Composer of the Week
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Donald Macleod explores the life and music of Charles Villiers Stanford. With Jeremy Dibble Marking the centenary of his death, Composer of the Week explores the remarkable life and music of Sir Charles Villiers Stanford. Stanford was one of the leading musicians of his generation and, along with Parry and Mackenzie, he was one of the main protagonists in Britain’s musical renaissance at the end of the 19th century. Born in Dublin, Stanford rose to the very top of the British music scene, as both a conductor and composer. He also maintained strong links to Germany, following his studies in Leipzig and Berlin. Stanford’s works were popular in Europe, as well as Britain, with conductors such as Hans Richter promoting his music. Today, Stanford is largely remembered for his sacred works, however his prolific output covers most genres and he had a particular passion for opera. He was an influential teacher at the Royal College of Music and Cambridge University; many future musical luminaries passed through his classes, including Gustav Holst, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Rebecca Clarke and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. Stanford was a tremendous force for good in British music, and in honour of his contribution to British culture, his ashes are interred in Westminster Abbey close to the remains of Henry Purcell. This week, Donald Macleod is joined by Stanford biographer, Jeremy Dibble to explore Stanford life and music. Music Featured: The Bluebird, Op 119 No 3 (excerpt) Three Intermezzi, Op 13 No 1 (Allegretto scherzando) The Resurrection, Op 5 Symphony No 1 (Scherzo) The Veiled Prophet (Act 2 Love Duet) Service in B flat major, Op 10 (Magnificat) Symphony No 2 ‘Elegiac’ (Lento espressivo) To the Rose, Op 19 No 3 Piano Trio No 1, Op 35 (Allegretto con moto) Elegiac Ode, Op 21 (The night, in silence, under many a star) The Lord is my Shepherd Symphony No 3, Op 28 “Irish” (Allegro molto Vivace) Piano Quintet in D minor, Op 25 (Allegro risoluto) A Child’s Garland of Songs, Op 30 No 9 (My ship and me) The Clown’s Song from Twelfth Night’, Op 65 No 3 Six Irish Fantasies, Op 54 No 3 (Jig) Symphony No 5, Op 56 ‘L’Allegro ed il Pensieroso’ (Andante molto tranquillo) Shamus O’Brien, Op 61 (Act 2 Captain Trevor’s Song) Requiem, Op 63 (Agnus Dei et Lux aeterna) Te Deum, Op 66 (Judex crederis) Ten Dances, Old and New, Op 58 No 1 (Valse) Songs of the Sea, Op 91 No 3 (Devon, O Devon, in wind and rain) Magnificat in G, Op 81 String Quartet No 4 in G minor, Op 99 (Allegro molto vivace) Stabat Mater, Op 96 (Virgo virginum praeclara) String Quintet No 2 in C minor, Op 86 (Andante) A Song of Hope, Op 113 No 3 Six Songs from ‘The Glens of Antrim’, Op 174 No 2 (The sailor man) String Quartet No 7 in C minor, Op 166 (Allegro molto) Irish Rhapsody No 4, Op 141 (The Fisherman of Loch Neagh and What he Saw) An Irish Idyll in Six Miniatures, Op 77 No 2 (The Fairy Lough) Mass Via Victrix, Op 173 (Agnus Dei) How beauteous are their feet Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001xdr0 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores the lives and music of uncle and nephew Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli share a name that dominated Venetian music during the late 16th and early 17th century. Both uncle and nephew were organists and composers, and their music was linked inextricably with the exceptional city in which they lived and worked. From the organ loft of St Mark’s Basilica to the resplendent palazzos of merchants and noblemen, they provided the soundtrack to Venice’s golden age, with its numerous feast days and celebrations. But together, they would also pioneer an ambitious way of writing choral music - playing with texture and architecture– that would eventually echo beyond the Venetian waterways and profoundly affect the music of the future. Music Featured: Andrea Gabrieli: Benedictus dominus Deus sabbaoth Andrea Gabrieli: Fantasia allegra del duodecima toni Andrea Gabrieli: Hor chel nel suo ben seno; Vaghi augelletti; Angel del terzo ciel; O suave a mio cor Andrea Gabrieli: Aria della battaglia Andrea Gabrieli: Laudate dominum omnes gentes a 5; Laudate Dominum in sanctis eius a 10; Giovanni Gabrieli: O magnum mysterium Andrea Gabrieli: Ricercar del settimo tuono Giovanni Gabrieli: Deus qui beatum Marcum Andrea Gabrieli: Sancta et immaculata; Laetare Jerusalem Andrea Gabrieli: Maria Magdalenae et altera Maria; Maria stabat ad monumentum Andrea Gabrieli: Kyrie a 5; Christe a 8; Kyrie a 12; Gloria a 16 Giovanni Gabrieli: Exaudi me domine a 16 Giovanni Gabrieli: Hic est filius Dei (arr. Timothy Higgins) a 18 Giovanni Gabrieli: Hodie Christus natus est Giovanni Gabrieli: Sonata pian e forte Giovanni Gabrieli: Udite, chiari e generosi figli Andrea Gabrieli: Psalmi Davidici, Psalmo 31:Beati quórum remissae; Delictum meum cognitum tibi feci; Tu es refugium meum a tribulatione; In camo et fraeno Giovanni Gabrieli: Audite príncipes Giovanni Gabrieli: Litaniae Beatae Mariae Virginis Andrea Gabrieli: O salutaris hostia Giovanni Gabrieli: Cantate Domino a 8 Giovanni Gabrieli: Sonata con tre violini - XXI Giovanni Gabrieli: Timor et tremor Giovanni Gabrieli: Jubilate Deo Giovanni Gabrieli: Sonata a 22; Magnificat a 33 Giovanni Gabrieli: Sonata octavi toni a 12; Omnes gentes Giovanni Gabrieli: Sacri di Giove augei, sacre Fenici Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon XXVIII a 8 “Sol sol la fa mi” Giovanni Gabrieli:Buccinate in neomenio tuba Giovanni Gabrieli: Canzon per sonar primi toni a 10; Canzon a 4 “La Spiritata”; Canzon 3 a 6 Giovanni Gabrieli: Maria virgo a 10; Canzon in echo duodecimo toni; Hic est filius Dei Giovanni Gabrieli: Quem vidistis pastores Giovanni Gabrieli: In eclesiis Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001x3y2 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores the life and music of Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone is cited as one of the most experimental and influential composers of all time, undoubtedly recognised as one of the world’s greatest ever composers of music for film. A legendary figure who over the course of his career won numerous awards, and accolades, his innovative soundworlds helped to define what film music could be for multiple genres of cinema. Morricone’s music extended far beyond the desert landscapes of Spaghetti Westerns, not just to other genres on the Silver Screen, but also into the worlds of pop music, and into the concert hall – where his study and composition of avant garde music gave him the techniques to experiment within his scores for film as well. Over the course of this week, following on the heels of the 2024 Academy Awards, Donald Macleod explores the incredible career of Ennio Morricone, a composer who quite astoundingly wrote over 500 scores for film and television, as well as over 100 classical works. Music Featured: Invenzione The Ecstasy of Gold from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly Party Prohibito from I malamondo Musica per undici violini Eduardo di Capua and Alfredo Mazzucchi: O sole mio (arr. Morricone) Edoardo Nicolardi and Ernesto de Curtis: Voce e’notte (arr. Morricone) Concerto for Orchestra Scambio di prigionieri from A Fistful of Dollars The Man with the Harmonica from Once Upon a Time in the West Woody Guthrie: Pastures of Plenty (arr. Enrico Morricone) The Trio (extended version) from The Good the Bad and the Ugly Titles & A Fistful of Dollars (version 2) from A Fistful of Dollars Sixty Seconds to What? & Main Theme from For a Few Dollars More Requiem per un destino (Excerpt) Main Title from The Good the Bad and the Ugly Opening credits from Uccellacci e uccellini Addio a Pier Paolo Passolini Ostia from Pasolini, un delitto Italiano Birth of a City & Finale from Once Upon a Time in the West Suoni per Dino Delirio Secondo from Un Tranquillo Posto Di Campagna La Lucertola from Una Lucertola con la Pelle Di Donna Silenzio nel caos from The Bird with the Crystal Plumage Four Flies on Velvet (take 6) from Four Flies on Grey Velvet Deborah's Theme from Once Upon a Time in America Cockeye’s Song & Once upon a time in America – theme from Sergio Leone Suite Theme from Rampage La classe operaia va in paradiso from The Working Class Goes to Heaven or Lulu the Tool Fire from Days of Heaven Humanity (Part 2) from The Thing Four studies (Nos 1 & 2) Bugsy Cinema Paradiso Miserere & Gabriel’s Oboe from The Mission Theme from The Untouchables Voci dal silenzio (Excerpt) Theme from Il Mercenario Volti e fantasmi from La Migliore Offerta ’Ultima Diligenza di Red Rock from the Hateful Eight On Earth as it is in Heaven from The Mission Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Ennio Morricone (1928-2020) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001wyr0 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson & Nastasha Loges explore the life and music of Johanna Senfter. If you know the name Johanna Senfter, it is probably in connection with her teacher, the composer, Max Reger. Senfter won the Arthur Nikisch prize for composition in 1910, and went on to be one of the most prolific of all late-Romantic female composers, writing at least 150 works, yet she has all but disappeared from our history books. In between the two World Wars she was very active within the world of music too, founding the Oppenheim Music Society, organizing her own concert series and founding the Oppenheim Bach Society. However, her personal life is shrouded in mystery with little information published about either her biography, or her music, and there are substantial gaps in her story when we know nothing about Senfter. Unsurprisingly then, there are also questions hanging over certain elements of her personal life, and her political allegiances. Over the course of this week, Kate Molleson is joined by Professor Natasha Loges to explore the life of Johanna Senfter. They also examine the tumultuous world of early 20th Century Germany in which Senfter was working, and speculate on the reasons for her anonymity today. Music Featured: Suite for two violins No 2 (Menuet) Symphony No 4 (2nd mvt) Drei Klavierstucke, op 77 Violin Sonata in G minor, Op 32 (4th mvt) Trio for clarinet, horn and piano (3rd mvt) Vogelweise Clarinet Quintet (2nd mvt) Symphony No 4 (3rd mvt) Viola Sonata No 1 in F minor, Op 41 (3rd mvt) Chorale Preludes, Op 70 (Nos 4, 2 & 9) Sonata for cello in A Major, Op 10 (4th mvt) Suite for two violins No 91 No 2 (1st mvt) 5 pieces for viola and piano, Op 76 (No 5) Piano Concerto in G minor, Op 90 (3rd mvt) 6 Little Pieces for violin and piano, Op 13 (No 3 Elegie) Sonata for cello and piano in E flat major, Op 79 (2nd mvt) Clarinet Sonata (3rd mvt) Drei Klavierstucke Op 83, No 1 Sonata for violin and piano in A major, Op 26 (4th mvt) Concerto in C minor for two violins and orchestra, Op 40 5 pieces for viola and piano, Op 76 (Weihnachten. In ruhiger Bewegung) Piano Concerto in G minor, Op 90 (1st mvt) Suite for two violins No 1 (Courante) Piano Concerto in G minor, Op 90 (2nd mvt) Symphony 4 (1st mvt) Quintet for clarinet and string quartet in B, Op 11 (3rd mvt) 6 Little Pieces, for violin and piano (No 1, Melodie) Mazurka: Allegretto Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Johanna Senfter (1879-1961) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001wqp7 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod delves into the world of Venetian composer, Maddalena Sirmen Maddalena Sirmen was born in Venice in 1745 and christened Maddalena Laura Lombardini. Her poverty-stricken family were unable to support her and by the age of seven she was admitted to one of Venice’s ‘Ospedali’. The Ospedali were hospitals and orphanages set up to help the needy but also celebrated for the musical education they provided to their residents . Sirmen soon excelled in her training. By the age of fourteen she was accepted for additional music lessons in Padua with the famed violinist, Tartini, and became one of his favourite students. In 1767 she married fellow composer, Lodovico Sirmen, and was able to leave the Ospedale, at last. There followed many successful years of travelling and performing as a virtuoso violinist, often presenting her own works. Sirmen’s music was published in many leading European cities, and Leopold Mozart said of one of her works, that it was “beautifully written”. When visiting London for a third time, Sirmen decided to present herself as a singer, rather than a violinist. This proved to be a mistake and she was greatly criticised in the press. From this point onwards her reputation diminished despite further concerts, as a violinist, in Paris, Dresden and St Petersburg. Sirmen eventually settled back in Venice, where she died in 1818. Music Featured: Violin Concerto No 3 in A major, Op 3 No 3 (excerpt) Trio Sonata No 5 in G, Op 1 No 5 (Allegro Moderato) Ferdinando Bertoni: Veni Creator (excerpt) Trio Sonata No 5 in G, Op 1 No 5 (Rondo Allegro) Ferdinando Bertoni: Orfeo (excerpt) String Quartet No 5 in F major Violin Concerto No 3 in A major, Op 3 No 3 Giuseppe Tartini: Violin Sonata in G minor, “Devils Trill” (excerpt) String Quartet No 1 in E flat major (Andante) String Quartet No 1 in E flat major (Allegretto) Giuseppe Tartini: Stabat Mater Violin Concerto No 2 in E major, Op 3 No 2 String Quartet No 4 in B flat major String Quartet No 2 in E flat major (excerpt) Duet in C major, Op 4 No 6 Ludovico Sirmen: Sonata in A major (Moderato) Violin Concerto No 5 in B flat major, Op 3 No 5 Ludovico Sirmen: Sonata in A major (Lento) String Quartet No 2 in E flat major Violin Concerto No 1 in B flat major, Op 3 No 1 (Allegro) J. C. Bach: Gioas, re di Giuda (Fe giuriamo) Maddalena Sirmen: Violin Concerto No 1 in B flat major, Op 3 No 1 (excerpt) J. C. Bach: Sonata in G, Op 10 No 3, W. B4 (Rondeaux) String Quartet No 3 in G minor Violin Concerto No 6 in C major, Op 3 No 6 Violin Concerto No 4 in C major, Op 3 No 4 (excerpt) String Quartet No 6 in E major (Andantino) Thomas Linley Junior: The Song of Moses (Chorus: Praise be to God, and God alone) String Quartet No 6 in E major (Con brio) Ludovico Sirmen: Sonata in A major (Adagio cantabile) Violin Concerto No 4 in C major, Op 3 No 4 String Quartet No 5 in F minor Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Maddalena Sirmen and her World https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001w8gx And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Karl Jenkins has had a career of contrasts – from accomplished jazz fusion, prog rock and the worlds of film and advertising, to phenomenal success in concert halls around the world as a composer of music that delights audiences and often defies categorisation; music that is rhythmic, emotional – and hugely popular: he just might be the most performed living composer in the world. In these special programmes, Sir Karl Jenkins joins Donald Macleod to talk about his life and music ahead of the composer’s 80th birthday. Music Featured: Benedictus One World: In the Beginning One World: Let’s Go (The Tower of Babel), One World: Yet, Here I Am Sarakiz (Dance) Stabat Mater (excerpt) One World: Tikkun Olam Suo Gan Quirky Blue Hazard Profile, pt 1 Carol Ann La Folia – concerto for marimba and strings Cantata Memoria (excerpt) Cantilena Adiemus Hymn Kayama Cancion Plateada Palladio, concerto grosso for string orchestra (i Allegretto) Stella Natalis (excerpt) Gloria (excerpt) The Peacemakers (excerpt) The Armed Man – A Mass for Peace (excerpt) Quirk (Chasing the Goose) White Water One World: The Golden Age Begins Anew Concerto for Euphonium and Orchestra (‘It takes two…’ Seductively) Over the Stone (iv, Tros y Garreg) One World: Sakura, Spring has Come Requiem (excerpt) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Martin Williams for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Karl Jenkins https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001w1jw And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson explores the legends and lore of Igor Stravinsky Music Featured: Rite of Spring Fireworks Three Movements from Petrushka (Russian Dance) The Firebird: Infernal Dance The Rite of Spring, Part 2: The Sacrifice Three Pieces for String Quartet (Excentrique) Four Russian Peasant Songs Song of the Nightingale (The Mechanical Nightingale) Renard (excerpt) Soldier’s Tale (excerpt) Les Noces: The Wedding Feast Pulcinella Suite (Sinfonia) Suite Italienne Sonata for Piano Symphonies of Wind Instruments Octet Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments Oedipus Rex(excerpt) Serenade in A for piano (Romanza) Orpheus (excerpt) Apollo (excerpt) Duo Concertant Otche nash Symphony of Psalms Mass (Santus) Ode (iii Epitaph) In Memoriam Dylan Thomas Requiem Canticles Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Martin Williams for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001vld7 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores the life and music of Jacques Offenbach Jacques Offenbach’s life throws a light on the political turbulence and identity within 19th century Europe. He struggled to break into the musical establishment of Paris, but he didn’t struggle with creating a dazzling array of work for the theatre. His 98 stage works established and defined what operetta was, paving the way for modern musical theatre. Music Featured: Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann), Act III: Barcarolle (arr. A. Sedlar) Grand Concerto in G Major for cello and orchestra, Concerto Militaire (I. Allegro maestoso) Les fleurs d’hiver Musette, Op 24 Pepito (excerpt) Les bavards: Overture Decameron dramatique (excerpt) Le “66”(excerpt) 6 Fables de Lafontaine (orchestrated by J.-P. Haeck) (excerpt) Rends-moi mon âme L'etoile Les brigands: Overture Ba-ta-clan (excerpt) Orphee aux enfers (excerpt) Le Papillon (excerpt) Die Rheinnixen: Overture Abendblatter La Vie parisienne: Overture La belle Helene (excerpt) Barbe-bleue (except) La Grande-Duchesse de Gerolstein (excerpt) La Haine, Act IV: Marche religieuse Les contes d'Hoffmann (excerpt) American Eagle Waltz Le voyage dans la lune (except) Madame Favart: Overture Ouverture a grand orchestra Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Iain Chamber for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001vcpj And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores Mendelssohn’s experience in the British Isles Mendelssohn’s relationship with Britain began when he was 20 years old, when London became the first stop of his Grand Tour. This week Donald Macleod explores the composer's experiences in Britain, considering the mark he left on musical life in these islands, the works he wrote here, and what he got up to in the course of the ten visits he made across his lifetime. Mendelssohn took inspiration from the scenery, but he also got his first professional engagements in Britain, and in return, by the end of his life, Britain lionized him. Music Featured: Songs Without Words Op 19b No 1 Symphony No 1 in C minor (1st mvt) 12 Lieder Pp 9: III – Wartend Octet in E flat major (3rd mvt) Concerto in E major for Two pianos (2nd & 3rd mvts) Fantasie in F# minor (Mvt 1) Symphony No 3 in A minor 'Scottish' (1st mvt) 3 Fantasies (or Caprices) Op 16 String Quartet in E flat Major (1st mvt) Organ Sonata No 3 (1st mvt) Symphony No 3 in A minor 'Scottish' (4th mvt) Songs without Words Op 19b No 3 Hebrides Overture Piano Concerto No 1 in G minor (2nd & 3rd mvts)) Songs Without Words Op 19b (Nos 2, 5, 6) Symphony No 4 in A major 'Italian' (3rd & 4th mvts) Songs Without Words Op 102 No 1 Piano Concerto No 2 in D minor (2nd & 3rd mvts) Piano Trio No 1 (1st mvt) A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Nos 5 & 7) Violin Concerto in E minor (1st mvt) 6 Songs Op 99 No 5 Elijah Part 1 (excerpt) Octet in E flat major (1st mvt) String Quartet No 6 in F minor (3rd mvt) Elijah Part 2 (excerpt) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Megan Jones for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001v4jh And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson talks to Pulitzer Prize winning composer, Caroline Shaw At the age of just 30, in 2013 American composer Caroline Shaw made the headlines when she became the youngest person to win a Pulitzer Prize for her vocal work "Partita for Eight Voices". It's a mind blowing, joyous celebration of every sound and technique the human voice can achieve. The unexpectedly gained Pulitzer could have pigeon-holed Shaw's future career, as a "composer", but central to her identity as a creator is the fact that Shaw regards herself as musician. She's a violinist, a vocalist, producer, and a composer and it's the sum of all these parts that make up the creative impetus for her music. Blending performance with composition, blurring the lines between different musical genres, Shaw has avoided categorisation in the multiplicity of her enthusiasms. She's worked with rappers Kanye West and Nas, and soprano Renée Fleming, and mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter. Her more than one hundred works encompass classical works, film scores, vocal music, and performing and working collaboratively she continues to engage in a diverse range of multi-media projects. Shaw's passion for music formed early. Born in North Carolina in 1982, Shaw was taught the Suzuki method of violin by her mother from the age of 2. Her father, a specialist in respiratory disease, was a keen amateur pianist. Shaw grew up in a culture of community music-making, singing in the church choir and summer camp. Formal studies followed at Rice in performance and Yale in composition, after which she undertook a doctoral programme in composition at Princeton. Plan and Elevation (IV: The Orangery) And So Partita for 8 Singers (IV: Passacaglia) Gustave Le Gray Entr’acte (version for String Orchestra) Valencia Limestone and Felt Punctum Boris Kerner Thousandth Orange for violin, viola, cello, piano Fleishman is in Trouble (Beef Lo Mein) And the Swallow Partita for 8 Singers (I: Allemande) To the Hands (Seven Responses project) (excerpt) Narrow Sea (excerpt) Its motion keeps “The Listeners” (excerpt) Plan and Elevation (V: The Beech Tree) Three Essays (III: Ruby) The Isle (excerpt) Taxidermy Blueprint for String Quartet To the Sky Partita for 8 Singers (II: Sarabande) Fleishman is in Trouble (excerpts) Ritornello 2.sq.2.j.a for string quartet Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for A Vaughan Williams Christmas https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001trhs And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
The 19th century was an exciting time for classical musicians. Urban centres across Europe and the New World were expanding rapidly, creating a profitable music circuit for touring performers – particularly if you had the talent and star-power to attract audiences in large numbers! A new breed of performer began to emerge: extraordinary virtuosos whose dazzling abilities made them into international sensations. Liszt, Chopin, Clara Schumann and Paganini are among the names best remembered today but there were many others. This week, Donald Macleod explores the life and music of four more 19th century ‘showstoppers’ who were equally celebrated in their day, and who also turned their talents to composing. Music Featured: Teresa Carreño: Vals gayo Teresa Carreño: Florence, Cantilène Op.34 Teresa Carreño: Souvenirs de mon pays, Op. 10 Teresa Carreño: Le printemps, Op. 25 Teresa Carreño: String quartet in B minor: I. Allegro, II. Andante Teresa Carreño: Elégie Op. 22, No. 6, ‘Plaintes au borde d'une tombe’ Teresa Carreño: Little Waltz ‘Mi Teresita’ Elias Parish Alvars: Introduction, Cadenza & Rondo (extract) Elias Parish Alvars:Grand March Op.67 Elias Parish Alvars: Grand Duo on Donizetti’s Linda di Chamounix, Op.65 Elias Parish Alvars: Harp Concerto in E flat Op.98, I. Allegro brillante Elias Parish Alvars: Grand Study in Imitation of a Mandolin Op.84 Maria Szymanowska: Polonaise in C major Maria Szymanowska: Prélude No. 18 in E major Maria Szymanowska: 24 Mazurkas, Nos. 21-24 Maria Szymanowska: Caprice sur la romance de Joconde in E major Maria Szymanowska: Fantaisie in F major Maria Szymanowska: Cotillon, ou valse figurée Maria Szymanowska Nocturne in B flat major Maria Szymanowska: 18 Dances of Different Genres, Nos. 9-12 & No.18 Joseph Joachim: 3 Stücke, Op.2, No.1, Romanze Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D major (1st movt cadenza by Joseph Joachim) Joseph Joachim: Notturno Op.12 Joseph Joachim: Quartettsatz Joseph Joachim: Violin Concerto No.2 in D minor, Op.11 'A la hongroise': III. Finale alla Zingara: Allegro con spirito Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Chris Taylor for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Greatest Showstoppers https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001th7g And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
“I’ve always loved carols,” Vaughan Williams wrote to Cecil Sharp in 1911. Despite being called a “most determined atheist” by Bertrand Russell at University, and in later life “a cheerful agnostic”, the composer never lost his love for Christmas. It dated back to childhood memories of singing carols from Stainer and Bramley’s Christmas Carols New and Old at his home at Leith Hill Place, Surrey. As an adult, his lifelong passion for the Christmas period was demonstrated in his music - the Fantasia on Christmas Carols, On Christmas Night based on Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, the cantata Hodie and the nativity play The First Nowell. His passion for collecting folk tunes in various counties of England – armed with a trusty pencil and paper, or at times a phonograph - also led to a plethora of carol settings using these folk tunes, as Vaughan Williams himself said “Every day some old village singer dies, and with him there probably die half-a-dozen beautiful melodies, which are lost to the world for ever: if we would preserve what still remains we must set about it at once.” This week. Kate Molleson explores Vaughan Williams’s experiences of Christmas across his life alongside some of his best loved pieces, and the music he wrote to celebrate the festive period. Music Featured: Dives and Lazarus The First Nowell (extract) Trad. The Murder of Maria Marten Five Variants of ‘Dives and Lazarus’ Suite for Viola and Small Orchestra – Group 1 The Wasps Overture I Saw Three Ships Come In Willow Wood Folk Songs of the Four Seasons: Orchestral Suite Trad. The High-low well The Holy Well (version 1) Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis As Joseph was Walking A London Symphony (III. Scherzo) Fantasia on Christmas Carols Symphony 3 (II. Lento) Trad. On Christmas Night Sussex Carol The Lark Ascending Hodie (This Day): The Oxen On Christmas Night (extract) Dona Nobis Pacem (III. Reconcilliation) Trad. Ploughboy’s Dream O Little Town of Bethlehem Prelude: 49th parallel Symphony No 5 in D Major (III. Romanza) God rest you merry, gentlemen The First Nowell: IX: In Bethlehem City On Wenlock Edge (V. Bredon Hill) Epithalamion (the bridal day) – Procession of the bride Hodie (extract) Symphony No 7 (V. Epilogue) Trad. Seven Virgins (Leaves of Life) The Seven Virgins The First Nowell: XX. The First Nowell Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for A Vaughan Williams Christmas https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001t9wp And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores the life and music of German composer Engelbert Humperdinck German composer, Engelbert Humperdinck, became an international celebrity with his music for the stage. His lasting hit was his opera, Hansel and Gretel. There were other huge successes too. Die Heirat wider Willen (The Reluctant Marriage) was highly praised after its premiere at the Royal Opera in Berlin, and Humperdinck took 19 curtain calls in London for his stage work Das Wunder (The Miracle). In New York, at the Metropolitan Opera House, after the premiere of Humperdinck’s opera Königskinder (King's Children), the applause just kept going so that the management had to turn the lights off, in order to force the audience to leave. Humperdinck was born in Siegburg, and from early on his parents encouraged his musical abilities, provided he focused on his other school commitments, too. He went on to study at the Cologne Conservatoire and soon fell under the spell of Wagner whom he met, and later worked with, in the preparation of Wagner’s opera, Parsifal. Humperdinck travelled Europe, and in the early 1890s he saw the premiere of his own opera Hansel and Gretel, which was performed on sixty-nine German stages within one year. Humperdinck became a professor of composition in Berlin and, between his teaching duties, he continued to write many works for the stage. Opera houses clambered to give the premiere of a new work by Humperdinck and he became a giant of his times. Music Featured: Evening Prayer (Hansel and Gretel) Weihnachten Piano Quintet in G (Allegro moderato) Hansel and Gretel (Overture) Die Wallfahrt nach Kevlaar (excerpt) Notturno in G, for violin and string quartet Junge Lieder Die Lerche String Quartet in C minor Wagner arr. Humperdinck: Parsifal (Herzeleide) Hansel and Gretel (excerpt) Nachtstück in A flat Christkindleins Wiegenlied An das Christkind Frühlingssehnsucht Altdeutsches Liebeslied Wiegenlied Piano Quintet in G (Adagio) Das Licht der Welt Erinnerung Liebesorakel Königskinder (excerpt) Moorish Rhapsody (Elegy at Sunset) Die Heirat wider Willen (excerpt) Winterlied Shakespeare Suite No 1 (Ferdinand und Miranda) Die Lerche II Verratene Liebe Unter der Linden Das Wunder (excerpt) String Quartet in C (Lebhaft) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Engelbert Humperdinck (1854-1921) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001t2k8 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
This week, Donald Macleod marks the beginning of the season of Advent by exploring Christmas music and stories from the Middle Ages. Christmas celebrations encompassed a great variety of colourful traditions and musical occasions during medieval times. Peasants and nobles alike could look forward to many weeks of festivities, from Advent at the start of December, right through to Candlemas on 2nd February. Some of those customs we still recognise and celebrate today. Many are now lost or significantly altered. Donald is joined by early music expert, William Lyons, to examine how Christmas might have felt and sounded to our medieval ancestors. Music Featured: Gaudete Personent hodie; Gaudete; Omnis mundus jucundetur Perotin: Alleluia Nativitas Miri it is while sumer ilast Blowe, Northerne Wynd (arr. William Lyons) Seint Nicholas was borne in the citee of Patras; Cantu mirro, summa laude; Sainte nicholaes; Salve cleri speculum - Salve iubar presulum Dufay: Ce jour de l'an Orientis partibus The Play of Daniel (Ludus Danielis) Hec est Clara dies Procedenti puero Pérotin: Salvatoris hodie Dum sigillum summi patris [instrumental] Perotin: Viderunt Omnes Hodie Christus natus est Viderunt Emmanuel Lux hodie, Lux leticie Psallat chorus; Eximie pater et regie; Aptatur Descendit de cælis In natali Domini Isaias Cecinit Perotin: Sederunt Principes Verbum patris umanatur O O Edi beo thu hevene-queene Angelus ad virginem Ecce quod natura Ther is no rose of swych vertu Verbum Patris humanatur Verbum Patris (intrumental) Thys endere nyght Ave Maris Stella Nowell, owt of youre sleep aryse Adam lay ibowndyn (arr. William Lyons) Ye have so longe kepe schepe (instrumental) Nowell, nowell, nowell Hayl Mary ful of grace Coventry Carol Halle: Dieus soit en cheste maison Sequentia Dufay: Bonjour, bon mois Lantins, A: Ce jour de l’an, belle je vous supply Dufay: Ce jour de l'an Gresley Dances (arr. William Lyons) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Chris Taylor for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for A Mediaeval Christmas https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001svqt And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Ned Rorem was an American composer and writer, and was hailed by some as the greatest art-song composer of his time. Writing over 500 songs, his music has been described as Neoromantic, leaning at times towards a more lyrical nature. Early musical influences upon Rorem were Margaret Bonds, Virgil Thomson, Aaron Copland and also Arthur Honegger. After a period of living in Paris where he associated with members of Les Six, as well as frequent trips to Morocco, Rorem eventually settled back in the USA for the rest of his life. He went on to win a Pulitzer Prize in 1976 for his orchestral work, Air Music. Rorem also wrote seventeen books, six of which were intimate diaries. These earned him a certain reputation from the 1960s onwards, particularly for his openness about his regular sexual encounters with men. During this period, Rorem also had issues with alcohol and drugs, but his life steadily settled when he entered into a long-term relationship with the composer and choral director James Holmes. They purchased a house together in Nantucket, and Rorem often relied upon Holmes for feedback concerning his own music. This week, Donald Macleod reflects on Ned Rorem’s life and music, remembering his own encounter with the composer when he interviewed Rorem for this series in 2003. Music Featured: Early in the morning The Lordly Hudson Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening Dance Suite (excerpt) Piano Concerto No 2 (excerpt) Piano Sonata No 3 (excerpt) Sing My Soul Symphony No 2 (excerpt) For Poulenc Two Psalms and A Proverb (excerpt) Lions Love Divine, All Loves Excelling I will always love you Book of Hours Sky Music (Brisk and Smooth) Santa Fe Songs (excerpt) Praise the Lord, O My Soul Violin Concerto (excerpt) While all things were in quiet silence (Seven Motets for the Church Year) Breath on Me, Breath of God String Symphony (excerpt) Spring Music (Bagatelle) String Quartet No 4 (Still Life) More than a Day (excerpt) Evidence of things not seen (excerpt) Piano Album 1 (excerpts) Double Concerto for Violin and Cello (excerpt) United States: Seven Viewpoints for String Quartet (excerpt) Concerto for English Horn and Orchestra (Recurring Dream) Our Town (excerpt) For Six Friends Four Prayers From An Unknown Past Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Ned Rorem (1923-2022) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001slxs And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson and Kevin Le Gendre dive into the lives and music of John & Alice Coltrane Coltrane is a name you’re likely to have heard, even if you know little to nothing about jazz. More than half a century after his death, saxophonist and composer John Coltrane is hailed as a giant of American cultural history, and one of 20th-century music’s greatest visionaries. But he’s not the only Coltrane. His wife, Alice, was an accomplished keyboardist and harpist who made revolutionary music in her own right, and whose contribution to John’s late output has not always been fully recognised. As soulmates and fellow seekers in sound, John and Alice both transcended cultural and genre boundaries, helping to pioneer avant-garde and spiritual jazz. But following John’s premature death in 1967, Alice began her solo career and would take forward their journey of creative and religious expansion. This week, Kate Molleson is joined by journalist and broadcaster Kevin Le Gendre to dive into the lives and music of these monumental figures, and explore their contributions to the jazz world and beyond. Music featured: Straight Street (from Coltrane) Blue Train (from Blue Train) Miles Davis/John Coltrane: So What (from Kind of Blue) Giant Steps (from Giant Steps) Syeeda’s Song Flute (from Giant Steps) Naima (from Giant Steps) Rodgers/Hart: It’s Easy to Remember (from Ballads) Up ‘Gainst the Wall (from Impressions) Rodgers/Hammerstein: My Favorite Things (from My Favorite Things) Blues Minor (from Africa/Brass) India (from Impressions) Alabama (from Live at Birdland 1963) Bessie’s Blues (from Crescent) Terry Gibbs: Sherry Bossa Nova (from Plays Terry Gibbs feat. Alice McLeod) Ogunde (from Expression) A Love Supreme, Pts 1 and 2 (from A Love Supreme) Expression (from Expression) Dear Lord (from Transition) Stopover Bombay (from Journey in Satchidananda) The Sun (from Cosmic Music) Lovely Sky Boat (from A Monastic Trio) Ohnedaruth (from A Monastic Trio) Blue Nile (from Ptah the el Daoud) A Love Supreme (from World Galaxy) Journey in Satchidananda (from Journey in Satchidananda) Spiritual Eternal (from Eternity) Sivaya (from Transcendence) Going Home (from Lord of Lords) Krishna Krishna (from Turiya Sings) Translinear Light (from Translinear Light) Rama rama (from The Ecstatic Music of Alice Coltrane Turiyasangitananda) Govinda Jai Jai (from Radha-Krsna Nama Sankirtana) Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Amelia Parker & Martin Williams for BBC Audio Wales For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for John and Alice Coltrane https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001s5st And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod surveys the spell Shakespeare cast on Berlioz's life and music Berlioz burst onto the musical stage of 19th century Paris determined to break the mould of France’s elegant and refined classical style. He wanted to create music that could be bombastic, barbaric and grotesque, as well as sentimental, scintillating and sorrowful. In this, he was inspired by writers as much as fellow musicians. He was captivated by stories and crowded his imagination with the tales of Virgil, Scott, Goethe and, most of all, William Shakespeare. This week, Donald Macleod traces the tangled literary connections in Berlioz’s life and music, including the profound spell cast by Shakespeare over the composer’s art and personality. Music featured: Symphonie fantastique: IV. Marche au supplice Harold en Italie: III. Sérénade Les Nuits d'été: IV. Absence, VI. L'île inconnue Waverley, Grande Ouverture Roméo et Juliette: Part 1 (extracts) Roméo et Juliette, Op 17: Part 2 (extract) La Damnation de Faust: Scène 15. Symphonie fantastique: II. Un bal (Valse) Lélio, ou Le Retour a la vie: VI. Fantaisie sur ‘La tempête’ de Shakespeare Symphonie fantastique: V. Songe d'une nuit du Sabbat Lélio, ou Le Retour a la vie: II. Choeur d'Ombres La Mort d’Ophélie Roméo et Juliette: Part 2, II. Scene d'amour Tristia: III. Marche funèbre pour la dernière scène d'Hamlet Le Roi Lear Marche hongroise La Damnation de Faust: Part 2 (excerpts) L'Enfance du Christ: Part 2, ‘La fuite en Egypte’ (excerpts) Les Troyens, Act 4: ‘Nuit d'ivresse et d'extase infinie !’ Roméo et Juliette, Parts 4 & 5 Béatrice et Bénédict: (excerpts) Roméo et Juliette: Part 6 & 7 (excerpts) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Chris Taylor for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Berlioz and Shakespeare https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001ryz1 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores Beethoven’s life through his most iconic works Beethoven remains one of the most lauded composers in history, famed for both his music, and for his personal triumph as a musician over the adversity of his catastrophic hearing loss. Donald Macleod takes five of Beethoven’s most iconic works, spread out through the composer’s life, and tracks the journey of each of them. Through these stories, Donald discovers both the pieces’ direct importance to the composer, and also finds wider issues which each of them point to in the general life of a complex, and troubled man. From his carefully stage-managed debut on the Viennese scene as a young man, and his steadily increasing anguish at the loss of his hearing, and the betrayal by Napoleon of his political ideals, to the close relationship between Beethoven and his most loyal patron, and the composer’s late credo of joy through suffering which allowed him to continue to flourish artistically despite all of his personal demons. Music Featured: Symphony No 7 (IV. Finale) Piano Quartet No 1 in E-flat major, WoO 36 (II. Allegro con spirito) Cantata on death of Emperor Joseph II (I. Todt! Todt!; III. Da kam Joseph) Piano Sonata in C major, Op 2`3 (IV. Allegro Assai) Piano Concerto No 1 in C major, Op 15 (1st movement) The Creatures of Prometheus, Op 43 (Overture) Piano Sonata No 12 in A-flat, Op 26 (III. Funeral march on the death of a hero) Christus am Olberge, Op 85 (III. “Meine seele ist erschuttert”) An die hoffnung, Op 32 Symphony No 3 in E-flat major, Op 55 “Eroica” (I. Allegro con brio) Leonore, Op 72a (original version, 1805), Act I Nr. 12. Finale “O, welche Lust, in freier Luft" Ich bin der Herr von zu, Du bist der Herr von von, WoO 199 Piano Concerto No 4 in G major, Op 58 (III. Rondo) Symphony No 5 in C minor, Op 67 (IV. Allegro) Piano Sonata No 26 in E flat major, Op 81a “Les Adieux” (I. Das lebewohl) Piano Trio in B flat major, Op 97 “Archduke” (I. Allegro Molto) Missa Solemnis in D major, Op 123 (Gloria; Quoniam) Piano Sonata No 29 in Bb major, Op 106 “Hammerklavier” (II. Scherzo) Adelaide, Op 46 Sonata for Cello and Piano in D major, Op 102 An die ferne geliebte, Op 98 Symphony No 8 in F major (IV. Allegro Vivace) Piano Sonata No 29 in Bb major, Op 106 “Hammerklavier” (IV. Largo – Allegro risoluto) Symphony No 9 in D minor, Op 125 “Choral” (Finale (excerpt)) Piano Sonata No 32 in C minor, Op 111 (I. Maestoso) Missa Solemnis in D major, Op 123 (Credo: Et Incarnatus Est) Diabelli variations in C major, Op 120 (excerpt) Grosse Fuge in B flat major, Op 133 Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001rr0t And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod surveys the life and music of the elusive French composer, Edouard Lalo Even if you know the name, it's possible you might not be able to place the French composer Edouard Lalo date-wise. He was born in Lille in 1823. Berlioz was his senior in age by some twenty years, Saint-Saëns twelve years his junior. Lalo has a direct contemporary in the shape of César Franck, another composer who preferred to stay out of the limelight. As a musician, Lalo cut an independent path, preferring to complete his music studies privately rather than following the accepted route of attending the Paris Conservatoire. Lalo had a retiring nature, a man who appears to have preferred the quiet life. That doesn't mean he wasn't sociable. He seems to have been generally well liked. He lived in Paris from the age of sixteen and mixed with and knew all the leading musical personalities of the day. Aside from the Symphonie espagnole, he wrote several operas, a ballet, a symphony, a whole number of orchestral and chamber works including three piano trios and a string quartet, and something in the region of 30 songs. Trying to get a handle on Lalo isn't straightforward. The first letter that’s been preserved dates from 1848, by which time Lalo was in his late twenties. His son Pierre was a primary source of information about his father, but more recent research indicates the picture he drew seems to have been somewhat rose-tinted. The first full length biography in English has yet to be published. Donald Macleod sets about mapping the life and the music of this elusive, yet significant figure in French musical history in a survey that takes us from Lalo's early experiences in Lille, where he first met Berlioz, to his eventual triumph, age sixty on the opera stage with Le roi d'Ys. Music Featured: Guitarre, op 28 arr. Ernest Guiraud Symphonie Espagnole in D minor , Op 21 (I: Allegro non troppo) Le roy d’Ys - Overture Violin sonata in D major, “Grand duo concertant” Op 12 (2nd movement Variations) Piano Trio No 2 (III: Minuetto: Allegro) Violin Concerto No 1 in F major, Op 20 (I: Andante – Allegro) Deux impromptus, Op 4 (I : Espérance) Symphonie Espagnole in D minor, Op 21 (II : Scherzando; Allegro molto) Trois mélodies La fenaison Six romance populaires (IV : Si j’étais petit oiseau; I : La pauvre femme) Piano Quintet "Grand Quintette" in Ab major (2nd movement) Cello Concerto in D minor (I. Prélude. Lento - Allegro maestoso) Rapsodie norvégienne Divertissement No 3: Andantino Fiesque, Act 2: Entr’acte: une place de Gênes Fiesque, Act 1: Je ne puis supporter Fiesque Act 2 (except) Piano Trio No 3 in A minor, Op 26 (II: Presto) Sonata for cello and piano (I: Andante non troppo) Concerto russe (II: Chants russe; III. Intermezzo) Namouna, Act 1: Valse de la Cigarette Symphony in G minor (III: Adagio) Namouna Suite No 2 Piano Trio in A Minor, Op 26 (I: Allegro appassionato) Cello Concerto in D minor (II: Intermezzo; III: Introduction: Andante - Allegro vivace) Overture to Le roi d’Ys (excerpt) Le roi d’Ys, Act 3: Vainement, ma bien-aimée String Quartet in E flat (I: Allegro vivo) Piano Concerto in F minor (I: Lento-Allegro) Le roi d’Ys, Act 1 (excerpt) Le roi d’Ys, Act 3 (excerpt) Symphonie Espagnole (V: Rondo) Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Edouard Lalo (1823-1892) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001rhyp And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson explore the life and music of Afro-Brazilian composer José Maurício Nunes Garcia Composer of the Week shines the spotlight on the Afro-Brazilian composer José Maurício Nunes Garcia. Hailed by some as the Father of Brazilian Classical Music, and compared by others to Mozart and Haydn, this series delves into the life and music of this once hugely prolific and popular composer. Born in Rio de Janeiro, both his parents were children of slaves. Thanks to his exceptional musical talents, Garcia was able to move from his poverty-stricken beginnings to the very top of his society. He became Master of Music at the Cathedral. Later, when the Portuguese Court established themselves in the city, Garcia was appointed Master of Music at the Chapel Royal and Court Composer. Kate Molleson is joined by Professor Marcelo Hazan from the University of South Carolina and Professor Kirsten Schultz from Seton Hall University who help her explore Garcia’s incredible life story and music. A hugely influential teacher of music from early on, Garcia established his own free music school and was invited into the homes of the elite to teach their daughters. His trajectory wasn’t always plain sailing however and he frequently encountered racism. When it came to Garcia entering the Priesthood in the early 1790s, he had to undergo a number of tests to prove his worth, including providing impeccable references to offset the official concerns about his family background. Garcia was ordained, and with his musical skills finally recognised by the Church and Portuguese Court, he became the go-to composer for Saints Days, Royal occasions, and other commissions. However, many European musicians who came to Rio de Janeiro were not keen to be conducted by someone of his race. Eventually, Brazil gained independence from the Portuguese Empire and Garcia’s Royal employers were returned to Portugal, leaving Garcia struggling during turbulent times. Music Featured: Missa pastoril para a noite de natal (Kyrie eleison) Tenuisti manum dexteram meam Missa pastoril para a noite de natal (excerpt) Fantasy No 1 Fantasy No 2 Lição No 7 da Segunda Parte Tota Pulchra es Maria Zemira, Overture Immutemur Habitu Sinfonia fúnebre Tenuisti Manum Crux Fidelis Popule Meus Francisco Manuel da Silva: Brazilian National Anthem Fantasy No 6 Requiem Mass (excerpt) Dies Sanctificatus Justus cum ceciderit Judas Mercator pessimus Missa pastoril para a noite de natal (excerpt) Overture in D major Marcos António Portugal: Cuidados, tristes cuidados Beijo a mão que me condena Laudate pueri In Monte Oliveti Josef Haydn: Piano Sonata No. 62 in E flat, Hob. WVI: 52 (Finale) Lição No 8 da Primeira Parte Lição No 4 da Segunda Parte Lição No 8 da Segunda Parte Laudate dominum Requiem Mass (excerpt) Creed No 9 in B flat (excerpt) Fantasy No 4 Missa de Nossa Senhora da Concição (excerpt) Lição No 3 da Segunda Parte Lição No 6 da Segunda Parte Requiem Mass (excerpt) Domine Tu Mihi Lavas Pedes Inter Vestibulum Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for José Maurício Nunes Garcia (1767-1830) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001qvv7 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod marks Composer of the Week's 80th anniversary Composer of the Week has been produced in Cardiff since 1999 so it's fitting that Donald is celebrating Welsh composers in this anniversary series. Following on from a live concert given in the BBC's Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff Bay, with the BBC Singers, Donald continues the story of Welsh music with programmes featuring music by Grace Williams, Hilary Tann, Morfydd Owen, Dilys Elwyn-Edwards and Rhian Samuel. This quintet of composers were all born in Wales, and much of their music finds inspiration in their Welsh roots. Collectively their stories will take us from the 1890s to the present day. Music Featured: Morfydd Owen: Beti Bwt (Welsh Impressions) Dilys Elwyn-Edwards: The Cloths of Heaven Morfydd Owen: My luv's like a red, red rose Morfydd Owen: Nocturne for orchestra in D flat major Dilys Elwyn-Edwards: Lullaby for piano Dilys Elwyn-Edwards: Laudate Dominum Dilys Elwyn-Edwards: All that's past Dilys Elwyn-Edwards: Caneuon y Tri Aderyn Grace Williams: Symphony no. 2 (excerpt) Grace Williams: Ballads, IV: Allegro furioso Grace Williams: Fantasia on Welsh Nursery Tunes Grace Williams: Sea Sketches (excerpt) Grace Williams: Elegy Rhian Samuel: Four-and-a half Dancing Men (A Garland for Anne) Rhian Samuel: Little Duos for oboe and cor anglaise (Little Whispers) Rhian Samuel: A Perfect View Rhian Samuel: Gaslight Square II for piano duo Rhian Samuel: Love Bade me welcome Rhian Samuel: Salve nos Rhian Samuel: Time out of Time (excerpt) Rhian Samuel: Clytemnestra for female voice and orchestra (excerpt) Hilary Tann: From the Song of Amergin (excerpt) Hilary Tann: Nothing Forgotten (I: Andante maestoso) Hilary Tann: Llef for flute and cello (excerpt) Hilary Tann: Shakkei (II: Leggiero) Hilary Tann: Water's Edge (II: From the Riverbed) Hilary Tann: Seven peoms of stillness (I: The air a staircase for silence (Kneeling)) Hilary Tann: In the First, Spinning Place Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: A Welsh Quintet https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001qfrt And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod celebrates 80 years of "Composer of the Week" with a concert of music by Grace Williams and Hilary Tann, curated by Welsh music historian Rhian Davies, and performed by the BBC Singers in Hoddinott Hall in Cardiff Bay. Donald, together with Welsh music specialist Geraint Lewis and conductor and broadcaster Gwawr Owen, considers the part these two composers play in the history of Wales' vibrant choral tradition. Composer of the Week has been produced in Cardiff since 1999 so it's fitting that Donald is celebrating Welsh composers in this anniversary series. Across the week, he follows the stories of Grace Williams, Hilary Tann, Morfydd Owen, Dilys Elwyn-Edwards and Rhian Samuel. This quintet of composers were all born in Wales, and much of their music finds inspiration in their Welsh roots. Collectively their stories will take us from the 1890s to the present day. For the first time in "Composer of the Week's" long history, it was recorded live and in front of an audience. During the programme the BBC Singers showcase music by two composers Grace Williams and Hilary Tann, through their choral music. Music includes Williams' arrangements of Welsh folk-songs, and her masterly setting of Ave Maris Stella and we also hear Hilary Tann's settings of Welsh poets RS Thomas and Menna Elfyn. Trad. arr. Grace Williams: Jim Cro Trad. arr. Grace Williams: O rare Turpin Trad. arr. Grace Williams: Mari lwyd Hilary Tann: The Moor Grace Williams: Ave maris stella Hilary Tann: Wellspring Grace Williams: When the green woods laugh Hilary Tann: Paradise Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: A Welsh Quintet https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001qfrt And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod surveys the life of Girolamo Frescobaldi and the musical spectacle of Rome Girolamo Frescobaldi established the keyboard style that would dominate Europe in the Baroque era. His life throws a light on the nepotism and patronage at the heart of Italy in the 17th century, and how it created extraordinary music and spectacle.... breaking the bank in the process. Donald Macleod and his guest Robert Quinney, Director of the Choir of New College, Oxford, explore Frescobaldi's story alongside some of the other great musicians of his time, who fell into his orbit. Music Featured: Partite Sopra Ciaccona Canzona Terza a 2 Fantasia prima, sopra un soggietto Fantasia undecima, sopra quattro soggietti Luzzaschi: Aura soave Luzzaschi: Sacrarum Cantionum, Book 1: Deus tu scis insipientiam meam Toccate e partite d'intavolatura di cimbalo et organo, Book 1: Toccata nona (arr. for double harp) Il secondo libro di toccate canzone, versi d'hinni, Magnificat, gagliarde, correnti: Toccata prima Canzon terza Partite sopra L'Aria della Romanesca Peter Philips: Salve Regina William Byrd: Pavan and Galliard (from The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book, Nos. 174-5) Giunt’e pur lidia il mio S’io miro in te, m’uccidi Toccate e partite d'intavolatura di cimbalo et organo, libro primo: Toccata ottava Arie musicali per cantarsi, Book 2: Vanne, o carta amorosa Partite Sopra Ciaccona - Corrente Fantasia prima, sopra un soggietto Fantasia seconda, sopra un soggietto solo Francesco Soriano: Missa Nos autem gloriari oportet: Gloria Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina: Tu es Petrus a 6 Messa della Domenica: Canzon post il Comune;Bergamasca Toccate e partite d'intavolatura di cimbalo et organo, libro primo: Toccata quarta; Balletto prima Toccata no. 10 in D Minor Stefano Landi: La morte d'Orfeo, Op 2 (excerpt) Arie musicali, Book 2: No 19, Vanne, o carta amorosa Arie musicali, Book 2: No 18, Ti lascio, anima mia Jacques Arcadelt: Madrigali, Book 1: Ahime, dov'è'l bel viso: Madrigali, Book 1: Ancidetemi pur, grievi martiri Ancidetemi pur d'Archadelt passeggiato Johann Hieronymous Kapsberger: I pastori di Bettelemme (excerpt): Arie musicali per cantarsi, Book 1: Così mi disprezzate (Aria di passacaglia) Canzona duodecima detta la Todeschina Stefano Landi: Il sant'alessio (excerpt) Johann Jakob Froberger: Suite (Partita) No. 30 in A Minor, FbWV 630 Marco Marazzoli: Dialogo fra Rosinda ed Olindo Missa sopra l'aria della monica: Credo Cento Partite Sopra Passacagli Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Iain Chambers for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001qfrt And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod is joined by Odaline de la Martinez to explore the life and music of Carlos Chavez Carlos Chávez was both a rebel and an educator. Born in a Mexico on the brink of revolution, he would go on to single-handedly revolutionise Mexican music and culture, filling his compositions with indigenous Aztec stories and sounds. Many cite Aaron Copland as an influence on Chávez, but the truth may have been the reverse. While Copland was championing American music in the States, Chávez was fighting for it in Mexico, educating the next generation of Mexican composers. He may have shaped American music more than any other - yet his legacy is little known. Odaline de la Martinez joins Donald Macleod to explore his life and work. Music Featured: Three Pieces for Guitar Sexteto para Arcos y Piano: III. Andante & IV. Finale Los Cuatro Soles Chapultepec "Republican Overture" Poligonos Tres Exagonos Otros Tres Exagonos Energia Suite de Caballos de Vapor: I. Danza del hombre, II. El barco, III. El tropico Soli I Soli II Sinfonia India Xochipilli Toccata for Percussion Instruments Concerto for Violin and Orchestra Sinfonia Romantica: III. Finale Symphony No 5: I. Allegro molto moderato, molto lento Tambuco for Percussion Symphony No 6: III. Passacaglia con anima String Quartet No 2 Huapango Soli IV Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Alice McKee for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Carlos Chávez (1899-1978) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001q746 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson shares stories of Handel’s music at summer soirees across the British Isles When he arrived in London in 1712, German-born George Frideric Handel was already one of Europe’s most exciting musical minds. Over the next decades he would not only carve a living for himself, but transform British musical life, from the opera stage to the choir stalls, and hardwire his legacy into our culture. This week, Kate Molleson tells the stories of five summer soirees from across his life in the British Isles – golden evenings of 18th-century music making, and some of his most eventful performances. Music Featured: Water Music (Suite 2: i. Allegro) Water Music (Suite 2: ii. Hornpipe) Water Music (Suite 1: excerpt) Water Music (Suite 3) Qual nave smarrita (from Radamisto) Water Music (Suite 1: excerpt) Acis and Galatea (Overture) Chandos Te Deum (excerpt) Chandos Anthem No 4 ‘O sing unto the Lord a new song’ Acis and Galatea, Act II: Nos 25-29 Keyboard Suite in E major ‘The Harmonious Blacksmith’, HWV430 (Air & Variations) Esther, Act I, Scene 4: Tune your harps to cheerful strains; Praise the Lord Organ Concerto in B-flat major, Op 4 No 2 Jubilate Deo in D major ‘Utrecht’, HWV279 Athalia, Act II Scene 2: My vengeance awakes me L’Allegro, il penseroso ed il moderato: As steals the morn Alexander’s Feast, Part I (excerpt) Messiah, Part 2 (excerpt) Messiah, Part 3: Amen Hornpipe compos’d for Vauxhall Acis and Galatea: Hush ye pretty warbling quire Semele: Where’er you walk Concerto Grosso in F major, Op 3 No 4b Zadok the Priest Music for the Royal Fireworks (excerpt) Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001q14p And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod explores how the rise and fall of Light Music in Britain The names of the composers of British Light Music - Coates, Ketèlby, Farnon, Dring or Tomlinson - might not be as well known as those of Mozart, Beethoven or Bach, but some of their music will be just as familiar to most listeners, and it still provides the soundtrack to many people’s everyday lives through, among other things, the theme music to their favourite TV and radio programmes. Over the course of this week, Donald Macleod tracks the rise and fall of Light Music in Britain over roughly 100 years, from the mid 19th century to the mid 20th. He’ll be exploring the social history which led to this genre flourishing, from the late-Victorian theatre crowds in want of more popular fare after the successes of Gilbert and Sullivan’s operettas, to the orchestras which sprang up to entertain the burgeoning UK seaside resorts. Along the way, Donald will examine the explosion of music in people’s homes, as at first pianos and other instruments, and then radio and television sets, became affordable to households across the country, and the transition from silent movies to the talkies. Donald will also explore the challenges which the genre faced as audiences moved towards new ways of listening in the 20th century and the pioneers who have sought to keep this music alive. Music Featured: Ronald Binge: Elizabethan Serenade Edward German: “If You Wish to Appear As An Irish Type” from Emerald Isle Edward German: Nell Gwyn Suite: Overture Edward German: Welsh Rhapsody Haydn Wood: Roses of Picardy Haydn Wood: Mannin Veen John H. Glover-Kind: I do like to be beside the seaside Albert Ketèlbey: In Holiday Mood Eric Coates: The Merrymakers, a Miniature Overture Eric Coates: Lazy night Eric Coates: Summer days Suite Reginald King: Song of Paradise Albert Ketèlbey: In a Monastery garden Eric Coates: The Dam Busters March Frederick Curzon: Robin Hood – March of the Bowmen Richard Addinsell: Love on the Dole (excerpts) Frederic Curzon: The Dread Tribunal Frederic Curzon: Bravada: Paso Doble Richard Addinsell: Warsaw Concerto Ronald Binge: Sailing by Ronald Binge: Alto Saxophone Concerto Robert Farnon: Little Miss Molly Eric Coates: Calling All Workers Eric Coates: London Suite III. Knightsbridge Robert Farnon: Portrait of a Flirt Robert Farnon: A La Claire Fontaine Robert Farnon: Westminster Waltz Ronald Binge: The Water Mill Madeleine Dring: Festival Scherzo for piano and strings Ernest Tomlinson:Little Serenade Ernest Tomlinson (under alias of Alan Perry): Eccentric March Ernest Tomlinson: Capability Brown (test card music) Ernest Tomlinson: Second Suite of English Folk Dances Madeleine Dring (orchestrated by Roderick Williams): Take, O Take Those Lips Away Madeleine Dring: Folk Song; Films from Cheapside at Cheapside (From 'Airs on a Shoestring!') Madeleine Dring: Song of a Nightclub Proprietress Eric Coates: Last Love Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Sam Phillips for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Icons of British Light Music https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001ptxr And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod celebrates the programme’s 80th anniversary with highlights from 10 memorable interviews Composer of the Week is one of the longest-running strands on the BBC, first heard on the airwaves during the Second World War on the 2nd of August 1943. The first to be featured was Mozart – and today, the programme tells the stories of well-known and rediscovered composers across classical music, jazz, contemporary and beyond. Donald Macleod celebrates its 80th anniversary with highlights and behind-the-scenes stories from his encounters with some of our greatest living composers. Across the week, he looks back on 10 memorable interviews from his nearly 25 years in the presenter’s chair, showcasing the range of musical styles and personalities he’s encountered. Part 1 includes interviews with Stephen Sondheim, Judith Weir, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich & Harrison Birtwistle. Part 2 includes interviews with Hans Werner Henze, Adolphus Hailstork, Thea Musgrave, Anoushka Shankar & Oliver Knussen. Music Featured: Stephen Sondheim: Pretty Little Picture (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim: Everything’s Coming Up Roses (from Gypsy) Stephen Sondheim: Free (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Stephen Sondheim: There’s Always a Woman (from Anyone Can Whistle) Judith Weir: Variations For Judith, No 5 Judith Weir: Vertue for chorus Judith Weir: Piano Quartet (1st movement) Judith Weir: Airs from Another Planet for wind quintet and piano (excerpt) Meredith Monk: Gothum Lullaby Meredith Monk: Quarry (Quarry Weave 2) Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music (excerpt) Steve Reich: The Cave (excerpts from Act III) Steve Reich: Different Trains (iii. Europe, After the War) Steve Reich: Piano Phase (remixed by D*Note) Harrison Birtwistle: Virelai (sous une fontayne) Harrison Birtwistle: The Minotaur (Part Two – excerpt) Harrison Birtwistle: The Moth Requiem Hans Werner Henze: Chamber Concerto, Op 1 (final movement) Hans Werner Henze: Serenade for piano trio (Adagio, Adagio) Hans Werner Henze: Scorribanda sinfónica Hans Werner Henze: Requiem (excerpt) Adolphus Hailstork: Fanfare on Amazing Grace Adolphus Hailstork: Three Spirituals for Orchestra Adolphus Hailstork: Symphony No 2 (excerpts) Thea Musgrave: On the Underground, Set 1: Sometimes Thea Musgrave: Two’s Company Anoushka Shankar: Traces of you Anoushka Shankar: Voice of the Moon Anoushka Shankar: Red Sun Oliver Knussen: Flourish with Fireworks, Op 22 Oliver Knussen: Music for a Puppet Court, Op 11 Oliver Knussen: …Upon One Note Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: Composers in Conversation https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001p28b And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Donald Macleod celebrates the programme’s 80th anniversary with highlights from 10 memorable interviews Composer of the Week is one of the longest-running strands on the BBC, first heard on the airwaves during the Second World War on the 2nd of August 1943. The first to be featured was Mozart – and today, the programme tells the stories of well-known and rediscovered composers across classical music, jazz, contemporary and beyond. Donald Macleod celebrates its 80th anniversary with highlights and behind-the-scenes stories from his encounters with some of our greatest living composers. Across the week, he looks back on 10 memorable interviews from his nearly 25 years in the presenter’s chair, showcasing the range of musical styles and personalities he’s encountered. Part 1 includes interviews with Stephen Sondheim, Judith Weir, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich & Harrison Birtwistle. Part 2 includes interviews with Hans Werner Henze, Adolphus Hailstork, Thea Musgrave, Anoushka Shankar & Oliver Knussen. Music Featured: Stephen Sondheim: Pretty Little Picture (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim: Everything’s Coming Up Roses (from Gypsy) Stephen Sondheim: Free (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Stephen Sondheim: There’s Always a Woman (from Anyone Can Whistle) Judith Weir: Variations For Judith, No 5 Judith Weir: Vertue for chorus Judith Weir: Piano Quartet (1st movement) Judith Weir: Airs from Another Planet for wind quintet and piano (excerpt) Meredith Monk: Gothum Lullaby Meredith Monk: Quarry (Quarry Weave 2) Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music (excerpt) Steve Reich: The Cave (excerpts from Act III) Steve Reich: Different Trains (iii. Europe, After the War) Steve Reich: Piano Phase (remixed by D*Note) Harrison Birtwistle: Virelai (sous une fontayne) Harrison Birtwistle: The Minotaur (Part Two – excerpt) Harrison Birtwistle: The Moth Requiem Hans Werner Henze: Chamber Concerto, Op 1 (final movement) Hans Werner Henze: Serenade for piano trio (Adagio, Adagio) Hans Werner Henze: Scorribanda sinfónica Hans Werner Henze: Requiem (excerpt) Adolphus Hailstork: Fanfare on Amazing Grace Adolphus Hailstork: Three Spirituals for Orchestra Adolphus Hailstork: Symphony No 2 (excerpts) Thea Musgrave: On the Underground, Set 1: Sometimes Thea Musgrave: Two’s Company Anoushka Shankar: Traces of you Anoushka Shankar: Voice of the Moon Anoushka Shankar: Red Sun Oliver Knussen: Flourish with Fireworks, Op 22 Oliver Knussen: Music for a Puppet Court, Op 11 Oliver Knussen: …Upon One Note Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: Composers in Conversation https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001p28b And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Kate Molleson explores the spry and subtly surprising music of Germaine Tailleferre Kate Molleson revels in the spry and subtly surprising music of Germaine Tailleferre, with guests Barbara Kelly and Caroline Potter. Germaine Tailleferre first made a splash in the heady atmosphere of 1920s Paris. She was part of a lively, bohemian scene in which poetry and exhibitions went hand in hand with performances of new music. Her career was given a bump start by the eccentric older composer, Eric Satie. He was an influential voice in avant-garde circles, and his support opened a door to wider recognition. Tailleferre became part of a like-minded set of young composers, along with Francis Poulenc, Arthur Honegger, Darius Milhaud, Louis Durey and Georges Auric. Their energy and drive created exciting new outlets for performances of their music. It was a journalist, Henri Collet, who coined their eventual collective name "Les Six". While their artistic paths quickly diversified, the group remained friends for the rest of their lives. Tailleferre was a prolific composer, writing in all the genres from small scale chamber works to large scale works including cantatas, orchestral scores, ballets and operas. After enjoying considerable success, by the 1930s her prominence began to fade. There's some evidence to suggest that her two unhappy marriages, and the deprivations of living in occupied France, followed by a temporary exile in the States during the second world war all had an adverse impact on her career. Despite these setbacks, she continued to compose and would teach music almost to the very end of her life. She died in 1983 at the age of 91. Held back perhaps by her own retiring personality and historical views of a female composer, Tailleferre's music has been overshadowed by some of the other members of "Les Six". This week Kate Molleson brings Germaine Tailleferre's music firmly in to the limelight. She's joined in studio by two other Tailleferre enthusiasts, Barbara Kelly from the University of Leeds, and Caroline Potter, who's currently writing a book about Tailleferre. Music Featured: Deux valses Image for 8 instruments Jeux de plein air Quartet for Strings Romance in A major Le Marchand d’oiseaux Pas trop vite Piano Trio Ballade for piano and orchestra Chansons françaises, No 5 (excerpt) Chansons françaises (Nos 1, 2 & 5) Concerto No 1 for piano and orchestra Violin sonata No 1 (excerpt) Fandango La nouvelle Cythère (excerpts) Harp Concertino Chansons Françaises (Nos 3 & 4) Violin sonata No 1 (1st & 4th mvts) Partita for piano (excerpt) Chansons du folklore Sonata for Harp Concerto two pianos, chorus and orchestra La cantate du narcisse Larghetto Suite burlesque (1, Dolente) Ouverture trans. By John Paynter Il était un Petit Navire (arr for two pianos) Concertino for flute, piano and chamber orchestra (excerpts) Pancarte pour une porte d’entrée (song cycle) Sonate Champêtre for wind and piano Tu mi chamas Presented by Kate Molleson Produced by Johannah Smith for BBC Audio in Wales For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001nw40 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Composer of the Week explores the life and music of Samuel Barber, who is only considered one of the most expressive representatives of the Romantic trend in 20th century classical music, as well as one of the most frequently performed American composers. His most famous score is his early Adagio for Strings; some of his other breakthrough include his Piano Sonata, and the opera Vanessa. Barber began studying piano from the age of six and started to compose from the age of seven. He went on to take composition lessons with Rosario Scalero at the Curtis Institute of Music and, from this point, he never looked back, quickly becoming one of America’s most famous composers. He wrote in many different genres, including chamber, vocal, orchestral and works for the stage, and often composed in response to significant and highly desirable commissions. He enjoyed close collaboration with the performers he wrote for, shaping his music to their individual styles and capabilities. Only towards the end of his life, when he was struggling with depression, alcoholism and also cancer, did his creative output slow. Music Featured: Overture to The School for Scandal Dover Beach, Op 3 Cello Sonata, Op 6 (Adagio - Presto) Sure on this shining night, Op 13 No 3 Nocturne, Op 13 No 4 Adagio for Strings, Op 11 Violin Concerto, Op 14 (excerpt) Monks and Raisins, Op 18 No 2 Commando March Cello Concerto, Op 22 (Andante sostenuto) Medea Orchestral Suite, Op 23 (excerpt) Knoxville: Summer of 1915, Op 24 Piano Sonata, Op 26 (excerpt) Souvenirs, Op 28 (Galop) At St Patrick’s Purgatory, Op 29 No 1 (Hermit Songs) The Monk and his Cat, Op 29 No 8 (Hermit Songs) Meditation and Dance of Vengeance, Op 23a Summer Music, Op 31 Vanessa, Op 32 (excerpt) Nocturne, Op 33 (Homage to John Field) My Lizard, Op 41 No 2 (Despite and Still) Canzone, Op 38a Piano Concerto, Op 38 (Allegro appassionato) Night Flight, Op 19a Antony and Cleopatra, Op 40 (Give Me Some Music) Agnus Dei, Op 11 In the Wilderness, Op 41 No 3 (Despite and Still) Third Essay, Op 47 A Green Lowland of Pianos, Op 45 No 2 Toccata festiva, Op 36 The Lovers, Op 43 (excerpt) Ballade, Op 46 Canzonetta, Op 48 Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC Audio in Wales For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Samuel Barber (1910-1981) https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001nnr8 And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
