SATURDAY 07 FEBRUARY 2026

SAT 00:30 Through the Night (m002qjty)
Unsuk Chin, Mozart and Prokofiev from Berlin

Leonidas Kavakos conducts the German Symphony Orchestra, Berlin in Prokofiev's Sixth Symphony and Mao Fujita is the soloist in Mozart's Piano Concerto no 27. The concert opens with Chin's Subito con Forza. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Unsuk Chin (b.1961)
Subito con Forza
German Symphony Orchestra, Berlin, Leonidas Kavakos (conductor)

12:37 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto no 27 in B flat major, K.595
Mao Fujita (piano), German Symphony Orchestra, Berlin, Leonidas Kavakos (conductor)

01:09 AM
Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888)
Dans le genre gothique, from '25 Préludes dans tous les tons, Op 31'
Mao Fujita (piano)

01:12 AM
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Symphony no 6 in E flat minor, Op 111
German Symphony Orchestra, Berlin, Leonidas Kavakos (conductor)

01:57 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Piano Trio no 2 in C minor, Op 66
Enrico Pace (piano), Leonidas Kavakos (violin), Eckart Runge (cello)

02:26 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Cantata no 182, BWV.182 (Himmelskonig, sei willkommen): Sonata
Zefira Valova (violin), Alexis Kossenko (recorder), Les Ambassadeurs, Alexis Kossenko (director)

02:31 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
Sea Pictures, Op 37
Kristina Hammarström (mezzo soprano), Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Tadaaki Otaka (conductor)

02:54 AM
Leokadiya Kashperova (1872-1940)
Cello Sonata no 1 in G major
Andrei Ioniță (cello), Lilit Grigoryan (piano)

03:36 AM
Henri Sauguet (1901-1989)
La Nuit
CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Daniel Swift (conductor)

03:48 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Rondo for piano in C minor, Op 1
Ludmil Angelov (piano)

03:57 AM
Hendrik Andriessen (1892-1981)
Variations and fugue on a theme by Kuhnau
Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra, David Porcelijn (conductor)

04:10 AM
Gaspar Sanz (1640-1710)
Xácaras and Canarios (Instrucción de música sobre la guitara española" )
Eduardo Egüez (guitar)

04:20 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918), transc. Zóltan Kocsis
Arabesque no 1 in E major
Béla Horváth (oboe), Anita Szabó (flute), Zsolt Szatmári (clarinet), György Salamon (bass clarinet), Pál Bokor (bassoon), Tamás Zempléni (horn), Péter Kubina (double bass)

04:24 AM
Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
Evening in Transylvania and Swineherd's Dance, from 'Hungarian Pictures, Sz.97'
Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra, Zsolt Hamar (conductor)

04:31 AM
Robert White (c.1538-1574), James MacMillan (b.1959)
Christe qui lux es et dies (White) & A Child's Prayer (MacMillan)
Gabrieli Consort, Paul McCreesh (director)

04:40 AM
Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927)
Mellanspel ur Sången, Op 44
Baltic Sea Youth Philharmonic, Kristjan Järvi (conductor)

04:45 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Violin Concerto in E major, BWV.1042
Terje Tønnesen (violin), Norwegian Chamber Orchestra

05:03 AM
Vincente Adán (fl.1775-1787)
Divertimento 2.o Nuevo
Dagmara Kapczyńska (harpsichord), Komalé Akakpo (dulcimer)

05:16 AM
Paul Gilson (1865-1942)
La Captive : Suite from Act 1. Ballet-Pantomime
Vlaams Radio Orkest [Flemish Radio Orchestra], Martyn Brabbins (conductor)

05:39 AM
Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805-1900)
6 Characteerstykker med indledende Smaavers af H.C Andersen, Op 50
Nina Gade (piano)

05:51 AM
Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826)
Missa Sancta no 2 in G major J.251, Op 76 'Jubelmesse'
Henriette Schellenberg (soprano), Laverne G'Froerer (mezzo soprano), Keith Boldt (tenor), George Roberts (baritone), Vancouver Chamber Choir, CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Jon Washburn (conductor)

06:17 AM
John Field (1782-1837)
Nocturne in B flat (H.37); Nocturne in E minor (H.46)
Barry Douglas (piano), Camerata Ireland

06:25 AM
Heinrich Joseph Baermann (1784-1847)
Adagio in D major (extract from Clarinet Quintet no 3 in E flat major, Op 23)
Jože Kotar (clarinet), Slovenian Philharmonic String Quartet


SAT 06:30 Breakfast (m002qqlk)
Ease into the 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 (m002qqlm)
Conductor Cristian Macelaru tells his amazing musical life story

Tom Service with guests, stories and the perfect classical soundtrack for the weekend!

The Romanian conductor Cristian Măcelaru is the embodiment of the old school American dream: growing up in Soviet Romania a hugely talented violinist and getting a scholarship to study in the USA as a boy. Now he's the music director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and known for his exciting and inclusive music making. He chats to Tom about his journey to Cincinnati and a new album with the Orchestra de Paris of the unknown music of French composer Elsa Barraine.

This week it's the first in a brand new series for Saturday Mornings: The Creators. Each week we'll meet a musical guest who has made something game-changing in music or audio - from the smallest ringtone to the biggest concert hall.

Today we start off with a splash - quite literally! - as Japanese composer Dai Fujikura talks about his new opera inspired by one of the most iconic images in all visual art - The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai. We all know the image of the Great Wave, but very few know anything about Hokusai. Dai helps tell both Hokusai's story and the story behind his genre-spanning operatic collaboration between Scottish Opera and Japanese instrumentalists.

And as Artemis II prepares to launch, Tom looks at the music that has actually been taken to the moon over the years, with the help of BBC Sky at Night writer Mary McIntyre.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Saturday Morning”.


SAT 12:00 Earlier... with Jools Holland (m002qqlp)
Jools and guests share their musical favourites

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 guest is the musician and bandleader David Hermlin who introduces music he loves by Mendelssohn, Beethoven and Strauss.

To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Earlier with Jools Holland".


SAT 13:00 Music Matters (m002qqlr)
The President and the Polka

5. Selling the American Dream

Justin Webb (presenter of Today and Americast, and former BBC North America Editor) explores the surprising relationship between classical music and American politics. From the days of the Founding Fathers, music was used to assert an American identity, distinct from a European musical tradition. And evolving political and social ideals, dreams and struggles were mirrored in the music being created - from Manifest Destiny to #MeToo, from Civil War to Civil Rights.

In today's episode, we explore Cold War musical diplomacy and how classical music was used to export American values overseas.

Producer Megan Jones, BBC Audio Wales


SAT 14:00 Record Review (m002qqlt)
Sibelius's Symphony No. 5 in Building a Library with William Mival and Andrew McGregor

Andrew McGregor with the week's best new classical releases.

2.10pm
Andrew is joined by guest reviewer Cathy Newman, presenter of Channel 4 News, who picks four new releases that have caught her ear.

3pm
Building a Library: William Mival, Composition Professor at the Royal College of Music, surveys some of the many recordings of Sibelius's Symphony No. 5 and makes a personal top recommendation.
Premiered in 1915, Sibelius wrote his Symphony No. 5 at the instigation of the Finnish government to mark the composer's 50th birthday. The majestic finale was inspired by Sibelius seeing a group of swans taking flight.

3.50pm
Record of the Week: Andrew picks a new release that has most impressed him this week.


SAT 16:00 Sound of Cinema (m002qqlw)
With Debbie Wiseman and Jools Holland

Join Edith Bowman for a specially curated playlist of music from the movies. This week, composer Debbie Wiseman takes us behind the scenes of her score for the 1997 film Wilde in our feature- Harmonising Hollywood. Plus, Jools Holland shares his Pick of the Flicks, highlighting the music of Michael Nyman.

We’ll also bring you the latest film score releases alongside timeless classics.


SAT 17:00 This Classical Life (m0026ns8)
Jess Gillam with... Harry Christophers

Jess is joined by conductor Harry Christophers to swap the music they love the most. Harry is choral royalty and with his choir The Sixteen has released over 150 recordings of music old and new, he was appointed a CBE in 2012, is Grammy nominated and conducts some of the greatest orchestras around the world.

He joins Jess to chat about his love of 70s prog rockers Jethro Tull, why Gladiator is the greatest film ever made, the time he threw the first pitch at Red Sox game and the evergreen aching beauty of Mahler's 9th symphony. Meanwhile Jess ups the tempo with tracks by Abel Selaocoe and Beyonce and finds the one Handel opera Harry has yet to conduct....


SAT 18:00 Opera on 3 (m002qqly)
Handel's Ariodante

Handel's Ariodante from the Royal Ballet and Opera, the site of its premiere during Handel's first Covent Garden season in 1735.

Ariodante leads a charmed life - he's young, in love, and his fiancée, Ginevra, is first in line to the throne. But when a jealous rival conspires against them, Ginevra, falsely accused of infidelity, is stripped of her status, while Ariodante, believing himself betrayed, seeks oblivion. Handel's only opera set in the British Isles, the music reveals new emotional and dramatic depths, with fully rounded characters and some dazzling vocal fireworks.

In the first full production here since its 1735 premiere, a stunning cast includes Canadian mezzo-soprano Emily D'Angelo, taking on a role originally written for one of Handel's star castratos. Her wronged Ginevra is sung by American soprano Jacquelyn Stucker and the malevolent Polinesso by French Countertenor Christophe Dumaux. Baroque specialist Stefano Montanari conducts and plays violin from the podium.

Recorded in December, Andrew McGregor presents and is joined in the box by Handel expert Suzanne Aspden to talk about Handel's glorious score.

Handel: Ariodante

Ariodante ..... Emily D'Angelo (mezzo-soprano)
Ginevra ..... Jacquelyn Stucker (soprano)
Polinesso ..... Christophe Dumaux (countertenor)
Dalinda ..... Elena Villalón (soprano)
Lurcanio ..... Ed Lyon (tenor)
King of Scotland ..... Peter Kellner (bass)
Odoardo ..... Emyr Lloyd Jones (tenor)
Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House
Stefano Montanari (conductor)


SAT 21:30 Music Planet (m002qqm0)
Dublin in three tracks with Landless

Kathryn Tickell invites Landless to pick three tracks that embody the musical soul of the Irish capital. The group - Ruth Clinton, Meabh Meir, Sinead Lynch and Lily Power - sing unaccompanied traditional songs from Irish, Scottish, English and American traditions in close four-part harmony, and its members are closely involved in the traditional singing sessions in Dublin and Belfast.

Plus Kathryn selects the best new global roots-based releases: from Congolese rumba courtesy of African Fiesta; Catalan songs by Ester Formosa and Elva Lutza; and Greek-Anatolian laments from rebetiko musician Antonis Diamantidis.

Produced by Silvia Malnati
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 (m002qqm2)
Too Much Is Never Enough

Kate Molleson presents exclusive recordings of Riot Ensemble performing at Milton Court in London, in a programme called 'Too Much Is Never Enough', including Alex Paxton's Shrimp BIT Babyface and Eden Lonsdale's Tränen und Ozeane. Also, from Aberdeen's Sound 2025, Lara Agar's ON THE WAY OUT, and from the 2025 Donaueschingen Music Festival Anna Korsun's Vivrisses. plus new releases of the latest in cutting-edge and experimental music.

SUNDAY 08 FEBRUARY 2026

SUN 00:30 Through the Night (m002qqm4)
András Schiff plays Bach's The Art of Fugue

The Hungarian-born British pianist András Schiff performs the entirety of Bach's masterwork The Art of Fugue, which he described as 'the greatest work by the greatest composer who ever lived.' Played at the 2025 BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
The Art of Fugue, BWV.1080
András Schiff (piano), Schaghajegh Nosrati (piano)

01:47 AM
Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782)
Quintet for flute, oboe, violin, viola & basso continuo in G major, Op 11 no 2
Les Adieux

01:55 AM
Graeme Koehne (b.1956)
To His servant, Bach, God Grants a Final Glimpse: The Morning Star
Guitar Trek

02:00 AM
Helena Winkelman (b.1974)
Concerto for Two Recorders and Strings
Camerata Variabile Basel, Helena Winkelman (conductor)

02:16 AM
Johann Ernst Bach (1722-1777)
Meine Seele erhebt den Herrn (motet)
Martina Lins (soprano), Silke Weisheit (alto), Martin Schmitz (tenor), Hans-Georg Wimmer (bass), Rheinische Kantorei, Das Kleine Konzert, Hermann Max (conductor)

02:31 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Gaspard de la nuit for piano
Anna Vinnitskaya (piano)

02:53 AM
Ruth Gipps (1921-1999)
Wind Sinfonietta, Op 73
BBC National Orchestra of Wales (conductor), Jonathan Bloxham (conductor)

03:12 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra (K.191) in B flat major
Audun Halvorsen (bassoon), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Andrew Manze (conductor)

03:31 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Litaniae de providential divina
Olga Pasiecznik (soprano), Marta Bobertska (soprano), Piotr Lykowski (counter tenor), Wojciech Parchem (tenor), Mirosław Borczyński (baritone), Sine Nomine Chamber Choir, Concerto Polacco, Marek Toporowski (conductor)

03:42 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
Serenade for Strings, Op 20
Royal Academy Soloists, Clio Gould (director)

03:54 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886), Eduard Lassen (librettist)
Löse Himmel, meine seele, S.494
Sylviane Deferne (piano)

04:00 AM
Mel Bonis (1858-1938)
Suite Orientale, Op 48 no 2: Prelude & Danse d'almees
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Rumon Gamba (conductor)

04:07 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Sonata no 2 in B flat major, Z.791
Les Ambassadeurs, Alexis Kossenko (director)

04:14 AM
Giovanni Bottesini (1821-1889)
Tarantella
Gary Karr (double bass), Harmon Lewis (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
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
Ave Generosa
Orpheus Women's Choir, Albert Wissink (director)

04:37 AM
Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre (1665-1729)
Sonata in D major for 2 violins and continuo
Musica Fiorita, Daniela Dolci (director)

04:45 AM
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
Hymn and Triumphal March, from Aida
WDR Funkhausorchester, Rasmus Baumann (conductor)

04:53 AM
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901), arr. Franz Liszt
Paraphrase on Rigoletto
Michele Campanella (piano)

05:00 AM
Peter Machajdík (b.1961)
Danube Afterpoint
Ricercata Ensemble, Ivan Siller (director)

05:17 AM
Louis-Nicolas Clerambault (1676-1749)
Pirame et Tisbe (1710)
Gilles Ragon (tenor), Ensemble Amalia

05:34 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Violin Concerto in D major (Op.61)
Christian Tetzlaff (violin), Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Saarbrücken, Michael Stern (conductor)

06:15 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
4 Songs for women's voices, 2 horns and harp, Op 17
Danish National Radio Choir, Leif Lind (horn), Per McClelland Jacobsen (horn), Catriona Yeats (harp), Stefan Parkman (conductor)


SUN 06:30 Breakfast (m002qqnr)
Wake up with classical music

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 (m002qqnt)
Three hours of classical sparkle

Sarah Walker with three hours of classical music to reflect, restore and refresh.

Today, Sarah chooses an efferverscent piano concerto movement from Emilie Mayer, and a favourite recording of the expansive opening of Beethoven's Eroica Symphony.

This week's Choral Reflection features British composer Kerensa Briggs, and there's also a chance to hear from a new recording of Erich Korngold's lush Violin Concerto.

Plus, Vivaldi, Schubert, and a colourful arrangement of a late Debussy masterpiece…

A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3


SUN 12:00 Private Passions (m002qqnw)
Richard Stokes

Richard Stokes has been passionate about song since he was a teenager – although, as he readily admits, he’s not a great singer. Instead, he’s become one of the world’s leading authorities on German art songs – or lieder – and has also co-written books on English, French and Spanish songs.

His work as a translator includes the complete Bach cantatas and the complete songs of Hugo Wolf, as well as operas by Wagner and Berg. He also collaborated with the pianist Alfred Brendel on translations of his poetry. Since 2006 he’s coached young singers at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he’s Professor of Lieder.

His choices include music by Bach, Mahler and Stravinsky.

Presenter Michael Berkeley
Producer Graham Rogers


SUN 13:30 Music Map (m002qqny)
Chabrier's España

Sara Mohr-Pietsch traces a path through the Andalusian countryside towards Chabrier's España, one of the very few orchestral works written by the composer. Along the way, she encounters music which might have inspired Chabrier on his trip to the Spanish region in 1883, together with other works that capture folk song and dance.

Producer: Ben Collingwood.

To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers), just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Map'.


SUN 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002qhp5)
Exeter Cathedral

Live from Exeter Cathedral.

Introit: Eternal spirit, living God (Philip Walsh)
Responses: Smith
Psalms 22, 23 (Wesley, Goss, Martin)
First Lesson: Isaiah 61 vv1-9
Office hymn: Come, Holy Ghost, our souls inspire (Plainsong)
Canticles: Jackson in G
Second Lesson: Luke 7 vv18-30
Anthem: The Panther (Nico Muhly)
Hymn: Guide me, O thou great Redeemer (Cwm Rhondda)
Voluntary: Organ Sonata (Allegro Agitato) (Philip Moore)

Timothy Noon (Director of Music)
Michael Stephens-Jones (Assistant Director of Music)

To listen on most smart speakers, just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.


SUN 16:00 Jazz Record Requests (m002qqp0)
Jazz For a Sunday Afternoon

Alyn Shipton presents jazz records of all styles as requested by you including music from Jimmy Smith, Jacqui Dankworth, Ether Ennis, Jazz Sabbath and more.

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 (m0014xhd)
Carnevale: Venice and Vino

New York-based wine historian Ron Merlino joins Hannah French to explore the Carnevale season in Baroque Venice. There's music specifically associated with wine, and the wine trade - a mainstay of the 17th-century Venetian economy.

Hannah will be tasting three white wine varieties intrinsically linked to music by Cavalli, Monteverdi, Pallavicino and Cesti.


SUN 18:00 Words and Music (m00214rb)
Gold, Silver, Bronze and Brass

Metals precious, dangerous and rare as well as the common and everyday inspire this shiny selection; from the chase for Olympic gold and glory to Wendall Berry’s humble life well lived in ‘A Brass Bowl’. We’re bewitched by the light of the silvery moon with Dvorak and Yeats and transported the Bronze age by Rosemary Sutcliffe. We delve into the many meanings of metals, meeting Golden Cockerels, Eagles and Moles; and put our hope into Ian Serraillier’s Silver Sword. There’s golden music from Shostakovich, Lehar's Gold and Silver Waltz, Gliere’s Bronze Horseman and the best in Brass from the Black Dyke Band.

Just remember, all that Glisters is not gold…

The readers are Lesley Nicol and Robin Morrisey.

Producer: Jessica Treen

Readings:
Robert Frost: Nothing Gold can Say
Chris Cleave: Gold
Rosemary Sutcliffe: The Chief’s Daughter
Walter de la Mere: Silver
Anon: Something old, Something New
Wendell Berry: A Brass Bowl
William Shakespeare: The Merchant of Venice
Kassia St Clair: The Golden Thread
Zainab Badawi: An African History of Africa
George the Poet: Benin Bronze
Ian Serraillier: The Silver Sword
Katherine Rundell: The Golden Mole
Emily Dickinson: If your Nerve, deny you
Jackie Kay: Trumpet
Alexander Pushkin (Trans Michael Symmons Roberts): The Bronze Horseman
Oscar Wilde: The Happy Prince
George Eliot: Silas Marner
Wilfred Owen:
As Bronze May Be Much Beautified (unfinished)
W.B Yeats: The Song of Wandering Angus


SUN 19:15 Between the Ears (m002qqp4)
One Last Score - Bernard Herrmann and Taxi Driver

Bernard Herrmann was one of the most legendary figures in 20th century film music. He is arguably best known for his work with Alfred Hitchcock, a relationship which began in 1955 with the Trouble With Harry, with iconic scores along the way including Psycho, Vertigo and North by Northwest, ending in dramatic fashion when the pair fell out over Hitchock's 1966 film Torn Curtain.

Yet Herrmann's output goes beyond thrillers, encompassing romantic films with Jane Eyre, science fiction with The Day the Earth Stood Still, as well as fantasy classics like Jason and the Argonauts. As a composer whose first job in film was scoring Orson Welles's masterpiece Citizen Kane, few had a better front row seat for the huge changes in Hollywood over a 35-year period.

Herrmann's very last score was for Martin Scorsese's gritty 1976 neo-noir film Taxi Driver starring Robert de Niro as cab driver Travis Bickle, whose mental state deteriorates as he works long nights in New York City. The score mixes many of Herrmann's classic elements including deep brass and dramatic percussion with an unforgettable jazz-tinged saxophone solo.

In the 50th anniversary year of Taxi Driver, this Between the Ears tells the story of Herrmann's final masterpiece, from his return to Hollywood after years spent in film music wilderness, to his death less than 24 hours after he had finished recording. The programme mixes archive of Bernard Herrmann himself as well as Martin Scorsese and saxophone soloist Ronnie Lang with new interviews with Herrmann's wife Norma, his biographer Steven C. Smith, saxophonist John Harle, Taxi Driver producer Michael Phillips, composer Mica Levi and film critic Dana Stevens.

Producer: Nick Taylor
Sound engineer: Callum Lawrence
For BBC Audio.


SUN 19:45 Sunday Feature (m002qqp8)
Ralph Vaughan Williams and fenland music

In The Fen Country from 1904 is Ralph Vaughan Williams’ earliest acknowledged composition. As a student he would travel out into the fens, even ice skating to Ely Cathedral, and collecting local folk songs which would inspire his later work.

Poet and nature writer Jade Cuttle, who like the composer fell in love with this flat landscape whilst studying at Cambridge University, retraces his footsteps in this artistically-fertile but overlooked part of the country.

Joining this journey into Vaughan Williams' fenland soundscape are Robert Macfarlane, whose books include Underland and Is a River Alive; researcher and gardener Alyson Tapp and Caroline Davison, author of a study of Vaughan Williams and folk music called The Captain's Apprentice.

Producer Ciaran Bermingham

Jade Cuttle is a New Generation Thinker on the scheme run by the BBC and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to put research on the radio.


SUN 20:00 Record Review (m002qqpd)
Sibelius Symphony No. 5

The Building a Library recommended recording from yesterday's Record Review.


SUN 21:00 20th Century Radicals (m002qqpj)
Alois Hába: Expanding the Scale

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 microtonal music of the Czech radical Alois Hába, leading to a performance of his String Quartet No. 5 from 1923. Along the way, we’ll find a Russian composer leaving his country because of his belief in the importance of abandoning equal temperament; discover why microtones might qualify as anti-bourgeois; and find a model for modern music in the Czech language itself.

Produced by Sam Phillips
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3

To listen on most smart speakers, just say “ask BBC Sounds to play 20th Century Radicals”


SUN 22:00 Night Tracks (m002qqpn)
Immersive music for moonlight

Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.


SUN 23:30 Unclassified (m002qqpq)
Afterimage

Elizabeth Alker explores landscapes of ambient and experimental sounds, hearing 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. This week: Peter Broderick takes inspiration from an iconic Japanese video game soundtrack; New York composer Tristan Perich collaborates with superstar organist James McVinnie; Laurel Halo scores an oceanic ravine with dense string textures; and there's a surprise poetic appearance from an Oscar-winning actor.

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 09 FEBRUARY 2026

MON 00:30 Through the Night (m002qqps)
Mahler's 4th Symphony

Michael Schønwandt conducts the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern in Mahler's 4th Symphony with soprano Christina Landshamer. Cécile Chaminade's Callirhoë Suite and a selection of songs from Joseph Canteloube's 'Chants d'Auvergne' complete the programme. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Callirhoe Suite, Op 37
German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Michael Schønwandt (conductor)

12:49 AM
Joseph Canteloube (1879-1957)
Selection, from 'Chants d'Auvergne'
Christina Landshamer (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Michael Schønwandt (conductor)

01:07 AM
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Symphony no 4 in G major
Christina Landshamer (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Michael Schønwandt (conductor)

02:06 AM
Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Flute Concertino, Op 107
Maria Filippova (flute), Ekaterina Mirzaeva (piano)

02:14 AM
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Banalités
Katarina Jovanović (soprano), Dejan Sinadinović (piano)

02:25 AM
Joseph Canteloube (1879-1957)
Brezairola - from Songs of the Auvergne
Yvonne Kenny (soprano), Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Kamirski (conductor)

02:31 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
24 Preludes for piano, Op 28
Beatrice Rana (piano)

03:08 AM
Eugen Suchoň (1908-1993)
Concertino for clarinet and orchestra
Ronald Šebesta (clarinet), Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Mário Košik (conductor)

03:30 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Aria: "Un'aura amorosa" from Cosi fan tutte (K.588), Act 1
Michael Schade (tenor), Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, Richard Bradshaw (conductor)

03:35 AM
Paulo Bellinati (b.1950)
Jongo
Tornado Guitar Duo (duo)

03:41 AM
Francesco Durante (1684-1755)
Concerto per quartetto no 6 in A major for strings
Concerto Köln

03:51 AM
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (1562-1621)
Psalm 110: Le Toutpuissant a mon Seigneur et maistre
Netherlands Chamber Choir, Peter Phillips (conductor)

03:59 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Academic Festival Overture, Op 80
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Grant Llewellyn (conductor)

04:10 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Variations serieuses in D minor, Op 54
Sylviane Deferne (piano)

04:21 AM
Gian Carlo Cailò (1659-1725)
Sonata Terza
Eva Saladin (violin), Daniel Rosin (cello), Johannes Keller (harpsichord)

04:31 AM
Georges Auric (1899-1983), arr. Philip Lane
The Lavender Hill Mob (Suite)
BBC Philharmonic, Rumon Gamba (conductor)

04:39 AM
Heinrich Wilhelm Ernst (1814-1865)
Variations on The Last Rose of Summer
Ju-young Baek (violin)

04:45 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
2 Sonatinas for mandolin: C minor WoO 43/1 and C major WoO 44/1
Avi Avital (mandolin), Shalev Ad-El (harpsichord)

04:52 AM
Alessandro Marcello (1673-1747)
Concerto in D minor for oboe and strings
Maja Kojc (oboe), RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Pavle Dešpalj (conductor)

05:04 AM
Anonymous
3 Sephardische Romanzen
Montserrat Figueras (soprano), Hesperion XX, Jordi Savall (director)

05:13 AM
Armas Järnefelt (1869-1968)
Music to 'The Promised Land'
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ilpo Mansnerus (conductor)

05:27 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Cantata: Ich habe genug, BWV.82a
Raphael Höhn (tenor), Café Zimmermann

05:50 AM
Ottorino Respighi (1879-1936)
Fountains of Rome, symphonic poem
Croatian Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Enrico Dindo (conductor)

06:06 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Piano Trio in G major, L.3
Ilya Gringolts (violin), Nicolas Altstaedt (cello), Alexander Lonquich (piano)


MON 06:30 Breakfast (m002qqx6)
Start your 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’


MON 09:30 Essential Classics (m002qqx8)
Your perfect classical playlist

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”


MON 13:00 Classical Live (m002qqxb)
Schubert songs live from Wigmore Hall

Linton Stephens showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.

This week Classical Live has a distinctively French flavour, as we explore the concertos of Saint-Saëns, and chamber works by the likes of Fauré and Debussy; we’ll also turn our attention to France’s famous musical brothers, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon.

Today’s programme includes Saint-Saëns's Violin Concerto No. 3 performed by violinist Manon Galy at the Radio France Occitanie Montpellier Festival; and the Magnard Ensemble perform Albéric Magnard’s Quintet in D minor in a recording from the Dartington Music Festival.

At 1pm, live from Wigmore Hall, French soprano Sandrine Piau presents a programme including Schubert, Clara Schumann, Poulenc, Hugo Wolf, and the little-known composer and pianist Jeanne Bernard.

LIVE from WIGMORE HALL, introduced for Classical Live by Hannah French

Sandrine Piau (soprano)
David Kadouch (piano)

Franz Schubert
Schwanengesang D957:
Liebesbotschaft
Ständchen
Am Meer

Clara Schumann
Ich hab' in deinem Auge Op. 13 No. 5
Ich stand in dunkeln Träumen Op. 13 No. 1
Lorelei
Scherzo No. 2 in C minor Op. 14

Hugo Wolf
Mörike Lieder:
Verborgenheit
Begegnung
Auf ein altes Bild

Francis Poulenc
La courte paille:
Quelle aventure!
La reine de cœur
Ba, be, bi, bo, bu
Les anges musiciens
Le carafon
Lune d'avril

Lili Boulanger
Cortège (piano solo)

Maurice Ravel
5 mélodies populaires grecques

Jeanne Bernard
Trois chansons de Bilitis

*****
With Linton Stephens

Camille Saint-Saëns
Violin Concerto No. 3 in B minor, Op. 61
Manon Galy, violin
Orchestre National de France
Cristian Măcelaru, conductor

Camille Saint-Saëns
Prélude from 'Le Déluge (The Flood), Op. 45
Manon Galy, violin

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Swan Lake Suite highlights
BBC Philharmonic
Ben Gernon, conductor

Jean-Baptiste Lully
Suite from 'Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme'
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra
Maxim Emelyanychev, harpsichord, director

Albéric Magnard
Quintet In D minor, Op. 8
Magnard Ensemble

Charlotte Sohy
Danse mystique, Op. 19
Orchestre National de France
Cristian Măcelaru, conductor


MON 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002qqxd)
Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)

Discovery of a Talent

Donald Macleod delves into the early life of the great German composer Heinrich Schütz, when the boy’s musical talents were discovered by an aristocrat. Macleod follows Schütz on his journey to being offered a prominent position at the Court in Dresden, as well as a dream come true when Schütz goes to study with Gabrieli in Venice.

Wohl denen, die ohne Wandel leben, SWV 482
La Capella Ducale
Musica Fiata
Roland Wilson, director

Tugend ist der beste Freund, SWV 442
Dorothee Mields, soprano
Isabel Schicketanz, soprano
Margaret Baumhartl, violin
Wolfgang von Kessinger, violin
Andreas Arend, theorbo
Matthias Müller, viola da gamba
Beate Rölleke, chamber organ
Hans-Christoph Rademann, director

O primavera, SWV 1
O dolcezze amarissime, SWV 2
Ride la primavera, SWV 7
Miriam Allan, soprano
Hannah Morrison, soprano
Mathilde Ortscheidt, mezzo-soprano
Sean Clayton, tenor
Jonathan Sells, bass-baritone
Les Arts Florissants
Paul Agnew, director

Wohl dem der ein tugendsam Weib hat, SWV 20
Cantus Cölln
Knabenchor Hannover
Musica Fiata
Roland Wilson, director

Zion spricht, der Herr hat mich verlassen, SWV 46
Alleluja, lobet den Herrn, SWV 38
Aurore Bucher, soprano
Andrea Brown, soprano
Rolf Ehlers, countertenor
Beat Duddeck, countertenor
Michael Feyfar, tenor
Nils Giebelhausen tenor
Ekkehard Abele, baritone
Benoit Arnould, baritone
La Chapelle Rhenane
Benoit Haller, dorector

En novus Elysiis, SWV 49 (Syncharma Musicum)
Maria Skiba, soprano
Heidi Maria Taubert, soprano
Dorothea Wagner, soprano
David Erler, alto
Tobias Hunger, tenor
Stephan Gähler, tenor
Ingolf Seidel, baritone
Clemens Heidrich, bass
Matthias Lutze, bass
Cappella Sagittariana Dresden
Norbert Schuster, director


MON 17:00 In Tune (m002qqxg)
Sitkovetsky Trio and Emma Smith & Natalie Williams

Katie Derham is joined by the Sitkovetsky Trio, performing live in studio ahead of their concert at Wigmore Hall, London on 10/02. There is also live music from jazz singers Emma Smith and Natalie Williams, accompanied by pianist Jamie Safir, presenting music from their The Swinging Sisters show Upstairs at Ronnie Scott's on 11/02.


MON 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002k45t)
Power through with classical music

Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.


MON 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002qqxl)
Mahler's First Symphony

The BBC National Orchestra of Wales and Principal Conductor Ryan Bancroft perform a programme of music inspired by nature in the music of Mahler and Brahms.

The concert opens with the gloriously lyrical violin concerto by Brahms, inspired by the Italian sun and the dances he played with his Hungarian violinist friend in his youth. The acclaimed young Swedish violinist Johan Dalene is the soloist in this epic work. A recent BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist, Johan is known for his stunningly rich tone and deeply personal musicianship; a compelling performance not to be missed. After the interval we'll hear Mahler's youthful First Symphony, inspired by the beauty and folklore of the Alps and Austrian forests.

Presented by Verity Sharp at Brangwyn Hall, Swansea, and recorded on 17th January 2026.

Brahms: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D major, Op. 77
Mahler: Symphony No. 1 'Titan'.

Johan Dalene (violin)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Ryan Bancroft (conductor)

To listen on most smart speakers just say, 'ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert'.


MON 21:45 The Essay (m0025mz2)
Vivaldi in a Warming World

Spring

Kate Molleson talks with Magnus Lindberg, who takes us back to his 1985 piece Kraft (Power), a work described as his ‘Rite of Spring’ and one of the great sonic rumpuses of the late 20th century. Kraft used mathematical formulas to create a composition of extremes that encapsulated the explosive energy of spring, one that resonates with the chaotic weather patterns we are seeing almost four decades on from the work. Lindberg talks about the enduring influence of Vivaldi, the birth of programmatic music, and how he presented the orchestra as a force of nature itself in Kraft.

Producer Robbie Armstrong

A Whistledown Scotland production


MON 22:00 Night Tracks (m002qqxn)
Music for the still of night

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 (m002qqxq)
Nabou Claerhout’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 this week, Soweto’s guest for Flowers is the Belgian trombonist and composer Nabou Claerhout. A rising star in the European jazz scene, Nabou is the founder of her quartet N∆BOU and of the Trombone Ensemble Nabou Claerhout, and has worked with leading artists including Dave Holland, John Ruocco, and Dave Douglas. Her new album Indigo also features double bassist Trui Amerlinck, guitarist Gijs Idema, and drummer Daniel Jonkers.

To begin her week sharing some of the artists that inspire her and giving us insight into her musical world, Nabou chooses to spotlight a leading American trumpeter.

There is also music from Petter Eldh, Lophae, and Brotherly with ESKA.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight'.

TUESDAY 10 FEBRUARY 2026

TUE 00:30 Through the Night (m002qqxs)
BBC Proms 2024: Beethoven, Bruckner and Tüür

Yunchan Lim, the youngest ever winner of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, makes his Proms debut with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Paavo Järvi, performing Beethoven’s final piano concerto, the ‘Emperor’. Bookending the Prom are Bruckner’s First Symphony and Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tüür’s Aditus. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Erkki-Sven Tüür (b.1959)
Aditus
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Järvi (conductor)

12:40 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Concerto no 5 in E flat major, Op 73 'Emperor'
Yunchan Lim (piano), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Järvi (conductor)

01:18 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), arr. Wilhelm Kempff
Siciliano from Flute Sonata in G minor, BWV.1031 (arr. piano)
Yunchan Lim (piano)

01:23 AM
Anton Bruckner (1824-1896)
Symphony no 1 in D minor (version 'Linz')
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Järvi (conductor)

02:08 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Piano Sonata in C major H.16.50
Louis Schwizgebel (piano)

02:24 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Creatures of Prometheus (Die Geschopfe des Prometheus), Overture, Op 43
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek (conductor)

02:31 AM
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
String Quartet in E minor
Artis Quartet

02:52 AM
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina (c.1525-1594)
Missa in duplicibus minoribus II
Maîtrise de Garçons de Colmar, Ensemble Gilles Binchois, Ensemble Cantus Figuratus der Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, Dominique Vellard (director)

03:27 AM
Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826)
Andante and Rondo Ungarese in C minor, Op 35
Juhani Tapaninen (bassoon), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jukka-Pekka Saraste (conductor)

03:37 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Estampes
Yannick Van de Velde (piano)

03:51 AM
Imants Zemzaris (b.1951)
The Light springs
Juris Gailitis (flute), Indulis Suna (violin)

03:57 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Harpsichord Concerto no 4 in A major, BWV.1055
Arianna Radaelli (harpsichord), Café Zimmermann

04:12 AM
Johann Bach (1604-1673)
Unser Leben ist ein Schatten
Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier (director)

04:21 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
2 pieces for cello & piano, Op 2
Monika Leskovar (cello), Ivana Švarc-Grenda (piano)

04:31 AM
Ludomir Różycki (1883-1953)
Symphonic Poem: Mona Lisa Gioconda, Op 31
National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Wojciech Czepiel (conductor)

04:41 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)

04:46 AM
Sébastien Le Camus (c.1610-1677), Gaspard le Roux, Michel Lambert (1610-1696)
2 French airs and 1 piece for harpsichord
Ground Floor, Juliette Perret (soprano), Marc Mauillon (tenor), Elena Andreyev (cello), Étienne Galletier (theorbo), Gwennaëlle Alibert (harpsichord), Angélique Mauillon (harp)

04:55 AM
Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805-1900)
6 Fantasiestucke, Op 54
Nina Gade (piano)

05:11 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Violin Fantasy in C major, Op 131
Thomas Zehetmair (violin), Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Nikolaus Harnoncourt (conductor)

05:27 AM
Jorgen Jersild (1913-2004)
3 Danish Romances for Choir
Jutland Chamber Choir, Mogens Dahl (conductor)

05:38 AM
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
Piano Trio No 1 in F major, Op 18
Stefan Lindgren (piano), Ulf Forsberg (violin), Mats Rondin (cello)

06:09 AM
Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884)
Vltava (Moldau) - from 'Ma Vlast'
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Richard Hickox (conductor)

06:22 AM
Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Automne, Op 35 no 2
Valerie Tryon (piano)


TUE 06:30 Breakfast (m002qqwc)
Brighten your 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 (m002qqwf)
Great classical music for your morning

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”


TUE 13:00 Classical Live (m002qqwh)
Saint-Saëns's Piano Concerto No. 5 'The Egyptian'

Linton Stephens showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.

This week Classical Live has a distinctively French flavour, as we explore the concertos of Saint-Saëns, and chamber works by the likes of Fauré and Debussy; we’ll also turn our attention to France’s famous musical brothers, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon.

On today’s programme we’ve performances of Rameau and Poulenc by Maxim Emelyanychev and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra; Renaud Capuçon conducts the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra in Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony and Jean-Yves Thibaudet is joined by Mikko Franck and the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra for Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 5.

Camille Saint-Saëns
Piano Concerto No. 5 in F, Op. 103 ('Egyptian')
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Mikko Franck, conductor

Jean-Philippe Rameau
Suite from 'Les Indes galantes'
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra
Maxim Emelyanychev, harpsichord, director

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 6 in F, Op. 68 ('Pastoral')
Lausanne Chamber Orchestra
Renaud Capuçon (conductor)

Francis Poulenc
Concert champêtre, FP 49
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra
Maxim Emelyanychev, harpsichord, director

Ernest Chausson
Concert in D, Op. 21, for violin, piano and string quartet
Grace Park, violin
Adam Golka, piano
Thalea String Quartet


TUE 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002qqwl)
Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)

Grief and Elation

Donald Macleod sees Schütz endure the death of his wife, after only six years of marriage, and explores the music he composed to mark her parting. Schütz makes the difficult decision to send his two daughters away to live with their grandmother, but he's also able to find inspiration and joy when he embarks on a new tour of Italy.

Ich heb mein Augen sehnlich auf, SWV 226 (Becker Psalter)
Dresdner Kammerchor
Dresdner Barockorchester
Hans-Christoph Rademann, director

Mit dem Amphion zwar mein Orgel und mein Harfe, SWV 501
Wolfram Lattke, tenor
Cappella Sagittariana Dresden
Norbert Schuster, director

Auferstehungshistorie, SWV 50 (excerpt)
Dresdner Kammerchor
Instrumenta Musica
The Sirius Viols
Hans-Christoph Rademann, director

Fili mi, Absalon, SWV 269
Venite ad me, SWV 261
Benedicam Dominum in omni tempore, SWV 267
Monika Mauch, soprano
Markus Brutscher, tenor
Hans Jörg Mammel, tenor
Wolf Matthias Friedrich, bass
Musica Fiata
Roland Wilson, director

Ich hab mein Sach Gott heimgestellt, SWV 305
Weser-Renaissance Bremen
Manfred Cordes, director


TUE 17:00 In Tune (m002qqwq)
Jennifer Pike and Danielle de Niese

Petroc Trelawny is joined by violinist Jennifer Pike, who performs live and discusses her upcoming performance of Bruch's Violin Concerto No.1 with the Janáček Philharmonic Orchestra Ostrava at Cadogan Hall, London on 18/02. Also live in 80A, soprano Danielle de Niese talks about her Valentine's Day performance with the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Brighton Dome on 14/02. She also chats to Petroc about singing the role of Jenny Smith in Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny with ENO from 16/02.


TUE 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002qqwv)
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.


TUE 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002qqwy)
Barber Violin Concerto

The BBC National Orchestra of Wales are joined by conductor Nil Venditti for a programme celebrating her Italian heritage with the music of Rossini and Respighi, as well as a UK Premiere of a work by María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir, and Barber's much-loved Violin Concerto.

The concert opens with Sigfúsdóttir's Oceans, an effervescent work by the Icelandic composer that is rooted in the natural world. Then, before the interval, Stella Chen will join the orchestra to dazzle in Barber's Violin Concerto, a lyrical piece which demands great virtuosity from the soloist. To finish, two works which are intimately linked: Ottorino Respighi's Rossiniana, in which he takes four piano pieces of Rossini and transforms them into a wonderful orchestral work, and then the name sake of that piece's most famous work, Rossini's Overture to William Tell.

María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir: Oceans
Barber: Violin Concerto, Op 14
Respighi: Rossiniana P 148
Rossini: William Tell (Overture)

Stella Chen (violin)
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Nil Venditti (conductor)

To listen on most smart speakers just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".


TUE 21:45 The Essay (m0025mzs)
Vivaldi in a Warming World

Summer

Kate Molleson unpacks the explosive power of Concerto No. 2 in G minor. Composer Ash Fure shares the process behind The Force of Things – An Opera in Objects, an immersive installation opera that wrestles with the rising tide of eco-grief and ecological collapse – a work that Kate likens to the destructive and dark elements of the Summer movement. Fure explains why she eschews the literal in favour of the abstract.

Producer Robbie Armstrong

A Whistledown Scotland production


TUE 22:00 Night Tracks (m002qqx0)
Immersive music for after-hours

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 (m002qqx2)
Brand new from Shabaka

‘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.

Belgian trombonist and bandleader Nabou Claerhout is back to give Flowers to a second artist that she admires, and tonight, she chooses a towering saxophonist in contemporary jazz.

Plus there is music from Milena Casado, AKU! and Huw Marc Bennett.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight'.

WEDNESDAY 11 FEBRUARY 2026

WED 00:30 Through the Night (m002qqx4)
La Flamboyance: Festive music of the 15th century

Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaia directing from the fiddle, perform Franco-Flemish music of the 15th Century from the Musica Antiqua Festival in Bruges. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Johannes Pullois (ca 1420-1478)
Globus igneus cantasi come Pour prison; Flos de spina
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

12:39 AM
Johannes Ciconia (c1335-1411), Anonymous, Jean de Noyers (c1370-1410)
Una panthera; Aurora vultu / Ave virginum; Eya dulcis / Vale placens
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

12:52 AM
Gilles Binchois (c.1400-1460), Richard de Bellengué (c1380-1470)
Amours merchi; Pour une fois et pour toute ma vie
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

01:06 AM
Gilles Binchois (c.1400-1460), Guillaume Dufay (1397-1474)
Je ne vis onques la pareille; Je veulx chanter
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

01:14 AM
Paolo da Firenze (1355-1436), Anonymous, Vincenzo da Rimini (14th century)
Perch'i non seppi passar; Memento mei Dei; In forma quasi
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

01:25 AM
Anonymous, Francesco Landini (c1325-1397), Matteo da Perugia (1380-1410)
Magdalena degna da Laudare, from 'Laudario di Firenze'; Chosi pensoso; Pres du soloil
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

01:42 AM
Anonymous
Kyrie 'Rondello'; Estampie; Benedicamus Domino / Deo gratias
Sollazzo Ensemble, Anna Danilevskaïa (fiddle)

01:53 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Chorus: Magnificat anima mea, (Magnificat in D), BWV.243
Collegium Vocale, Collegium Vocale Gent Orchestra, Philippe Herreweghe (conductor)

01:57 AM
Jef van Hoof (1886-1959)
Symphony No 1 in A major (1938)
Brussels Philharmonic, Fernand Terby (conductor)

02:31 AM
Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957)
Piano Trio in D, op. 1
Ilya Gringolts (violin), Nicolas Altstaedt (cello), Alexander Lonquich (piano)

03:03 AM
Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)
Gloria for soprano, chorus and orchestra in G major
Annick Massis (soprano), Choir of Radio France, Orchestre National de France, Georges Prêtre (conductor)

03:32 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Arabeske in C major, Op.18
Angela Cheng (piano)

03:40 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Symphonies of Wind Instruments
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Domingo Hindoyan (conductor)

03:50 AM
Mauro Giuliani (1781-1829)
6 Variations for violin and guitar, Op 81
Laura Vadjon (violin), Romana Matanovac (guitar)

03:58 AM
Fernando Lopes-Graça (1906-1994)
3 Portuguese Dances, Op 32 (1941)
Portuguese Symphony Orchestra, Wolfgang Rennert (conductor)

04:05 AM
Jean-Baptiste Arban (1825-1889)
Le Carnaval de Venise
Vilém Hofbauer (trumpet), Miroslava Trnková (piano)

04:14 AM
Thomas Wiggins (1849-1908)
Battle of Manassas (1861)
John Davis (piano)

04:22 AM
Willem De Fesch (1687-1761)
Concerto No.3 in G major – from Six Concerti Opera Quinta (Op.5)
Musica ad Rhenum

04:31 AM
Karol Józef Lipinski (1790-1861)
Overture in D major
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra Krakow, Szymon Kawalla (conductor)

04:40 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Scherzo for piano no. 2 (Op.31) in B flat minor
Ronald Brautigam (fortepiano)

04:49 AM
Sven-David Sandström (1942-2019)
En ny himmel och en ny jord (A new heaven and a new earth)
Chamber Choir AVE, Andraž Hauptman (conductor)

04:57 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Sonata for recorder and continuo in C major TWV.41:C2
Michael Schneider (recorder), Camerata Köln

05:05 AM
Ghazaros Saryan (1920-1998)
Passacaglia
Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Sergey Smbatyan (conductor)

05:13 AM
Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994), arr. Gregor Piatigorsky
5 Bukoliki for viola and cello
Maxim Rysanov (viola), Kristina Blaumane (cello)

05:21 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Serenade for strings in E major, Op.22
Camerata Bern, Antje Weithaas (director)

05:50 AM
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Keyboard Sonata in G minor, Wq 65, No 17
Andreas Staier (harpsichord)

06:04 AM
Max Bruch (1838-1920)
Violin Concerto No 2 in D minor, Op 44
James Ehnes (violin), Orchestre symphonique de Montreal, Mario Bernardi (conductor)


WED 06:30 Breakfast (m002qqrn)
The best classical music wake-up call

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 (m002qqrq)
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”


WED 13:00 Classical Live (m002qqrs)
Brahms's Double Concerto

Linton Stephens showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.

This week Classical Live has a distinctively French flavour, as we explore the concertos of Saint-Saëns, and chamber works by the likes of Fauré and Debussy; we’ll also turn our attention to France’s famous musical brothers, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon.

On today’s programme we’ll hear Danny Driver perform Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit; and Gautier Capuçon is joined by Augustin Hadelich, the Vienna Philharmonic and Christian Thielemann in a performance of Brahms’s Concerto for Violin and Cello recorded live at the Musikverein in Vienna.

Georges Bizet
L'Arlésienne, Suite No. 2
(Thomas Sanderling (1942), arranger)
Novosibirsk Symphony Orchestra
Thomas Sanderling, conductor

Camille Saint-Saëns
Allegro appassionato, Op. 70
Louis Lortie, piano
BBC Philharmonic
Edward Gardner, conductor

Maurice Ravel
Gaspard de la nuit
Danny Driver, piano

Johannes Brahms
Double Concerto for Violin and Cello in A minor, Op. 102
Augustin Hadelich, violin
Gautier Capuçon, cello
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Christian Thielemann, conductor

Albert Roussel
Symphony No. 3 in G minor, Op. 42
Liège Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Lionel Bringuier, conductor


WED 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002qqrv)
Ripon Cathedral

Live from Ripon Cathedral.

Introit: If ye love me (Philip Wilby)
Responses: Rose
Psalms 59, 60, 61 (Ouseley, Havergal, Walmisley, Goss)
First Lesson: Isaiah 52 v12 - 53 v6
Canticles: Collegium Regale in F (Wood)
Second Lesson: Romans 15 vv14-21
Anthem: Blessed city, heavenly Salem (Bairstow)
Hymn: Angel voices ever singing (Angel Voices)
Voluntary: A Moorside Suite (March) (Holst, arr. Tim Harper)

Ronny Krippner (Director of Music)
Tim Harper (Organist)

To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.


WED 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002qqrx)
Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)

A Wedding in Denmark

Donald Macleod follows Heinrich Schütz as he heads to Denmark to supervise the music for a Royal Wedding. The Thirty Years War continued to rage on, and Donald surveys the impact this had upon music making at the Dresden Court where Schütz was employed.

Erhöre mich, wenn dich ich rufe, SWV 289
Weser-Renaissance Bremen
Manfred Cordes, driected

O der grossen Wundertaten, SWV 278
RIAS Kammerchor
Capella de la Torre
Katharina Bäuml, director

Musikalische Exequien, SWV 279 (excerpt)
Vox Luminis
Lionel Meunier, director

Ich werde nicht sterben, SWV 346 (Symphoniarum sacrarum II)
Ich danke dir, Herr, SWV 347 (Symphoniarum sacrarum II)
David de Winter, tenor
Brook Street Band

Die mit Tränen säen, SWV 378 (Geistliche Chormusik)
Herr, auf dich traue ich, SWV 377 (Geistliche Chormusik)
Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes, SWV 386 (Geistliche Chormusik)
Collegium Vocale Gent
Philippe Herreweghe, director


WED 17:00 In Tune (m002qqs0)
Neave Trio and MZ Duo live in session

Petroc Trelawny welcomes Neave Trio to 80A - they perform ahead of their residency at Kings Place, London on 12 & 13/02. There is also live music from MZ Duo - saxophonist David Zucchi & accordionist Iñigo Mikeleiz-Berrade. Their album Contradance was released on 06/02 and they launched this at Cafe Fidelio in London on 09/02.


WED 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002qqs2)
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.


WED 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002qqs4)
Bluebeard's Castle

The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and their Principal Guest Conductor, Anja Bihlmaier, are joined by Jennifer Johnston and Christopher Purves for a concert performance of Bartók's dark suspense-filled "Duke Bluebeard's Castle". Seven mysterious doors are opened during the one act opera; newly married Judith discovers who her new husband really is as she comes face-to-face with rooms of blood, torture and tears. In music every bit as dramatic and haunting as the tale, Bartók adds an extra layer of terror and also encourages us to engage with the story as a psychological thriller.

Kodály's "Dances of Galánta" was written a couple of decades later, and also premiered in Budapest. His use of folk music was influenced by the music he heard as a child but this isn't just dance music; there's a seam of heart-felt sorrow and passion as well as infectious rhythm and virtuosic show-piece writing for the orchestra.

Opening the evening is music by Lili Boulanger, "D'un soir triste". This is music of depth and grit, orchestrated with confidence and weight. One of the very last pieces she wrote before she died at the age of twenty-four, there seems to be a gentle but direct ray of light at the very end of the piece.

Lili Boulanger: D'un soir triste
Kodály: Dances of Galánta

8.15 Music Interval

Bartók: Duke Bluebeard's Castle (sung in English)

Jennifer Johnston (mezzo-soprano)
Christopher Purves (baritone)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Anja Bihlmaier (conductor)

To listen on most smart speakers just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".


WED 21:45 The Essay (m0025mh9)
Vivaldi in a Warming World

Autumn

Kate Molleson speaks with Emily Isaacson, artistic director of Classical Uprising, about The [uncertain] Four Seasons. Isaacson explains how the project recomposed Vivaldi with climate data to inspire action, altering the work based on an algorithm that estimates the effects of climate change. Kate hears a rearrangement that disturbs, disquiets and motivates. They discuss the role of music and technical innovation to shock and inspire listeners.

Producer Robbie Armstrong

A Whistledown Scotland production


WED 22:00 Night Tracks (m002qqs6)
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.


WED 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002qqs8)
Fresh from Tigran Hamasyan

‘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.

Nabou Claerhout returns with a third bouquet to give to an artist that has influenced her. Tonight, she selects an internationally acclaimed musician known for her other-wordly and expansive body of work.

There is also music from Matshidiso, Fabienne Ambuehl, and Work Money Death.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight'.

THURSDAY 12 FEBRUARY 2026

THU 00:30 Through the Night (m002qqsb)
Early Music Day: Earning a Living on the Stage

This concert in the Making a Living series from the Fundación Juan March in Madrid showcases Baroque composers who, attentive to satisfying public demand, focused on creating works for the stage. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643)
E pur io torno qui - 'L’incoronazione di Poppea' Act 1
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

12:39 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Preludium in F Minor; 'Cor ingrato' - Rinaldo Act 1
Dani Espasa (harpsichord), Xavier Sabata (counter tenor)

12:46 AM
Johann Adolf Hasse (1699-1783)
Harpsichord Sonata in D minor, Op 7 no 5
Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

12:52 AM
Francesco Cavalli (1602-1676)
Erme e solinghe cime - Endimione's aria from 'La Calisto'
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

12:58 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Passacaille from Suite no 7 in G minor, HWV 432
Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:03 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Minacciami non ho timor - Amadigi's aria from 'Amadigi di Gaula' HWV 11
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:12 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Excerpts from Admeto, HWV 22
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:22 AM
Agostino Steffani (1654-1728)
Excerpts from Orlando generoso
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:32 AM
Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725)
Toccata no 2 in A minor, from Primo e Secondo Libro di Toccate per Cembalo
Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:36 AM
Francesco Gasparini (1668-1727)
Qui ti scrivo o nome amato - Cefalo's aria from L’oracolo del fato
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:40 AM
Francesco Cavalli (1602-1676)
Misero Apollo, from Gli amori di Apollo e di Dafne
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:45 AM
Michelangelo Rossi (c.1601-1656)
Toccata Settima
Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:50 AM
Benedetto Ferrari (1603/4-1681)
Amanti, io vi so dire, from Musiche e poesie varie à voce solo, Libro III
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

01:56 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Fammi combattere, from Orlando HWV 31 (encore)
Xavier Sabata (counter tenor), Dani Espasa (harpsichord)

02:00 AM
Francesca Caccini (1587-1640)
Maria, dolce Maria - from Il primo libro delle musiche a una, e due voci
Suzie Le Blanc (soprano), Tragicomedia, Stephen Stubbs (director)

02:04 AM
Carl Luython (1557-1620)
Lamentationes Hieremiae Prophetae a 6
Huelgas Ensemble, Paul Van Nevel (conductor)

02:24 AM
Dario Castello (1602-1631)
Sonata decimaquinta
La Scintilla Orchestra, Riccardo Minasi (conductor)

02:31 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Symphony no 2 in E minor, Op 27
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Kirill Kondrashin (conductor)

03:19 AM
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Piano Sonata no 6 in A major, Op 82
Vladimir Ashkenazy (piano)

03:45 AM
Jacques Ibert (1890-1962)
Flute Concerto
Yuri Shut'ko (flute), NRCU Symphony Orchestra, Vyacheslav Blinov (conductor)

04:05 AM
Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa (1566-1613), arr. Peter Maxwell Davies
2 Motets arr. Maxwell Davies for brass quintet
Graham Ashton Brass Ensemble

04:14 AM
Pancho Vladigerov (1899-1978)
Aquarelles, for clarinet and piano, Op 37 (1942)
Dancho Radevski (clarinet), Mario Angelov (piano)

04:22 AM
Le Concert Brise
Improvisation on 'La Monica'
Le Concert Brise, William Dongois (director)

04:31 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Romance for strings in C major, Op 42
Danish Radio Concert Orchestra, Hannu Koivula (conductor)

04:36 AM
Peter Maxwell Davies (1934-2016)
One star, at last
BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)

04:39 AM
Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983)
Sonata for harp
Godelieve Schrama (harp)

04:50 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Quartet for strings in D minor, K.421
Young Danish String Quartet, Rune Sørensen (violin), Frederick Øland (violin), Asbjørn Nørgaard (viola), Carl-Oscar Østerlind (cello)

05:17 AM
Thea Musgrave (b.1928)
Loch Ness - a postcard from Scotland for orchestra
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles (conductor)

05:28 AM
Marijan Lipovšek (1910-1995)
Second Suite for Strings
Slovenska Filharmonija, Samo Hubad (conductor)

05:48 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Sonata for clarinet and piano in E flat major, Op 120 no 2
Hans Christian Bræin (clarinet), Håvard Gimse (piano)

06:09 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Three Psalms, Op 78
Chamber Choir AVE, Andraž Hauptman (conductor)


THU 06:30 Breakfast (m002qr0z)
Start the day on the right note 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’


THU 09:30 Essential Classics (m002qr11)
The ideal mix of classical 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”


THU 13:00 Classical Live (m002qr13)
Saint-Saëns's First Cello Concerto

Linton Stephens showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.

This week Classical Live has a distinctively French flavour, as we explore the concertos of Saint-Saëns, and chamber works by the likes of Fauré and Debussy; we’ll also turn our attention to France’s famous musical brothers, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon.

On today’s programme the Ébène Quartet will play Tchaikovsky’s 3rd String Quartet, and Alexandra Conunova plays Mozart’s Violin Sonata in E minor, composed on his second visit to Paris. Plus music by Dukas, Saint-Saens and Debussy,

Paul Dukas
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Liège Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Lionel Bringuier, conductor

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Violin Sonata in E minor, K. 304
Alexandra Conunova, violin
Enrico Pace, piano

Claude Debussy
La Mer, L. 109
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Karabits, conductor

Camille Saint-Saëns
Cello Concerto No. 1 in A minor. Op. 33
Gautier Capuçon, cello
Liège Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Lionel Bringuier, conductor

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
String Quartet No. 3 in E flat minor, Op. 30
Ébène Quartet

Gabriel Fauré
Requiem, Op. 48
Iwona Sobotka, soprano
Adam Kutny, baritone
Warsaw Philharmonic Choir
Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra
Andrey Boreyko, conductor

Ernest Chausson
Poème, op. 25
Renaud Capucon, violin
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Daniel Harding, conductor


THU 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002qr15)
Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)

Peace and Politics

Donald Macleod sees Heinrich Schütz faced with problems in Dresden, including the appointment of another man to share Schütz’s role. Although the Thirty Years War had come to an end and peace was now in place, this was a time of turbulence for Schütz who became embroiled in a number of professional disputes.

Haus und Güter erbet man von Eltern, SWV 21
Cantus Cölln
Musica Fiata
Roland Wilson, director

Teutoniam dudum belli, SWV 338
Ricercar Consort
Philippe Pierlot, director

Was betrübst du dich, SWV 353 (Symphoniarum sacrarum II)
Zweierlei bitte ich, SWV 360 (Symphoniarum sacrarum II)
Marie Kuijken, soprano
Stephan Scherpe, tenor
Daniel Schreiber, tenor
La Petite Bande
Sigiswald Kuijken, director

Die Himmel erzählen die Ehre Gottes, SWV 386
Unser Wandel ist im Himmel, SWV 390
Ich bin ein rechter Weinstock, SWV 389
Ensemble Polyharmonique
Juliane Laake, viola da gamba
Klaus Eichhorn, organ
Alexander Schneider, director

Seid barmherzig, SWV 409 (Symphoniarum sacrarum III)
Cantus Cölln
Concerto Palatino
Konrad Junghänel, director

Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener, SWV 432
Vox Luminis
Lionel Meunier, director


THU 17:00 In Tune (m002qr17)
Sacconi Quartet in session

Petroc Trelawny is joined live in 80A by Sacconi Quartet, who perfom live ahead of their 25th birthday concert at Wigmore Hall, London on 20/02. Also joining Petroc in studio is pianist Daniel Tong, who is the co-Artistic Director of the Wye Valley Chamber Music Winter Festival. He is in 80A to discuss the themes behind the Festival's 2026 edition.


THU 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002qr19)
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.


THU 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002qr1c)
Julia Wolfe's unEarth

The BBC Symphony Orchestra, soprano Else Torp and choirs conducted by Martyn Brabbins in Julia Wolfe's powerful climate crisis oratorio unEarth. Plus Copland's Appalachian Spring.

Recorded at the Barbican on Friday 23rd January. Presented by Ian Skelly.

Aaron Copland: Appalachian Spring
Julia Wolfe: unEarth (UK premiere)

Else Torp (soprano)
Finchley Children’s Music Group
BBC Singers
National Youth Voices
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)

unEarth is a large-scale oratorio about the climate crisis. Written in three movements, it combines ancient stories, languages from around the world, the poetry of Emily Dickinson, climate science and words of protest to create a moving, and urgent plea to engage the listener in the climate emergency.

American composer Julia Wolfe was awarded the 2015 Pulitzer Prize in Music, and was a 2016 MacArthur Fellow. She received the 2015 Herb Alpert Award in Music, and was named Musical America’s 2019 Composer of the Year. She is co-founder and co-artistic director of New York’s legendary music collective Bang on a Can.

And to begin, music by another American: Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring - the orchestral suite created by the composer in 1945 from the ballet he wrote for choreographer Martha Graham.

To listen on most smart speakers just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert."


THU 21:45 The Essay (m0025lpb)
Vivaldi in a Warming World

Winter

The artist Nikita Gale shares why she considers the role of the season as a unit of measurement increasingly arbitrary – an idea she explored in her work Other Seasons. The piece combines light, live music, and atmospheric conditions. In the work, she deconstructs Vivaldi’s masterpiece to render the seasons obsolete, imploding the narrative sense of the Four Seasons, and pushing back against the representational nature of the original work.

Presenter Kate Molleson
Producer Robbie Armstrong

A Whistledown Scotland production


THU 22:00 Night Tracks (m002qr1f)
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.


THU 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002qr1h)
One from Andy Sheppard

‘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 welcomed Belgian trombonist Nabou Claerhout as his guest for Flowers. To conclude her week, Nabou chooses to give her final bunch to a perhaps unexpected artist that she appreciates. Listen in to find out who!

Also in the programm, there is music from Cassie Watson Francillon, The New Jazz Orchestra, and Gregory Uhlmann with Alabaster DePlume.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight'.

FRIDAY 13 FEBRUARY 2026

FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m002qr1k)
2025 Banff International String Quartet Competition

Beethoven, Bartók and Hindemith performed by quartets in the Canadian competition: Quatuor Elmire, Viatores Quartet and Quartett HANA. Jonathan Swain presents.

12:31 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Andante con moto – Allegro vivace, from 'String Quartet no 9 in C, Op 59 no 3
Quatuor Elmire

12:42 AM
Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
String Quartet no 2 in A minor, Sz 67
Quatuor Elmire

01:08 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegro, from 'String Quartet no 7 in F, Op 59 no 1 'Razumovsky''
Viatores Quartet

01:20 AM
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
String Quartet no 5 in E flat, Op 32
Viatores Quartet

01:48 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Allegro, from 'String Quartet no 8 in E minor, Op 59 no 2 'Razumovsky''
Quartett HANA

01:56 AM
Béla Bartók (1881-1945)
String Quartet no 3, Sz.85
Quartett HANA

02:11 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Keyboard Concerto no 7 in G minor, BWV.1058
Angela Hewitt (piano), Norwegian Chamber Orchestra

02:25 AM
Giovanni Gabrieli (1557-1612)
Canzon Primi Toni a 8
Canadian Brass, Douglas Haas (organ)

02:31 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Completorium
Aldona Bartnik (soprano), Agnieszka Ryman (soprano), Matthew Venner (counter tenor), Maciej Gocman (tenor), Tomáš Král (bass), Jaromír Nosek (bass), Period Instruments Ensemble, Andrzej Kosendiak (director)

02:54 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
25 variations and fugue on a theme by G.F. Handel for piano, Op 24
Shai Wosner (piano)

03:21 AM
Väinö Raitio (1891-1945)
Joutsenet , Op 15 (1919)
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Okko Kamu (conductor)

03:29 AM
Balthasar Fritsch (1570-1608)
Paduan and 2 Galliards (from Primitiae musicales, Frankfurt/Main 1606)
Hortus Musicus, Andres Mustonen (director)

03:38 AM
Alphons Diepenbrock (1862-1921)
De klare dag - song
Christoph Prégardien (tenor), Rudolf Jansen (piano)

03:42 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Love Scene - from the opera 'Feuersnot', Op 50
Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis (conductor)

03:52 AM
Louis Spohr (1784-1859)
Harp Fantasia no 2 in C minor, Op 35
Mojca Zlobko Vaigl (harp)

04:01 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Premiere Rhapsodie
Camerata Variabile Basel

04:09 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
5 movements from "Les petits riens" ballet music, K.299b
Danish Radio Sinfonietta, Ádám Fischer (conductor)

04:20 AM
Michael Haydn (1737-1806)
Cantata: Lauft, ihr Hirten allzugleich (Run ye shepherds, to the light)
Salzburger Hofmusik, Wolfgang Brunner (director)

04:31 AM
Sergey Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Romance and Waltz
Dutch Pianists Quartet

04:37 AM
Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (c.1739-1799)
Ballet music (L'amant anonyme)
Tafelmusik Orchestra, Jeanne Lamon (conductor)

04:44 AM
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
Mystery (Rosary) sonata (Passacaglia) in G minor (The Guardian angel)
Daniel Sepec (violin)

04:53 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
To her beneath whose steadfast star, for chorus
BBC Singers, Stephen Layton (conductor)

04:58 AM
Lars-Erik Larsson (1908-1986)
Pastoral Suite, Op 19 (1938)
CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)

05:12 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924)
Trio for piano and strings in D minor, Op 120
Grumiaux Trio, Luc Devos (piano), Philippe Koch (violin), Luc Dewez (cello)

05:33 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Song to the Moon from Rusalka, Op 114
Yvonne Kenny (soprano), Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Vladimir Kamirski (conductor)

05:40 AM
Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909)
Iberia - book 1
Benjamin Grosvenor (piano)

06:00 AM
Antonio Rosetti (c.1750-1792)
Horn Concerto in D minor, C 38
Radek Baborák (french horn), Prague Chamber Orchestra, Antonín Hradil (conductor)

06:21 AM
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
O vis aeternitatis (Responsorium) for female voice
Sequentia, Elizabeth Gaver (fiddle), Elisabetta de Mircovich (fiddle)


FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m002qr26)
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’


FRI 09:30 Essential Classics (m002qr28)
Refresh your morning with classical music

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”


FRI 13:00 Classical Live (m002qr2b)
Saint-Saëns's Second Piano Concerto

Linton Stephens showcases the best performances by BBC orchestras, choirs, ensembles and other great performing groups from Europe and around the globe.

This week Classical Live has a distinctively French flavour, as we explore the concertos of Saint-Saëns, and chamber works by the likes of Fauré and Debussy; we’ll also turn our attention to France’s famous musical brothers, Renaud and Gautier Capuçon.

On today’s programme, we have highlights from the Radio France Occitanie Montpellier Festival, including Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 2 played by one of today’s leading young soloists, Marie-Ange Nguci; and violinist Anastasia Kobekina is at Wigmore Hall, playing Fauré’s First Violin Sonata.

Camille Saint-Saëns
Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor, Op. 22
Marie-Ange Nguci, piano
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Karabits, conductor

Johannes Brahms
Serenade No. 2 in A, Op. 16
Lausanne Chamber Orchestra
Renaud Capucon, conductor

Benjamin Britten
Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes, Op. 33a
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Kirill Karabits, conductor

Gabriel Fauré
Les Berceaux, Op. 23 No. 1
Violin Sonata No. 1
Anastasia Kobekina (cello)
Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula (piano)

Richard Strauss
Don Juan, Op. 20
Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra
Mikko Franck, conductor

George Gershwin
Rhapsody in Blue
Alain Altinoglu, piano & direction
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra

Claude Debussy (arr. Erich Leinsdorf)
Suite from Pelléas et Mélisande
Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra
Daniel Harding, conductor


FRI 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002qr2d)
Heinrich Schutz (1585-1672)

A Sudden Windfall

Donald Macleod explores the final years for the celebrated composer Heinrich Schütz, when he received a sudden windfall of a generous pension. Schütz had been asking to retire for some years from the Dresden Court, and when eventually allowed to, he continued to compose music including the completion of his Swansong, a setting of Psalm 119.

Schütz: Die Erde trinkt für sich, SWV 438
David Erler, countertenor
Tobias Mäthger, bass
Matthias Müller, viol
Beate Röllecke, organ
Hans-Christoph Rademann, director

Saul, Saul, was verfolgst du mich, SWV 415 (Symphoniarum sacrarum III)
Herr, wie lang willst du mein so gar vergessen, SWV 416 (Symphoniarum sacrarum III)
Kammerchor Stuttgart
Musica Fiata
Frieder Bernius, director

St Matthew Passion, SWV 479 (excerpt)
Julian Podger (Evangelist), tenor
Ars Nova Copenhagen
Paul Hillier, director

Vater Abraham, erbarme dich mein, SWV477
Dresdner Kammerchor and Musicians
Hans-Christoph Rademann

Ich rufe von ganzem Herzen, SWV 491
Die Fürsten verfolgen mich ohn Ursach, SWV 492
Collegium Vocale Gent
Concerto Palatino
Philippe Herreweghe, director


FRI 17:00 In Tune (m002qr2g)
Musica d'Outrora in session

Baroque ensemble Music d'Outrora joins Petroc Trelawny live in 80A, performing ahead of their concerts in Birmingham on 14/02 and York on 15/02.


FRI 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002qr2j)
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.


FRI 19:30 Friday Night is Music Night (m0028k5l)
Chichester Festival Theatre

Michael Seal conducts the BBC Concert Orchestra in Chichester featuring music by composers who also had alternative careers, both inside and outside the musical profession.

Presented by Katie Derham.

Arnold Beckus the Dandipratt
Borodin In the Steppes of Central Asia
Canteloube Songs of the Auvergne: La pastoura als Camps (from 1st series); Bailero (from 1st series)
Tovey Urban Runway
J Strauss II Explosions Polka

INTERVAL

Arr. Michael Seal A Flourish of Trumpets
Nielsen Maskerade Overture
Gipps Song for Orchestra
Canteloube Songs of the Auvergne: La delaïssado (from 2nd series); Malurous qu’o uno fenno (from 3rd series); Lou Coucut (from 4th series)
Puccini The Chrysanthemums
J Strauss II Auf der Jagd Polka (On The Hunt)
Smyth The Boatswain’s Mate Overture

BBC Concert Orchestra
Soprano Ella Taylor
Conductor Michael Seal


FRI 21:45 The Essay (m0025llh)
Vivaldi in a Warming World

Anthropocene

Kate Molleson draws together Vivaldi’s work within the context of human-made climate change, making a compelling case for the power of art, music, and storytelling to foreground the most pressing crisis of our times. Liza Lim discusses her work Extinction Events and Dawn Chorus, composed out of relics of the past, as well as coarse samplings of ‘extinction events’. She hears from Pamela Z about her work Carbon Song Cycle, inspired by ongoing changes and upheavals in the Earth's ecosystem. Finally, Annea Lockwood talks about her ongoing process of making sonic river map installations. Molleson muses on how Lockwood’s works explore the visceral effects of sound in our environment as well as on our bodies. Ultimately, Kate concludes that our seasons no longer offer the bucolic, dramatic inspiration that they once did, but instead provoke feelings of fear and anger that are spurring on musicians across the world to foreground the planet’s peril and inspire change.

Producer Robbie Armstrong

A Whistledown Scotland production


FRI 22:00 Late Junction (m002qr2l)
Rai Tateishi and Theodora Laird in session

Jennifer Lucy Allan presents a studio meeting between two seasoned improvisers: Japanese bamboo flute player Rai Tateishi and London-based experimental vocalist Theodora Laird.

Best known for his work with avant-garde band goat (jp) and the Kodo Taiko Performing Arts Ensemble, as a soloist Rai Tateishi’s music is stripped back and intimate. On his latest solo album, Presence, he attempts to transcend the limits of his ancient instruments, distilling aspects of myriad folk traditions through his mastery of the shinobue, an ancient bamboo flute, as well as its elder sibling, the shakuhachi, the khene mouth organ of northeastern Thailand and Laos, and even the Irish flute.

Theodora Laird is a vocalist and multidisciplinary artist. In recent years she has received critical acclaim for releases under her alternative solo moniker, feeo, including her latest album, Goodness. Theodora's practice has evolved in tandem with an interest in situating narratives within freely improvised music, and she is a frequent performer at the GRAIN residency, a London-based concert series, archive and label for improvised and experimental music.

Elsewhere in the show, more cross-cultural collaborations from Mother Tongue - the meeting of a Senegalese Griot singer, an Amsterdam improviser and a Puerto Rican jazz drummer - and echoes of vintage synths from the Italian duo of Francesca Bono and Vittoria Burattini.

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 Late Junction'.


FRI 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002qr2n)
Concert highlights from Huw Warren & Angharad Jenkins

‘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.

This Friday night, Soweto presents concert highlights from Welsh dup pianist Huw Warren, and violinist and vocalist Angharad Jenkins, who blend jazz with Welsh folk tradition. Their performance was recorded live at the Jazz Promotion Network in Cardiff back in November.

To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight'.