdo Six, and, among others, the iconic Black Dyke Band.
FRI 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m001tb2n)
Classical music for your journey
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.
FRI 19:30 Friday Night is Music Night (m0025t7n)
Sounds of Christmas
A festive seasonal edition of our weekly Friday concert, live from The Maltings in Snape, featuring singer Tony Momrelle, conductor Gavin Sutherland, the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC Singers.
Presented by Petroc Trelawny.
Nigel Hess A Christmas Overture
Adam O Holy Night
Leontovych The Carol of the Bells
Delius Sleigh Ride
Leroy Anderson Sleigh Ride
Berlin White Christmas
Peter Davison Christmas Fantasy for Solo Violin & Orchestra
Adam Saunders Journey to Lapland
INTERVAL
Coleridge-Taylor Christmas Overture
Tormé The Christmas Song
Martin Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Angela Morley Snow Ride
Prokofiev Troika from Lieutenant Kijé
Gruber Silent Night*
Sally Beamish In The Stillness*
Richard Bissill A Christmas Carnival
Tony Momrelle (singer)
Charles Mutter (violin)
BBC Singers
BBC Concert Orchestra
Gavin Sutherland (conductor)
FRI 21:45 The Essay (m0025t7q)
Full Moon on Progress St
Billie Holiday: Strange Fruit
For her final televised performance in 1959, Billie Holiday chose to sing the iconic song Strange Fruit - a powerful anti-lynching anthem. This extraordinary performance, for the British television show 'Chelsea at Nine', shows a musician at her greatest power, barely a few months before her untimely death.
This essay series, Full Moon on Progress Street takes a close look at a key moment and song to reveal the hidden lives and interests of some of the most important Black female artists of the 20th century – Ella Fitzgerald, Big Mama Thornton, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. Dr Rommi Smith, life-long jazz and blues listener, considers a key moment in the creative life of each artist, reappraising what we think we know about them from popular culture. Each essay “flips the script”, to show a different hidden story. All these iconic women are broadly misrepresented - history and discrimination airbrushing their interests, politics, sexualities, creative legacy and passions.
Dr Rommi Smith is a writer, performer and academic, whose research centres the performances of historical Black jazz and blues women within the context of civil rights. Rommi’s academic work is published by, amongst others, New York University Press and Routledge. Contributors to her research include: five-time Grammy-winning NEA jazz master, Dianne Reeves and five-time Grammy-winning musician, Dr Esperanza Spalding.
A three-time BBC Writer-in-Residence, Rommi is a guest curator of the BBC Radio 4 programme, Poetry Please and a contributor to programmes ranging from Front Row to The Verb, The Essay to Woman’s Hour.
The inaugural British Parliamentary Writer-in-Residence and Poet-in-Residence for Keats House, Hampstead, Rommi was also the Poet-in-Residence for the Wordsworth Trust, Grasmere. Rommi’s fifth collaboration as librettist with the baritone and composer Roderick Williams responds to the oratory of Dr Martin Luther King. It will be performed by the choir of St Paul’s Cathedral in December 2024.
www.rommi-smith.co.uk
@rommismith
Writer and Presenter, Dr Rommi Smith
Producer, Polly Thomas
Exec producer, Eloise Whitmore
A Naked Production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 22:00 Late Junction (m0025t7t)
Winter Solstice with Shovel Dance Collective
Verity Sharp shares songs for sonically-adventurous souls on the eve of the winter solstice, with the help of nine-piece experimental folk outfit Shovel Dance Collective. Alongside exclusive excerpts from their recent sold-out three day residency at London’s Cafe Oto, the collective offer choice selections for a winter solstice playlist.
Formed in 2019, Shovel Dance Collective’s members unite around a shared love of folk music’s power to transport and connect, its ability to “place you in a great chain of everyday life”, forging intimate connections with “political and emotional actions, past and present.” Their two albums mine folk archives, bringing to light ballads and songs which hold queer histories, proto-feminist narratives, and the voices of working people; whilst their EP series Offcuts and Oddities assemble unfinished moments, cassette tape experiments and field recordings from spaces around England, including church pews, fields, and London’s canal-sides.
Elsewhere in the show, Verity marks the eve of the longest night of the year, holding vigil through the dark with tracks from Björk, Felicia Atkinson and Rosalie Sorrels.
Produced by Cat Gough
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Late Junction”
FRI 23:30 'Round Midnight (m0025t7w)
BBC Young Jazz Musician 2024
This year mark's the 10th anniversary of the BBC Young Jazz Musician competition, which looks to find the best young players from across the country.
Soweto was one of this year's judges, and in this special Friday night programme, he presents highlights from the 2024 final - recorded live at the Queen Elizabeth Hall during the London Jazz Festival. There are original compositions from each of the 2024 finalists: trumpeter Klara Devlin, saxophonist George Johnson, pianist Nils Kavanagh, and the eventual winner, bassist Ursula Harrison.
Plus, there's time for music featuring past winners Xhosa Cole and Deschanel Gordon.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".