SATURDAY 23 MAY 2026
SAT 00:30 Through the Night (m002w90l)
Music at European Courts
Soprano Julia Lezhneva sings Lully, Handel, and Mozart with the German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. In the second half of the concert, Josep Pons leads the orchestra in Richard Strauss' Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687)
Marche pour la cérémonie des Turcs, from 'Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme'
German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
12:34 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion, aria from part 1 of 'Messiah, HWV 56'
Julia Lezhneva (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
12:39 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Ei parte...senti...ah no!, Fiordiligi's aria from Così fan tutte, K. 588'
Julia Lezhneva (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
12:48 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Parto, parto, from 'La Clemenza di Tito, K. 621'
Julia Lezhneva (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
12:56 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Voi che sapete, Cherubino's aria from act 2 of 'Le nozze di Figaro' (encore)
Julia Lezhneva (soprano), German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
12:59 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme, Op 60 - Suite after Molière
German Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, Josep Pons (conductor)
01:36 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Fantasie in F minor for Piano Four Hands, D940
Soós-Haag Piano Duo (piano duo)
01:56 AM
William Byrd (1543-1623)
Ave verum corpus
Ars Nova Copenhagen, Sofi Jeannin (director)
02:00 AM
Paolo Benedetto Bellinzani (1690-1757)
Recorder Sonata in D minor, Op 3 no 2
Lea Sobbe (recorder), Halldór Bjarki Arnarson (harpsichord)
02:14 AM
Paule Maurice (1910-67)
Tableaux de Provence - 5 pieces for saxophone and orchestra
Julia Nolan (saxophone), CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
02:31 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Partita in F major, K.Anh.C
17.05
Festival Winds
02:56 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Symphony no 1 in B flat major, Op 38 'Spring'
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Steven Sloane (conductor)
03:28 AM
Muzio Clementi (1752-1832)
Piano Sonata in B minor, Op 40 no 2
Beatrice Rana (piano)
03:45 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Concerto in D major, RV.208 "Grosso mogul"
Elizabeth Wallfisch (baroque violin), Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Paul Dyer (director)
04:00 AM
Louise Farrenc (1804-1875)
Overture no 2, Op 24
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Anja Bihlmaier (conductor)
04:08 AM
Gabriel Jackson (b.1962)
Cecilia Virgo
Danish National Vocal Ensemble, Marcus Creed (conductor)
04:16 AM
Cindy McTee (b.1953)
Timepiece
National Symphony Orchestra, Ireland, Leonard Slatkin (conductor)
04:25 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Hide me from day's garish eye
Iestyn Davies (counter tenor), Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Robin Ticciati (conductor)
04:31 AM
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
La Forza del Destino, Overture
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Riccardo Chailly (conductor)
04:39 AM
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
Spiritus Sanctus vivificans vite, antiphon for solo voice
Sequentia
04:50 AM
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Piano Quartet in A minor
Marianna Shirinyan (piano), Nevena Tochev (violin), Alessandro D'Amico (viola), Rafael Rosenfeld (cello)
05:02 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Concerto for Oboe, Violin, Strings and Continuo in C minor, BWV 1060R
Marcel Ponseele (oboe), Joanna Huszcza (baroque violin), Il Gardellino
05:16 AM
Ilja Zeljenka (1932-2007)
Sinfonietta no 2
Slovak Radio Symphony Orchestra, Mário Košik (conductor)
05:28 AM
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
String Quartet no 5, Op 32
Viatores Quartet
05:56 AM
Filip Kutev (1903-1982)
Pastoral for flute and orchestra
Lydia Oshavkova (flute), Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Dimitar Manolov (conductor)
06:07 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Seven Bagatelles Op 33
Anika Vavic (piano)
SAT 06:30 Breakfast (m002wg3g)
Roll out of bed into 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 (m002wg3j)
Conductor Nathalie Stutzmann on going big with Bruckner
Tom Service with guests, stories and the perfect classical soundtrack for the weekend!
Tom meets conductor and singer Nathalie Stutzmann to talk about recording Bruckner's massive 4th Symphony. Remarkably, her new Bruckner recording is the first time a woman has recorded the piece with a major US orchestra. Described as "a genius who makes the music irresistible", Nathalie chats to Tom about straddling her many musical worlds, from Bruckner and Bach to Wagner's operas, why she believes in being a risky conductor and the music she fell in love with as a child.
Tom talks to the experimental musical duo KOGG: AKA composers Selena Kay and Cerys Hogg. Both formally trained - Selena has her roots in contemporary classical composition and Cerys in jazz improvisation - their new album Mechanista is built from everyday objects that they construct into electronic instruments: spanners, toy whistles, brass, elastic bands and broken piano keys. They talk about blending composition, DIY sound invention and playfulness in their music.
SAT 12:00 Earlier... with Jools Holland (m002wg3l)
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.
Today, Jools's choices include music by Brahms, William Byrd and Miles Davis with performances by Vikingur Olafsson and the Ora Singers. His guest is the singer, guitarist and songwriter Eric Bibb, who performs with Jools in the studio and introduces music he loves by Joseph Canteloube, Florence Price and Antônio Carlos Jobim.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Earlier with Jools Holland".
SAT 13:00 Key Changes: Radio 3's Essential History of Classical Music (m002wg3n)
1527: The Church on Fire
May 1527. Rome is under attack. As imperial troops surge through the city, looting churches and palaces, Pope Clement VII abandons the Vatican and escapes through a secret passage to Castel Sant’Angelo. The Sack of Rome devastates the capital of Catholic Europe: composers scatter, musical institutions collapse, and the city’s artistic life is left in ruins. Yet from this moment of crisis emerges a period of intense reflection, reinvention and reform. In the decades that follow, musicians, theorists and church leaders will reshape the sound of sacred music – from the madrigals and laments of those who fled, to the new ideals of clarity and devotion that take hold in Rome’s chapels and choirs.
Gillian Moore is joined by a roster of distinguished historians for this major new BBC Radio 3 series, charting a course through 1000 years of classical music history. For the first eight programmes, historian Michael Wood is in the chair, as together they explore the bold new sound worlds of the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
Producer: Amelia Parker
Academic Consultant: Professor Laura Tunbridge, University of Oxford
Story Consultant: Kate Leys
Series Editor for BBC Audio: Emma Harding
Key Changes theme tune composed by Joseph Howard and performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by Kerem Hasan.
MUSIC DETAILS
Philippe Verdelot: Italia mia
Huelgas Ensemble
Paul van Nevel, conductor
Hector Berlioz: Benvenuto Cellini – Overture (excerpt)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Colin Davis, conductor
Costanzo Festa: Deus venerunt gentes
BBC Singers
Maddalena Casulana: Vagh’amorosi augeli
The Sixteen
Harry Christophers, conductor
Vicente Lusitano: Regina caeli
The Marian Consort
Rory McCleery, conductor
Thomas Tallis: If ye love me
The Tallis Scholars
Peter Phillips, conductor
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: Sicut cervus
BBC Singers
Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: Missa Papae Marcelli – Kyrie
Stile Antico
Anton Bruckner: Os justi
Latvian Radio Choir
Sigvards Klava, conductor
Gregorio Allegri: Miserere mei (excerpt)
VOCES8
SAT 14:00 Record Review (m002wg3q)
Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 in Building a Library with Joanna MacGregor and Andrew McGregor
Andrew McGregor with the best new classical releases, joined by composer Soosan Lolavar and pianist Joanna MacGregor, who surveys recordings of Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 and picks her favourite.
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2.10pm Composer Soosan Lolavar joins Andrew to spotlight a batch of new releases that have caught her ear.
3pm Building a Library: pianist Joanna MacGregor joins Andrew to survey recordings of Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 and make a top recommendation.
"I want to tell you that I have written a very small piano concerto with a very small and pretty scherzo", wrote Brahms to Clara Schumann of his new concerto in 1881. He was being ironic. Brahms's Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat is famously one of the grandest-scaled piano concertos in the cannon. Following 22 years after his first concerto, the work was an immediate success and has remained popular with pianists and audiences ever since.
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3.45pm Record of the Week: the new release that has most impressed Andrew this week.
SAT 16:00 Sound of Cinema (m002wg3s)
Edith is joined by composer John Harle and presenter Mark Forrest
From iconic themes to modern masterpieces — your weekly roundup of film scores and movie music with Edith Bowman.
On this week’s programme, we spotlight landmark jazz scores, turning our focus to musician and composer Miles Davis as part of our celebrations marking the centenary of his birth.
In Harmonising Hollywood, composer Jon Harle discusses Duke Ellington’s music for the 1959 crime thriller Anatomy of a Murder, while presenter Mark Forrest shares his Pick of the Flicks, featuring music from a 1988 crime comedy‑drama.
Plus, all the latest soundtrack releases alongside a look back at some timeless classical film scores.
SAT 17:00 This Classical Life (m002wg3v)
Jess Gillam with... Joseph Tawadros
Jess Gillam hosts a listening party with the Egyptian-Australian oud virtuoso and composer Joseph Tawadros. Joseph performs live as a soloist, in duo with his brother James on Egyptian percussion, with his jazz quartet or with chamber orchestras and symphony orchestras all over the world. He has won 8 ARIA awards and has released over 20 albums, including his latest, 'The Forgotten Path to Humanity'. He is playing live at Upstairs at Ronnie Scott's in London on Monday 25th May. His choices include music by Rachmaninov, a life-changing Robert Plant collaboration, and legendary Egyptian artist Umm Kulthum. Jess brings along music by Debussy, Richard Strauss and a slice of joy from The Alehouse Sessions.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3”.
SAT 18:00 Opera on 3 (m002wg3x)
Puccini's Turandot
Puccini's final opera live from the Metropolitan Opera in New York, starring Anna Pirozzi as the vengeful princess Turandot and Brian Jagde as Prince Calaf.
The beautiful Princess Turandot will only marry a man who can answer her three riddles - those who fail will be killed the following dawn. But Prince Calaf is not to be dissuaded from having a go, having fallen in love with her at first sight. With a rich soundworld including authentic Chinese melodies, Puccini's final masterpiece is sung by a top cast conducted by Oksana Lyniv.
Presented live from the Met by Debra Lew Harder and Ira Siff.
Puccini: Turandot
Turandot ..... Anna Pirozzi (soprano)
Calaf ..... Brian Jagde (tenor)
Liu ..... Angel Blue (soprano)
Timur ..... John Relyea (bass-baritone)
Ping ..... Joo Won Kang (baritone)
Pong ..... Andrew Stenson (tenor)
Pang ..... Tony Stevenson (tenor)
Emperor ..... Carlo Bosi (tenor)
Mandarin ..... Ben Brady (bass-baritone)
Chorus and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera
Oksana Lyniv (conductor)
SAT 21:30 Music Planet (m002wg3z)
Island rhythms and Nordic notes
Lopa Kothari handpicks fresh releases from across the world of folk and roots-based music. We hear a track bursting with energy from a new compilation exploring the vintage sounds of São Tomé and Príncipe, alongside another highlighting the revolutionary spirit of musicians in 1970s Trinidad. Plus, a more sombre yet no less invigorating collaboration between Finnish accordionist Johanna Juhola and Swedish fiddle player Lena Jonsson, taken from an album celebrating 200 releases by independent label Nordic Notes.
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 (m002wg41)
Only Birds Know How to Call the Sun
Kaj Duncan David and Scenatet perform David's 'Only birds know how to call the sun and they do it every morning' - a long-form work which draws on "electronic voice technologies, new age and psychedelic aesthetics" - recorded live at Cafe Oto in London. Plus a recording by the BBC Symphony Orchestra of Tristan Murail's Gondwana, a defining composition of spectralism from 1980. Plus a round-up of some of the latest new releases, and a Miles Davis-inspired track from Wadada Leo Smith ahead of next week's centenary celebrations. With Tom Service.
SUNDAY 24 MAY 2026
SUN 00:30 Through the Night (m002wg43)
Bulgarian Culture and Cyrillic Day
From Sofia, a celebration of Bulgarian church music, from the St. Alexander Nevsky Patriarchal Cathedral Choir. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
First Antiphon: Bless the Lord, O My Soul and Second Antiphon: Glory to the Only-Begotten Son
Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
12:35 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Holy God no 3 and Troparion of St. Alexander Nevsky
12:39 AM
Angel Popkonstantinov (1905-1981)
Second Antiphon: Glory to the Only-Begotten Son and Third Antiphon: In Your Kingdom
12:46 AM
Angel Popkonstantinov (1905-1981)
The Creed
12:50 AM
Angel Popkonstantinov (1905-1981)
Cherubic Hymn
12:52 AM
Angel Popkonstantinov (1905-1981)
We Sing to You
Works performed by Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
12:55 AM
Angel Popkonstantinov (1905-1981)
The Lord’s Prayer
12:57 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Third Antiphon: In Thy Kingdom
Works performed by Hristina Stoyanova (soprano), Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
01:00 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
O Gladsome Light
Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
01:03 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Lord, Now Lettest Thou Depart and Praise Ye the Name of the Lord
Works performed by Stefan Dimitrov (bass), Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
01:10 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Eulogetaria: Blessed Are You, O Lord; Great Doxology
Gergana Miltenova (soprano), Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
01:18 AM
Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Polychronion
Mixed Choir of The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Georgi Elenkov (conductor)
01:20 AM
Giovanni Battista Viotti (1755-1824)
Duo concertante in G major
Alexandar Avramov (violin), Ivan Peev (violin)
01:29 AM
Dimitar Nenov (1901-1953)
Theme with variations
Mario Angelov (piano)
01:44 AM
Alexander Raychev (1922-2003)
Symphony No.2 'Noviyat Prometey'
Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vassil Stefanov (conductor)
02:31 AM
Petko Stainov (1896-1977)
Fairy Tale - symphonic suite (1930)
Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Nedialko Nedialkov (conductor)
03:04 AM
Pancho Vladigerov (1899-1978)
Variations on the Bulgarian Folk Song "Gorda Stara Pianina", Op 3
Krassimir Gatev (piano)
03:29 AM
Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751), Remo Giazotto (1910-1998)
Adagio in G minor (arr. for organ and trumpet)
Blagoj Angelovski (trumpet), Velin Iliev (organ)
03:36 AM
Krassimir Taskov (b. 1955)
Concerto for string orchestra
Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Mark Kadin (conductor)
03:51 AM
Petko Stainov (1896-1977)
Horsemen, ballad for men's choir
Kaval Men's Choir, Mikhail Angelov (conductor)
03:59 AM
Gheorghi Arnaoudov (b.1957)
Brahms versus Wagner (Imaginarium super Mathilde Wesendonck), for piano quintet
Elena Dikova (piano), Teodora Hristova (violin), Yordan Dimitrov (violin), Demna Gigova (viola), Hristo Tanev (cello)
04:06 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
'The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba' (from 'Solomon', HWV.67)
Ars Barocca
04:10 AM
Boyan Vodenitcharov (b.1960)
Improvisation 3
04:14 AM
Boyan Vodenitcharov (b.1960)
Improvisation 4
Performed by Boyan Vodenitcharov (piano)
04:18 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Brandenburg Concerto no 2 in F, BWV.1047
Ars Barocca
04:31 AM
Petronio Franceschini (1650-1680)
Sonata for 2 trumpets, strings & basso continuo in D major
Yordan Kojuharov (trumpet), Petar Ivanov (trumpet), Teodor Moussev (organ), Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra, Yordan Dafov (conductor)
04:39 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Rondo for piano in C minor, Op 1
Ludmil Angelov (piano)
04:48 AM
Maxim Berezovsky (1745-1777)
Do not reject me (Ps.70)
Seven Saints Chamber Choir, Dimitar Grigorov (conductor)
04:56 AM
Veselin Stoyanov (1902-1969)
Rhapsody (1956)
Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Vassil Stefanov (conductor)
05:07 AM
Ferenc Farkas (1905-2000)
5 Ancient Hungarian dances for wind quintet
Academic Wind Quintet
05:17 AM
Gheorghi Arnaoudov (b.1957)
Barocus ex Machina. Concerto for piano, hammerklavier, harpsichord and orchestra
Daniela Dikova (piano), Galina Draganova (soloist), Vasily Ilisavsky (harpsichord), Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Georgi Dimitrov (conductor)
05:30 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Sonata no.32 in C minor (Op.111)
Anton Dikov (piano)
05:56 AM
Alexander Gretchaninov (1864-1956)
Cherubic Hymn from Liturgia Domestica
Bulgarian National Choir "Svetoslav Obretenov", Bulgarian National Radio Chamber Orchestra, Georgi Robev (conductor)
06:04 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Trio for clarinet or viola, cello and piano in A minor, Op 114
Svilen Simeonov (clarinet), Anatoli Krastev (cello), Mina Ivanova (piano)
SUN 06:30 Breakfast (m002wg49)
Breakfast with the best classical music
Mark Forrest presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. 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 (m002wg4c)
Three hours of classical sparkle
Today, Sarah’s Choral Reflection sets the mood of the morning - a tribute to the constancy of the earth, with John Ireland’s The Hills. And she chooses some intimate solo piano music to get lost in too - from Claude Debussy to Amy Beach.
There’s also a chance to hear the whole of Grieg’s piano concerto, brimming with tunes and cascading flourishes, and music to look ahead to the long summer days which are just around the corner.
Plus, a celebration of 100 years since the birth of Miles Davis…
A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3.
SUN 12:00 Private Passions (m002wg4f)
Margaret Busby, publisher and editor
Margaret Busby is a publisher and editor who's helped change our literary landscape. She's been lauded by the writer Zadie Smith as the cheerleader, instigator, organiser, defender and celebrator of black arts, something she's done for nearly 60 years.
She started young - she was just 23 years old when she co-founded the publishers Allison and Busby with Clive Allison in 1967. Free from the usual industry rules and with little money or experience, they began with five shilling poetry paperbacks and went on to champion new work as well as established writers from all backgrounds. Margaret's drive to showcase often overlooked or neglected talent led to two groundbreaking anthologies of women writers, Daughters of Africa and New Daughters of Africa.
Margaret's music includes Bach and Chevalier de Saint-Georges, along with jazz greats Duke Ellington and Miles Davis.
Radio 3 is celebrating the centenary of Miles Davis' birth in the coming week across numerous programmes including Composer of the Week, Round Midnight and The Essay.
SUN 13:30 Music Map (m002wg4h)
Hummel's Trumpet Concerto
Sara Mohr-Pietsch guides us on a musical journey towards Hummel's Trumpet Concerto. The Austrian composer Johann Nepomuk Hummel developed close connections with the greatest composers of the late classical and early romantic periods, from his teachers Haydn and Mozart to Beethoven and Schubert. In this episode, we'll explore those connections, along with the evolution of trumpet music - from an Italian baroque concerto composed by Giuseppe Torelli, to a jazz masterpiece by Miles Davis.
To listen to this programme on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Map'.
SUN 15:00 Music Matters (m002wg4k)
Musical Minds
Rethinking listening and curiosity with percussionist Evelyn Glennie
Psychotherapist and broadcaster Nemone Metaxas delves into our psychological relationship with music and talks to some of classical music’s brightest stars to untangle why music can be such a powerful presence in our lives.
This week, Nemone is joined by the percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie to explore what it means to really listen, how an audience shapes her performances and why curiosity is the most important element in music and in life.
We'll also hear from our resident psychologist Dr Claire Renfrew, who explains what happens in our brains when we improvise and how we understand rhythm.
To listen to this programme on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Matters'.
SUN 16:00 Jazz Record Requests (m002wg4m)
Miles Davis 100
Alyn Shipton celebrates the centenary of Miles Davis with listeners’ requests for music from all periods of his career. These include tracks from seminal albums L’Ascenseur Pour L’echafaud and Birth of the Cool, drawn from the newly remastered editions being released this week. To introduce some of the requests, Alyn also talks to surviving members of Miles’s groups, including bassist Dave Holland and guitarist George Benson.
Join our community of jazz lovers. Alyn Shipton is waiting for your requests: email 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 (m002wg4p)
Early Music Today
Hannah French finds out about recent research into comedy in 17th-century French opera and hears from Clare Norburn’s about her new play ‘Purcell, the Musical’, which brings some of the composer’s best-loved works onto the stage. She also looks ahead to early music featured in this summer’s BBC Proms, as well as exploring a selection of new recordings.
In conversation with conductor Peter Whelan, Hannah finds out about the Dublin version of Handel's Messiah, which he has recently recorded with the Irish Baroque Orchestra.
To listen to this programme using most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play The Early Music Show".
SUN 18:00 Choral Evensong (m002w7t8)
St Paul's Knightsbridge, London
From St Paul’s Church Knightsbridge, London, with the BBC Singers.
Introit: My heart, O God (Lucy Walker)
Responses: Lucy Walker
Psalm 104 (Lucy Walker)
First Lesson: 1 Kings 19 vv1-18
Canticles: St Martin’s Service (Lucy Walker)
Second Lesson: Matthew 3 vv13-17
Anthem: A hymn for St Cecilia (Lucy Walker)
Hymn: Angel voices, ever singing (Angel Voices)
Voluntary: Taking your leave (Cheryl Frances Hoad)
Anna Lapwood (Conductor – Artist in Association, BBC Singers)
Molly Hord (Organist)
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
SUN 19:00 Between the Ears (m002wg4r)
Tides of Sound: The Story of St.GIGA
At the crest of Japan's economic bubble, in the spring of 1991, a radio station unlike any other began broadcasting from satellite into homes across the country. St.GIGA carried no news, no commercials, no DJs. Instead, it offered an unbroken flow of music, field recordings from around the world, commissioned poetry, and the quiet announcement of tides. Its programming was not built around schedules or programme titles, it was built around the sea.
Conceived by creative director Hiroshi Yokoi, St.GIGA, was guided by a single, radical idea: that sound could be synchronised with the natural rhythms of the earth. The station followed a tide table rather than a broadcast clock. As the tide rose, the music intensified; classical works, symphonies, techno, anything that embodied what Yokoi called "the beauty of the blue planet seen from space." As the tide retreated, the music softened into ambient and environmental sound. On full moon nights, natural sound increased. On new moon nights, it quietened. The station's ident, repeated in dozens of languages by voices of all ages from around the world, said simply: I'm here. I'm glad you're there. We are St.GIGA.
Tides of Sound is both a documentary about St.GIGA and an attempt to recreate the experience of listening to it. Drawing on original interviews with people who made the station; programmer Yoko Yokouchi, composer Yoshio Ojima, sound archivist Yoshihiro Kawasaki, in-house poet Michico Ryo and producer Akira Ishii, alongside new research by Spencer Doran, the American musician and scholar who has done so much to bring St.GIGA to international attention, the programme weaves together testimony, archive recordings, field recordings made by the station's own audio teams, poetry written for St.GIGA's launch by Michico Ryo, and readings from the station's founding book, Yume no choryu, Current of Dreams, written by Yokoi himself in 1991.
What emerges is a portrait of a genuinely utopian broadcasting experiment and of the particular moment in history that made it possible and necessary. Tokyo in 1991 was a city at the end of its bubble, still glittering on the surface but with an undercurrent of anxiety, a sense that the era was about to change. Into that atmosphere, St.GIGA offered something almost impossibly gentle: time to listen. Not information, not entertainment in any conventional sense, but the flow of time itself, translated into sound.
The station's philosophical roots reached far. Yokoi drew on the concept of kankyo ongaku, environmental music, that had taken shape in Japan in the previous decade, and on the tradition of ambient music then being developed internationally, including the work of Brian Eno, which featured heavily in the station's programming. But St.GIGA's deepest inspiration was something more cosmic. Yokoi gifted each member of staff, on their first day, a copy of The Home Planet, a book of photographs taken from space, compiled by Kevin Kelly in 1988, in which astronauts described the experience of looking back at Earth. He accompanied it with a handwritten note: Please play the Gaia Symphony beautifully. The studios were named Moon and Water. The monitor in every room showed an image of the Earth floating in space.
St.GIGA broadcast live, 24 hours a day, for several years before financial pressures forced a gradual move to recorded programming. Nintendo briefly became an investor, recognising the technical potential of the satellite infrastructure. But the station could not be sustained, and it eventually closed. What it left behind was harder to quantify: a community of listeners who described the experience as therapeutic, even transformative.
This is a production from Munck Studios produced by Ben Fawkes. With thanks to Mari Kimura and Toyohiro Suzuki for their local Japanese support and many thanks to St.GIGA staff members Akira Ishii, Yoshihiro Kawasaki, Yoshio Ojima, Michico Ryo and Yoko Yokouchi for being interviewed and sharing their stories. Many thanks to Spencer Doran for his interview, reading and all his expertise in St.GIGA and for composing the music (with additional music credit to Satsuki Shibano for piano and Yoshio Ojima for processing). Thank you to Chris Wood for sound design, editing and mixing and mastering, Hinako Omori for editing and voice over work, and to the voice over artists Sadao Ueda, Dai Tabuchi, Meg Kubota, Yojiro Ichikawa and Mari Kimura. Audio clips of astronaut Edgar Mitchell used with permission by the Institute of Noetic Sciences.
SUN 19:30 Sunday Feature (m002wg4t)
Opera on the terraces
Should the soundtrack of the 2026 Football World Cup be full of Classical music? British fans have been chanting to Verdi, humming along to Puccini and Handel - so why do we resist to label this music popular? Oskar Jensen, a historian of song, discovers how the eighteenth-century composer and travel writer Charles Burney might help explain how we define and label the music.
Dr Oskar Jensen, who leads a major project on mainstream song from 1520 to the present day at the University of Newcastle, speaks to Dr Katherine Hambridge, Associate Professor of Musicology at Durham University and to Professor Paul Whitty, composer and sound researcher at Oxford Brookes University.
Producer: Ruth Watts
Oskar Jensen has been on the New Generation Thinkers scheme, which is run by the BBC and the Arts and Humanities Research Council to share research on the radio.
SUN 19:45 Words and Music (m0021jtz)
James Baldwin
Adrian Lester reads from the novels and essays of the Black American writer James Baldwin, set alongside archive recordings of Baldwin and music including by Miles Davis, Florence Price, John Coltrane, George Walker and Oscar Peterson.
This programme contains some strong discriminatory language.
Writer and civil rights activist James Baldwin was born in Harlem, New York on August 2, 1924, the eldest of nine children.
To be a black person in America, Baldwin once said, was to be “in a state of rage almost all of the time.” The racial injustices he witnessed and endured were compounded by his experiences as a gay man, and his writing is deeply embedded in the nuances of racial and sexual identity.
Baldwin’s first collection of essays, Notes of a Native Son, includes a haunting memoir of the life and death of his stepfather, an evangelical preacher, with whom he had a fraught relationship. During the summer of his fourteenth birthday, Baldwin underwent a dramatic religious conversion and served as a junior minister for three years in a small Pentecostal church, a period he wrote about in his semi-autobiographical first novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain. His second collection of essays, The Fire Next Time, is told in the form of two intensely personal 'letters', one of which is addressed to his 15-year-old nephew James.
We’ll hear an extract from Giovanni’s Room – the novel he published in 1956 which follows a young American man in Paris and explores bisexuality, power balances and social isolation. He became a public figure, taking part in debates and TV shows and publishing books which have been turned into Oscar-nominated films and documentaries, inspiring many later activists and writers.
Although Baldwin would claim that he didn't ‘know anything about music’, the prose of his novel Another Country attempts to emulate the sound of jazz musicians, and his fiction and non-fiction is punctuated with references to the blues, gospel and jazz. Today’s Words and Music includes performances by Bessie Smith, John Coltrane and Nina Simone. We also hear classical work by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor and Margaret Bonds and an extract from an artwork by Tavares Strachan called There Is a Light in Darkness (blue neon, yellow neon and synchronised audio art installation, courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery and the Artist, 2024.)
Producer: Cecile Wright
Readings:
Archive footage of James Baldwin
Excerpts from Giovanni’s Room
No Name in the Street
Another Country
Go Tell It on the Mountain
The Fire Next Time
Baldwin archive material
Notes of a Native Son (Permission was granted by Beacon Press, Boston, Massachusetts)
Another Country
Sonny’s Blues
Letter to my nephew
SUN 21:00 Ultimate Calm (m002lm6w)
Erland Cooper: Series 5
Music that leads us home ft. Keaton Henson
Composer Erland Cooper invites us to look within, hand-picking soothing sounds that conjure up the feeling of home. Erland shares music from Piotr Kurek, Ichiko Aoba and Gustav Mahler, and reflects on how music can help us connect with ourselves and our roots, diving into where sound and memory meet.
Also, the musician Keaton Henson shares his safe haven, selecting the song that resonates with the same frequency as his mind.
Produced by Connor Gani
A Reduced Listening production
SUN 22:00 Night Tracks (m002wg4x)
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 (m002wg4z)
Beibei's Listening Chair
Elizabeth Alker invites virtuoso percussionist Beibei Wang to the Unclassified Listening Chair to share a track that transports her elsewhere. Beibei’s mastery of classical and traditional Chinese techniques has seen her perform as a soloist with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras. Forever curious, she has also explored more experimental and contemporary forms, and her long-standing creative collaboration with composer Hannah Peel has resulted in the acclaimed new album ‘The Endless Dance’.
Elsewhere in the programme, we'll hear from emerging independent producers whose work plays with orchestral textures and classical form as well as the latest sounds from a new generation of contemporary composers who look to embrace the spirit of rock, pop and electronica.
Produced by Geoff Bird
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Unclassified”.
MONDAY 25 MAY 2026
MON 00:30 Through the Night (m002wg51)
Elgar and Holst from the 2024 BBC Proms
Cellist Senja Rummukainen with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and conductor Sakari Oramo in Elgar's Cello Concerto. The orchestra is also joined by contralto Jess Dandy and the BBC Symphony Chorus in Holst's The Cloud Messenger. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Jonathan Harvey (1939-2012)
Tranquil Abiding
BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
12:45 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
Cello Concerto in E minor, Op 85
Senja Rummukainen (cello), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
01:16 AM
Kaija Saariaho (1952-2023)
Papillon II, from 'Sept Papillons'
Senja Rummukainen (cello)
01:18 AM
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
The Cloud Messenger
Jess Dandy (contralto), BBC Symphony Chorus, Neil Ferris (choirmaster), BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
02:04 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934), David Passmore (arr.)
Salut d'Amour
Moshe Hammer (violin), Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi (cello), William Tritt (piano)
02:08 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Fantasy in C major 'Wandererfantasie', D760
Paul Lewis (piano)
02:31 AM
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Magnificat in D major Wq 215
Linda Øvrebø (soprano), Anna Einarsson (alto), Anders J. Dahlin (tenor), Johannes Mannov (bass), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Oslo Chamber Choir, Alessandro De Marchi (conductor)
03:07 AM
Carl Czerny (1791-1857)
Piano Sonata No 9 in B minor, Op 145, 'Grande fantaisie en forme de Sonate'
Stefan Lindgren (piano)
03:40 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Overture (Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail, K384)
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Milan Horvat (conductor)
03:47 AM
Anonymous
Folias de Espana
Komalé Akakpo (cimbalom)
03:54 AM
Johann Georg Pisendel (1687-1755)
Sonata for Orchestra in C minor, J.III.2b
Kore Orchestra, Andrea Buccarella (harpsichord)
04:00 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Silence and Music - madrigal for chorus
BBC Singers, Bo Holten (conductor)
04:06 AM
Malcolm Arnold (1921-2006)
Three Shanties for wind quintet, Op 4
Ariart Woodwind Quintet
04:14 AM
Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884)
Souvenir de Bohême en forme de polka, Op 13
Alexandra Troussova (piano)
04:22 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Alborada del gracioso 'Miroirs'
BBC Philharmonic, Juanjo Mena (conductor)
04:31 AM
Antonio Lotti (1667-1740)
Sonata for 2 oboes, bassoon and continuo in F major, 'Echo sonata'
Ensemble Zefiro, Rinaldo Alessandrini (harpsichord)
04:40 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Fantasia on an Irish song 'The last rose of summer' for piano, Op 15
Sylviane Deferne (piano)
04:50 AM
Francesco Cavalli (1602-1676)
Salve Regina (Hail, Holy Queen)
Monteverdi Choir, English Baroque Soloists, John Eliot Gardiner (conductor)
04:58 AM
Károly Goldmark (1830-1915)
Night and festal music - prelude to Act II from the opera 'Die Königin von Saba'
Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
05:06 AM
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921), Eugene Ysaye (arr.)
Caprice for violin and piano, arr. Ysaye after Saint-Saens
Minami Yoshida (violin), Jean Desmarais (piano)
05:15 AM
Denes Agay (1911-2007)
5 Easy Dances for flute, oboe, clarinet in Bb, bassoon, horn
Tae-Won Kim (flute), Sang-Won Yoon (bassoon), Kawng-Ku Lee (horn), Hyon-Kon Kim (clarinet), Hyong-Sup Kim (male) (oboe)
05:23 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Trio for piano and strings in E flat major (Op.1 No.1)
Macquarie Trio, Charmian Gadd (violin), Michael Goldschlager (cello), Kathryn Selby (piano)
05:53 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Cantata "Es wird ein unbarmherzig Gericht" for 4 voices
Veronika Winter (soprano), Patrick Van Goethem (alto), Markus Schäfer (tenor), Ekkehard Abele (bass), Rheinische Kantorei, Das Kleine Konzert, Hermann Max (conductor)
06:04 AM
Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826)
Clarinet Quintet in B flat major, Op 34
James Campbell (clarinet), Orford String Quartet
MON 06:30 Breakfast (m002wggc)
Launch the day with classical music
Al Ryan presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. 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 (m002wggf)
A classical soundtrack 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”.
MON 13:00 Classical Live (m002wggh)
Wigmore Hall 125: Mendelssohn Octet
As part of Wigmore Hall's 125th Anniversary Festival two of today's acclaimed international quartets, the Modigliani from France and the Leonkoro from Germany, come together for a live performance of Mendelssohn's Octet. Their programme also includes music from Joaquin Turina - his colourful tone painting 'the Bullfighter's Prayer' - and music by the immensely talented Austro-Czech composer Erwin Schulhoff, whose life was prematurely cut short by the Second World War.
Following the celebratory live concert from Wigmore, Classical Live and Mark Forrest begin a fortnight in the company of ten of today's outstanding conductors. Classical Live presents recent specially made recordings drawing on concert performances from ten of the world's brightest stars of the podium. Today, the Finnish conductor Susanna Mälkki performs two symphonies from fellow Finn Jean Sibelius, including Sibelius's taut and profound 7th Symphony.
And Classical Live also features recordings from France of music by some of the great French Baroque masters of the keyboard, performed by harpsichordist Jean Rondeau - a musician at the forefront of a movement to bring the harpsichord and its repertoire to serve our times.
WIGMORE HALL 125 - LIVE
Joaquín Turina
La oración del torero Op. 34
Erwin Schulhoff
5 Pieces for String Quartet
Felix Mendelssohn
Octet in E flat Op. 20
Modigliani Quartet:
Amaury Coeytaux (violin)
Loïc Rio (violin)
Laurent Marfaing (viola)
François Kieffer (cello)
Leonkoro Quartet:
Jonathan Schwarz (violin)
Emiri Kakiuchi (violin)
Mayu Konoe (viola)
Lukas Schwarz (cello)
Introduced by Petroc Trelawney
*****
c
14:00
Presented by Mark Forrest
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 7 in C major, Op. 105
Danish National Symphony Orchestra
Susanna Mälkki, (conductor)
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Improvisation on Prelude in A minor (from 'Pièces de clavecin, Book 1)
Jean Rondeau, (harpsichord)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Violin Sonata in A major, Op. 30 No. 1
Victoria Mullova (violin)
Alasdair Beatson (fortepiano)
François Couperin
Excerpts from 'Pièces de clavecin, Ordre 3' -
La Ténébreuse (Allemande)
La Lugubre (Sarabande)
La Favorite (Chaconne)
Jean Rondeau (harpsichord)
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 6 in D minor, Op. 104
Danish National Symphony Orchestra
Susanna Mälkki (conductor)
MON 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002wggk)
Miles Davis 100
Birth of the Cool
This week Kate Molleson explores the life and work of a cultural icon: trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis, who was born 100 years ago this week and remains one of the most innovative and influential figures in 20th-century music. Kate is joined throughout the week by the leading American jazz critic Nate Chinen. Together, they'll survey his vast recorded output, which spans five decades, prioritising his own compositions but also appreciating the art of improvisation as spontaneous composition.
Miles Davis was born in Illinois in May 1926 and grew up in East St. Louis. He enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City in 1944 but was quickly drawn to the bebop scene of 52nd Street, playing alongside Charlie Parker, with whom he made some of his first key recordings. From that point on, he was at the heart of almost every new development in jazz, from hard bop to post-bop, third stream, fusion and beyond, hand-picking key collaborators for his ever-changing sound, including composer-arranger Gil Evans, saxophonists John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, keyboardist Herbie Hancock and, in his later years, the bassist and producer Marcus Miller. He made it his mission to be at the vanguard culturally and musically, rejecting convention and tradition in favour of pursuing innovation and the new thing.
Today, Kate Molleson and Nate Chinen explore Miles Davis's early life, his role in New York's bebop scene of the 1940s and the making of Birth of Cool, the first project to involve his lifelong collaborator Gil Evans. We also hear about his struggles with addiction in the early 1950s but how he came through to record landmark hard bop sessions with the likes of Horace Silver and Art Blakey.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Composer of the Week.”
Music featured:
Joshua (from Seven Steps to Heaven)
Now's the Time; Donna Lee; Milestones (Savoy sessions)
Boplicity; Budo (from Birth of the Cool)
Lazy Susan; The Leap (from Volume 2)
Round Midnight (from Round About Midnight)
Produced by Felix Carey for BBC Audio Wales and West
MON 17:00 In Tune (m002wggm)
Lumas Winds perform live in studio
Lumas Winds perform live in the studio and opera writer and broadcaster Sarah Lenton talks Katie Derham through this summer's opera highlights.
MON 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002wggp)
Half an hour of the finest classical music
Today’s mixtape begins with the glowing warmth of Borodin’s nocturne from his String Quartet No.2 in D major, its long-breathed melodies unfolding with quiet tenderness. The gentle mood continues in the lament of Rameau’s Tristes apprêts from Castor et Pollux, before an unlikely pairing of bass guitar and saxophone reimagined in Scarlatti’s Sonata in F minor, in an arrangement by Jess Gillam and Becker. Boulanger’s Prelude in D-flat major for piano drifts in like a half-remembered dream, leading naturally to the expansive and deeply lyrical andante from Rachmaninov’s Sonata in G minor for cello and piano. The mixtape closes with Morricone’s unforgettable Love Theme from Cinema Paradiso.
Producer: Zara Siddiqi
MON 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002wggr)
Wigmore Hall 125: Gala Concert
As part of Wigmore Hall's 125th Anniversary Festival, Ian Skelly compères a special programme replicating elements from Wigmore's inaugural concert on 31st May 1901. That night, several star artists of the turn of the century joined forces, and tonight's concert features a roster of today's leading musicians. And during the interval, Ian Skelly talks to Wigmore director John Gilhooly and novelist Julia Boyd about the history of performance at the Hall.
Presented live from the stage by Ian Skelly
Anon: God Save the King
Louise Alder (soprano)
Joseph Middleton (piano)
Adès: Forgotten Dances (VI. Vesper for Henry Purcell)
Beethoven: PIano Sonata no. 30 in E major, Op.109
Thomas Adès (piano)
Schubert: Nacht und Träume D827
Der Jüngling an der Quelle D300
Erlkönig D328
Louise Alder (soprano)
Joseph Middleton (piano)
Interval
Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Paganini, Op.35 (Book 1)
Cédric Tiberghien (piano)
Bach: Partita no.1 in B minor for solo violin, BWV.1002 (Sarabande, Double, Tempo di Borea)
Alina Ibragimova (violin)
Beethoven: Romance in G major, Op.40
Alina Ibragimova (violin)
Cédric Tiberghien (piano)
Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Paganini, Op.35 (Book II)
Cédric Tiberghien (piano)
MON 21:45 The Essay (m002wggt)
Miles Beyond
Black Beauty
As a musician, Miles Davis might be best known as the sophisticated balladeer behind albums like Kind of Blue and Sketches of Spain, but he was also a political figure. This essay joins the dots between seemingly contrasting albums like Tutu (a reference to Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and the anti-apartheid movement) and the politically charged jazz-rock of his album dedicated to African American boxer, Jack Johnson. These albums reflect Davis's engagement with historical figures in his art, and the oppression he personally experienced, such as his infamous assault by a white policeman in 1959.
This series is part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, celebrating the centenary of one of the most influential figures in 20th-century music.
Produced by Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3.
MON 22:00 Night Tracks (m002wggw)
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 (m002wggy)
Miles Davis 100: Byron Wallen
This week, Soweto celebrates the centenary of Miles Davis, one of the most influential figures in 20th-century music, as part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3. From Monday to Thursday, Soweto invites four musicians to select three of their favourite Miles records and share how he has influenced them. To begin, Soweto welcomes his first guest, innovative trumpeter, composer and educator Byron Wallen.
‘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.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".
TUESDAY 26 MAY 2026
TUE 00:30 Through the Night (m002wgh0)
Richard Strauss' Ein Heldenleben
Eva Ollikainen conducts the WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne in Strauss' tone poem 'A Hero's Life'. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Ein Heldenleben, Op 40
WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Eva Ollikainen (conductor)
01:16 AM
Johann Christoph Friedrich Bach (1732-1795)
Pygmalion, cantata for bass and orchestra W 18/5, B 50
Harry van der Kamp (bass), Das Kleine Konzert, Hermann Max (conductor)
01:49 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
String Quartet no 14 in G major, K.387
Harmonie Universelle
02:22 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Morgen from 4 Lieder (Op 27 no 4)
Christianne Stotijn (mezzo soprano), Joseph Breinl (piano)
02:26 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Allegro vivace scherzando – from Funf Klavierstucke, Op 3 no 2
Ludmil Angelov (piano)
02:31 AM
Uroš Krek (1922-2008)
Sinfonietta
RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Rossen Milanov (conductor)
02:59 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Piano Trio in A minor
Mithras Trio
03:27 AM
Johann Stadlmayr (c.1580-1648)
Ave Maris Stella
Capella Nova Graz, Otto Kargl (director)
03:33 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Concerto in A major, RV 335, 'The Cuckoo'
Elizabeth Wallfisch (baroque violin), Australian Brandenburg Orchestra, Paul Dyer (director)
03:43 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Impromptu no 3 in B flat major (from 4 Impromptus D 935)
Ilze Graubina (piano)
03:52 AM
Johann Gabriel Meder (1729-1800)
Sinphonia no 4 from 6 Sinphonie, Op 1 no 4
Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra, Anthony Halstead (conductor)
04:04 AM
Santiago de Murcia (1673-1739)
Cumbées, Gallardes
Simone Vallerotonda (guitar)
04:11 AM
Ludvig Norman (1831-1885)
2 Songs: Such' die Blumen dir im Thal (1850); Herbstlied (1850)
Olle Persson (baritone), Bengt-Åke Lundin (piano)
04:16 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
2 Elegiac melodies for string orchestra, Op 34
CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Mario Bernardi (conductor)
04:25 AM
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Sonata in E major, Kk.380
Ivetta Irkha (piano)
04:31 AM
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
Spanischer Marsch, Op 433
ORF Radio Symphony Orchestra, Peter Guth (conductor)
04:36 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Spring Song, Op 16
Kaija Saarikettu (violin), Raija Kerppo (piano)
04:44 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
V prirode (In Nature's Realm), Op 63
Danish National Radio Choir, Stefan Parkman (conductor)
04:57 AM
Ruth Gipps (1921-1999)
Wind Octet, Op 65
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
05:08 AM
Alexina Louie (b.1949)
Songs of Paradise
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Kazuhiro Koizumi (conductor)
05:24 AM
Salamone Rossi (1570-1630),Guido Morini (b. 1959)
Sonata in dialogo detta 'La Viena' (Rossi); Improvisation (Morini)
Andrea Inghisciano (cornet), Gawain Glenton (cornet), Giulia Genini (soloist), Guido Morini (harpsichord), María González (organ)
05:34 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Cello Concerto no 2 in D major
Daniel Müller-Schott (cello), Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Arvid Engegård (conductor)
06:00 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Rondo in D, K.485
Jean Muller (piano)
06:07 AM
Anonymous
Motet: In deliquio amoris
Claire Lefilliâtre (soprano), Currende, Erik van Nevel (director)
06:22 AM
John Field (1782-1837)
Nocturne in B flat (H.37); Nocturne in E minor (H.46)
Barry Douglas (piano), Camerata Ireland
TUE 06:30 Breakfast (m002wgbz)
Boost your morning with classical music
Al Ryan 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’.
TUE 09:30 Essential Classics (m002wgc1)
The very best 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”.
TUE 13:00 Classical Live (m002wgc3)
Beethoven 7th Symphony from Munich
Linton Stephens with an afternoon of specially recorded concert performances, including Haydn and Beethoven given by today's featured conductor, the Viennese maestro and Music Director of the Pittsburg Symphony Orchestra in America, Manfred Honeck. Today, Manfred Honeck joins one of the foremost Radio Symphony Orchestras in the world, the Bavarian Radio Symphony, for music with links to his native Austria.
Also in today's programme, keyboard music by Rameau performed by the French harpsichordist Jean Rondeau and current Radio 3 New Generation Artist, pianist Lukas Sternath performs one of Schubert's great final sonatas. Including:
Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 93 in D, Hob. I:93
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Manfred Honeck (conductor)
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Suite in A minor (from 'Nouvelles suites de pièces de clavecin') -
Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Les trois mains
Gavotte et Doubles
Jean Rondeau (harpsichord)
Johannes Brahms
Viola Sonata in Eb major, Op. 120 No. 2
Lawrence Power (viola)
Ryan Wigglesworth (piano)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Manfred Honeck (conductor)
Dan Price (after Thomas Arne)
Rule Britannia!
Adam Bokaris (euphonium)
Black Dyke Band
Nicholas Childs (conductor)
Franz Schubert
Piano Sonata in A major, D. 595
Lukas Sternath (piano)
TUE 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002wgc5)
Miles Davis 100
Kind of Blue
This week Kate Molleson explores the life and work of a cultural icon: trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis, who was born 100 years ago today and remains one of the most innovative and influential figures in 20th-century music. Kate is joined throughout the week by the leading American jazz critic Nate Chinen. Together, they'll survey his vast recorded output which spans five decades, prioritising his own compositions but also appreciating the art of improvisation as spontaneous composition.
Miles Davis was born in Illinois 26 May 1926 and grew up in East St. Louis. He enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City in 1944 but was quickly drawn to the bebop scene of 52nd Street, playing alongside Charlie Parker, with whom he made some of his first key recordings. From that point on, he was at the heart of almost every new development in jazz, from hard bop to post-bop, third stream, fusion and beyond, hand-picking key collaborators for his ever-changing sound, including composer-arranger Gil Evans, saxophonists John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, keyboardists Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul and, in his later years, the bassist and producer Marcus Miller. He made it his mission to be at the vanguard culturally and musically, rejecting convention and tradition in favour of pursuing innovation and the new thing.
Today, Kate Molleson and Nate Chinen explore the 1950s, a golden period for the trumpeter with the coming together of his First Great Quintet, featuring saxophonist John Coltrane, glorious orchestral collaborations with Gil Evans, an improvised film soundtrack recorded during a sojourn in Paris, and experiments in modal jazz culminating with his most famous release - sometimes described as the greatest jazz record ever made - Kind of Blue.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Composer of the Week.”
Music featured:
If I were a Bell; You're My Everything (from Relaxin')
Half Nelson (from Cookin')
Miles Ahead (from Miles Ahead)
Milestones (from Milestones)
Florence sur les Champs Elysee from L'ascenseur pour l'échafaud
Two Bass Hit (from Miles & Coltrane at Newport)
So What (from Kind of Blue)
Produced by Felix Carey for BBC Audio Wales and West
TUE 17:00 In Tune (m002wgc7)
Byron Wallen & band live on Miles Davis' 100th birthday
Katie Derham welcomes trumpeter Byron Wallen and band to 80A, as In Tune marks Miles Davis's 100th birthday with a tribute performance. Artistic Director Michael Chance is also live in studio, joining Katie to discuss The Grange festival and his own legacy as he prepares to retire at the end of this season.
TUE 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002wgc9)
Classical music to inspire you
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites.
TUE 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002wgcc)
Wigmore Hall 125: Asmik Grigorian and Lukas Geniusas
Acclaimed soprano Asmik Grigorian returns to Wigmore Hall with her regular pianist Lukas Geniusas following their sensational 2023 recital. This evening, their programme features the intimate version for voice and piano of Richard Strauss's Four Last Songs, alongside exquisite Russian and French vocalises, promising another deeply emotional performance.
Broadcast live from Wigmore Hall in London, and presented by Ian Skelly.
Ravel: Vocalise-etude en forme de habanera
Fauré: Vocalise-etude
Hahn: Vocalise-etude (Souvenir de Constantinople)
Bizet: Chants du Rihn
Messiaen: Vocalise-etude
Rachmaninov: Vocalise, Op. 14 No. 14
Strauss: Four Last Songs
Strauss: Stimmungsbilder, Op. 9
Zueignung, Op. 10 No. 1
Cäcilie, Op. 27 No. 2
Asmik Grigorian (soprano)
Lukas Geniusas (piano)
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
TUE 21:45 The Essay (m002wgcf)
Miles Beyond
The Man With The Horn
As part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, celebrating the centenary of one of the most influential figures in 20th-century music, journalist Kevin Le Gendre explores the impact of Miles Davis on jazz and beyond, into popular culture.
Miles expanded the range of his instrument over five decades, pushing the trumpet beyond jazz clubs into the cinema, beginning with the score for Louis Malle’s Ascenseur Pour L’Echafaud (1958). In the 1950s, he was celebrated as a "stylist" and "romanticist" who favoured slower tempos and a clear, vibrato-less sound, exemplified on the 1959 album, Kind of Blue. Composer Gil Evans noted that Davis was the first person to change the tone of the trumpet since Louis Armstrong. However, his restless creativity led to dramatic shifts. By the 1970s, he embraced rock, and funk, developing a harsh, abrasive, and powerful trumpet tone (e.g., Get Up With It), even using a wah-wah pedal.
Produced by Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
TUE 22:00 Night Tracks (m002wgch)
Miles Davis 100: In a Silent Way
As part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack celebrating the centenary of one of the most influential figures in 20th-century music. Focusing on his groundbreaking 1969 album 'In A Silent Way' she explores some of the music Miles Davis admired and inspired, from jazz to classical to contemporary and everything in between.
TUE 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002wgck)
Miles Davis 100: Cassie Kinoshi
Tonight marks the 100th birthday of Miles Davis, who was born on 26th May 1926 in Alton, Illinois. Continuing celebrations of the totemic trumpeter and composer’s centenary as part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, Soweto hears from his second guest of the week, composer and saxophonist Cassie Kinoshi. Cassie reflects on three records by Miles that she admires and explains how he has helped to shape her musical outlook.
‘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.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".
WEDNESDAY 27 MAY 2026
WED 00:30 Through the Night (m002wgcm)
The Norwegian Radio Orchestra: Sibelius and Shostakovich
Kristiina Poska conducts the Norwegian Radio Orchestra in Sibelius' two last symphonies. In between, Christian Ihle Hadland performs Shostakovich's energetic Concerto for Piano and Trumpet with the orchestra's own trumpeter, Odd Nilsen. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Symphony no 6 in D minor, Op 104
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Kristiina Poska (conductor)
01:01 AM
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and Strings Op 35
Christian Ihle Hadland (piano), Odd Nilsen (trumpet), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Kristiina Poska (conductor)
01:24 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Symphony no 7 in C, Op 105
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Kristiina Poska (conductor)
01:46 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Double Concerto for oboe, violin & strings in C minor, BWV.1060
Stefano Montanari (violin), Stefano Montanari (leader), Accademia Bizantina
02:00 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
4 Piano Pieces, Op 1
Christian Ihle Hadland (piano)
02:12 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Rejoice Greatly, O Daughter of Sion (Messiah)
Marita Kvarving Sølberg (soprano), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Ketil Haugsand (conductor)
02:17 AM
Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971)
Concerto for string orchestra in D major, 'Basle concerto'
Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Oleg Caetani (conductor)
02:31 AM
Joseph Rheinberger (1839-1901)
Horn Sonata in E flat major, Op 178
Martin Van der Merwe (horn), Huib Christiaanse (piano)
02:52 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
The Golden spinning-wheel (Zlaty kolovrat) - symphonic poem, Op 109
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Ilan Volkov (conductor)
03:15 AM
François Couperin (1668-1733)
Lecons de Tenebres pour les Mercredi Saint Premiere Lecon
Bodil Arnesen (soprano), Aaron Carpene (harpsichord)
03:31 AM
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
St Paul's Suite, Op 29 no 2
Seoul Chamber Orchestra, Yong-Yun Kim (conductor)
03:45 AM
Clara Schumann (1819-1896)
Variations on a theme by Robert Schumann for piano in F sharp minor, Op 20
Angela Cheng (piano)
03:55 AM
Thea Musgrave (b.1928)
Loch Ness - a postcard from Scotland for orchestra
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles (conductor)
04:06 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Sonata no 1 in G major BWV.1027 for viola da gamba and keyboard
Friederike Heumann (viola da gamba), Dirk Börner (harpsichord)
04:19 AM
Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983)
Sonata for harp
Godelieve Schrama (harp)
04:31 AM
Olivier Messiaen (1908-1992)
O Sacrum Convivium!
BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)
04:35 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Rondo a capriccio in G major, Op 129 (Rage over a lost penny) for piano
Pavel Kolesnikov (piano)
04:42 AM
Nicolaes a Kempis (1600-1675)
Symphonia No.1 a 5, Op 2
Concordia, Mark Levy (conductor)
04:47 AM
Fanny Mendelssohn (1805-1847)
Overture in C major
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Lionel Bringuier (conductor)
04:57 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Let mine eyes run down with tears, Z.24
Grace Davidson (soprano), Aleksandra Lewandowska (soprano), Damien Guillon (counter tenor), Samuel Boden (tenor), Matthew Brook (bass), Collegium Vocale, Philippe Herreweghe (director)
05:06 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
String Quartet in D minor, Op 42
Pavel Haas Quartet
05:19 AM
Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832)
Introduction et Variations Sur la Romance de l'Opera 'Euryanthe'
Duo Nanashi (duo)
05:32 AM
Henricus Albicastro (fl.1700-06)
Coelestes angelici chori - cantata
Guy de Mey (tenor), Ensemble 415, Chiara Banchini (conductor)
05:45 AM
Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
L'Arlesienne Suite no 1
RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Marko Munih (conductor)
06:03 AM
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Variations on a theme by Frank Bridge, Op 10
Royal Academy Soloists, Clio Gould (director)
WED 06:30 Breakfast (m002wgb0)
Start the day strong with classical music
Al Ryan 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’.
WED 09:30 Essential Classics (m002wgb2)
Relax into the day with classical
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 (m002wgb4)
Prokofiev's 3rd Piano Concerto with Daniil Trifonov
Pianist Daniil Trifonov and today's featured conductor, Franz Welser-Möst, come together to perform Prokofiev's fiendishly difficult and one of the composer's best-loved concertos, the lyrical and sparkling 3rd Piano Concerto, in a recording from Munich. Also in today's programme, the Austrian conductor (and current Music Director of the Cleveland Orchestra) Franz Welser-Möst presents music by Richard Strauss - Welser-Möst's own selection of pieces from the opera Der Rosenkavalier. Presented by Linton Stephens
Johann Strauss II
Thunder & Lightning Polka, Op. 324
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Franz Welser-Möst (conductor)
Sergei Prokofiev
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C, Op. 26
Daniil Trifonov (piano) Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Franz Welser-Möst (conductor)
François Couperin
Les Barricades mystérieuses, (from 'Pièces de clavecin – Ordre 6)
Jean Rondeau, (harpsichord)
Gabriel Faure
Theme and Variations in C# minor, Op. 73
Nelson Goerner (piano)
Richard Strauss
Suite from 'Der Rosenkavalier, Op. 59
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
Franz Welser-Möst (conductor)
WED 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002wgb6)
St Davids Cathedral
Live from St Davids Cathedral.
Prelude: Chromatic Pavan VI (Tomkins)
Introit: O Lord, give thy Holy Spirit (Tallis)
Responses: Tomkins
Psalms 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131 (Garrett, Howells, Goss, Elvey, Turle - Purcell, Kelway)
First Lesson: 2 Chronicles 18 v 28 – 19 v 11
Canticles: Fifth Service (Tomkins)
Second Lesson: Romans 2 vv1-16
Anthem: God, who as at this time (Tomkins)
Hymn: Come down, O love divine (Down Ampney)
Voluntary: Pavan and Alman in 4 parts (Tomkins)
Fretwork
Simon Pearce (Organist & Master of the Choristers)
Laurence John (Assistant Director of Music)
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
WED 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002wgb8)
Miles Davis 100
The Second Great Quintet
This week, Kate Molleson explores the life and work of a cultural icon: trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis, who was born 100 years ago this week and remains one of the most innovative and influential figures in 20th-century music. Kate is joined throughout the week by the leading American jazz critic Nate Chinen. Together, they'll survey his vast recorded output, which spans five decades, prioritising his own compositions but also appreciating the art of improvisation as spontaneous composition.
Miles Davis was born in Illinois 26 May 1926 and grew up in East St. Louis. He enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City in 1944 but was quickly drawn to the bebop scene of 52nd Street, playing alongside Charlie Parker, with whom he made some of his first key recordings. From that point on, he was at the heart of almost every new development in jazz, from hard bop to post-bop, third stream, fusion and beyond, hand-picking key collaborators for his ever-changing sound, including composer-arranger Gil Evans, saxophonists John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, keyboardists Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul and, in his later years, the bassist and producer Marcus Miller. He made it his mission to be at the vanguard culturally and musically, rejecting convention and tradition in favour of pursuing innovation and the new thing.
Today, Kate Molleson and Nate Chinen focus on one of the most celebrated units in the history of jazz, made up of key players of the time who were all to become future stars in their own right - teenage drum prodigy Tony Williams, pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Ron Carter and saxophonist Wayne Shorter, whose own exploratory improvisations and original compositions were to be a defining element in the Miles Davis sound of the 1960s. We hear about the changing landscape for jazz during this decade with the advent of free jazz and the first seeds of fusion on the horizon.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Composer of the Week.”
Music featured:
Summertime (from Porgy & Bess)
Autumn Leaves (from Live at Antibes)
Seven Steps to Heaven (from Seven Steps to Heaven)
ESP (from ESP)
Circle (from Miles Smiles)
Dolores (from Miles Smiles)
Agitation (from Live at the Plugged Nickel)
Mademoiselle Mabry (from Filles de Kilimanjaro)
Produced by Felix Carey for BBC Audio Wales and West
WED 17:00 In Tune (m002wgbc)
Thomas Hampson & Ksenija Sidorova
Katie Derham is joined live in studio by baritone Thomas Hampson and accordionist Ksenija Sidorova, who discuss their upcoming appearance at Kings Place in London on 28/05. The Linarol Consort perform live, presenting music from their new album "Epitaph for a Green Lover", which was released on 01/05.
WED 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002wgbf)
Expand your horizons with classical music
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites.
WED 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002wgbh)
Wigmore Hall 125: Rhiannon Giddens, Francesco Turrisi and Crash Ensemble
Rhiannon Giddens - the Grammy-winning fiddle and banjo powerhouse - has redefined folk and country music. Known for her bold collaborations, this evening she concludes her residency alongside fellow Grammy winner and multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turris and the trailblazing Irish group Crash for what will undoubtedly be an electrifying performance.
Broadcast live from Wigmore Hall in London and presented by Sara Mohr-Pietsch.
Rhiannon Giddens
Francesco Turrisi
Crash Ensemble
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
WED 21:45 The Essay (m002wgbk)
Miles Beyond
Sound Adventurer
As part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, journalist Kevin Le Gendre explores the impact of Miles Davis on popular culture.
This essay focuses on how Miles Davis became an early adopter of new technology, from electric keyboards to effects pedals and tape loops.
Miles embraced the synthesizer in the late 1960s, aiming to get a fuller range of voicings, a "Gil Evans sound in a small band". With producer Teo Macero, the studio became a vehicle for innovation: they treated recorded sound as a fluid material, using post-production and tape-cutting to collage different takes (e.g., Big Fun), an approach that anticipated hip-hop. Davis prioritised creative thinking, stating, "Bad music is what will ruin music, not the instruments". He remained contemporary by continually embracing new technology.
Produced by Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
WED 22:00 Night Tracks (m002wgbn)
Harmonious music for night-time 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 (m002wgbq)
Miles Davis 100: Marquis Hill
In tonight’s ‘Round Midnight’, celebrating Miles Davis in the week of his centenary, as part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, Soweto welcomes his third guest of the week, trumpeter and bandleader Marquis Hill. Marquis chooses three albums by Miles Davis that are important to him, and considers Miles' musical approach and legacy.
‘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.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".
THURSDAY 28 MAY 2026
THU 00:30 Through the Night (m002wgbs)
Schubert's Lieder: Harriet Burns and Julien van Mellaerts
This recital of Schubert lieder is part of Montreal's Bourgie Hall concert series of his complete songs leading up to the 200th anniversary of his death in 1828. It is performed by soprano Harriet Burns and baritone Julien van Mellaerts, together with pianist Ian Tindale. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Auf der Bruck, D.853
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:35 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Ellens Gesang II - Jäger, ruhe von der Jagd, D.838
Harriet Burns (soprano), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:38 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Der Kampf, D.594
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:44 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Ellens Gesang III - Ave Maria, D.839
Harriet Burns (soprano), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:51 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Philoktet, D.540
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:53 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Memnon, D.541
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
12:58 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Antigone und Oedip, D.542
Harriet Burns (soprano), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:04 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Gesänge des Harfners, D.478
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:16 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
4 Gesänge aus Wilhelm Meister, D.877
Harriet Burns (soprano), Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:29 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Hoffnung, D.637
Harriet Burns (soprano), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:33 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Glaube, Hoffnung und Liebe, D.955
Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:38 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Licht und Liebe, D.352
Harriet Burns (soprano), Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:42 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Seligkeit, D.433
Harriet Burns (soprano), Julien Van Mellaerts (baritone), Ian Tindale (piano)
01:45 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Overture to 'Fierrabras', D.796
Swiss National Youth Orchestra, Mario Venzago (conductor)
01:51 AM
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Pieces de Clavecin
Andreas Borregaard (accordion)
02:07 AM
Clara Schumann (1819-1896)
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op 7
Alice Burla (piano), Swiss National Youth Orchestra, Mario Venzago (conductor)
02:31 AM
James MacMillan (b.1959)
String Quartet no 3
Royal String Quartet
02:57 AM
Louise Farrenc (1804-1875)
Symphony no 3 in G minor, Op 36
Berner Kammerorchester, Graziella Contratto (conductor)
03:32 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Sonata in B flat major, K.570
Kristian Bezuidenhout (fortepiano)
03:50 AM
José de Nebra (1702-1768)
Llegad, llegad, creyentes, cantata
Maria Espada (soprano), Al Ayre Espanol, Eduardo Lopez Banzo (harpsichord)
04:00 AM
Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa (1566-1613), Peter Maxwell Davies (arr.)
2 Motets arr. Maxwell Davies for brass quintet
Graham Ashton Brass Ensemble
04:09 AM
Marianna Martines (1744-1812)
Sinfonia in C major
BBC Concert Orchestra, Johannes Wildner (conductor)
04:21 AM
Henry Purcell (1659-1695)
Rejoice in the Lord alway, Z.49 (Bell Anthem)
Alex Potter (counter tenor), Samuel Boden (tenor), Matthew Brook (bass), Collegium Vocale, Philippe Herreweghe (director)
04:31 AM
Gioachino Rossini (1792-1868)
Overture to 'L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers)'
Croatian Radio-Television Symphony Orchestra, Enrico Dindo (conductor)
04:39 AM
Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Flute Concertino, Op 107
Maria Filippova (flute), Ekaterina Mirzaeva (piano)
04:48 AM
William Byrd (1543-1623)
Content is rich
Emma Kirkby (soprano), Rose Consort of Viols
04:53 AM
Paul Hindemith (1895-1963)
Harp Sonata
Rita Costanzi (harp)
05:06 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Valses nobles et sentimentales
Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, Eivind Aadland (conductor)
05:24 AM
Jean-Joseph de Mondonville (1711-1772)
Grand Motet 'Dominus regnavit'
Ann Monoyios (soprano), Matthew White (counter tenor), Colin Ainsworth (tenor), Tafelmusik Chamber Choir, Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, Ivars Taurins (conductor)
05:49 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet in C sharp minor, Op 131
Danish String Quartet
THU 06:30 Breakfast (m002whms)
Wake up your senses with classical music
Al Ryan 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’.
THU 09:30 Essential Classics (m002whmy)
Celebrating classical greats
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 (m002whn2)
Wigmore Hall 125: Jordi Savall and Hespèrion XXI
As part of Wigmore Hall's 125th Anniversary Festival the early music specialist Jordi Savall presents a specially recorded concert of music by Monteverdi and his contemporaries. Jordi Savall and Hespèrion XXI have been an important part of the early music world for over half a century. Their festive concert places instrumental consort pieces from Elizabethan and Jacobean England together with pioneering compositions from the aristocratic courts of Italy and Germany culminating in a performance of Monteverdi's stylised pastoral drama about the lovers Tirsi and Clori.
Also in today's Classical Live, Mark Forrest introduces a recent performance from Salzburg from today's featured conductor, Finnish musician Klaus Mäkelä, of powerful music by Mahler: the 5th Symphony which includes the celebrated Adagietto written as love letter to his wife Alma; and there's more from star harpsichordist Jean Rondeau in France, with his own take on keyboard music from the French Baroque.
WIGMORE HALL – 125
'THE TEARS AND FIRE OF THE MUSES, CLAUDIO MONTEVERDI REVOLUTION’
Jordi Savall (viola da gamba/director
Hespèrion XXI
Soloists of La Capella Reial de Catalunya
including
Samuel Scheidt:
Paduan V
Courant Dolorosa IX
Claudio Monteverdi:
Lamento d’Arianna
John Dowland:
Lachrimae Antiquae
Anthony Holborne:
The Teares of the Muses
Claudio Monteverdi:
Sestina: Lagrime d’amante al sepolcro dell’amata
John Dowland:
Lachrimae Gementes
The Earl of Essex Galliard
Claudio Monteverdi:
Qui rise, o Tirsi
John Dowland
Semper Dowland semper dolens
Giacomo Gorzanis:
La barca d'amore
Claudio Monteverdi:
Tirsi e Clori
Introduced by Martin Handley
*****
c1430
Preented by Mark Forrest
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 5 in C# minor
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra
Klaus Mäkelä (conductor)
François Couperin
Improvisation on Prelude in C (from 'L’Art de toucher le clavecin’)
Jean Rondeau (harpsichord)
THU 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002whn6)
Miles Davis 100
On the Corner
This week Kate Molleson explores the life and work of a cultural icon: trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis, who was born 100 years ago this week and remains one of the most innovative and influential figures in 20th-century music. Kate is joined throughout the week by the leading American jazz critic Nate Chinen. Together, they'll survey his vast recorded output which spans five decades, prioritising his own compositions but also appreciating the art of improvisation as spontaneous composition.
Miles Davis was born in Illinois 26 May 1926 and grew up in East St. Louis. He enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City in 1944 but was quickly drawn to the bebop scene of 52nd Street, playing alongside Charlie Parker, with whom he made some of his first key recordings. From that point on, he was at the heart of almost every new development in jazz, from hard bop to post-bop, third stream, fusion and beyond, hand-picking key collaborators for his ever-changing sound, including composer-arranger Gil Evans, saxophonists John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, keyboardists Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul and, in his later years, the bassist and producer Marcus Miller. He made it his mission to be at the vanguard culturally and musically, rejecting convention and tradition in favour of pursuing innovation and the new thing.
Kate Molleson and Nate Chinen explore a tumultuous and pivotal period in the story of Miles Davis moving from the end of the 1960s into the 70s with a series of astonishing albums which threatened to send the world of jazz into two irrevocably different directions. Miles Davis was embracing technology, electric pianos and guitars, non-Western instruments and exploring new forms and ways of playing, first with the proto-ambient In a Silent Way and then Bitches Brew - recorded immediately after Woodstock and the Summer of Love, and connecting with fans of Jimi Hendrix and Sly Stone. The purists were not impressed, and Miles continued to have an antagonistic relationship with both the industry and establishment.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Composer of the Week.”
Music featured:
Great Expectations (from Big Fun)
Tout de Suite (from Filles de Kilimanjaro)
Shhh/Peaceful (from m In a Silent Way (1969)
Miles Runs the Voodoo Down (from Bitches Brew)
Little Church (from Live-Evil)
Black Satin (from On the Corner)
Right Off (from Tribute to Jack Johnson)
Produced by Felix Carey for BBC Audio Wales and West
THU 17:00 In Tune (m002whnb)
Rosalind Ventris and Nigel Hutchison perform live
Viola player Rosalind Ventris joins Katie Derham in 80A for a live performance with pianist Nigel Hutchison, ahead of her appearance at the Elgar Festival in Worcester on 30/05. Katie also talks to pianist Martin Roscoe, who joins her down the line to discuss this year's Ulverston International Music Festival, of which he is President.
THU 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002whnd)
Take 30 minutes out with a relaxing classical mix
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites.
THU 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002whng)
Wigmore Hall 125: Alexandre Kantorow
Gold Medal Tchaikovsky Competition winner Alexandre Kantorow performs a captivating programme of music, bridging Medtner's emotionally intense first sonata with the profound heights of Beethoven's final piano sonata. After his five-star 2025 BBC Proms performance of Saint-Saëns's Fifth Piano Concerto, The Times wrote of Kantorow's "buoyancy, delicacy and grace," and this evening's concert will surely be filled with these compelling qualities.
Broadcast live and presented by Sarah Walker.
Liszt: Variations on a theme of Bach, S180
Medtner: Sonata in F minor, Op. 5
Chopin: Prelude in C sharp minor, Op. 45
Hillborg: The Kalamazoo Flow
Beethoven: Sonata in C minor, Op. 111
Alexandre Kantorow (piano)
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
THU 21:45 The Essay (m002whnj)
Miles Beyond
Style Icon
As part of Miles Davis 100, journalist Kevin Le Gendre explores the impact of Miles Davis on jazz and beyond - into popular culture.
Davis's image evolved alongside his music from the mid-1940s all the way up until his death in 1991. His early look featured sharp suits (Workin') and casual authority (the iconic olive green shirt on Milestones). In the late '60s, influenced by his wife Betty Mabry and artists like Jimi Hendrix, he adopted looser, flamboyant, Afrocentric styles (dashikis, patch suede pants). His later 1980s outfits were outlandish, featuring shoulder pads and giant shades. Beyond aesthetics, his style held social and political weight; for instance, his elegant white jacket was stained with blood after being arrested outside a New York music venue in 1959. He defied convention up to his final album, Doo-Bop, showcasing a toned, bare-chested look.
Produced by Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
THU 22:00 Night Tracks (m002whnl)
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 (m002whnn)
Miles Davis 100: Emma-Jean Thackray
All this week, Soweto has been hearing from special guests who, like generations of musicians and listeners from across the world, have been influenced by Miles Davis and his music, as part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3.
Tonight, Soweto hears from his fourth and final guest, powerhouse trumpeter, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and producer Emma-Jean Thackray, as she selects three albums by Miles Davis that have influenced her musical journey so far.
‘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.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".
FRIDAY 29 MAY 2026
FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m002whnq)
Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich from Berlin
Pianist Beatrice Rana joins the German Symphony Orchestra, Berlin and conductor Manfred Honeck in Tchaikovsky's Piano concerto no 1 followed by Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony. Penny Gore presents.
12:31 AM
Hannah Eisendle (b. 1993)
heliosis
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Manfred Honeck (conductor)
12:37 AM
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Piano Concerto no 1 in B flat minor, Op 23
Beatrice Rana (piano), Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Manfred Honeck (conductor)
01:12 AM
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893)
Intermezzo from 'Nutcracker Suite'
Beatrice Rana (piano)
01:17 AM
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Symphony no 5 in D minor, Op 47
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, Manfred Honeck (conductor)
02:05 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Presto from Sonata for violin solo no 1 in G minor, BWV.1001
Hilary Hahn (violin)
02:08 AM
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
String Quartet no 8 in C minor, Op 110
Young Danish String Quartet
02:31 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Vesperae solennes de confessore, K.339
Arianna Venditelli (soprano), Emilie Renard (mezzo soprano), Rupert Charlesworth (tenor), Marcell Bakonyi (bass), Coro Maghini, Claudio Chiavazza (director), Academia Montis Regalis, Alessandro De Marchi (conductor)
03:04 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Piano Sonata no 1 in F sharp minor, Op 11
Ji-Yeong Mun (piano)
03:39 AM
Emmanuel Chabrier (1841-1894)
Espana
Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Stuart Challender (conductor)
03:46 AM
Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909)
Catalunya; Sevilla - from Suite Espanola no 1
Sean Shibe (guitar)
03:54 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Lemminkainen's Return (Lemminkainen Suite, Op 22)
BBC Philharmonic, Yan Pascal Tortelier (conductor)
04:01 AM
Pancho Vladigerov (1899-1978)
Aquarelles, for clarinet and piano, Op 37
Dancho Radevski (clarinet), Mario Angelov (piano)
04:09 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)
04:14 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Petrarch Sonnet no 104 (Années de Pelerinage, année 2, S 161)
André Laplante (piano)
04:22 AM
Johann Heinrich Schmelzer (c.1620-1680)
Fechtschule (Fencing School)
Stockholm Antiqua
04:31 AM
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Flute Sonata in G major, Wq.133/H.564 'Hamburger Sonata'
Wilbert Hazelzet (flute), Andreas Staier (fortepiano)
04:38 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Barcarolle in F sharp major, Op 60
Ronald Brautigam (fortepiano)
04:47 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Litaniae de Providentia Divina
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)
04:57 AM
Marin Marais (1656-1728)
La Sonnerie de Sainte-Genevieve du Mont de Paris
Ricercar Consort, Henri Ledroit (conductor)
05:06 AM
Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969)
Suite for chamber orchestra
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jan Krenz (conductor)
05:13 AM
Alexander Albrecht (1885-1958)
Quintet for piano, flute, oboe, clarinet and bassoon
Pavol Kovac (piano), Bratislava Wind Quintet
05:22 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
String Serenade in E major, Op 22
Festival Strings Lucerne, Daniel Dodds (conductor)
05:50 AM
Alessandro Scarlatti (1660-1725)
Partite Sopra Follia
Enrico Baiano (harpsichord)
05:58 AM
Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957)
Piano Quintet in E major, Op 15
Paolo Giacometti (piano), Daniel Bard (violin), Tim Crawford (violin), Mark Holloway (viola), Chiara Enderle (cello)
FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m002wgw3)
The finest classical music to elevate your morning
Al Ryan 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’.
FRI 09:30 Essential Classics (m002wgw5)
A feast of great 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 (m002wgw7)
Bruckner's Great Mass in F minor from Salzburg
Mark Forrest introduces specially recorded concert performances from today's featured conductor, Riccardo Muti, including a powerful choral tour-de-force from Anton Bruckner. Riccardo Muti is one of the great conductors of today, and in Classical Live, we feature exclusive recent performances from him conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in Salzburg.
Also in today's programme, French harpsichordist Jean Rondeau concludes his recent recital from Bad Kissingen of keyboard music by masters of the French Baroque. Including:
Franz Schubert
Symphony No. 4 in C minor, D. 417 (''Tragic')
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Riccardo Muti (conductor)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Violin Sonata in G major, Op. 30 No. 3
Victoria Mullova (violin)
Alasdair Beatson (fortepiano)
Anton Bruckner
Mass No. 3 in F minor
Ying Fang (soprano)
Wiebke Lehmkuhl (contralto)
Pavol Breslik (tenor)
William Thomas (bass)
Vienna State Opera Chorus Concert Association
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Riccardo Muti (conductor)
George Gershwin
Symphonic Picture - ‘Porgy and Bess’
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Lee Reynolds (conductor)
Joseph-Nicolas-Pancrace Royer
(from Suite No. 3 in C (1746)) -
La Sensible (rondeau)
La marche des Scythes
Jean Rondeau (harpsichord)
FRI 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002wgw9)
Miles Davis 100
Rebirth
This week Kate Molleson explores the life and work of a cultural icon: trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis, who was born 100 years ago this week and remains one of the most innovative and influential figures in 20th-century music. Kate is joined throughout the week by the leading American jazz critic Nate Chinen. Together they'll survey his vast recorded output which spans five decades, prioritising his own compositions but also appreciating the art of improvisation as spontaneous composition.
Miles Davis was born in Illinois 26 May 1926 and grew up in East St. Louis. He enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City in 1944 but was quickly drawn to the bebop scene of 52nd Street, playing alongside Charlie Parker, with whom he made some of his first key recordings. From that point on, he was at the heart of almost every new development in jazz, from hard bop to post-bop, third stream, fusion and beyond, hand-picking key collaborators for his ever-changing sound, including composer-arranger Gil Evans, saxophonists John Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, keyboardists Herbie Hancock and Joe Zawinul and, in his later years, the bassist and producer Marcus Miller. He made it his mission to be at the vanguard culturally and musically, rejecting convention and tradition in favour of pursuing innovation and the new thing.
Kate Molleson and Nate Chinen with the last chapter in the life and work of Miles Davis. Following an intense period of creativity and an impossibly excessive lifestyle, Miles Davis withdrew from the scene in the 1970s and went off-grid. We hear how a few trusted people helped him to recovery and how, instead of trading on past success, he resolved to be at the vanguard once again, inspired by contemporary artists he admired like Prince, and teaming up with the bassist and producer Marcus Miller for albums such as Amandla and Tutu, both named in solidarity for the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say “Ask BBC Sounds to play Composer of the Week."
Music featured:
Take Off (from Volume 2)
He Loved him Madly (from Get Up With It
Star on Cicely (from Star People)
Back Seat Betty (from We Want Miles)
Star on Cicely (from Star People)
White (from Aura)
Cobra (from Amandla)
Tomaas (from Tutu)
The Pan Piper (from Miles & Quincy Live at Montreux)
Someday My Prince Will Come (from Someday My Prince Will Come)
Produced by Felix Carey for BBC Audio Wales and West
FRI 17:00 In Tune (m002wgwc)
Sir Karl Jenkins
Sir Karl Jenkins joins Katie Derham in 80A to discuss conducting The Armed Man in tour across the UK (Royal Festival Hall in London on 30/05, Birmingham Symphony Hall on 21/06, Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff on 28/06 and more...). Katie also introduces live music from pianist Joanna Kacperek, presenting music from her new album In Plain Sight, which is released today.
FRI 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002wgwf)
Classical music for focus or relaxation
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical favourites.
FRI 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002wgwh)
Wigmore Hall 125: Christian Gerhaher and Gerold Huber
The baritone Christian Gerhaher and pianist Gerold Huber met over three decades ago while studying at Munich’s Hochschule für Musik und Theater. Their devotion to the interpretation of lied became has become evident in the critically acclaimed recordings that have become genre-defining examples of the repertoire, while their creative rapport has received rapturous response by audiences in the concert halls of New York, Amsterdam, Berlin, Paris, Vienna, Madrid, Milan and among others, London. And it’s to the British capital they return this evening to celebrate Wigmore Hall’s quasquicentennial anniversary with a programme of lieder spanning Beethoven’s portrayal of love and nature, as well as highlights from the songbook of Wolf’s response to Mörike’s poetic idylls.
Broadcast live and presented by Martin Handley.
Beethoven: An die ferne Geliebte, Op. 98
Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn: Frühlingsmorgen
Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn: Ablösung im Sommer
Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn: Zu Strassburg auf der Schanz
Mahler: Des Knaben Wunderhorn: Nicht wiedersehen!
Wolf: Mörike Lieder: Lied eines Verliebten
Wolf: Mörike Lieder: Im Frühling
Wolf: Mörike Lieder: Denk' es, o Seele!
Wolf: Mörike Lieder: Der Feuerreiter
Berg: Altenberg Lieder, Op. 4
Brahms: Wir wandelten Op. 96 No. 2
Brahms: Über die Heide Op. 86 No. 4
Brahms: Anklänge Op. 7 No. 3
Brahms: Verzagen Op. 72 No. 4
Brahms: Meerfahrt Op. 96 No. 4
Gustav Mahler: Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen
Christian Gerhaher (baritone)
Gerold Huber (piano)
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
FRI 21:45 The Essay (m002wgwk)
Miles Beyond
A New Standard
As part of Miles 100, journalist Kevin Le Gendre explores the impact of Miles Davis on jazz and beyond - into popular culture.
Miles Davis broadened the jazz repertoire. In his early career, he drew from the Great American Songbook, playing songs by musical theatre composers. From the 1960s, he played mostly original music, before returning to covering popular music. The 1980s was marked by controversy, as he created original takes on contemporary pop hits, including Cyndi Lauper's Time After Time and Scritti Politti's Perfect Way. Miles's open-mindedness and artistic freedom, often alienating critics, legitimised the coverage of any new songs by jazz artists, influencing later artists like Herbie Hancock and The Bad Plus to embrace "new standards". From repertoire, to electronics, to extended technique and visual style, Miles was the ultimate transformer.
Produced by Joby Waldman
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 22:00 Late Junction (m002wgwm)
Miles Davis 100: Laura Jurd and Anthony Joseph in session
Verity Sharp shares the results of our latest remote collaboration session, bringing together trumpeter Laura Jurd and poet Anthony Joseph to celebrate the legacy of American jazz icon Miles Davis (1926-1991) on his centenary.
Miles Davis was a trumpeter, bandleader and composer, widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. In a career spanning nearly five decades, Davis was at the forefront of almost all major stylistic developments in jazz, constantly pursuing innovation, and his legacy continues to inspire to this day.
Kind of Blue by Miles Davis was the first album that trumpeter Laura Jurd ever bought. An inspiration for her ever since, she has gone on to develop her own distinctive musical voice bridging jazz and folk, leading the Mercury Prize-nominated band Dinosaur and working extensively as a composer for ensembles ranging from jazz groups to contemporary chamber orchestras. For this session, Jurd connects remotely with Trinidad-born poet, novelist, academic and musician, Anthony Joseph. Described as a ‘leader of the black avant-garde in Britain’, Joseph’s work and performance occupies a space between surrealism, jazz, and the rhythms of Caribbean speech and music. Together they take inspiration from the legacy of Miles Davis in this exclusive Late Junction collaboration session.
Produced by Gabriel Francis
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
FRI 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002wgwp)
Miles Davis 100: Miles Davis in concert
Tonight, Soweto presents a special programme featuring music exclusively by Miles Davis, as part of Miles Davis 100 on Radio 3, celebrating the centenary of the legendary musician and composer.
We hear live music highlights from a collective of previously unreleased radio recordings, that have been unearthed by the EBU. The recordings range from 1960s to 1980s, and feature fellow jazz greats alongside Miles including Wayne Shorter, Gary Bartz, and Herbie Hancock.
‘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.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight".