SATURDAY 15 NOVEMBER 2025
SAT 00:30 Through the Night (m002lnzj)
Pergolesi's Stabat Mater from Kyiv
From the studios of Ukrainian Radio in Kyiv, Platon Maiboroda Academic Choir of Ukrainian Radio, Liatoshynskyi Capella, soloists and conductor Yuliia Tkach perform Pergolesi's Stabat Mater plus music by Ukrainian composers and performers. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (1710-1736)
Stabat Mater
Liudmyla Monastyrska (soprano), Alla Pozniak (mezzo soprano), Platon Maiboroda Academic Choir of Ukrainian Radio, Liatoshynskyi Capella, Yuliia Tkach (conductor)
01:10 AM
Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912)
La Tristesse, Op 39
Anastasia Kobekina (cello), Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula (piano)
01:17 AM
Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912)
Fantasy on Two Ukrainian Themes for flute and orchestra
Yuri Shut'ko (flute), NRCU Symphony Orchestra, Vyacheslav Blinov (conductor)
01:25 AM
Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927)
Violin Sonata in A minor, Op 19
David Oistrakh (violin), Greta Erikson (piano)
01:45 AM
Reinhold Glière (1875-1956)
Harp Concerto in E flat, Op 74
Emily Hoile (harp), Biel-Solothurn Symphony Orchestra, Kaspar Zehnder (conductor)
02:12 AM
Georges Bizet (1838-1875), transc. Vladimir Horowitz
Virtuoso Fantasy on themes from "Carmen"
Vladimir Horowitz (piano)
02:16 AM
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (1710-1736)
Violin Concerto in B flat major
Andrea Keller (violin), Concerto Köln
02:31 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Symphony no. 8 (Op.88) in G major
KBS Symphony Orchestra, Hubert Soudant (conductor)
03:09 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Kinderszenen, Op 15
Håvard Gimse (piano)
03:29 AM
Vladimir Ruždjak (1922-1987)
5 Folk Tunes for baritone and orchestra
Miroslav Zivkovich (baritone), Croatian Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Mladen Tarbuk (conductor)
03:38 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Chacony in G minor, Z730
Psophos Quartet
03:46 AM
John Foulds (1880-1939)
Keltic Overture, Op 28
BBC Concert Orchestra, Ronald Corp (conductor)
03:54 AM
Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)
4 Visages for viola and piano, Op 238
Silvia Simionescu (viola), Alice Burla (piano)
04:04 AM
László Sáry (b.1940)
Kotyogó ko egy korsóban (Pebble Playing in a Pot)
Amadinda Percussion Group
04:13 AM
Ignaz Moscheles (1794-1870)
La Gaité - Rondo brillant pour le Piano Forte in A major
Tom Beghin (fortepiano)
04:22 AM
Christian Gottfried Krause (1719-1770)
Trio Sonata in D minor
Flor Galante
04:31 AM
Zygmunt Noskowski (1846-1909)
The Highlander's Fantasy, Op 17
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Łukasz Borowicz (conductor)
04:40 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Prelude and Fugue in E minor, Op 35 no 1
Sylviane Deferne (piano)
04:49 AM
Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890)
Ved solnedgang (At sunset) for choir and orchestra, Op 46
Danish National Radio Choir, Danish Radio Concert Orchestra, Roman Zeilinger (conductor)
04:57 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Adagio and Allegro in E flat major (K.Anh.C
17.07) for wind octet
Festival Winds
05:07 AM
Francesco Geminiani (1687-1762)
Concerto Grosso in G minor, Op 3 no 2
Europa Galante, Fabio Biondi (director)
05:15 AM
Anonymous
Ave Potentissima, Geistliches Konzert for soprano, 2 violins
Kamila Zajícková (soprano), Musica Aeterna Bratislava, Peter Zajicek (director)
05:23 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Symphony No. 67 (Hob I:67) in F major
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (conductor)
05:49 AM
Nicolas Chédeville (1705-1782)
Recorder Sonata in G minor, Op 13 no 6
Ensemble 1700, Dorothee Oberlinger (director)
05:57 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet no 1 in F major, Op 18 no 1
Sebastian String Quartet
SAT 06:30 Breakfast (m002m1ln)
Brighten your day with classical music
Hannah French presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
SAT 09:00 Saturday Morning (m002m1lr)
Sara meets Marc-André Hamelin
Sara Mohr-Pietsch meets Canadian pianist Marc-André Hamelin in between takes for his next album on the Hyperion label. He gives an exclusive performance for BBC Radio 3 and talks about his latest album which includes music by Frank Zappa, John Cage and his own compositions.
Anoushka Shankar, superstar of the sitar, chats to Sara about what it meant to receive the Ivor Novello Award for Innovation earlier this week. She reflects on how she went about carving her own path as a sitar player pushing musical boundaries, what makes a great collaboration, and, having added another two to her belt this week, how Grammy nominations have punctuated her musical and family life over the past 25 years.
We also hear from composer Laura Karpman and conductor Marin Alsop about the upcoming world premiere of a full orchestral version of Laura's opera 'Balls', recreating the 'Battle of the Sexes' tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs in 1973.
To listen on most smart speakers just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Saturday Morning'.
SAT 12:00 Earlier... with Jools Holland (m002m1lt)
Jools meets Tanita Tikaram
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 is joined by singer-songwriter Tanita Tikaram as she prepares to perform at the EFG London Jazz Festival. She shares music she loves by JS Bach, Florence Price and Philip Glass.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Earlier with Jools Holland".
SAT 13:00 Music Matters (m002m1lw)
Piano Stories
Imogen Cooper
Piano technician to the greats, Ulrich Gerhartz is in conversation about pianos with his friend Imogen Cooper.
Ulrich Gerhartz is talking pianos with some of the greatest pianists of our age. Ulrich is Director of Concert and Artist Services at Steinway and Sons in London. For the last 30 years he’s been piano technician to the stars of the piano world. When they sit down at a keyboard, it's his job to ensure that these top musicians have the best instrument possible set up for their particular taste and touch.
Great pianists take Ulrich on tour; into recording studios; and to the world’s finest concert halls. Tuning is a small part of what he does as he spends hours preparing each piano to suit each performer.
Here Ulrich is in conversation with his friend, the great pianist Imogen Cooper.
Albeniz: Recuerdos de viaje Op.71 for piano no.6; Rumores de la Caleta
Chopin: Berceuse in D flat major Op.57 for piano
Liszt: 4 Valses oubliees S.215 no.2
Beethoven: 33 Variations on a waltz by Diabelli in C major Op.120 for piano
Albeniz: Iberia - book 3 for piano no.1; El Albaicin
Robert Schumann: Phantasiestucke Op.12 for piano vers. no.1; Des Abends
Producer: Rosie Boulton
A Must Try Softer Production
SAT 14:00 Record Review (m002m1ly)
Bartok's Piano Concerto No 2 in Building a Library with Joanna MacGregor and Andrew McGregor
Andrew McGregor presents some of the week's best new classical releases.
2.10pm
Andrew Matthews-Owen joins Andrew to discuss four new releases that have caught his attention, ranging from a new piano concerto by Polish pianist, composer and singer Hania Rani to Piano Trios by Fauré and Shostakovich.
3pm
Building a Library. Pianist Joanna MacGregor assesses recordings of Bartok's Piano Concerto No 2 and makes a top recommendation.
Composed in 1930-31, Bartok's Piano Concerto No 2 is one of the most notoriously difficult pieces for piano and orchestra. Responding to criticism that his first piano concerto had been too hard for pianists and audiences alike, Bartok attempted to simplify his musical style in his second concerto. But the virtuosity demanded of the soloist in the second is very high. Fellow Hungarian András Schiff has said that, "For the piano player, it's a finger-breaking piece ... probably the single most difficult piece that I have ever played, and I usually end up with a keyboard covered by blood."
Top choice:
Bartok
Piano concerto no.2 Sz.95
Geza Anda (piano)
Radio Symphony Orchestra Berlin
Ferenc Fricsay (conductor)
Deutsche Grammophon 4473992
3.45pm
Record of the Week. Andrew picks the new recording that has most impressed him this week.
SAT 16:00 Sound of Cinema (m002m1m0)
Edith speaks to Isobel Waller-Bridge
Join Edith Bowman each week as she delves into the finest music from film and television. In this episode, Edith sits down with acclaimed composer Isobel Waller-Bridge to discuss her creative journey, her approach to scoring, and her work on projects such as The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse.
Dame Evelyn Glennie shares her Pick of the Flicks, while Scottish composer Craig Armstrong joins us for his choice on this week's Harmonising Hollywood, offering a behind-the-scenes look at a memorable film score or soundtrack moment.
Plus, discover recent releases from Natalie Holt, Howard Shore, and Volker Bertelmann.
SAT 17:00 This Classical Life (m002m2zq)
Jess Gillam with... Joe Stilgoe
Jess Gillam sits down for a listening party with the singer, pianist, composer and broadcaster Joe Stilgoe. The son of entertainer Richard Stilgoe, Joe started out as a singer before reaching the world of jazz, musical theatre and comedy. Since then he has released ten albums and regularly appears on radio and TV. Joe brings music by Leonard Bernstein, Bizet, Bon Iver and Glen Miller and Jess's choices include some Benjamin Britten, an improvisatory viola da gamba and Schubert. Jess and Joe chat about musical upbringings, what makes a great song and how Joe found the world of jazz.
To listen on most smart speakers just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3'.
SAT 18:00 Opera on 3 (m002m1m4)
Janáček's The Cunning Little Vixen
Ahead of Monday's celebration of the conductor's centenary, Janáček's opera is conducted by Charles Mackerras.
Presented by Gillian Moore in conversation with Nigel Simeone.
Australian conductor and passionate Janáček advocate Charles Mackerras would have turned 100 years old on Monday, and BBC Radio 3 is marking the occasion with a day celebrating his music-making, his passion and his wit.
Tonight, we hear one of his most beloved recordings, that of Janáček's opera The Cunning Little Vixen. Based on a series of newspaper drawings of the adventures of a fox cub, it has delighted audiences ever since its premiere in 1924.
Janacek: The Cunning Little Vixen
Sharp-Ears (Bystrouška) the Vixen ..... Lucia Popp, soprano
Gold-Stripe (Zlatohřbítek) the Fox ..... Eva Randová, soprano
Forester (Revírník) ..... Dalibor Jedlička, baritone
Schoolmaster ..... Vladimír Krejčík, tenor
Innkeeper ..... Beno Blachut, tenor
Bratislava Children's Choir, Chorus of the Vienna Staatsoper
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Charles Mackerras, conductor
SAT 21:30 Music Planet (m002m1m6)
The Jewish Music Institute archive in Three Tracks
Lopa Kothari presents fresh discoveries from across the world of folk and roots music, including groove-laden 1970s folk-country from Northern Thailand and new music from the father of Ethio-jazz, Mulatu Astatke. He marks his return with a series of masterful new arrangements of some of his classic compositions on his first major studio album in over a decade.
Plus, Israeli DJ and producer Tai Rona delves into the Jewish Music Institute archives. Following long days exploring the extraordinary collection of thousands of records and shellacs, he selects three highlights: a Sabbath prayer, a Yemeni field recording, and a cross-cultural lullaby.
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 (m002m1m8)
The Ivors Classical Awards
Kate Molleson and Tom McKinney present this year's Ivors Classical Awards, recorded on Tuesday 11th November at BFI Southbank.
The Ivors Classical Awards is one of the highlights of the UK's contemporary music scene, and a chance to catch up on what's in the air across the spectrum of new music with a wide range of categories from chamber, orchestral, choral and stage music to community projects and sound art.
SUNDAY 16 NOVEMBER 2025
SUN 00:30 Through the Night (m002m1mb)
Schaghajegh Nosrati plays Bach, Mendelssohn and Alkan
German pianist Schaghajegh Nosrati performs a piano recital in Switzerland, including JS Bach's Partita No 4, BWV.828, and Alkan's Grand sonata: The Four Ages. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Partita no 4 in D major, BWV.828
Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)
01:02 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Variations sérieuses, Op 54
Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)
01:14 AM
Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888)
Grande Sonate: Les quatre âges, Op 33
Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)
01:51 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Adagio cantabile (from 'Piano Sonata no 8 in C minor, Op 13 'Pathétique')
Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)
01:57 AM
Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888)
Grand Duo Concertant for violin and piano in F sharp minor, Op 21
Semmy Stahlhammer (violin), Johan Ullén (piano)
02:19 AM
Leif Strand (1942-2021), arr. Øivind Westby
Men går jag över engarna (But I Walk Across the Meadows)
Ole Edvard Antonsen (trumpet), Argovia Philharmonic, Rune Bergmann (conductor)
02:25 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Hungarian Melody in B minor, D.817
Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)
02:31 AM
Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
The Wooden Prince - ballet, Sz.60
Orchestre National de France, Hans Graf (conductor)
03:24 AM
Catharina van Rennes (1858-1940)
3 Quartets for women's voices and piano, Op 24
Irene Maessen (soprano), Rachel Ann Morgan (mezzo soprano), Christa Pfeiler (mezzo soprano), Corrie Pronk (alto), Franz van Ruth (piano)
03:29 AM
Joan Baptista Pla i Agustí (1720-1773)
Sonata in C major for flute, violin and basso continuo
La Guirlande
03:38 AM
Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805-1900)
6 Characteerstykker med indledende Smaavers af H.C Andersen, Op 50
Nina Gade (piano)
03:50 AM
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
An der schonen, blauen Donau (The Blue Danube) - waltz, Op 314
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles (conductor)
04:02 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Kyrie eleison in G minor for double choir and orchestra, RV.587
Choir of Latvian Radio, Riga Chamber Players, Sigvards Kļava (conductor)
04:12 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Fantasia and fugue for organ in A minor, BWV.561
Norbert Bartelsman (organ)
04:21 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Premiere Rhapsodie
Camerata Variabile Basel
04:31 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Kirchen-Sonate no 15 in C major for 2 violins, bass and solo organ, K.328
Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Kent Nagano (conductor)
04:36 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
3 Fantasy Pieces, Op 73
Alec Frank-Gemmill (horn), Simon Smith (piano)
04:48 AM
George Gershwin (1898-1937)
3 Preludes for piano
Donna Coleman (piano)
04:55 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Flute Quartet in D major, Op 5 no 1
Ensemble Pyramide
05:08 AM
Boris Mykolayovich Lyatoshynsky (1895 - 1968)
Grazyna - symphonic poem, Op 58
Youth Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine, Oksana Lyniv (conductor)
05:27 AM
Bernat Vivancos (b.1973)
Obriu-me els llavis, Senyor (Psalm 51 - Miserere)
Latvijas Radio Koris, Sigvards Kļava (conductor)
05:42 AM
Max Bruch (1838-1920)
Violin Concerto no 1 in G minor, Op 26
Roland Orlik (violin), Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra Katowice, Marek Pijarowski (conductor)
06:08 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Sonatine, arr. flute, bassoon and harp
Andrea Kollé (flute), Maria Wildhaber (bassoon), Sarah Verrue (harp)
06:20 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Vo'dar pace a un alma ultiera (from "Tamerlano")
Derek Lee Ragin (counter tenor), English Baroque Soloists, John Eliot Gardiner (conductor)
06:25 AM
Dora Pejačević (1885-1923)
Nocturne for orchestra
Croatian Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Pavle Dešpalj (conductor)
SUN 06:30 Breakfast (m002m0nt)
The best classical music wake-up call
Mark Forrest presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
SUN 09:00 Sunday Morning (m002m0nw)
Three hours of classical sparkle
Today Sarah heads to Venice for her Choral Reflection with music by Clara Schumann, and she enjoys brightly scurrying strings: from a symphonic movement by Alice Mary Smith, to Bach’s much loved third Brandenburg Concerto and the whirling scherzo from Mendelssohn’s Octet.
There’s also some dramatic orchestral tension in the overture from Berlioz’s never-finished opera Les Francs-juges, and a beautifully lyrical oboe duet.
Plus, Haydn conjurs up the tick tock of the clock…
A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3.
SUN 12:00 Private Passions (m002m0ny)
Lea Ypi
Lea Ypi, a professor of political theory at the London School of Economics, grew up in Albania under communism, when it was the last Stalinist outpost in Europe.
She was 10 years old when the Berlin Wall fell, and a year later she saw the collapse of communism in Albania. Statues of Stalin and Enver Hoxha, the country’s leader for 40 years, were toppled. Democratic elections followed - but so did civil unrest.
Lea wrote about these turbulent years in her book Free, which won prizes and widespread acclaim: 'essential - just as much for Britons as Albanians' according to one critic.
She has delved further into her family history, looking into the past of her grandmother, in her book Indignity.
Lea's musical choices include Beethoven, Wagner, Dizdari and Bach.
SUN 13:30 Music Map (m002m0p0)
The Mikado
Sara Mohr-Pietsch traces a path to the Overture from Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Mikado. Along the way, Sara explores the role of the overture in opera, we hear works by Debussy and Puccini which - like The Mikado - were inspired by Japan, and music by other composers which portrays two of the operetta's plot themes: a wedding and an execution.
Part of Radio 3’s celebration of conductor Charles Mackerras’ centenary on 17th November.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers), just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Map.'
SUN 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002lqxl)
Chichester Cathedral
Last Wednesday's service from Chichester Cathedral.
Introit: We will remember them (Elgar)
Responses: Radcliffe
Office Hymn: In Christ there is no East or West (St Stephen)
Psalms 65, 66, 67 (Russell, Marsh, Hopkins)
First Lesson: Daniel 5 vv13–30
Canticles: Wood in E flat No 2
Second Lesson: Revelation 7 vv1-4, 9-17
Anthem: Greater love (Ireland)
Hymn: For the healing of the nations (Alleluia, dulce carmen)
Voluntary: Te Deum (Timothy Ravalde)
Charles Harrison (Organist and Master of the Choristers)
Timothy Ravalde (Assistant Organist)
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
SUN 16:00 Jazz Record Requests (m002m0p2)
Jack DeJohnette Tribute
Alyn Shipton presents jazz records of all styles and eras as requested by you with a focus on the late American drummer Jack DeJohnette.
Get in touch: jrr@bbc.co.uk or use #jazzrecordrequests on social
To listen on most smart speakers just say 'ask BBC Sounds to play Jazz Record Requests'.
SUN 17:00 The Early Music Show (m002m0p4)
Utrecht Early Music Festival 2025
Hannah French presents highlights from the 2025 Utrecht Early Music Festival, including dance music from Capriccio Stravagante and 14th Century vocal music from Sollazzo ensemble.
Producer: Ben Collingwood
To listen to this programme using most smart speakers just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play The Early Music Show'.
SUN 18:00 Words and Music (m002m0p6)
Little Furry Creatures: Mice, Rats and Squirrels
Often ignored, overlooked or even feared, it's time to celebrate the humble little furry creature. Here we take a rodent's eye view to look at Mice, Rats and Squirrels.
Here our little furry friends are not just vermin, rather they are the heroes of children's literature by writers such as EB White, Philippa Pearce and Beatrix Potter; and we hear music from John Lanchbery's 1971 Ballet 'The Tales of Beatrix Potter'. The rat becomes a metaphor for the writing of poetry in Don Paterson's The Rat, Nabokov's Pnin is followed around by a squirrel, and it's mouse vs cat in Franz Kafka's A Little Fable. We've got the Three Blind Mice jazz style from Art Blakely, The Nutcracker and The Mouse King from Tchaikovsky and everyone's favourite rodent chef is represented with music from the film Ratatouille.
Readings:
WB Yeats - To A Squirrel at Kyle Na No
Robert C O'Brien - Mrs Frisby and the Rats of NIMH
Robert Burns - To A Mouse
Sam Savage - Firmin
Daniel Keyes - Flowers for Algernon
Kenneth Graeme - The Wind in the Willows
Jia Tolentino - My College Roomates Were Rats
ALOE (A Lady of England) - The Rambles of A Rat
Deborah Levy - Things I Don't Want to Know
Simon Armitage - Drey
Vladimir Nabokov - Pnin
Jia Pingwa - The Shaanxi Opera
Don Paterson - The Rat
Philippa Pearce - The Squirrel Wife
John Burroughs - Squirrels and other fur-bearers
Beatrix Potter - The Tale of Two Bad Mice
Anon - The Squirrel
Wendy Cope - Christmas Ornaments
EB White - Stuart Little
Franz Kafka - A Little Fable
Readers: Louise Brealey and Solomon Israel
Producer: Jessica Treen
SUN 19:15 Sunday Feature (m002m0p8)
The Great Egyptian Music Mystery
New York, 1937. A set of strange manuscripts come to light. They're covered in a series of coloured circles of different sizes and arrangements, along with inscriptions in Coptic Egyptian saying things like ‘Spiritual Symphony’, and ‘Sacred Hymn Singer’. An Egyptologist at the Metropolitan Museum of Art verifies them, and they're identified as the only known examples of Ancient Egyptian musical notation. For some, this was the vital piece in a jigsaw they'd been puzzling over for decades. We know there was a vibrant musical culture in Ancient Egypt: musical instruments have been unearthed in tombs, and wall paintings depict unmistakable scenes of musicians performing in all kinds of settings. But nobody knew what the music being played in the scenes sounded like. For others, the manuscripts pointed towards a kind of mysticism of music, built around a close connection between tone and colour, and leading ultimately to the cosmic harmonies of the music of the spheres, the ancient idea that the bodies of the solar system make music as they revolve through the heavens.
Cultural historian and Radio 3 New Generation Thinker Ellie Chan unravels the mystery, investigating what these mysterious manuscripts have meant to various people over the years, and asking what sense we can make of them today.
Producer: Luke Mulhall
SUN 20:00 Record Review (m002m0pb)
Bartok: Piano Concerto No.2
A thorough look at the week's classical music releases, plus news and the Radio 3 Disc of the Week recommendation.
SUN 21:00 20th Century Radicals (m002m0pd)
Talib Hakim: Incantation and awakening
Kate Molleson and Gillian Moore present BBC Radio 3's series exploring the pivotal 'modern' musical works of the 20th century, the groundbreaking composers who created them, and the radical cultural and artistic movements which gave rise to them. In this episode, Kate explores the philosophical musical world of Talib Rasul Hakim, leading to full performance of his work Placements (1970), scored for piano and percussion. Along the way, we visit the radical Dance Theatre of Harlem and marvel at the beauty of Chinese calligraphic brushstrokes.
'We should try to come to the realisation that the process of creativity is a religious act. It is an act affirming life ...' ~ Talib Rasul Hakim in 'The Black Composer Speaks' (1978)
Produced by Sam Phillips
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
SUN 22:00 Night Tracks (m002m0pg)
Reflective music for the day’s end
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
SUN 23:30 Unclassified (m002f76m)
One Leg One Eye’s Listening Chair
Ian Lynch is perhaps best known as one of the founding members of deadly Dublin band Lankum, but the freedom his solo project One Leg One Eye offers him has led to his “happiest experience recording music”. Setting up his shruti box and uilleann pipes in abandoned spaces across his home city, he creates dark, forbidding drone sounds that lead us into sometimes transcendent, sometimes terrifying musical places. For his Listening Chair, Ian chooses the song that gifted his other band its name - John Reilly Jr.’s folk ballad ‘False Lankum’.
Elsewhere in the show, Elizabeth offers up a vibrant selection of fresh music from genre-defying artists who take us on a journey through landscapes of ambient and experimental sounds.
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 17 NOVEMBER 2025
MON 00:30 Through the Night (m002m0pk)
Keith Jarrett's The Köln Concert in a new arrangement
Quatuor Classica perform an arrangement for string quartet of jazz pianist Keith Jarrett's legendary 1975 improvised performance at the Opera House in Cologne, Germany. This version was commissioned from François Vallières to mark the 50th anniversary of this milestone in jazz musical history. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Keith Jarrett (b.1945) arr. François Vallières
The Köln Concert
Quatuor Classica
01:44 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Piano Concerto in G major
Håvard Gimse (piano), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Arvid Engegård (conductor)
02:06 AM
Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)
La creation du monde, Op 81
Canadian Chamber Ensemble, Raffi Armenian (director)
02:25 AM
Hector Gratton (1900-1970), arr. David Passmore
Quatrieme danse canadienne arranged for piano trio
Moshe Hammer (violin), Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi (cello), William Tritt (piano)
02:31 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), Georg Christian Lehms (author)
Cantata no 170 'Vergnugte Ruh', beliebte Seelenlust', BWV.170
Anne Sofie von Otter (mezzo soprano), Les Musiciens du Louvre, Marc Minkowski (conductor)
02:52 AM
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931)
Symphony no 5, Op 50
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, John Storgårds (conductor)
03:28 AM
Johann Rosenmüller (1619-1684)
Sonata no.4 à 3 in C major - from "Sonate" (Nuremberg 1682)
Jean Tubéry (cornet), Ensemble La Fenice, Jean Tubéry (conductor)
03:35 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
3 Lyric Pieces (Op 43 no 5, Op 54 no 3, Op 54 no 4)
Juhani Lagerspetz (piano)
03:44 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Per questa bella mano, KV 612
Wolf Matthias Friedrich (baritone), Kirill Troussov (violin), Clémence de Forceville (violin), Martin Moriarty (viola), Flurin Cuonz (cello), Lars Olaf Schaper (double bass)
03:52 AM
Erkki Melartin (1875-1937)
Karelian Scenes, Op 146
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jorma Palas (conductor)
04:03 AM
Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924)
The Blue Bird (from 8 Partsongs, Op 119 no 3)
BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)
04:07 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Romance for viola and piano
Steven Dann (viola), Bruce Vogt (piano)
04:14 AM
Domenico Pellegrini (17th century), Alessandro Piccinini (1566-c.1638)
Courante per la X (Pellegrini); Chiaccona in partite variate (Piccinini)
United Continuo Ensemble
04:20 AM
Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872)
Ballet Music for the Merry Wives of Windsor by Otto Nicolai
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Łukasz Borowicz (conductor)
04:31 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Intermezzo in A major, Op 118 no 2
Jane Coop (piano)
04:38 AM
Guillaume Lekeu (1870-1894)
Adagio pour Quatuor d'Orchestre
Musikdorf Ernen Festival Orchestra, Daniel Bard (violin), Daniel Bard (director)
04:50 AM
Guillaume IX, Duke of Aquitaine (1071-1126), Anonymous
Companho ferai un vers tot covinen; La quarte estampie royal
Eric Mentzel (tenor), Bois de Cologne
04:57 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Divertimento for 2 flutes and cello in C major, Hob.4.1, 'London trio' no 1
Les Ambassadeurs
05:06 AM
Christian Frederik Emil Horneman (1840-1906)
Ouverture til Helteliv
Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Schønwandt (conductor)
05:20 AM
Peter Welffens (1924-2003)
Stabat Mater
Flemish Radio Choir, Vlaams Radio Orkest [Flemish Radio Orchestra], Johan Duijck (conductor)
05:38 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Violin Sonata no 3 in C major, BWV.1005
Vilde Frang Bjærke (violin)
06:02 AM
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
Piano Concerto no 5 in F major, Op 103 "Egyptian"
Pascal Rogé (piano), UNAM (Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico) Philharmonic Orchestra, Ronald Zollman (conductor)
MON 06:30 Breakfast (m002m0kb)
Charles Mackerras at 100
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music, including today the start of Radio 3's centenary celebrations of conductor Sir Charles Mackerras. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’.
MON 09:30 Essential Classics (m002m0kd)
Charles Mackerras at 100
Georgia Mann continues Radio 3's centenary celebrations of the conductor Sir Charles Mackerras with music by Purcell, Puccini, Mendelssohn and Sullivan, and featuring many of the orchestras he conducted, from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, Philharmonia and London Symphony Orchestra, to the Czech and Vienna Philharmonics. Plus archive interviews with the man himself.
Playlister: Sullivan arr Mackerras: Pineapple Poll
Feast of a Piece: Janacek: Sinfonietta
MON 13:00 Classical Live (m002m0kg)
Charles Mackerras at 100
Mark Forrest continues Radio 3’s day-long focus on the extraordinary musical legacy of Australian conductor Charles Mackerras, who was born 100 years ago today.
From what would be his final season performing at the BBC Proms in 2009, we hear Mackerras conducting the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in Elgar’s Cockaigne Overture and Holst’s The Planets. Plus there’s music from a tribute concert to the great conductor (and Czech music champion) given by the BBC Concert Orchestra in Brno.
And as ever, the week begins with a live concert from London’s Wigmore Hall given by Meta4, the Finnish string quartet and former Radio 3 New Generation Artists. They perform quartets by Robert Schumann and Sally Beamish.
1pm
Live from Wigmore Hall, London. Presented by Andrew McGregor.
Robert Schumann
String Quartet in A minor, Op. 41 No. 1
Sally Beamish
String Quartet No. 4, ‘Nine Fragments’
Meta4 (string quartet)
2pm
Edward Elgar
Cockaigne (In London Town) - Overture
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Charles Mackerras (conductor)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 13 in E flat, Op. 27 No .1
Hisako Kawamura (piano)
Gustav Holst
The Planets
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Charles Mackerras (conductor)
William Walton
Portsmouth Point Overture
BBC Concert Orchestra
Anna-Maria Helsing (conductor)
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live".
MON 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002m0kj)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Prologue
Donald Macleod explores Wagner’s life through the lens of his dreams – musical, romantic, and revolutionary. In this special centenary tribute to conductor, Sir Charles Mackerras, we begin with Wagner’s early years: a headstrong youth with big ideas and a growing obsession with myth and music. Mackerras’s legacy as a conductor and champion of Wagner is woven through today’s programme.
Die Walküre, Act III, Scene 1: I. Hojotoho! Heiaha! – “The Ride of the Valkyries”
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Tannhäuser, Overture and Venusberg Music
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, Prelude
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Tristan und Isolde, Prelude to Act 1
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Götterdämmerung, Prologue: “Siegfried’s Rheinfahrt”
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.
MON 17:00 In Tune (m002m0km)
Charles Mackerras at 100
Petroc Trelawny continues the celebration of Charles Mackerras with Czech conductor Jakub Hrůša, winner of the very first Sir Charles Mackerras Award plus live music in the studio.
MON 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002m0kp)
A relaxing mix celebrating Charles Mackerras at 100
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music, today celebrating the legacy of the conductor Charles Mackerras.
We start with Eric Coates' sleepy lagoon - valse serenade, followed by two Gavottes by Rameau, 'Fair Moon, to thee I Sing' from Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore and the 2nd movement of John Field's 2nd piano concerto. Danielle de Niese sings Mozart's beautiful Laudate Dominum followed by Elgar's Dream children. We finish with the 2nd movement of Haydn's London symphony.
Producer: Kevin Satizabal Carrascal.
MON 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002m57z)
Charles Mackerras at 100
Two great Czech works conducted by the Australian conductor Charles Mackerras, who was born 100 years ago today.
Charles Mackerras was a great champion of Czech music, having studied at the Prague Conservatoire in the 1940s. These archive performances are a fitting way to celebrate his centenary. The performance of Janáček's colossal Glagolitic Mass, a setting of Old Church Slavonic text and including an epic organ solo, is from the closing concert of the 2004 Janacek Festival in Brno. Mackerras conducted Smetana's rich and dramatic set of six symphonic poems depicting the composer's homeland, Má vlast, at the 1999 Prague Spring Festival.
Martin Handley presents.
Janáček: Glagolitic Mass
Helena Kaupová, soprano
Eva Garajová, contralto
Peter Straka, tenor
Richard Novák, bass
Ales Bárta, organ
Czech Philharmonic Chorus
Brno State Philharmonic Orchestra
Charles Mackerras, conductor
Smetana: Má vlast
Czech Philharmonic Orchestra
Charles Mackerras, conductor
MON 21:45 The Essay (m002m0kr)
Opera on a Plate
Rossini
Italian food and Italian opera - a marriage of music and menus that combine perfectly in this series which looks at Italy’s rich cultural history. Walter Iuzzolino goes in search of the perfect match of food and music as he visits some of the best Italian kitchens in London and Rome. We’ll discover how the great opera composers such as Verdi, Rossini and Puccini loved their food and felt particular affinity with produce from their own Italian regions. We’ll hear some of the great moments in opera where the banquet takes centre stage, and at the same time we’ll be in the kitchens with some of the top Italian chefs to get their tips on getting the recipes right.
Walter Iuzzolino is in the kitchens of Locatelli’s Italian restaurant in the National Gallery in London to taste an amazing dish prepared by Giorgio Locatelli himself, considering just how Italian food and music are two sides of the same coin with one of the great Italian composers, Gioacchino Rossini!
Presenter Walter Iuzzolino
Producers Francesca Marchese and Mark Rickards
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 3
MON 22:00 Night Tracks (m002m0kv)
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 (m002m0kx)
Bilal's Flowers
‘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.
From Monday to Thursday, Soweto is joined by Grammy award-winning American R&B and soul singer, Bilal. He has released six studio albums to date, and is an in-demand voice for many of his peers including Robert Glasper, Kendrick Lamar, and J Dilla. He was also a member of the Soulquarians, a group which also featured artists including Erykah Badu, Questlove, and D’Angelo.
Bilal studied at New York’s prestigious The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and this week he is choosing four artists from the jazz world and beyond that have inspired him.
Tonight, he picks an American singer and multi-instrumentalist who has influenced artists across the globe including Bilal, with his infectiously groove-laden compositions, and signature harmonica sound.
Also in the programme, music from RAYE, Byron Wallen, and Momoko Gill.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
TUESDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2025
TUE 00:30 Through the Night (m002m0kz)
Handel's Chandos Anthems with the Kölner Akademie
These anthems are named after the Duke of Chandos who commissioned them when Handel was the composer in residence at Cannons, his palace in Middlesex. The German ensemble and soloists perform these relatively unknown works in the Church of Saint-Michel in Fribourg, Switzerland. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Chandos Anthem no 4 'O come, let us sing unto the Lord', HWV 249b
Elena Harsányi (soprano), Bettina Schaeffer (alto), Florian Sievers (tenor), Thomas Bonni (bass), Die Kölner Akademie, Michael Alexander Willens (conductor)
12:46 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Chandos Anthem no 3 'Have Mercy on Me', HWV 248
Elena Harsányi (soprano), Bettina Schaeffer (alto), Florian Sievers (tenor), Thomas Bonni (bass), Die Kölner Akademie, Michael Alexander Willens (conductor)
01:07 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Chandos Anthem no 9 'O Praise the Lord with One Consent,' HWV 254
Elena Harsányi (soprano), Bettina Schaeffer (alto), Florian Sievers (tenor), Thomas Bonni (bass), Die Kölner Akademie, Michael Alexander Willens (conductor)
01:32 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
25 Variations and fugue on a theme by G F Handel for piano, Op 24
Simon Trpčeski (piano)
01:58 AM
Clara Schumann (1819-1896)
Impromptu in E major
Diana Ketler (piano)
02:01 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Phantasy Quintet
Mary Ellen Woodside (violin), Asli Ayben Özdemir (violin), Eivind Holtsmark Ringstad (viola), Alessandro D'Amico (viola), Rafael Rosenfeld (cello)
02:15 AM
Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890)
Echoes of Ossian, Op 1
Sinfonieorchester St Gallen, Modestas Pitrėnas (conductor)
02:31 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Sonata no 18 in E flat major, Op 31 no 3
Ingrid Fliter (piano)
02:53 AM
Arthur Sullivan (1842-1900)
Symphony in E major 'Irish'
BBC Philharmonic, Richard Hickox (conductor)
03:29 AM
Costanzo Festa (c.1485-1545)
Magnificat octavi toni
BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)
03:46 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
French Suite no 5 in G major, BWV.816
Evgeny Rivkin (piano)
04:02 AM
Ruth Gipps (1921-1999)
Wind Octet, Op 65
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
04:13 AM
Christoph Willibald Gluck (1714-1787)
Dance of the Blessed Spirits - dance music from 'Orphée et Euridice'
Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Paul Dyer (conductor)
04:20 AM
Josquin des Prez (c1440 - 1521)
Chanson: Ma bouche rit
Banchieri Singers, Dénes Szabó (conductor)
04:25 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Three pieces for Clarinet Solo
Martins Circenis (clarinet)
04:31 AM
Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857)
Overture - from Ruslan & Lyudmila
Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, Arvid Engegaard (conductor)
04:37 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Romanze for Oboe and Piano, Op 94 no 1
Eva Steinaa (oboe), Galya Kolarova (piano)
04:40 AM
Giovanni Gabrieli (1557-1612)
Canzon II Septimi Toni a 8 from Sacrae Symphoniae
Canadian Brass
04:43 AM
Mel Bonis (1858-1938)
Salome, Op 100
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Rumon Gamba (conductor)
04:49 AM
Sébastien Le Camus (c.1610-1677)
Laissez durer la nuit - air de cour
Ground Floor, Marc Mauillon (tenor), Gwennaëlle Alibert (harpsichord), Angélique Mauillon (harp), Étienne Galletier (theorbo), Elena Andreyev (cello)
04:54 AM
Granville Bantock (1868-1946)
The Pierrot of the minute - overture
BBC Concert Orchestra, Barry Wordsworth (conductor)
05:07 AM
Peter Machajdík (b.1961)
Danube Afterpoint
Ricercata Ensemble, Ivan Siller (director)
05:23 AM
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Concerto in D minor for 2 pianos
Katia Labèque (piano), Marielle Labèque (piano), Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte-Carlo, Georges Prêtre (conductor)
05:45 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Quintet for strings in G minor, K.516
Oslo Chamber Soloists
06:20 AM
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
O clarissima Mater (respond)
Rondellus
TUE 06:30 Breakfast (m002m1vw)
Ease into the day with classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
TUE 09:30 Essential Classics (m002m1vy)
Your perfect classical playlist
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics'
TUE 13:00 Classical Live (m002m1w0)
Saint-Saens’s Organ Symphony in Nottingham
Mark Forrest showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.
The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra is our ensemble in focus this week, and today we hear them in music by Haydn and Saint-Saens. The programme opens with Haydn’s ‘Miracle’ Symphony from a performance given in Malvern, and later in the programme organist Jonathan Scott joins them on the organ of the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham for Saint-Saens’s spectacular Symphony No. 3, known – for obvious reasons – as the Organ Symphony.
Throughout the week we’re hearing from music written by Robert Schumann in 1842, his ‘year of chamber music’. Today, former Radio 3 New Generation Artists the Consone Quartet play Schumann’s String Quartet No. 2 at a concert given in Birmingham.
We make our first visit this week to the Glenarm Festival of Voice in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, to hear Radio 3 New Generation Artist James Atkinson singing Gerald Finzi’s exquisite song-cycle Earth and Air and Rain.
And there’s more from the BBC Concert Orchestra’s recent concert in Brno, a musical tribute to the great conductor and champion of Czech music, Charles Mackerras.
1pm
Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 96 in D major, ‘Miracle’
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Andrew Manze (conductor)
Robert Schumann
String Quartet No. 2 in F major, Op. 41 No. 2
Consone Quartet
Camille Saint-Saens
Symphony No. 3 in C minor, ‘Organ’
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Jonathan Scott (organ)
John Storgards (conductor)
Gerald Finzi
Earth and Air and Rain, Op. 15
James Atkinson (baritone)
Simon Lepper (piano)
Doreen Carwithen
Men of Sherwood Forest - Overture
BBC Concert Orchestra
Anna-Maria Helsing (conductor)
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live'.
TUE 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002m1w2)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
The Revolutionary
Wagner’s dreams weren’t limited to music – he also imagined a new political order. Today, Donald Macleod explores Wagner’s involvement in the Dresden uprising of 1849, which led to his exile and a period of intense creative reflection. We hear how his radical ideas shaped both his politics and his operas, and how exile became a vessel for some of his greatest works.
Götterdämmerung, Act III: Siegfried’s Trauermarsch
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
Marek Janowski, conductor
Die Feen, Act II: Weh uns, weh!; O musst du, Hoffnung, schwinden
Alfred Reiter (Feenkönig), bass
Frankfurter Opern und Museumorchester
Sebastian Weigle, conductor
Piano Sonata in B-flat Major, WWV 21, Op. 1 (ii. Larghetto)
Pier Paolo Vincenzi, piano
Lohengrin, Act III: Prelude and Bridal Chorus
Cheryl Studer (Elsa), soprano
Siegfried Jerusalem (Lohengrin), tenor
Wiener Philharmoniker
Wiener Staatsopernchor
Claudio Abbado, conductor
Das Liebesverbot, Act 1: Kennst du das Leid der Elternlosen; Herbei, betrognes Volk
Frankfurter Opern und Museumorchester
Chor der Oper Frankfurt
Sebastian Weigle, conductor
Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.
TUE 17:00 In Tune (m002m1w4)
Pianist Ivana Gavrić and art historian and critic Andrew Graham-Dixon
Petroc talks to art historian and critic Andrew Graham-Dixon about his new book Vermeer: A Life Lost and Found, and the pianist Ivana Gavrić plays tracks from her new album Throwback to Dance, live in the studio
TUE 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m001wj2s)
Find some headspace in classical music
Wind down with back-to-back classical music, including a familiar choral version of one of the most famous works by Karl Jenkins, a fairy tale by Ravel, and some bluesy piano music by Madeleine Dring.
Producer: Helen Garrison
TUE 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002m1w6)
Mahler's First Symphony
Conductor Elena Schwarz joins the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra to celebrate the power of the human spirit and the natural world.
Initially inspired by Hokusai's woodblock print 'The Great Wave off Kanagawa', Debussy put the final touches to 'La Mer' as he holidayed in Eastbourne. He wanted the symphonic sketches to create the atmosphere and character of the sea rather than be just a portrait, and the exoticism of the Japanese woodblock and the grey power of the English Channel are virtuosically combined into an enduring Impressionist favourite.
The opening of Mahler's First Symphony with its vivid depiction of bird song and title referencing Spring sets the scene for music which incorporates popular folk song, dance, and a distinctive use of orchestral colour. A spellbinding opening introduces an immersive and compulsive listen right through to the triumphant conclusion.
Star trombonist Peter Moore joins the BBC Philharmonic as soloist in Dani Howard's award-winning concerto, a lush and minimalist-inspired celebration of the spirit of hope and collaboration shown by so many people during the pandemic.
Recorded at Manchester's Bridgewater Hall and presented by Linton Stephens.
Debussy: La Mer
Dani Howard: Trombone Concerto
Music Interval
Mahler: Symphony No.1
Peter Moore (trombone)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Elena Schwarz (conductor)
To listen on most smart speakers just say 'ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert.'
TUE 21:45 The Essay (m002m1w8)
Opera on a Plate
Puccini
Italian food and Italian opera - a marriage of music and menus that combine perfectly in this series which looks at Italy’s rich cultural history. Walter Iuzzolino goes in search of the perfect match of food and music as he visits some of the best Italian kitchens in London and Rome. We’ll discover how the great opera composers such as Verdi, Rossini and Puccini loved their food and felt particular affinity with produce from their own Italian regions. We’ll hear some of the great moments in opera where the banquet takes centre stage, and at the same time we’ll be in the kitchens with some of the top Italian chefs to get their tips on getting the recipes right.
Walter Iuzzolino is exploring the many important connections between Italian food and Italian opera in Holland Park in west London where opera can be heard over the summer months, and where the Belvedere Restaurant’s executive chef from Sardinia, Lello Favuzzi, is going to prepare a dish closely linked to the great Italian composer Giacomo Puccini.
Presenter Walter Iuzzolino
Producers Francesca Marchese and Mark Rickards
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 3
TUE 22:00 Night Tracks (m002m1wb)
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 (m002m1wd)
A nostalgic track from Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou
‘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.
Leading R&B and soul singer Bilal has a second bouquet to give out tonight, and this time it goes to a trailblazing jazz pianist that he has been influenced by.
Also in the programme, there is music from Charles Lloyd, Anmol Mohara, and Ruth Goller and Jim Hart.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
WEDNESDAY 19 NOVEMBER 2025
WED 00:30 Through the Night (m002m1wg)
Bach, Beethoven, Brad Mehldau and Improvisations from Berlin
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, conductor Clark Rundell and pianist Brad Mehldau perform music by Bach and Beethoven and Mehldau's Piano Concerto dedicated to Herbie Hancock. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arr. Igor Stravinsky
Prelude and Fugue in E minor, BWV 855; Improvisation
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Clark Rundell (conductor), Brad Mehldau (piano)
12:38 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), orch. Anton Webern
Ricercar a 6, from 'The Musical Offering, BWV 1079'; Improvisation
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Clark Rundell (conductor), Brad Mehldau (piano)
12:50 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), orch. Clark Rundell
Contrapunctus XIX from 'the Art of Fugue', BWV 1080; Improvisation
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Clark Rundell (conductor), Brad Mehldau (piano)
01:04 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Interlude from Sanctus of the 'Missa solemnis in D major op. 123'; Improvisation
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Clark Rundell (conductor), Brad Mehldau (piano)
01:10 AM
Brad Mehldau (b. 1970)
Piano Concerto - dedicated to Herbie Hancock
Brad Mehldau (piano), Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Clark Rundell (conductor)
01:51 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Improvisation on Goldberg Variations
Brad Mehldau (piano)
01:56 AM
Nick Drake (1948-1974)
Improvisation on Nick Drake's 'Things behind the Sun'
Brad Mehldau (piano)
02:01 AM
Brad Mehldau (b. 1970)
Improvisation Waltz for J.B.
Brad Mehldau (piano)
02:07 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Serenade Op 8
Trio AnPaPié
02:12 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Cantata 'Christ lag in Todesbanden', BWV 4
Balthasar-Neumann-Chor, Pythagoras-Ensemble, Thomas Hengelbrock (conductor)
02:31 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Piano Quintet in A major 'The Trout', Op 114 (D.667)
John Harding (violin), Ferdinand Erblich (viola), Stefan Metz (cello), Henk Guldemond (double bass), Menahem Pressler (piano)
03:05 AM
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931)
Quintet for wind, Op 43
Cinque Venti
03:30 AM
Dmytro Bortniansky (1751-1825)
Choral concerto no 6 'What God is Greater'
Platon Maiborada Academic Choir, Viktor Skoromny (conductor)
03:38 AM
Karol Szymanowski (1882-1937)
The Fountain of Arethusa from Myths for violin and piano (Op.30)
Hyun-Mi Kim (violin), Seung-Hye Choi (piano)
03:44 AM
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (c.1739-1799)
Overture to the opera "L'amant anonyme"
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Jeanne Lamon (conductor)
03:52 AM
Henricus Albicastro (fl.1700-06)
Coelestes angelici chori - cantata
Guy de Mey (tenor), Ensemble 415, Chiara Banchini (conductor)
04:06 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924)
Elegie, Op 24 arr. for cello and orchestra
Shauna Rolston (cello), Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Uri Mayer (conductor)
04:13 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
La Lugubre gondola S.200
Yulianna Avdeeva (piano)
04:21 AM
John Ansell (1874-1948)
Nautical Overture
West Australian Symphony Orchestra, David Measham (conductor)
04:31 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Concerto in F major for treble recorder, RV.442
Michael Schneider (recorder), Camerata Köln
04:39 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Hungarian Rhapsody no 2 in C sharp minor
Ladislav Fantzowitz (piano)
04:49 AM
Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677)
"Lagrime mie" - Lament for Soprano and continuo from 'Diporti di Euterpe'
Susanne Ryden (soprano), Musica Fiorita, Daniela Dolci (director)
04:57 AM
Ludwik Grossman (1835-1915)
Csardas from the comic opera Duch wojewody (The Ghost of Voyvode)
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Miroslaw Blaszczyk (conductor)
05:07 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
12 Variations on 'Ein Madchen oder Weibchen' for cello and piano, Op 66
Miklós Perényi (cello), Dezső Ránki (piano)
05:17 AM
Louis Spohr (1784-1859)
Fantasia and Variations on a theme of Franz Danzi in B flat major, Op.81
László Horvath (clarinet), New Budapest Quartet
05:25 AM
Blagoje Bersa (1873-1934)
Spectres and Sunny Fields
Croatian Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Enrico Dindo (conductor)
05:57 AM
William Byrd (1543-1623), arr. Elgar Howarth
The Earle of Oxford's March (MB.28 No.93)
Tallinn Brass, Tarmo Leinatamm (conductor)
06:01 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet in C major, K.465, "Dissonance"
Casals Quartet
WED 06:30 Breakfast (m002m2cc)
Rise and shine with classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
WED 09:30 Essential Classics (m002m2cf)
Your perfect classical playlist
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics'.
WED 13:00 Classical Live (m002m2ch)
The Hall of the Mountain King
Mark Forrest showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.
The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra is our ensemble in focus this week, and today’s programme opens with a recent performance of Edvard Grieg’s first Peer Gynt Suite given in Hull’s City Hall. There’s also symphonic music from a Korean orchestra in Poland: the KBS Symphony Orchestra perform Sibelius’s Symphony No. 2 in Warsaw.
Throughout the week we’re hearing from music written by Robert Schumann in 1842, his ‘year of chamber music’. Today, the Mondrian Ensemble perform his Fantasiestücke for piano trio at a concert recorded in Zurich.
Plus we’re back at the 2025 Glenarm Festival of Voice in County Antrim, where baritone and current Radio 3 New Generation Artist gave a recital that included Claude Debussy’s Le Promenoir des deux amants.
1pm
Edvard Greig
Peer Gynt Suite No. 1
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
John Storgards (conductor)
Robert Schumann
Fantasiestücke for piano trio, Op. 88
Mondrian Ensemble
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43
KBS Symphony Orchestra
Pietari Inkinen (conductor)
Claude Debussy
Le Promenoir des deux amants
James Atkinson (baritone)
Simon Lepper (piano)
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live".
WED 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002m2ck)
St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow
From St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow.
Introit: View me, Lord (Lloyd)
Responses: Bertalot
Psalms 98, 99, 100, 101 (Turle, Walmisley, Lang, Parrat)
First Lesson: Ezra 3 vv1-13
Office Hymn: Blessed City, heavenly Salem (Urbs beata)
Canticles: Walmisley in D minor
Second Lesson: Revelation 21 vv9-21
Anthem: And when the builders (Shephard)
Hymn: Sing for God’s glory (Lobe den Herren)
Voluntary: Dance – Rondo (Philip Moore)
Frikki Walker (Director of Music)
Steven McIntyre (Organist)
Recorded 13 November.
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
WED 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002m2cm)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Wagner in Wunderland
Donald Macleod follows Wagner through a world of wild dreams and dramatic escapes. With a stormy voyage, a toxic treatise on Giacomo Meyerbeer, a sordid affair and a night in La Spezia, Wagner’s fantasies began to take shape in the real world. From the chaos came inspiration: The Flying Dutchman, Rienzi, Das Rheingold and Tristan und Isolde all emerged from this turbulent chapter.
The Flying Dutchman, Act I: Overture
Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Pinchas Steinberg, conductor
The Flying Dutchman, Extract from Act III
Austrian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Budapest Radio Chorus
Pinchas Steinberg, conductor
Rienzi,Overture
Staatskapelle Dresden
Heinrich Hollreiser, conductor
Das Rheingold, Prelude and Scene 1
Wiener Philharmoniker
Sir Georg Solti
Tristan und Isolde, Act 3: Isoldes Liebestod
Jessye Norman (Isolde), soprano
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Colin Davis, conductor
Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.
WED 17:00 In Tune (m002m2cp)
World-class classical music – live
Live music and interviews from the world's finest classical musicians.
WED 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002m2cr)
An uplifting classical mix
Half an hour of back to back classical music to help you wind down at the end of a busy day. Today's mix includes a charming piano concerto by Mozart, an achingly beautiful song about grief by William Grant Still, and an attractive "Romanze" for harp, cello and strings by Leo Weiner. Percy Grainger goes rogue with some Bach, and there's one of Sir Karl Jenkins' most popular and moving choral works - the Agnus Dei from his Mass for Peace, "The Armed Man". The sequence ends with a little known but delightful trio by the French, early 20th century composer Charlotte Sohy.
Producer: Helen Garrison
WED 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002m2ct)
Beethoven, Strauss and James MacMillan
From darkness to light – three musical journeys undertaken by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra with their principal conductor Maxim Emelyanychev.
Few can be left unmoved by the pity of Richard Strauss’s deeply cathartic Metamorphosen, a profoundly poignant reflection on the destruction of World War Two. From its famously gripping opening Beethoven’s best-loved Symphony, the Fifth, forges a path from compelling conflict to the blazing radiance of triumph. And in between percussionist Colin Currie joins the orchestra as the central protagonist in Sir James MacMillan’s theatrical, visionary percussion concerto Veni, Veni Emmanuel – a dazzling celebration of new life and new hope.
Recorded at City Halls, Glasgow on October 3, 2025.
Presented by John Toal
Richard Strauss: Metamorphosen
James MacMillan: Veni, Veni, Emmanuel
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No 5 in C minor
Scottish Chamber Orchestra
Maxim Emelyanychev (conductor)
Colin Currie (percussion)
To listen on most smart speakers just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert."
WED 21:45 The Essay (m002m2cw)
Opera on a Plate
Verdi
Italian food and Italian opera - a marriage of music and menus that combine perfectly in this series which looks at Italy’s rich cultural history. Walter Iuzzolino goes in search of the perfect match of food and music as he visits some of the best Italian kitchens in London and Rome. We’ll discover how the great opera composers such as Verdi, Rossini and Puccini loved their food and felt particular affinity with produce from their own Italian regions. We’ll hear some of the great moments in opera where the banquet takes centre stage, and at the same time we’ll be in the kitchens with some of the top Italian chefs to get their tips on getting the recipes right.
Walter Iuzzolino looks at the deep connections between Italian opera and Italian food in this, the first of two programmes on Giuseppe Verdi. In the kitchens of the Peninsula hotel chef Francesco Dibenedetto is making Spalacotta, a wonderful dish loved by Verdi.
Presenter Walter Iuzzolino
Producers Francesca Marchese and Mark Rickards
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 3
WED 22:00 Night Tracks (m002m2cy)
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 (m002m2d0)
A classic from Ornette Coleman
‘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.
Bilal is back with another artist he would like to celebrate, and tonight he gives collective Flowers to a highly influential English rock band.
Plus there is music from Trish Clowes & Louise McMonagle, Ricardo Bacela, and Marty Hicks & Audrey Powne.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
THURSDAY 20 NOVEMBER 2025
THU 00:30 Through the Night (m002m2d2)
The CBSO and Kian Soltani: Saint-Saëns' Cello Concerto
Kazuki Yamada leads the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra at the Saar International Music Festival in Germany. The Austrian cellist Kian Soltani plays Saint-Saëns' concerto, and the orchestra continue the French theme with Berlioz, Fauré and Ravel. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
Le Carnaval Romain Overture
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kazuki Yamada (conductor)
12:40 AM
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
Cello Concerto no 1, Op 33
Kian Soltani (cello), City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kazuki Yamada (conductor)
01:02 AM
Kian Soltani (b.1992)
Persian Fire Dance (encore)
Kian Soltani (cello)
01:05 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924)
Élégie, Op 24
Kian Soltani (cello), City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kazuki Yamada (conductor)
01:13 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Daphnis et Chloé, Suite no 1
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kazuki Yamada (conductor)
01:24 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Daphnis et Chloé, Suite no 2
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Kazuki Yamada (conductor)
01:43 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Aria "Ombra mai fu" from Act 1 of the opera 'Serse'
Sergejs Jegers (counter tenor), Sinfonietta Riga Chamber Orchestra
01:47 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Slatter, Op 72 (Norwegian peasant dances)
Ingfrid Breie Nyhus (piano)
02:24 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Aria: 'O wie angstlich, o wie feurig' - from 'Die Entführung aus dem Serail'
Michael Schade (tenor), Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, Richard Bradshaw (conductor)
02:31 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
String Quartet in G minor, Op 10
Tilev String Quartet
02:56 AM
Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969)
Symphony no 3
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jan Krenz (conductor)
03:28 AM
Per Gunnar Petersson (b.1954)
Aftonland (Evening Land) for choir and solo horn
Soren Hermansson (horn), Jutland Chamber Choir, Mogens Dahl (director)
03:43 AM
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (c.1739-1799)
Symphony in G major, Op 11 no 1
Tafelmusik Orchestra, Jeanne Lamon (conductor)
03:57 AM
Benjamin Godard (1849-1895)
Berceuse de Jocelyn
Henry-David Varema (cello), Cornelia Lootsmann (harp)
04:03 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695), arr. Fred Mills
Sonata for two trumpets and brass
Brass Consort Köln
04:09 AM
Josef Suk (1949-2011)
Meditation on an old Czech hymn 'St Wenceslas', Op 35a
Camerata Bern, Antje Weithaas (director)
04:17 AM
Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677)
Hor che Apollo - Serenade for soprano, 2 violins & continuo
Susanne Ryden (soprano), Musica Fiorita, Daniela Dolci (director)
04:31 AM
Georges Auric (1899-1983), arr. Philip Lane
Overture from "Hue and Cry"
BBC Philharmonic, Rumon Gamba (conductor)
04:33 AM
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Capriccio for Two Pianos
Antra Viksne (piano), Normunds Viksne (piano)
04:38 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
He shall feed his flock (Messiah)
Marita Kvarving Sølberg (soprano), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ketil Haugsand (conductor)
04:45 AM
Paule Maurice (1910-67)
Tableaux de Provence - 5 pieces for saxophone and orchestra
Julia Nolan (saxophone), CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
05:00 AM
Chan Ka Nin (b.1949)
Four seasons suite
Ottawa Winds, Michael Goodwin (conductor)
05:12 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Pohjola's Daughter, Op 49
BBC Philharmonic, John Storgårds (conductor)
05:27 AM
Josef Suk (1949-2011), Gabrielle Brunner (20th C)
4 Pieces for violin and piano 'post-composed' for violin and string ensemble
Antje Weithaas (violin), Camerata Bern, Antje Weithaas (director)
05:46 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Missa Paschalis
Barbara Janowska (soprano), Wanda Laddy (soprano), Robert Lawaty (counter tenor), Cezary Szyfman (baritone), Michał Straszewski (bass)
06:01 AM
Ethel Smyth (1858-1944)
Concerto for violin and horn in A major
Agata Raatz (violin), Zora Slokar (horn), Berner Kammerorchester, Graziella Contratto (conductor)
THU 06:30 Breakfast (m002m11t)
Roll out of bed into classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
THU 09:30 Essential Classics (m002m11w)
Great classical music for your morning
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics'.
THU 13:00 Classical Live (m002m11y)
Elgar’s Enigma Variations
Mark Forrest showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.
In the wake of Radio 3’s celebrations on Monday, all this week on Classical Live we’re marking the 100th anniversary of the birth of the great conductor Charles Mackerras, with the help of the BBC Concert Orchestra and a tribute concert they gave recently in Brno, Czech Republic. On the programme were several of his favourite works, including beloved British repertoire like Elgar’s Enigma Variations, which we open with today.
Our ensemble in focus this week is the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra – we hear them play Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony at a concert given earlier this year in Malvern.
We continue our exploration of the music Robert Schumann wrote in 1842, his extraordinarily productive ‘year of chamber music’, in which he composed all three of his string quartets (plus the piano quartet and quintet). Today we hear former Radio 3 New Generation Artists the Arod Quartet perform the String Quartet No. 3.
And we return to the 2025 Glenarm Festival of Voice in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, to hear a current member of the New Generation Artist scheme, baritone James Atkinson, singing music by Schubert.
1pm
Edward Elgar
Variations on an original theme for orchestra, 'Enigma', Op. 36
BBC Concert Orchestra
Anne-Maria Helsing (conductor)
Franz Schubert
5 Songs: Der Wanderer; Der Wanderer an den Mond; Der Wegweiser; Im Frühling; Wilkommen und Abschied
James Atkinson (baritone)
Simon Lepper (piano)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 ‘Pastoral’
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Nicholas Carter (conductor)
Robert Schumann
String Quartet No. 3 in A major, Op. 41 No. 3
Arod Quartet
Maurice Ravel
Gaspard de la Nuit
Bertrand Chamayou (piano)
Grace Williams
Hen Walia - Overture
BBC NOW
Jac van Steen (conductor)
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live".
THU 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002m120)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
A Royal Affair
Donald Macleod explores two of Wagner’s most defining relationships: with King Ludwig II of Bavaria, who bankrolled his dreams, and with Cosima Liszt, the young woman who would become his muse, lover, and eventually wife. Wagner’s fantasy of artistic freedom and romantic fulfilment seem within reach – but lavish spending, court gossip, and a scandalous affair threaten to unravel it all…
Albumblatt (arr. August Wilhelmj)
Renaud Capuçon, violin
Guillaume Bellom, piano
Huldigungsmarsch
London Symphony Orchestra
Marek Janowski, conductor
Lohengrin, Act III: In fernem Land 'Grail Narration'
Jonas Kaufmann, tenor
Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Claudio Abbado, conductor
Tristan und Isolde, Extract from Act II
Deborah Polaski (Isolde), soprano
Johan Botha (Tristan), tenor
Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra
Wiener Singverein
Bertrand de Billy, conductor
Siegfried, Love duet from Act III Scene 3
Jess Thomas (Siegfried), tenor
Helga Dernesch (Brünhilde), soprano
Berliner Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan, conductor
Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.
THU 17:00 In Tune (m002m122)
Pianist and composer Hania Rani performs live
Petroc Trelawny presents live music from pianist and composer Hania Rani ahead of her performance with Manchester Collective at the Barbican. Conductor Charles Peebles talks about his new album with Ulster Orchestra which celebrates the 150th Anniversary of the birth of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.
THU 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002m124)
A 30-minute prescription for calm
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music, including a sextet by Felix Mendelssohn, Evelyn Glennie's Light in Darkness for marimba, the overture from Lully's score to Molière's L'Amour médecin, a quartet concertant by Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-George, John Barry's cinematic The Beyondness of Things and Caroline Shaw's And the swallow for chorus.
Producer: Eleonora Claps
THU 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002m126)
Grace: Geneva Lewis plays Maconchy
The BBC National Orchestra of Wales and conductor Stephanie Childress perform Williams, Maconchy, Semple, and Wolfe as part of their ‘Grace’ series of concerts. The series explores the music of female composers, and specifically Grace Williams - here in her evocative Ballads. In this concert the Orchestra showcases works by the living composers Anna Semple and Julia Wolfe: Semple’s The Gates plays with the ideas of recall and memory, while Wolfe’s Pretty is a raucous celebration of the connotations of what being 'pretty' means. Also on the bill is Williams' friend and colleague, Elizabeth Maconchy, and her superb Seranata Concertante, with Geneva Lewis as soloist.
Presented by Verity Sharp, live from Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff.
G Williams: Ballads
Maconchy: Serenata Concertante
Anna Semple: The Gates
Julia Wolfe: Pretty
Geneva Lewis (violin)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Stephanie Childress (conductor)
THU 21:45 The Essay (m002m129)
Opera on a Plate
Verdi (Rome)
Italian food and Italian opera - a marriage of music and menus that combine perfectly in this series which looks at Italy’s rich cultural history. Walter Iuzzolino goes in search of the perfect match of food and music as he visits some of the best Italian kitchens in London and Rome. We’ll discover how the great opera composers such as Verdi, Rossini and Puccini loved their food and felt particular affinity with produce from their own Italian regions. We’ll hear some of the great moments in opera where the banquet takes centre stage, and at the same time we’ll be in the kitchens with some of the top Italian chefs to get their tips on getting the recipes right.
Walter Iuzzolino looks at the deep connections between Italian opera and Italian food in this, the second of two programmes on Giuseppe Verdi, Walter is in Rome, wandering from from the busy streets in the fashionable Trastevere area crowded with restaurants to the hushed calm of Santa Maria in Vallicella, a church in the centre of the city. Walter looks at how Verdi carried his love of food in his political and public life in Italy and abroad.
Presenter Walter Iuzzolino
Producers Francesca Marchese and Mark Rickards
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 3
THU 22:00 Night Tracks (m002m12f)
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 (m002m12k)
One from D’Angelo in tribute
‘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.
All this week, Soweto has been joined by Bilal as his Flowers guest. Rounding off his week, Bilal chooses to give his final bouquet to a singer-songwriter also known as “The Queen of Funk” who he deeply admires.
Also in the programme, there is music from Samantha Lindo and Marla Kether, Samara Joy, and Fairuz.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
FRIDAY 21 NOVEMBER 2025
FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m002m12p)
Works by Makoto Ozone and Leonard Bernstein
Where does jazz begin and classical music end? A concert from the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra fusing jazz, classical and minimal music. Composer Makoto Ozone is the piano soloist in his work 'Mogami', followed by Bernstein's Symphonic Dances from 'West Side Story'. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Makoto Ozone (b.1961)
Mogami
Makoto Ozone (piano), Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Duncan Ward (conductor)
01:08 AM
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990)
Symphonic Dances from 'West Side Story'
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Duncan Ward (conductor)
01:32 AM
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990), Rainer Maria Rilke (lyricist)
Two Love Songs
Franziska Heinzen (soprano), Benjamin Mead (piano)
01:36 AM
Frank Martin (1890-1974)
Ballade for Saxophone and Strings
Valentine Michaud (saxophone), CHAARTS Chamber Artists, Maximilian Hornung (conductor)
01:51 AM
Bohuslav Martinů (1890-1959)
La revue de cuisine – suite from the ballet
Festival Ensemble of the Festival of the Sound
02:06 AM
Gwilym Simcock (b.1981)
Improvisation on a 'plain-chant like' melody
Gwilym Simcock (piano)
02:13 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Duo concertant for violin and piano
Ayana Tsuji (violin), Philip Chiu (piano)
02:31 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Symphony no 9 in C major, D.944 "Great"
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Juanjo Mena (conductor)
03:18 AM
Christoph Demantius (1567-1643)
Intraden und Tanze - from Conviviorum Deliciae
Hortus Musicus, Andres Mustonen (director)
03:28 AM
Dora Pejačević (1885-1923)
Four piano pieces
Ida Gamulin (piano)
03:38 AM
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
Ave Maria (Hail Mary)
Chamber Choir AVE, Andraž Hauptman (conductor)
03:44 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
2 Elegiac melodies for string orchestra, Op 34
CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
03:53 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto no 2 in F major, BWV.1047
Mark Bennett (trumpet), Terje Tønnesen (violin), Cecilia Waahlberg (violin), Bjarte Eike (violin), Frode Thorsen (recorder), Anna-Maija Luolajan-Mikkola (oboe), Andreas Torgersen (violin), Markku Luolajan-Mikkola (cello), Dan Styffe (bass), Hans Knut Sveen (harpsichord)
04:05 AM
Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884)
2 Dances (Czech Dances, Book II)
Karel Vrtiska (piano)
04:14 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Gestillte Sehnsucht for alto, viola and piano, Op 91 no 1
Marianne Beate Kielland (mezzo soprano), Morten Carlsen (viola), Sergej Osadchuk (piano)
04:20 AM
Otto Nicolai (1810-1849)
Overture to "The Merry Wives of Windsor"
RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Marko Munih (conductor)
04:31 AM
Sebastian Bodinus (c.1700-1759)
Trio for oboe and 2 bassoons in G major
Hildebrand'sche Hoboïsten Compagnie
04:40 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Sion (Messiah)
Marita Kvarving Sølberg (soprano), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ketil Haugsand (conductor)
04:44 AM
Peggy Glanville-Hicks (1912-1990)
Three Gymnopedies
Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Myer Fredman (conductor)
04:54 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
5 Esquisses for piano, Op 114
Raija Kerppo (piano)
05:03 AM
Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
Four Old Hungarian Folk Songs
Male Choir of the Hungarian Army, Béla Podor (conductor)
05:07 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Les Preludes, symphonic poem after Lamartine, S.97
Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Juozas Domarkas (conductor)
05:24 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Violin Sonata no 8 in G major, Op 30 no 3
Mats Zetterqvist (violin), Mats Widlund (piano)
05:42 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Deus, judicium tuum, TWV 7:7 - grand motet after Psalm 71
Schola Cantorum Basiliensis Vocal Ensemble, Schola Cantorum Basiliensis Instrumental Ensemble, Jörg-Andreas Bötticher (conductor), Jörg-Andreas Bötticher (harpsichord)
06:03 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934), orch. Gordon Jacob
Organ Sonata in G major, Op 28
Argovia Philharmonic, Douglas Bostock (conductor)
FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m002m258)
Breakfast with the best classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
FRI 09:30 Essential Classics (m002m25b)
The best classical morning music
Ian Skelly plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics'.
FRI 13:00 Classical Live (m002m25d)
Mendelssohn and Beethoven live from Salford
Mark Forrest showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.
We end our week with a live concert from our ensemble in focus, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, at their studio in Salford Quays. Clara-Jumi Kang is the soloist in Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto before Giuseppe Mengoli conducts Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4.
Continuing our focus this week on the conductor Charles Mackerras, whose 100th anniversary Radio 3 marked with a day of special programmes on Monday, we hear his arrangement of Arthur Sullivan’s ballet Pineapple Poll. It was recorded at a recent Mackerras tribute concert given by the BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Anne-Maria Helsing in Brno, Czech Republic.
We round off a week exploring Robert Schumann’s ‘year of chamber music’ with one more piece he composed in 1842 – his Piano Quartet – performed in Switzerland by pianist Claire Huangci and the Festival Strings Lucerne.
And we make one final visit to the 2025 Glenarm Festival of Voice to hear current Radio 3 New Generation Artist James Atkinson singing the second book of Claude Debussy’s Fetes Galantes.
1pm
Clara Schumann
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 7
Clare Hammond (piano)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Nicholas Carter (conductor)
Arthur Sullivan arr. Charles Mackerras
Pineapple Poll Suite
BBC Concert Orchestra
Anna-Maria Helsing (conductor)
Robert Schumann
Piano Quartet in E flat major, Op. 47
Festival Strings Lucerne
Claire Huangci (piano)
***
2.30pm – The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra live in MediaCity, Salford Quays
Felix Mendelssohn
Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64
Clara-Jumi Kang (violin)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Giuseppe Mengoli (conductor)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 4 in B flat major, Op. 60
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Giuseppe Mengoli (conductor)
***
Claude Debussy
Fetes Galantes, Book 2
James Atkinson (baritone)
Simon Lepper (piano)
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live'.
FRI 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002m25g)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Wagner in Wahnfried
A house named for peace. A theatre built for myth. A festival that nearly collapsed before it began. In today’s episode, Donald Macleod follows Wagner into the final act of his life as he realises his last great dream: the Bayreuth Festival. From the design of the Festspielhaus to the premiere of Der Ring des Nibelungen, we follow Wagner’s relentless pursuit of artistic control.
Parsifal, Act III Suite, ed. Abbado: Good Friday Music
Berliner Philharmoniker
Claudio Abbado, conductor
Götterdammerung, Siegfried’s Funeral March
The Cleveland Orchestra
George Szell, conductor
Siegfried, extract from Act II Scene 1
Simon O'Neill (Siegfried), tenor
Michael Volle (Wanderer), baritone
Peter Hoare (Mime), tenor
Anja Kampe (Brünnhilde), soprano
Franz-Josef Selig (Fafner), bass
Gerhild Romberger (Erda), contralto
Danae Kontora (Waldvogel), soprano
Symphonie-Orchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks
Sir Simon Rattle, conductor
Kinder-Katechismus
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Wiener Philharmoniker
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Die Walküre, Act III Scene 3: Wotan’s Farewell and Magic Fire Music
Berlin Philharmoniker
Herbert von Karajan, conductor
Produced by Ellie Ajao for BBC Audio Wales and West.
FRI 17:00 In Tune (m002m25j)
Live classical music for your commute
Live music and interviews from the world's finest classical musicians.
FRI 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002m25l)
Classical music to boost your mood
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.
FRI 19:30 Friday Night is Music Night (m002m25n)
Queen: A Night at the Opera
Edwin Outwater conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra and soloists live from Symphony Hall Birmingham in songs from Queen's iconic 1975 album interspersed with classic opera arias.
Presented by Katie Derham
Bizet: Prelude from Carmen (Act 1); Les tringles des sistres tintaient
Queen: Don’t Stop Me Now
Verdi: Ernani, Ernani involami (Ernani)
Queen: Who Wants to Live Forever; I Want to Break Free
Puccini: Vissi d’arte; E lucevan le stelle (Tosca)
Queen: Love of My Life; The Show Must Go On
INTERVAL
Mascagni: Intermezzo (Cavalleria rusticana)
Queen: Another One Bites the Dust
Leoncavallo: Vesti la giubba (I Pagliacci)
Queen: It’s a Hard Life; Barcelona; You’re My Best Friend
Bellini: Casta diva (Norma)
Queen: Somebody to Love
Jordan Pitts (tenor)
Nikola Printz (mezzo-soprano)
Ann Toomey (soprano)
Singers: Rachael Wooding, Jon Boydon, Pete Eldridge, Jenna Lee-James
BBC Concert Orchestra
conductor Edwin Outwater
FRI 21:45 The Essay (m002m25q)
Opera on a Plate
Bellini
talian food and Italian opera - a marriage of music and menus that combine perfectly in this series which looks at Italy’s rich cultural history. Walter Iuzzolino goes in search of the perfect match of food and music as he visits some of the best Italian kitchens in London and Rome. We’ll discover how the great opera composers such as Verdi, Rossini and Puccini loved their food and felt particular affinity with produce from their own Italian regions. We’ll hear some of the great moments in opera where the banquet takes centre stage, and at the same time we’ll be in the kitchens with some of the top Italian chefs to get their tips on getting the recipes right.
Walter Iuzzolino has been exploring the many important connections between Italian food and Italian opera. Regional differences are significant - from Liguria, Tuscany to the south - and in this programme he'll be considering a special dish celebrated on the island of Sicily, homeland of the great composer Vincenzo Bellini.
Presenter Walter Iuzzolino
Producers Francesca Marchese and Mark Rickards
A Whistledown Scotland production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 22:00 Late Junction (m002m25s)
Lea Bertucci and Harry Górski-Brown in session
Jennifer Lucy Allan presents the fruits of our latest exclusive collaboration session, between Glasgow-based pipes player Harry Górski-Brown and New York saxophonist and sound artist Lea Bertucci.
Lea Bertucci's discography spans over a decade, encompassing eight albums of full-length solo work and a number of collaborative projects. An electro-acoustic minimalist with a background in woodwind instruments (primarily the alto saxophone and bass clarinet), her practice as a sound artist includes multichannel audio pieces and explorations of highly-resonant spaces. Her latest release The Oracle, a vocal-focused collection that has been three years in the making, creatively misuses a reel-to-to-reel tape machine to live-manipulate her speech: 'fragments of words and phrases simmer within layers of voice . . . revealing and obscuring images of dreams, warped news headlines and mythological imagery.'
Harry Górski-Brown is a Scotland-based artist and electroacoustic musician. His releases across the Glasgow-based GLARC, Non-Classical and Wild Raver records have seen him reinterpreting Gàidhlig (Scottish Gaelic) songs, which are usually set using voice, pipes, fiddle, organ and electronics. His most recent release, as part of a collection of music from six emerging and prominent Scottish artists, was an imaginative reinterpretation of a Gàidhlig tale of Fearchar Macklin Oig, who took revenge on a landlord who had confiscated his wife’s kettle when she did not have money to give him for their rent. He was an Artist in Residence at Non-Classical from 2023-2025.
Produced by Cat Gough
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002m25v)
Maddy Coombs in concert
‘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.
Tonight Soweto presents concert highlights from rising tenor saxophonist Maddy Coombs and her band, recorded live at the Fickle Pickle as part of Southend Jazz Festival. Originally from Northampton and now based in London, Maddy is a key part of the city's jazz community and recently graduated from Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She is also part of the Tomorrow’s Warriors family and is currently part of the organisation’s Emerging Artist development programme.
Maddy's performance featured original compositions as well as some favourite jazz standards, all delivered with her notable melodic sound. She was joined by fellow talented musicians and Warrior members, pianist Emily Tran, bassist Nathan Dawkins, and drummer Wilf Cameron Marples.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'