SATURDAY 11 OCTOBER 2025
SAT 00:30 Through the Night (m002k460)
Holst's The Planets at the BBC Proms
Student musicians from Helsinki and London unite under conductor Sakari Oramo to perform Holst's suite alongside Sibelius’ The Wood Nymph and a new work for soprano and orchestra from Finnish-American composer Lara Poe, which channels haunting Nordic cow-calling traditions. Jonathan Swain presents.
12:31 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Skogsrået , Op 15
Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra, Sibelius Academy Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
12:51 AM
Lara Poe (b.1993)
Laulut maaseudulta (Songs from the Countryside)
Anu Komsi (soprano), Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra, Sibelius Academy Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
01:23 AM
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
The Planets, Op 32
Royal College of Music Chamber Choir, Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra, Sibelius Academy Symphony Orchestra, Sakari Oramo (conductor)
02:12 AM
Arvo Pärt (b.1935)
Morning Star
Marian Consort
02:16 AM
Gunnar de Frumerie (1908-1987), Pär Lagerkvist (author)
Hjärtats sånger (Songs of the Heart), Op 27
Claes-Håkan Ahnsjö (tenor), Thomas Schuback (piano)
02:31 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Divertimento in B flat major for violin, cello and piano, K.254
Trio Orlando
02:52 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Piano Concerto no 2 in F minor, Op 21
Christian Ihle Hadland (piano), Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Kirill Karabits (conductor)
03:25 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Solveig's Song from 'Peer Gynt', Op 23 arr. for oboe and piano
Wan-Soo Mok (oboe), Hyun-Soo Cho (piano)
03:29 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Suite no 2 in F major, HWV.427
Allan Rasmussen (harpsichord)
03:38 AM
Horatio Parker (1863-1919)
A Northern Ballad
Albany Symphony Orchestra, Julius Hegyi (conductor)
03:52 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924)
Nocturne no 1 in E flat minor, Op 33 no 1
Jean-Yves Thibaudet (piano)
04:01 AM
Clément Janequin (c.1485-1558), Thomas Crecquillon (c.1505-1557),Claudin De Sermisy (c.1490-1562)
Four Renaissance chansons
Au verd boys je m'en iray (Janequin)
Pour ung plaisir (Crecquillon)
Jouyssance vous donneray (Sermisy)
La plus belle de la ville (Janequin)
Vancouver Chamber Choir, Ray Nurse (viol), Nan Mackie (viol), Patricia Unruh (viol), Margriet Tindemans (viol), Liz Baker (recorder), Jon Washburn (director)
04:13 AM
Vincenzo Petrali (1832-1889)
Organ Sonata per flauto
Cor van Wageningen (organ)
04:18 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
Serenade for Strings, Op 20
Royal Academy Soloists, Clio Gould (director)
04:31 AM
Pablo de Sarasate (1844-1908)
Romanza Andaluza, Op 22
Moshe Hammer (violin), Valerie Tryon (piano)
04:35 AM
Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872)
Polonaise de concert in A major
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Zygmunt Rychert (conductor)
04:42 AM
Mykola Lysenko (1842-1912)
La Tristesse, Op 39
Anastasia Kobekina (cello), Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula (piano)
04:49 AM
Conrad Friedrich Hurlebusch (1691-1765)
Concerto in A minor for two oboes, solo violin, strings & basso continuo
Paul van de Linden (oboe), Kristine Linde (oboe), Manfred Kraemer (violin), Musica ad Rhenum
05:01 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Sonata no 18 in E flat major, Op 31 no 3
Shai Wosner (piano)
05:24 AM
Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969)
Serenade for orchestra
Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Jan Krenz (conductor)
05:28 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Kyrie eleison in G minor for double choir and orchestra, RV.587
Choir of Latvian Radio, Riga Chamber Players, Sigvards Kļava (conductor)
05:39 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Tod und Verklärung, Op 24
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Thomas Søndergård (conductor)
06:04 AM
János Fusz (1777-1819)
Quartet for flute, viola, cello and guitar
Laima Sulskute (flute), Romualdas Romoslauskas (viola), Ramute Kalnenaite (cello), Algimantas Pauliukevicius (guitar)
SAT 06:30 Breakfast (m002l1r6)
The best classical music wake-up call
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 (m002kdcr)
Conductor Edward Gardner and violinist Anna Phoebe drop in to the studio
Tom Service is joined by Edward Gardner, taking time out from his packed schedule, as Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and Music Director of the Norwegian Opera and Ballet, to give Tom an insight into the busy life of an international conductor.
On the eve of what would have been his ninetieth birthday, Tom reflects on the legacy and artistry of Luciano Pavarotti.
There’s the usual Saturday Morning mix of new releases and classic recordings of the best classical music, with one or two surprise guests introducing their own tracks.
And, as part of the BBC’s current Wild About Nature Week - a celebration of the power of nature, and the wealth of benefits it offers us - violinist, composer and broadcaster Anna Phoebe performs a set of nature-inspired compositions, live in the Saturday morning studio.
SAT 12:00 Earlier... with Jools Holland (m002kdcw)
Jools and guests share their musical favourites
Jools shares his lifelong passion for classical music and the beautiful connections with jazz and blues. With fascinating guests each week, who bring their own favourite music and occasionally perform live in Jools's studio.
Today, Jools's guest is the singer songwriter Emeli Sande who talks about her early connections to music and introduces pieces she loves by Dvorak, Vivaldi and Khachaturian.
To listen on most smart speakers just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Earlier with Jools Holland".
SAT 13:00 Music Matters (m002kdd0)
400 Years of the Royal Collection
St James's Palace
Ian Skelly tours the formal home of the British Court, exploring its remarkable art collection and musical connections, featuring composers from Monteverdi to Judith Weir. In the first of a four-part series exploring UK royal residences, at St James's Palace Ian encounters a strikingly defiant portrait of Charles I made during his trial; drawn plans for George II’s famously lavish firework display; the intimate Chapel Royal where royal marriages have taken place and where, it is said, Mary I’s heart is buried; and the official throne of the British monarch which stands resplendent in a room designed by George IV. His musical journey around the palace includes tracks by Monteverdi, Purcell, Handel, Joseph Bologne, Walton, Julie Cooper and one of Nicholas Lanier’s most recent successors, Judith Weir, Master of the Queen’s Music from 2014 to 2024.
2025 marks the 400th anniversary of the appointment of the first Master of the King’s Music, art dealer Nicholas Lanier, who built the foundations of what would become The Royal Collection. Today the Collection comprises some 700,000 pieces including major art works, manuscripts and instruments, from ancient times right up to the present day, spread over 13 royal residences in the UK.
In this landmark four-part series, Ian Skelly tours four of the most art-laden royal residences in the UK – Windsor Castle, Buckingham Palace, St James’s Palace and Holyrood Palace – to explore the stories and musical connections behind some of the most fascinating objects in the Royal Collection, giving listeners special behind-doors access to these history-steeped locations.
Producer: Graham Rogers
SAT 14:00 Record Review (m002kdd4)
Purcell's Verse Anthems in Building a Library with Nicholas Kenyon and Andrew McGregor
Nicholas Kenyon's recommendation from the many diverse recordings of Purcell's Verse Anthems, along with the best of the week's new releases.
Presented by Andrew McGregor
2.00pm
Writer Flora Willson with a handful of her favourite new releases.
3.00pm
Building a Library
Nicholas Kenyon with his personal recommendation from Purcell's numerous verse anthems. Compact in size and often chamber-like in texture, there is a truly wide range of styles and interpretations for him to discuss with Andrew.
3.45pm
Record of the Week
Andrew's pick of the best of the best.
SAT 16:00 Sound of Cinema (m002kdd8)
An interview with American film score composer Michael Giacchino
Matthew Sweet interviews American film score composer Michael Giacchino about his work since he was last on the programme, including the Incredibles films and the Jurassic World franchise. He celebrates Michael's recent collaborations with the New Zealand director Taika Waititi on Thor: Love and Thunder, and Jojo Rabbit. He also looks at Michael's work with composers such as his son Mick Giacchino on The Batman and The Penguin, and with Germaine Franco on the Pixar/Disney film Coco.
SAT 17:00 This Classical Life (m0024fxl)
Jess Gillam with... Ksenija Sidorova
Jess's guest this week is the accordionist Ksenija Sidorova.
Ksenija hails originally from Latvia and is one of classical music's greatest champions and virtuosos of the accordion. She performs all over the world with some of the greatest orchestras and musicians, and she's also passionate about commissioning new music for her instrument and works closely with composers to expand the accordion's repertoire!
Jess and Ksenija talk about her life in music, how she first fell in love with the accordion and swap favourite tracks to listen to including music by Shostakovich and Vivaldi, a surprising Latvian connection with the music of Holst, music to drink coffee to by Otis Redding and Piazzolla and Kurt Weill at his most sentimental.
SAT 18:00 Opera on 3 (m002kddj)
Tchaikovsky's The Queen of Spades
Sara Mohr-Pietsch presents Tchaikovsky's passionate thriller from Garsington Opera, starring Aaron Cawley as the obsessive outsider Herman and Laura Wilde as his doomed lover Lisa, in a brand new production by Jack Furness. Tchaikovsky and his brother (who wrote the libretto) developed an ironic short story by Pushkin into a unique masterpiece uniting classical, Romantic and modernist influences, as Herman's descent into madness is portrayed in some of the composer’s most powerful and profound music.
Presented by Sara Mohr-Pietsch in conversation with cultural historian Rosamund Bartlett.
Tchaikovsky: The Queen of Spades
Lisa ..... Laura Wilde (soprano)
Herman ..... Aaron Cawley (tenor)
Prince Yeletsky ..... Roderick Williams (baritone)
The Countess ..... Harriet Williams (mezzo soprano)
Count Tomsky ..... Robert Hayward (bass-baritone)
Pauline, Lisa's friend ..... Stephanie Wake-Edwards (mezzo-soprano)
Tchekalinsky ..... Sam Furness (tenor)
Surin ..... Simon Shibamu (bass-baritone)
Tchaplitsky ..... James Micklethwaite (tenor)
Narumov ..... Thando Zwane (bass-baritone)
Major-Domo ..... Will Diggle (tenor)
Governess: Hannah Poulsom (mezzo-sopranno)
Masha ..... Alexandria Moon (mezzo-soprano)
Boy Captain ..... George Hooson
Garsington Opera Chorus and Youth Company
Philharmonia Orchestra
Conductor Douglas Boyd
SAT 21:30 Music Planet (m002kddn)
Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali Group live in Bradford
As part of the BBC’s celebration of 60 years of Asian broadcasting, join Lopa Kothari for one of the standout concerts on the Bradford 2025 - UK City Of Culture bill as brothers Rizwan and Muazzam Ali Khan perform transcendent Sufi music with their stellar musical group at St George's Hall.
Qawwali music is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing that emerged in the Indian subcontinent in the thirteenth century. It’s a genre characterised by expanses of hypnotic rhythm that aim to take both musician and listener into a shared state of ecstasy. With a vocalist at the helm, the performances usually involve a large ensemble of supporting musicians playing instruments including the harmonium, tablas and dholak. Alongside highlights from the group’s performance, we’ll hear reflections from the Ali Khan brothers themselves, fresh from the release of their new album At the Feet of the Beloved.
Produced by Silvia Malnati
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: “Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Planet.”
SAT 22:30 New Music Show (m002kdds)
Wild About Nature
As part of the BBC's Wild About Nature week (6-12 October), Kate Molleson features music especially recorded by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, including works by Lisa Streich, Nicholas Korth and Toshio Hosokawa. We also hear music by Okkyung Lee, and a soundscape recorded near the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan.
SUNDAY 12 OCTOBER 2025
SUN 00:30 Through the Night (m002kddx)
Ton Koopman conducts works by Rameau, Bach, Handel and Haydn
The Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and conductor Ton Koopman perform works including Haydn's "Military" Symphony and Bach's Orchestral Suite no 4. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764)
Suite from 'Les Indes galantes'
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ton Koopman (conductor)
12:46 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Orchestral Suite no 4 in D major, BWV.1069
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ton Koopman (conductor)
01:05 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Concerto a due cori no 2 in F major, HWV.333
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ton Koopman (conductor)
01:22 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
Symphony no 100 in G major, Hob. I:100 'Military'
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ton Koopman (conductor)
01:47 AM
Pieter Hellendaal (1721-1799)
Solo (sonata) for cello and continuo in G major, Op 5 no 1 (1780)
Jaap ter Linden (cello), Ageet Zweistra (cello), Ton Koopman (harpsichord)
01:56 AM
Johann Christoph Bach (1642-1703)
Der Gerechte
Cantus Cölln, Johanna Koslowsky (soprano), Graham Pushee (counter tenor), Gerd Türk (tenor), Wilfred Jochens (tenor), Stephan Schreckenberger (bass), Christoph Anselm Noll (organ), Konrad Junghänel (director)
02:01 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Siciliano, from Flute Sonata in G minor, BWV.1031 (arr. piano)
Francesco Piemontesi (piano)
02:05 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Agrippina condotta a morire: Dunque sara pur vero, HWV.110
Johanna Koslowsky (soprano), Musica Alta Ripa
02:31 AM
Sergey Prokofiev (1891-1953)
Cinderella - Suite no 1, Op 107
San Francisco Symphony, Michael Tilson Thomas (conductor)
02:58 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Symphonische Etuden for piano, Op 13
Beatrice Rana (piano)
03:24 AM
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
Ave Generosa
Orpheus Women's Choir, Albert Wissink (director)
03:29 AM
Alessandro Stradella (1639-1682)
Sinfonia in D minor
The Private Music
03:37 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Love Scene - from the opera 'Feuersnot', Op 50
Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis (conductor)
03:46 AM
Carl Ludwig Lithander (1773-1843)
Rondo for flute and keyboard, Op 8
Mikael Helasvuo (flute), Tuija Hakkila (pianoforte)
03:53 AM
Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann (1805-1900)
4 Caprices, Op 18:I (1835)
Nina Gade (piano)
04:04 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Laudate Pueri - motet, Op 39 no 2
Polyphonia, Ivelina Ivancheva (piano), Ivelin Dimitrov (conductor)
04:14 AM
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari (1876-1948)
Two orchestral intermezzi from 'I Gioielli della Madonna', Op 4
KBS Symphony Orchestra, Othmar Mága (conductor)
04:24 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924)
Romance in B flat major for violin and piano, Op 28
Fedor Rudin (violin), Janelle Fung (piano)
04:31 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Don Giovanni - overture, K.527
Concertgebouworkest, Kurt Sanderling (conductor)
04:37 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Nocturne in D flat major, Op 27 no 2
Theodor Leschetizky (piano)
04:44 AM
Lyubomir Pipkov (1904-1974)
Nani mi nani, Damiancho
Sofia Chamber Choir, Vassil Arnaudov (conductor)
04:50 AM
Henry Eccles (c.1675-1745)
Sonata for double bass, continuo and strings
Joel Quarrington (double bass), Eric Robertson (harpsichord), Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Timothy Vernon (conductor)
04:58 AM
Bedřich Smetana (1824-1884)
Vltava (Moldau) - from 'Ma Vlast'
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Richard Hickox (conductor)
05:11 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (author)
An Mignon (D.161) from 3 Songs, Op 19 no 2 (To Mignon)
Christoph Prégardien (tenor), Andreas Staier (pianoforte)
05:15 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828),Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)
Ganymed (D.544) - from 3 Songs, Op 19 no 3
Christoph Prégardien (tenor), Andreas Staier (pianoforte)
05:19 AM
Nino Rota (1911-1979)
Harp Concerto
Esther Peristerakis (harp), WDR Funkhausorchester, Rasmus Baumann (conductor)
05:41 AM
Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909)
Iberia - book 1
Benjamin Grosvenor (piano)
06:01 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Trio in G major, Op 9 no 1
Trio AnPaPié
SUN 06:30 Breakfast (m002kdg9)
Start the day on the right note with classical music
Mark Forrest presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
SUN 09:00 Sunday Morning (m002kdgf)
Three hours of classical sparkle
Today, Sarah enjoys the satirical and dramatic tale of the troll in The Hall of the Mountain King by Grieg, and finds sincere reflection in Debussy’s Cello Sonata.
There’s also music to get stuck into as we enjoy Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring in full, and pure joyful energy can be found in Britten’s Playful Pizzicato.
Plus, today’s Choral Reflection sets celestial harmony to a poem by Christina Rossetti…
A Tandem Production for BBC Radio 3
SUN 12:00 Private Passions (m002kdgk)
Martin Sherman
The dramatist and screenwriter Martin Sherman made his name around the world with his 1979 play Bent, about the persecution of gay people in Nazi Germany. It starred Ian McKellen in London and Richard Gere on Broadway.
His films include Callas Forever, directed by Franco Zeffirelli with Fanny Ardant as Maria Callas, and Mrs Henderson Presents, starring Judi Dench and telling the story of the Windmill Theatre and its provocative wartime shows. More recently he’s written a memoir, On the Boardwalk, which begins with his early years in New Jersey.
His choices includes works by Rachmaninov, Kurt Weill, Chopin and Bizet.
Presenter Michael Berkeley
Producer Clare Walker
SUN 13:30 Music Map (m002kdgp)
A journey to Peter Warlock's Capriol Suite
Sara Mohr-Pietsch plots a course towards Peter Warlock's most enduring work - the Capriol Suite. Warlock (a pseudonym for Philip Heseltine), was a British composer and critic in the 1920s, who died tragically young. He was a lifelong champion of the music of his friends Frederick Delius, Béla Bartók and Bernard van Dieren, but also drew inspiration from 16th Century composers such as Carlo Gesualdo and John Dowland.
His Capriol Suite, published in 1926 for piano duet is now best known in his version for string orchestra. The suite is named after a character mentioned in a dancing manual by the 16th Century French musician Thoinot Arbeau. Warlock takes six tunes found in Arbeau's "Orchésographie" and uses them as a basis to create new music in his own inimitable style.
Along the way, you can hear other pieces by composers who used pseudonyms, like Augusta Holmès, Jelly Roll Morton and Mrs Philharmonica. You can also hear works by Mozart, Ravel and Dobrinka Tabakova which draw on music from the past. And there's more music for string orchestra in the shape of Grieg's Holberg Suite.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers), just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Music Map.'
SUN 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002k3vt)
St Peter, Bolton-le-Moors
From St Peter, Bolton-le-Moors with the Diocese of Manchester Choral Scholars.
Introit: Let all the world (Lucy Walker)
Responses: Ian Quinn
Psalms 41, 42, 43 (Crotch, Rogers, Wesley)
First Lesson: 2 Kings 4 vv1-7
Office Hymn: Christ is our light! The bright and morning star (Godmanchester)
Canticles: Harwood in A flat
Second Lesson: John 2 vv1-11
Anthem: Cana's Guest (Richard Allain)
Prayer Anthem: Save us, O Lord (Bairstow)
Hymn: There’s a wideness in God’s mercy (Corvedale)
Voluntary: Rhapsody in C sharp minor, Op 17 No 3 (Howells)
Andrew Earis (Director of Music)
Ben Nicoll Associate Choral Leader)
Elin Rees (Organist)
Recorded 4 October.
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Choral Evensong”.
SUN 16:00 Jazz Record Requests (m002kdgt)
Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Trixie Smith & Emma Rawicz
Alyn Shipton presents jazz records of all styles and eras as requested by you including music from Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Horace Silver, Trixie Smith and Emma Rawicz.
Get in touch: jrr@bbc.co.uk or use #jazzrecordrequests on social
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Jazz Record Requests”
SUN 17:00 The Early Music Show (m002kdgy)
The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment at Acland Burghley School
Hannah French visits Acland Burghley School in north London to find out about its relationship with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, who are now resident there.
The OAE moved into Acland Burghley School - a non-uniformed comprehensive in North London - in September 2020, making it the first residency of its kind in the United Kingdom.
The school isn’t just OAE’s landlord or physical home. Instead, through their long-standing partnership with Camden Music, the orchestra is helped to reach as wide an audience as possible.
Hannah meets some of the OAE's players and staff, as well as some of the students who benefit from the exciting opportunities available to them.
SUN 18:00 Words and Music (m001k277)
Wild Isles
Otters, wild swans, roe deer, starlings and hares in the mountains, valleys, rivers and fens of these, our Wild Isles. Today's programme takes us on safari all over the British Isles, celebrating its unique landscapes, flora and fauna.
The poet Elizabeth Sears Bates asks what we would see from an owl’s perspective; Robert Burns converses with a wee sleekit, cowerin’, timorous beastie as he accidentally disturbs it from it’s comfy nest, and we’ll hear an archive recording of Noel Coward’s masterful reading of Clemence Dane’s poem “The Welcoming Land”. There are also Wild Swans from poet WB Yeats and composer Elena Kats-Chernin and a glorious murmuration of starlings by Peter Tallis.
Our wild Isles soundtrack also includes Schubert’s Trout Quintet, Janacek’s “Cunning Little Vixen”, Orcadian sea birds from Erland Cooper and a Bonny Moorhen from Steeleye Span. Two recent winners of the National Centre for Early Music Young Composers Award also feature today: Jacob Fitzgerald’s 2021 piece “Murmuration” for the Palisander recorder ensemble, as well as a poem by the 2022 winner Christopher Churcher, who celebrates the strutting, boisterous capercaillie.
Oh, and Captain Beaky and his Band wander through the woodland singing songs and righting wrongs.
Part of the BBC's Wild About Nature week of programmes on radio and TV which includes Katherine Rundell's series A Carnival of Animals broadcasting on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds and a series of special concerts, the New Music show and guests on Radio 3 and Radio 3 Unwind programmes including the birdsong featured on Radio 3's Breakfast.
Producer: Les Pratt
Readings:
Melissa Harrison - Rain (excerpt)
William Cowper - The Squirrel
Thomas Hardy - The Woodlanders (excerpt)
Zaffar Kunial - The Hedge
Claire Ratinon - Unearthed (excerpt)
Clemence Dane - The Welcoming Land (read by Noel Coward)
Henry Williamson - Tarka the Otter (excerpt)
William Shakespeare - Venus & Adonis (excerpt)
Elizabeth Sears Bates - What sees the Owl?
Jini Reddy - Wanderland (excerpt)
Jim Carruth - Roe
Robert Burns - To a Mouse, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest With the Plough, November, 1785
Peter Tallis - Murmuration
W.B. Yeats - The Wild Swans at Coole
Christopher Churcher - Capercaillie
Katherine Rundell - The Hare (excerpt)
SUN 19:15 Sunday Feature (m001z6yg)
The Cello and the Nightingale
Exactly 100 years ago, late in the evening, the BBC broadcast a live duet, from a wood in deepest Surrey, between the acclaimed cellist Beatrice Harrison and a nightingale that sang as she played. It was the first ever wildlife outside broadcast, and the first true radio hit that would become an annual spring event for over a decade.
Writer and musician Kate Kennedy examines the somewhat overshadowed career of “The Lady of the Nightingales” to whom British composers were queuing up to write for. She revisits the events surrounding that landmark broadcast, along with new archival evidence to counter any doubts that occasionally arise about the night's authenticity. And from an ancient wood somewhere in southern England, Kate attempts to recreate that intimate duet between cello and nature’s great songster, to explore the ways birdsong and music can become intertwined.
With contributions from cellist Julian Lloyd Webber; poet and BBC Head of History Robert Seatter; biographical editor Patricia Cleveland Peck; cellist Adrian Bradbury; communications historian Iain Logie Baird; nature writer Richard Mabey; musician and singer Sam Lee.
Producer: Adrian Washbourne
Technical Producer: Richard Courtice
Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar
A TellTale Industries production for BBC Radio 3
SUN 20:00 Record Review (m002kdh5)
A complete performance of one of Nicholas Kenyon's Building a Library recommendation from Purcell's Verse Anthems, plus other fine new releases.
SUN 21:00 20th Century Radicals (m002kdh9)
György Ligeti: Complexity, alienation, horror
Kate Molleson and Gillian Moore present BBC Radio 3's series exploring the pivotal 'modern' musical works of the 20th century, the groundbreaking composers who created them, and the radical cultural and artistic movements which gave rise to them. Following on from Kate's exploration of the music of György Kurtág in last week's programme, here we travel through a sliding door as Gillian looks at the music of Kurtág's friend and contemporary and, in some ways, complete opposite: György Ligeti. While Kurtág spent the majority of his life behind the curtain in Hungary, Ligeti fled to the West and created works of flamboyant terror, violence and dark humour. In this programme, we’ll meet the work which caused the famously straight Pierre Boulez to get the giggles, discover the element in Liegti's music that he likened to Brownian motion, and listen to a symphony scored for just four players. Our featured work is Ligeti's Requiem, first performed in Stockholm in 1965, an extraordinary choral work which features the composer's pioneering use of "micropolyphony".
Produced by Sam Phillips
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers just say, “ask BBC Sounds to play 20th Century Radicals”
SUN 22:00 Night Tracks (m002kdhf)
Music for the darkling hour
Hannah Peel presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
SUN 23:30 Unclassified (m002kqc0)
Adelle Stripe's Listening Chair
As the BBC's Wild About Nature Week draws to a close, Elizabeth Alker explores how contemporary ambient and experimental musicians are using field recordings to bring a sense of the natural world into their music. Plus she'll share news of an exciting opportunity for composers and producers interested in working with nature. Also in the show, Listening Chair guest Adelle Stripe revels in the beauty of Small Hours, a track from John Martyn’s One World album, recorded on the shores of a lake at Woolwich Green Farm in Theale, Berkshire.
Stripe has written on a wide range of subjects including music, and her biography of the cult band Fat White Family - Ten Thousand Apologies - was a Sunday Times bestseller and a Rough Trade book of the year. Her most recent book, Base Notes: The Scents of a Life, is a memoir of working class life in Northern England told through the prism of perfume.
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 13 OCTOBER 2025
MON 00:30 Through the Night (m002kdhp)
German National Youth Orchestra from Cologne
Violinist Midori joins the German National Youth Orchestra and conductor Patrick Lange in Detlev Glanert's 2nd Violin Concerto followed by Schoenberg's orchestration of Brahms Piano Quartet no 1. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Detlev Glanert (b. 1960)
Violin Concerto no 2 'To the Immortal Beloved'
Midori (violin), German National Youth Orchestra, Patrick Lange (conductor)
01:12 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), arr. Arnold Schoenberg
Piano Quartet no 1 in G minor, Op 25 (orchestral version)
German National Youth Orchestra, Patrick Lange (conductor)
01:52 AM
Edward Elgar (1857-1934)
The Wild Bears, from 'The Wand of Youth, Suite no 2, Op 1b'
German National Youth Orchestra, Patrick Lange (conductor)
01:55 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Guten Abend, gute Nacht
German National Youth Orchestra, Patrick Lange (conductor)
01:57 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856), arr. Franz Liszt
Widmung, Op 25 no 1
Jorge Bolet (piano)
02:02 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Cello Sonata no 1 in E minor, Op 38
Ciril Škerjanec (cello), Mojca Pucelj (piano)
02:31 AM
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
Missa Sancti Henrici (1701)
James Griffett (tenor), Michael Schopper (bass), Regensburger Domspatzen, Collegium Aureum, Herbert Metzger (organ), Georg Ratzinger (leader)
03:08 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Piano Sonata no 15 in D major, Op 28 'Pastoral'
Ji-Yeong Mun (piano)
03:34 AM
Jacques Ibert (1890-1962)
Trois Pièces Brèves for wind quintet
Ariart Woodwind Quintet
03:41 AM
Johann Franz Xaver Sterkel (1750-1817)
Duet no 3 for 2 violas
Milan Telecky (viola), Zuzana Jarabakova (viola)
03:49 AM
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908)
The Three Wonders from The tale of Tsar Saltan Suite, Op 57
BBC Philharmonic, Vassily Sinaisky (conductor)
03:57 AM
August Söderman (1832-1876), Johan Ludvig Runeberg (lyricist)
Three songs from 'Idyll and Epigram'
Swedish Radio Choir, Eric Ericson (conductor)
04:04 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Trio Sonata in D minor, Op 1 no 12, 'La Folia'
Florilegium Collinda
04:13 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Ballade no 3 in A flat major, Op 47
Nelson Goerner (piano)
04:21 AM
Peter Zagar (b.1961)
Blumenthal Dance no 2 for violin, viola, cello, clarinet and piano
Opera Aperta Ensemble
04:31 AM
Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767)
Concerto for 3 oboes, 3 violins and continuo in B flat major, TWV.
44:43
Il Gardellino
04:40 AM
Johann Nepomuk Hummel (1778-1837)
Rondo in B minor, Op 109
Stefan Lindgren (piano)
04:49 AM
Darius Milhaud (1892-1974)
3 Psaumes de David for chorus, Op 339
Elmer Iseler Singers, Elmer Iseler (conductor)
04:58 AM
Anonymous
Middle Ages Suite
Bolette Roed (recorder), Alpha
05:08 AM
Zoltán Kodály (1882-1967)
Adagio for clarinet and piano
Kálmán Berkes (clarinet), Zóltan Kocsis (piano)
05:16 AM
Robert de Visée (c.1655-1733)
Prelude - Les Sylvains de Mr Couperin - Menuet - Gavotte
Simone Vallerotonda (theorbo)
05:25 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Symphony no 5 in B flat major, D.485
WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne, Cristian Măcelaru (conductor)
05:56 AM
Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
Recitativo and scherzo-caprice for violin solo, Op 6
Fanny Clamagirand (violin)
06:01 AM
Antonín Dvořák (1841-1904)
Piano Trio in G minor, Op 26
Esther Hoppe (violin), Christian Poltéra (cello), Hiroko Sakagami (piano)
MON 06:30 Breakfast (m002kdmx)
Ease into the day with classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
MON 09:30 Essential Classics (m002kdmz)
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 (m002kdn1)
The Kaleidoscope Collective live from Wigmore
Mark Forrest introduces an afternoon of specially recorded music including highlights from this summer's Ryedale Festival in Yorkshire, bringing music to some of the wonderful halls and churches in the rural north-east of the county. This week we feature concerts given by some of Radio 3's New Generation Artists.
Also this week Mark features British orchestral music by Benjamin Britten and his contemporaries, in particular the music of Walton and Tippett. The BBC Symphony Orchestra provide an all too rare chance to hear Britten's Diversions for piano left-hand and orchestra in a recent recording with pianist Clare Hammond.
But we begin the week with a live concert from Wigmore Hall. Robin Holloway’s new Piano Quartet, dedicated to the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective’s artistic director and pianist Tom Poster, receives its first London outing this lunchtime. It stands alongside one of Holloway’s most beloved composers, Brahms, and the emotionally turbulent First Piano Quartet.
Wigmore Hall Live
introduced by Petroc Trelawny
Robin Holloway
Piano Quartet, Op. 143 (London première)
Johannes Brahms
Piano Quartet No 1 in G minor, Op. 25
Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective:
Elena Urioste (violin)
Rosalind Ventris (viola)
Laura van der Heijden (cello)
Tom Poster (piano)
***
From
2pm
William Walton
Improvisations on an Impromptu of Benjamin Britten
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Paul Dukas
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Orchestre Nationale de France
Cristian Macelaru Bernardini (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Mel Bonis
Sonata for flute and piano
Elizaveta Ivanova (flute)
Sanja Bizjak (piano)
Robert Schumann
Dichterliebe, Op. 48
Santiago Sánchez (tenor)
Christopher Glynn (piano)
Benjamin Britten
Diversions for piano left-hand and orchestra, Op. 21
Clare Hammond (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
George Vass (conductor)
See also Radio 3 in Concert this week for more from Ryedale.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live".
MON 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002kdn3)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Rebellious Streak
Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering cultural icon, a composer who might be seen as the poster boy for “serious music” and spent most of his career in the service of the church. But he played many roles in the course of his life, and could be funny, sassy, conniving, obstinate, and rebellious. This week, along with the “worldly” Bach, we’ll get to know his secular music, and follow his trail as he makes his way in the world, from courts to coffee houses, building a family, two-timing his bosses, and even a stint behind bars.
Today, we start with some colourful stories from Bach’s youth - flouting authority, and showing a glimpse of the man he’d become…
Brandenburg Concerto No 5, BWV1050 (i. Allegro)
Freiburg Baroque Orchestra
Flute Sonata in E minor, BWV1034
Emmanuel Pahud, flute
Jonathan Manson, cello
Trevor Pinnock, harpsichord
Capriccio in honorem Johann Christoph Bach BWV993
Angela Hewitt, piano
Partita for solo violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV1004 (v. Chaconne)
Christian Tetzlaff, violin
Organ Sonata No 4, BWV528
Simon Preston, organ
Lute Suite No 1 in E minor, BWV996
Sean Shibe, guitar
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
MON 17:00 In Tune (m002kdn5)
Live music from pianists Rose & Murray McLachlan, and tenor Nicholas Mulroy
Pianist Murray McLachlan and producer Paul Hindmarsh on their latest recording discovering the music of Wilfred Heaton, from which they play live in the In Tune studio. Tenor Nicholas Mulroy, accompanied on guitar by Toby Carr, also perform live, ahead of their appearance at the Oxford International Song Festival on Tuesday 14th October.
MON 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002kdn7)
Your daily classical soundtrack
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music from your favourite composers. Schoenberg begins tonight's mixtape with a gentle Notturno for violin, strings and harp, followed by Schubert's sublime Kyrie from his Mass No.5 in A flat Major. Tatiana Nikolayeva makes the piano glitter in Shostakovich's Prelude and fugue in A minor before Bruch's Concerto in A flat minor for 2 pianos and orchestra. Binge serenades us with his Elizabethan serenade for orchestra, before Bruckner's glorious gradual - Virga Jesse floruit. Finally, we end with Lili Boulanger and Telemann, both writing for wind and strings.
Producer: Zara Siddiqi
MON 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002kg1t)
Elgar and Rachmaninov from the Hallé
Launching his second season as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, Kahchun Wong is joined by Rachel Helleur-Simcock to perform Elgar’s Cello Concerto. Written in the aftermath of World War One, the piece, a cornerstone of the instrument’s repertoire and, famously, the composer’s last completed work, is deeply emotional – never more so than in the heart-rending Adagio third movement. Despite this, there are still moments of hope and that recognisable Elgarian nobility; altogether, it remains among the composer’s most celebrated and well-loved works. In striking contrast, Shostakovich’s Festive Overture and Rachmaninov’s exuberant Symphony No.2 will also be performed by the Halle. The Festive Overture in particular, with its grandiose brass fanfare opening full of cymbal crashes, makes for a powerful start to the season.
Recorded on the 25th September at Bridgewater Hall and presented by Tom McKinney.
Dmitri Shostakovich: Festive Overture
Edward Elgar: Cello Concerto
Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No.2
Rachel Helleur-Simcock (cello)
Halle Orchestra
Kahchun Wong (conductor)
To listen on most smart speakers just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Radio 3 in Concert".
MON 21:45 The Essay (m001vv3n)
Women of Substance
Frida Kahlo
Professor Sally Marlow is a specialist in mental health and addiction, who as a young woman had struggles of her own. In this five-part series Sally looks at the work of five women artists and asks what their work can tell us about their addictions and the nature of addiction.
To do this Sally has chosen five iconic artists: Frida Kahlo, Billie Holliday, Anna Kavan, Andrea Dunbar and Nan Goldin. All five are celebrated for their daring, all were artistically progressive and they all remain highly relevant today. Whilst elements of their art reflect traumatic events in their lives, showing that addiction does not happen in a vacuum, their work is so much more than their addictions - startling, beautiful, innovative and enduring - evoking powerful emotions as well as critical acclaim. These artworks - books, music, plays and photographs resonated with Sally and allowed her to better understand her own struggle, eliciting empathy and facilitating healing.
In the first in the series, Sally looks at Frida Kahlo’s life and work. Scientists talk about biological, psychological and social causes of addiction and Frida painted all three. A collision between a bus and a tram when she was 18 caused horrific life-changing injuries and Frida spent long periods of time in hospital. Aged 22 she married the famous Mexican artist Diego Rivera who was 20 years her senior. Their relationship was fraught and Frida famously remarked “There have been two great accidents in my life. One was the tram and the other was Diego. Diego was by far the worst.” Her injuries, her miscarriages and the betrayal of Diego’s affair with her sister, Frida painted all these. She also wrote openly about the prescription drugs she took to control the pain.
Sally looks at her diaries and says that as an addiction researcher she is surprised Frida’s drug and alcohol use have not been more widely analysed but then with such a remarkable talent, her addictions quite rightly should be secondary to her art.
Presented by Professor Sally Marlow
Produced by Geraldine Fitzgerald
A TellTale Industries Ltd production
MON 22:00 Night Tracks (m002kdn9)
Immersive music for late night listening
Hannah Peel presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
MON 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002kdnc)
Jamz Supernova sits in
This week, broadcaster and DJ Jamz Supernova, known for her expansive music taste and for championing artists from around the world, returns for a second time to sit in for Soweto all this week.
From Monday to Thursday Jamz will be joined by Italian, LA-based drummer and bandleader of jazz-funk trio Collettivo Immaginario, Tommaso Cappellato. His compositions explores everything from electronic music, hip hop to jazz improvisation.
Tommaso has four “Flowers” to give out this week, to some of the artists that he admires and who have influenced him. To begin, Tommaso’s first bouquet goes to a pioneering jazz drummer and pianist, who he reveres.
Also in the programme, there is music from Alina Bzhezhinska & Tulshi, Ife Ogunjobi, and Emma-Jean Thackray.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
TUESDAY 14 OCTOBER 2025
TUE 00:30 Through the Night (m002kdnf)
Ravel and Dutilleux from Poland
Angela Hewitt plays Ravel's Piano Concerto in G with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, in a programme including Dutilleux's Métaboles and Ravel's Rapsodie espagnole. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Fanny Mendelssohn (1805-1847)
Overture in C major
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Lionel Bringuier (conductor)
12:41 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Piano Concerto in G major
Angela Hewitt (piano), Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Lionel Bringuier (conductor)
01:04 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Gigue, from French Suite no 5 in G major, BWV.816
Angela Hewitt (piano)
01:08 AM
Henri Dutilleux (1916-2013)
Métaboles
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Lionel Bringuier (conductor)
01:24 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Rapsodie espagnole
Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Katowice, Lionel Bringuier (conductor)
01:39 AM
Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909)
Cordoba from 'Cantos de Espana' for piano, Op 232 no 4
Jin-Ho Kim (piano)
01:44 AM
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
String Quartet in F major, Op 35
Gringolts Quartet
02:14 AM
Franz Liszt (1811-1886)
Rhapsodie espagnole (Folies d'Espagne et jota aragonesa) for piano, S.254
Martin Helmchen (piano)
02:31 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759), Cardinal Benedetto Pamphili (author)
Cantata Delirio amoroso: "Da quel giorno fatale", HWV.99
Monique Zanetti (soprano), Musica Alta Ripa
03:04 AM
Bernhard Henrik Crusell (1775-1838)
Clarinet Concerto no 1 in E flat major, Op 1
Kullervo Kojo (clarinet), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Ulf Söderblom (conductor)
03:26 AM
Dag Wiren (1905-1986)
Sonatina for piano, Op 25
Niklas Sivelöv (piano)
03:33 AM
Samuel Barber (1910-1981)
Agnus Dei for chorus
BBC Singers, Stephen Cleobury (conductor)
03:42 AM
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
Roses from the South - waltz, Op 388
RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Rossen Milanov (conductor)
03:52 AM
Gaspar Sanz (1640-1710)
Tarantella
Eduardo Egüez (guitar)
04:00 AM
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921)
Introduction and rondo capriccioso, Op 28 (arr. for violin & piano)
Taik-Ju Lee (violin), Young-Lan Han (piano)
04:09 AM
Wilhelm Kienzl (1857-1941)
Selig sind, die Verfolgung leiden (from Act 2 of 'Der Evangelimann')
Benjamin Butterfield (tenor), Peter Neelands (treble), Canadian Children's Opera Chorus, Canadian Opera Company Orchestra, Richard Bradshaw (conductor)
04:16 AM
Anonymous, orch. Christian Gregor
2 Moravian Chorales
American Brass Quintet
04:19 AM
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
Sinfonia in D major, Wq.176
Arte dei Suonatori, Marcin Świątkiewicz (harpsichord)
04:31 AM
Enrique Granados (1867-1916)
Quejas o la maja y el ruisenor (The Maiden and the Nightingale)
Angela Hewitt (piano)
04:37 AM
Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962)
Chanson Louis XIII et Pavane in the Style of Couperin
Barnabas Kelemen (violin), Zóltan Kocsis (piano)
04:43 AM
Josef Mysliveček (1737-1781)
String Quintet no 2 in E flat major
Netherlands Chamber Orchestra, Rudolf Werthen (conductor)
04:54 AM
Franz Schubert (1797-1828), Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (author)
Gesang der Geistern über den Wassern, Op 167
Eesti Rahvusmeeskoor [Estonian National Male Choir], Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Juri Alperten (director)
05:04 AM
John Stanley (1712-1786)
Concerto for organ in C minor
John Toll (organ), London Baroque
05:16 AM
Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
4 Piano Pieces Op 1
Christian Ihle Hadland (piano)
05:28 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Symphony no 2 in D major, Op 36
Swiss National Youth Orchestra, Kai Bumann (conductor)
06:02 AM
Gabriel Fauré (1845 - 1924), Paul Verlaine (author)
En Sourdine, Op 58 no 2
Paula Hoffman (mezzo soprano), Bengt-Åke Lundin (piano)
06:06 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Intermezzo in E flat major, Op 117 no 1 "Schlummerlied"
Khatia Buniatishvili (piano)
06:12 AM
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809)
String Quartet in B minor, Op 33 no 1
Quatuor Ysaÿe
TUE 06:30 Breakfast (m002kdr3)
Rise and shine with classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
TUE 09:30 Essential Classics (m002kdr5)
The very best of classical music
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
TUE 13:00 Classical Live (m002kdr7)
Grace Williams’s First Symphony
Mark Forrest introduces an afternoon of specially made recordings for the afternoon, including highlights from this summer's Ryedale Festival featuring performances from our Radio 3 New Generation Artists. And more music from Benjamin Britten and his contemporaries, including a performance of the First Symphony by Grace Williams from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
Including:
Benjamin Britten
Courtly Dances (Gloriana)
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Alpesh Chauhan (conductor)
from the Ryedale Festival:
Sergei Rachmaninov
Preludes, Op.32 -
No. 1 in C - Allegro vivace
No. 6 in F minor - Allegro appassionato
No. 8 in A minor - Vivo
No. 11 in B major - Allegretto
No. 12 in G sharp minor - Allegro
No. 13 in D flat major - Grave/Allegro
Julius Asal (piano)
Zoltan Kodaly
Hary Janos Suite
Basel Symphony Orchestra
Peter Eötvös (conductor)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Violin Concerto No. 4
Aleksey Semenenko (violin)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Jiri Rozen (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Pierre Sancan
Sonatina for flute and piano
Elizaveta Ivanova (flute)
Sanja Bizjak (piano)
Isaac Albéniz
Rimas de Bécquer –
Besa el aura que gime blandamente
Rimas de Bécquer –
Del salón en el ángulo oscuro
Me ha herido recatándose en la sombra
Cuando sobre el pecho inclinas
¿De dónde vengo?
Santiago Sánchez (tenor)
Christopher Glynn (piano)
Grace Williams
Symphony No. 1
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Emilia Hoving (conductor)
Joaquin Turina
Tres arias, Op. 26 No. 2 - El pescador
Tres sonetos, Op. 54 No. 1 - Anhelos
Santiago Sánchez (tenor)
Christopher Glynn (piano)
See also Radio 3 in Concert this week for more from Ryedale.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live".
TUE 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002kdr9)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Holding Court
Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering cultural icon, a composer who might be seen as the poster boy for “serious music” and spent most of his career in the service of the church. But he played many roles in the course of his life, and could be funny, sassy, conniving, obstinate, and rebellious. This week, along with the “worldly” Bach, we’ll get to know his secular music… and follow his trail as he makes his way in the world, from courts to coffee houses, building a family, two-timing his bosses, and even a stint behind bars.
Today, we hear about Bach’s dramatic years in Weimar, in the “castle of heaven”, getting caught in the middle of a family feud between two brother Dukes, challenged to a musical duel and landing himself in jail.
Partita for Solo Violin in E major, BWV1006 (IV. Menuet)
Itzhak Perlman, violin
Fugue in G minor for violin and basso continuo, BWV1026
Chouchane Siranossian, violin
Balazs Máté, cello
Leonardo García Alarcón, harpsichord
Trio Sonata No 2 in C minor, BWV 526
London Baroque
Concerto after Vivaldi in A minor, BWV593 (i. Allegro)
Ton Koopman, organ
Cantata BWV208 'Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd!' (excerpt)
Helen Donath. soprano
Wilfrid Jochims, tenor
Elisabeth Speiser, soprano
Jakob Stampfli, bass
Stuttgart Figuralchor der Gedachtniskirche
Bach-Collegium Stuttgart
Helmuth Rilling, conductor
Toccata and Fugue in D minor, BWV565
Simon Preston, organ
Prelude and Fugue in F minor
Angela Hewitt, piano
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
TUE 17:00 In Tune (m002kdrc)
Pianist Karim Said live in the studio
Pianist Karim Said joins Petroc Trelawny in the studio to perform music from his new album, and to discuss his upcoming concert with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Petroc also chats to artists Mikhail Karakis about the A Grand Chorus exhibition at The Foundling Museum - exploring the enduring impact of the ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ in the past and present.
TUE 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002kdrf)
Classical music for your journey
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.
TUE 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002kh93)
Jess Gillam at the Ryedale Festival
Al Ryan introduces a highlight from this summer's Ryedale Festival in North Yorkshire featuring the always totally infectious Jess Gillam Ensemble with a suitably eclectic mix of music drawn from over several centuries and from across the world, arranged for, and performed by, saxophonist Jess Gillam and her hand-picked ensemble. The concert was given in the rural setting of St Peter's Church in Norton, in July.
Pedro Itturalde
Pequeña Czarda (arr. John Harle)
CPE Bach (arr. Poxon and Parkin)
Allegro assai from Flute Concerto in A Minor Wq.166
Nadia Boulanger (arr. Alistair Vennart)
Cantique
David Bowie (arr. Alistair Vennart) 3’47
Life on Mars
Ruairí Dall Ó Catháin
Tabhair dom do Lámh
Sidney Bechet (transcr. Lolo Garcia/arr. Sam Becker)
Petite Fleur
Barbara Thompson
A Tribute to Bechet
Trad/Corelli
Variations on La Folia (arr. Poxon and Parkin)
INTERVAL
Barbara Strozzi (arr. Alistair Vennart)
Che si può fare
John Harle
Flare
Ólafur Arnalds (arr. Geoff Lawson)
saman
James Blake (arr. Benjamin Rimmer)
Retrograde
Claude Debussy (arr. Simon Parkin/Jess Gillam Ensemble)
Clair de Lune
Duke Ellington and Juan Tizol (arr. Harry Baker/Jess Gillam Ensemble)
Caravan
Michael Nyman (arr. Peter Riley)
Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds
Rune Sørensen (arr. Simon Parkin/Jess Gillam Ensemble)
Shine You No More
Jess Gillam Band:
Jess Gillam (saxophone)
Ellie Consta (violin)
Michael Jones (violin)
Eoin Schmidt-Martin (viola)
Gabriella Swallow (cello)
Elsa Bradley (percussion)
Sam Becker (bass)
Leif Kaner-Lidstrom (piano)
TUE 21:45 The Essay (m001vtpr)
Women of Substance
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday sang about alcohol and broken hearts, but she also fought racism most famously through the song Strange Fruit written by Abel Meerpol about the lynchings of J Thomas Ship and Abraham S Smith. Billie first performed Strange Fruit in 1939. It became her signature last song. She would sing in darkness with a spotlight on her face and there would be no encore. It was shortly after she sang Strange Fruit for the first time that The Federal Bureau of Narcotics led by Harry Anslinger began to pursue her. When she was arrested for possession of heroin in 1947 she pleaded guilty and asked to be sent to hospital so she could be cured. Instead she was sent to jail.
And this is something societies still wrestle with. Many people with addiction problems are still likely to be punished rather than supported to quit and stay clean. Professor Sally Marlow is a specialist in mental health and addiction. She analyses the lyrics of Billie Holiday's songs for what they tell us about alcohol use in women. Without treatment Billie Holiday’s addiction escalated and in 1959 she collapsed dying in hospital from cirrhosis of the liver. She had offers of detox and rehab but was not allowed to take them up. Her death symbolises the conflict between addiction as a health issue and a criminal one.
Presented by Professor Sally Marlow
Produced by Geraldine Fitzgerald
A TellTale Industries Ltd production
TUE 22:00 Night Tracks (m002kdrh)
Dissolve into a nocturnal soundworld
Hannah Peel presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
TUE 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002kdrk)
Tommaso Capellatto’s Flowers
Jamz Supernova, sitting in all week for Soweto Kinch, presents 'Round Midnight - a weeknight celebration of jazz from across the spectrum, with a particular focus on new UK music.
Tonight Jamz welcomes back her Flowers guest - drummer, producer, and bandleader Tommaso Capellatto. He has another artist to highlight for Flowers and this time, it’s the turn of a master American drummer who has been a mentor and source of inspiration for Tommaso.
Plus there is music from Balimaya Project, Sultan Stevenson, and Jyoti.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
WEDNESDAY 15 OCTOBER 2025
WED 00:30 Through the Night (m002kdrm)
Beethoven's Violin Concerto and 'Eroica'
Christian Tetzlaff performs Beethoven's Violin Concerto with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande under conductor Daniele Gatti. Beethoven's third symphony completes the programme. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Violin Concerto in D major, Op 61
Christian Tetzlaff (violin), Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Daniele Gatti (conductor)
01:11 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Andante, from 'Violin Sonata no 2 in A minor, BWV.1003'
Christian Tetzlaff (violin)
01:15 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Symphony no 3 in E flat major, Op 55 'Eroica'
Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Daniele Gatti (conductor)
02:05 AM
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Adagio from Piano Trio no 4 in B flat, Op 11 'Gassenhauer'
Swiss Piano Trio
02:10 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Oboe Concerto in A minor
Matthias Arter (oboe), I Tempi Chamber Orchestra, Gevorg Gharabekyan (conductor)
02:31 AM
Wilhelm Peterson-Berger (1867-1942)
Frosoblomster for Piano, Book 2
Johan Ullén (piano)
02:55 AM
Felix Nowowiejski (1877-1946)
Missa pro pace, Op 49 no 3
Polish Radio Choir, Andrzej Bialko (organ), Wlodzimierz Siedlik (conductor)
03:33 AM
Rosario Bourdon (1885-1961)
Elegiac poem for cello and orchestra
Alain Aubut (cello), Orchestre Métropolitain, Gilles Auger (conductor)
03:39 AM
Carl Friedrich Abel (1723-1787)
Symphony in C major, Op 10 no 4
La Stagione Frankfurt, Michael Schneider (conductor)
03:49 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918), Pierre Louÿs (author)
Chansons de Bilitis - 3 melodies for voice & piano
Paula Hoffman (mezzo soprano), Lars David Nilsson (piano)
03:58 AM
Antonio Soler (1729-1783)
Fandango
Fredrik From (violin), Benjamin Scherer Questa (violin), Teodoro Baù (viola d'arco), Hager Hanana (cello), Joanna Boślak-Górniok (harpsichord), Dagmara Kapczyńska (harpsichord), Gwennaëlle Alibert (harpsichord), Bolette Roed (recorder), Komalé Akakpo (dulcimer)
04:05 AM
Robert Schumann (1810-1856)
Overture (Manfred, Op 115)
Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Michael Schønwandt (conductor)
04:18 AM
Alfredo Casella (1883-1947)
Barcarola e scherzo
Min Park (flute), Huw Watkins (piano)
04:27 AM
Gion Balzer Casanova (b.1938)
La sera sper il lag (Evening on the Lake)
Cantus Firmus Surselva, Clau Sherrer (director)
04:31 AM
Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897-1957), Paul Schott (librettist)
Mein Sehnen, mein Wähnen, from 'Die tote Stadt'
Aleksander Nohr (baritone), Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Petr Popelka (conductor)
04:35 AM
Adolf Schulz-Evler (1852-1905),
Concert arabesque on themes by Johann Strauss (II) for piano
Benjamin Grosvenor (piano)
04:46 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Trio sonata for 2 violins & continuo in D minor 'La Folia', RV.63 (Op 1 no 12)
Il Giardino Armonico, Giovanni Antonini (director)
04:56 AM
Arcangelo Corelli (1653-1713), arr. Thomas Billington
Concerto in C major for organ, Op 6 no 10
Willem Poot (organ)
05:06 AM
Luigi Dallapiccola (1904-1975)
2 Cori di Michelangelo Buonarroti il Giovane - set 1 for unaccompanied chorus
Netherlands Chamber Choir, Eric Ericson (conductor)
05:18 AM
Aloÿs-Henri-Gérard Fornerod (1890-1965)
Concert for 2 violins and piano, Op 16
Sibylle Tschopp (violin), Mirjam Tschopp (violin), Isabel Tschopp (piano)
05:36 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Serenade no 2 in A major, Op 16
Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, Raffi Armenian (conductor)
06:08 AM
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Images - set 2 for piano
Roger Woodward (piano)
06:22 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Rondo concertante in B flat major, K.269
James Ehnes (violin), Mozart Anniversary Orchestra
WED 06:30 Breakfast (m002kdk4)
Roll out of bed into classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
WED 09:30 Essential Classics (m002kdk7)
Relax into the day with classical
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
WED 13:00 Classical Live (m002kdk9)
Debussy Preludes from Ryedale
Mark Forrest introduces a selection of specially made recordings for the afternoon, including highlights from this summer's Ryedale Festival in Yorkshire featuring concerts given by Radio 3 New Generation Artists. Today pianist Julius Asal performs from Debussy's evocative collection of piano Préludes. And the piano takes centre stage in today's featured work from one of Benjamin Britten's British contemporaries - Clare Hammond in the soloist in Michael Tippett's rhapsodic Piano Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
Including:
From the Ryedale Festival:
Claude Debussy
Préludes Book 1 –
X. La cathédrale engloutie
Julius Asal (piano)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33
László Fenyö (cello)
Croatian Radio & Television Symphony Orchestra
Aleksandar Marković, (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Claude Debussy
Préludes Bk 2
VI … Général Lavine – eccentric (2’35)
Préludes Bk 1
VII … Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest (3’30)
Préludes Bk 2
III … La puerta del vino (3’25)
Préludes Bk 1
VI … Des pas sur la neige (4’25)
V …. Les collines d’Anacapri (3’18)
Julius Asal (piano)
Michael Tippett
Piano Concerto
Clare Hammond (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
George Vass (conductor)
See also Radio 3 in Concert this week for more from Ryedale.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live"
WED 15:00 Choral Evensong (m002kdkc)
Wells Cathedral
Live from Wells Cathedral.
Introit: Locus iste (Bruckner)
Responses: Sarah MacDonald
Psalm 78 (Oakley, Walmisley, Atkins, Goss, Goss, Soaper, Mann)
First Lesson: 1 Chronicles 29 vv10-19
Canticles: Magdalen College Service (Leighton)
Second Lesson: Colossians 3 vv12-17
Anthem: Sing we merrily unto God our strength (Matthew Martin) (first broadcast)
Voluntary: Organ Sonata No 1 (Finale) (Price)
Timothy Parsons (Director of Music)
Carolyn Craig (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 (m002kdkf)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Köthen Calls
Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering cultural icon, a composer who might be seen as the poster boy for “serious music” and spent most of his career in the service of the church. But he played many roles in the course of his life, and could be funny, sassy, conniving, obstinate, and rebellious. This week, along with the “worldly” Bach, we’ll get to know his secular music… and follow his trail as he makes his way in the world, from courts to coffee houses, building a family, two-timing his bosses, and even a stint behind bars.
Today, Bach’s chapter in Köthen is full of plot twists: a career pivot, a princely patron, a tragedy nobody saw coming…and a chance encounter which leads to some of his best-loved instrumental gems.
Prelude in D minor, BWV851
Aaron Pilsan, piano
Brandenburg Concerto No 5, BWV1050 (iii. Allegro)
Academy of Ancient Music
Richard Egarr, harpsichord/director
Cantata BWV134a ‘Die Zeit, die Tag und Jahre macht’: Ergetzet auf Erden
Damien Guillon, alto
Makoto Sakurada, tenor
Bach Collegium Japan
Masaaki Suzuki, conductor
Cello Suite No 2 in D minor, BWV1008 (Sarabande and minuets)
Jean-Guihen Queyras, cello
French Suite No 4 in E-flat major, BWV815 (1st-4th movements)
Murray Perahia, piano
Brandenburg Concerto No 4 in G major, BWV1049
Monica Huggett, violin
Rachel Beckett, recorder
Marion Scott, recorder
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
WED 17:00 In Tune (m002kdkj)
Sabi Ensemble live in studio
Sabi Ensemble join Petroc Trelawny in studio for a live performance ahead of their appearance at Black Lives in Music: Classically Black at Kings Place, London. Petroc also talks to Black Lives in Music director Roger Wilson.
WED 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m0027m40)
Take 30 minutes out with a relaxing classical mix
Back to back classical music to help you wind down after a busy day. Today's mix includes a romantic serenade by William Grant Still, a poignant, setting of "When David Heard" by the Renaissance English composer Thomas Tomkins, an impressionistic view of clouds by Debussy, and the slow movement from Mozart's masterful clarinet concerto.
Producer: Helen Garrison
WED 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002kh6s)
Arcangelo at the Ryedale Festival
A programme of Handel duets performed by Arcangelo and director Jonathan Cohen with soprano Soraya Mafi and counter-tenor Iestyn Davies as part of this year's Ryedale Festival in Yorskhire. The concert was given in the impressive setting of Selby Abbey.
The programme creates a mini love story constructed from Handel’s finest duets written for his Italian operas and English oratorios. From happy meetings, to stormy disagreements, reconciliations and happy endings.
Introduced by Linton Stephens
Georg Frideric Handel:
Theodora: Overture, HWV 68
Alexander's Feast, HWV 75: "Let's imitate her notes above!"
Belshazzar, HWV 61: "Great Victor, at your feet I bow"
Alexander Balus, HWV 65: "Hail wedded love"
Theodora, HWV 68: "To thee thou glorious son"
Saul, HWV 53: "At Persecution I can laugh"
Concerto Grosso in A minor Op. 6 No. 4, HWV 322 (Mvts 1&3)
Poro, HWV 28: "Caro amico aplesso!"
Serse, HWV 40: "Gran pena e gelosia"
Rinaldo, HWV 7b: "Fermati! No Crudel!"
INTERVAL
Rinaldo, HWV 7bL: Overture
"Scherzano sul tuo volto"
Agrippina, HWV 6: "No, no, ch'io non apprezzo"
Radamisto, HWV 12a.: Passacaille
app 18”
Rodelina, Regina de' Longobardi, HWV 19 : "Io t'abbraccio"
Orlando, HWV 31: "Finche prendi ancora il sangue",
Concerto Grosso Op. 3 No. 2 in B-flat major, HWV 313 (Mvts 1 & 2)
Theodora, HWV 68: "Streams of pleasure ever flowing"
Esther, HWV 50b: "Who calls my parting soul from death?"
Jephtha, HWV 70 : "These Labours Past"
Arcangelo
Soraya Mafi (soprano)
Iestyn Davies (counter-tenor)
Jonathan Cohen (director)
WED 21:45 The Essay (m001vtpv)
Women of Substance
Anna Kavan
As a teenager growing up in Teesside, addiction specialist Professor Sally Marlow discovered the library in Stockton-on-Tees and working her way through the titles began to discover books she designated “strange.” In her twenties she discovered Anna Kavan’s “Asylum Piece,” and despite having very different life experiences, Anna’s descriptions of mental distress and despair resonated deeply.
Anna Kavan had a traumatic childhood, abusive relationships, spent time in psychiatric institutions and used heroin for decades. She also wrote experimental fiction and painted furiously. She was a writer’s writer, with fans including Anais Nin and J.G.Ballard. Sally wants to know who Anna was and why did she use heroin? Anna is unusual, women who use heroin are rare, about one woman for every 10 men.
Clues exist in Julia and the Bazooka published after Anna’s death, the title story tells of Julia who has a kind doctor who sanctions her drug use. In real life Anna was legally prescribed heroin by her psychiatrist Dr Carl Theodor Bluth. Between 1926 and 1968 the Departmental Committee on Morphine and Heroin Addiction recommended that medical professionals in the UK could prescribe heroin or morphine to those addicted to it if it would enable the patients to lead useful lives, and created a Home Office register. Anna was one of the comparatively few people on it. Heroin was considered a medical problem not a criminal problem and as a registered heroin user Anna was spared some of the dangers linked to criminal distribution.
Her relationship to Dr Bluth was platonic but extraordinarily close, and she was distraught when he died. She painted him in a painting now held at the Museum of the Mind which Sally visits. But even with Dr Bluth’s prescriptions she died younger than she should have done of heart failure and suffered enormous painful abscesses on her legs, the result of infected injection sites.
As Sally tries to piece together her life, she is left with an overwhelming sense of fragments, and the dream-like quality of Anna’s writing adds to the difficulty of getting beyond glimpses of reality. But despite her addiction, Anna produced phenomenal literature.
Presented by Professor Sally Marlow
Produced by Geraldine Fitzgerald
A TellTale Industries Ltd production
WED 22:00 Night Tracks (m002kdkn)
Eclectic music for after dark
Hannah Peel presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
WED 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002kdkq)
Fresh from Florence Adooni
Jamz Supernova, sitting in all week for Soweto Kinch, presents 'Round Midnight - a weeknight celebration of jazz from across the spectrum, with a particular focus on new UK music.
Tommaso Cappellato returns to share a third artist that he would like to spotlight. Tonight he chooses an American jazz singer who is well known in London’s acid jazz scene, and who he is inspired by.
Also in the programme there is music from Knats, Parthenope, Divorce From New York & Arturo Martin, and Ranie Ribeiro.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
THURSDAY 16 OCTOBER 2025
THU 00:30 Through the Night (m002kdks)
Where the beautiful trumpets blow
Performing in the Austrian village of Schwarzenberg, nestled in the Bregenz Forest, baritone Andrè Schuen sings lieder by Brahms and Mahler with Daniel Heide at the piano. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Vier ernste Gesänge, Op 121
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
12:47 AM
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Excerpts from Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:06 AM
Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)
Extracts from Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:26 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Karl August Candidus (author)
Geheimnis, Op 71 no 3
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:27 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Karl Lemcke (author)
Verzagen, Op 72 no 4
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:30 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Detlev von Liliencron (author)
Auf dem Kirchhofe, Op 105 no 4
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:33 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Karl August Candidus (author)
Lerchengesang, Op 70 no 2
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:36 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), Georg Friedrich Daumer (author)
Wie bist du meine Königin, Op 32 no 9
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:39 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Da unten im Tale, WoO 33 no 6
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:42 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949), John Henry Mackay (author)
Morgen! Op 27 no 4
Andrè Schuen (baritone), Daniel Heide (piano)
01:46 AM
Alma Mahler (1879-1964), Rainer Maria Rilke (lyricist)
Bei dir ist es traut
Franziska Heinzen (soprano), Benjamin Mead (piano)
01:49 AM
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)
Serenade no 1 in D major, Op 11
Zermatt Music Festival Academy Students
02:31 AM
Jean Françaix (1912-1997)
Wind Quintet no 1
Galliard Ensemble
02:52 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
The Alchymist - incidental music HWV.43
CBC Vancouver Orchestra, Monica Huggett (conductor)
03:09 AM
Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Carmen Suite no 2
RTV Slovenia Symphony Orchestra, Marko Munih (conductor)
03:26 AM
Zoltán Kodály (1882-1967)
Adagio for clarinet and piano
Kálmán Berkes (clarinet), Zóltan Kocsis (piano)
03:34 AM
Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179)
Alma Redemptoris Mater & Ave Maria, O auctrix vite
Sequentia, Elizabeth Gaver and Elisabetta de Mircovich (medieval fiddle)
03:45 AM
Richard Strauss (1864-1949), arr. Franz Hasenöhrl
Till Eulenspiegel - Einmal Anders!
Festival Ensemble of the Festival of the Sound, James Campbell (conductor)
03:55 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Oboe Concerto in G minor
Hans-Peter Westermann (oboe), Camerata Köln
04:05 AM
Jana Kmiťová (b.1976)
Ich muss weggehen
Martin Adámek (clarinet), Juraj Tomka (violin), Andrej Gál (cello), Zuzana Biščáková (piano)
04:18 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Scherzo No 4 in E major
Dubravka Tomsic (piano)
04:31 AM
Susan Spain-Dunk (1880-1962)
The Farmer's Boy
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Stephen Bell (conductor)
04:38 AM
Johan Duijck (b.1954)
Cantiones Sacrae in honorem Thomas Tallis, Op 26, Book 1
Flemish Radio Choir, Johan Duijck (conductor)
04:48 AM
Joseph Martin Kraus (1756-1792)
Quatre Intermedes for Moliere's comedy 'Amphitryon' - Intermede IV, VB.27
Georg Poplutz (tenor), Bonner Kammerchor [Bonn Chamber Chorus], L'Arte del mondo, Werner Ehrhardt (conductor)
04:59 AM
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Lachrymae (Reflections on a song of Dowland) for viola and piano, Op 48
Antoine Tamestit (viola), Markus Hadulla (piano)
05:13 AM
Walter Gieseking (1895-1956)
Chaconne on a Theme by Scarlatti after Keyboard Sonata in D minor K 32
Joseph Moog (piano)
05:20 AM
Gustav Holst (1874-1934)
Beni Mora - Oriental suite, Op 29 no 1
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Rumon Gamba (conductor)
05:36 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Laetatus sum for 4 voices, 2 violins, 2 trumpets and organ
Olga Pasiecznik (soprano), Henning Voss (counter tenor), Wojciech Parchem (tenor), Mirosław Borczyński (bass), Sine Nomine Chamber Choir, Concerto Polacco Baroque Orchestra, Marek Toporowski (director)
05:40 AM
Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki (1665-1734)
Illuxit sol
Olga Pasiecznik (soprano), Marta Bobertska (soprano), Piotr Lykowski (counter tenor), Wojciech Parchem (tenor), Mirosław Borczyński (bass), Concerto Polacco, Marek Toporowski (director)
05:47 AM
Dmitry Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Symphony no 9 in E flat major, Op 70
Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra Katowice, Michal Klauza (conductor)
06:13 AM
Maya Le Roux-Obradovic
Ballade de la vallée magique
Maya Le Roux-Obradovic (guitar), Sinfonietta Belgrade, Aleksandar Vujic (conductor)
THU 06:30 Breakfast (m002kgyp)
Breakfast with the best classical music
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
THU 09:30 Essential Classics (m002kgys)
Celebrating classical greats
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
THU 13:00 Classical Live (m002kgyx)
Michael Tippett's A Child of Our Time
Mark Forrest introduces a selection of specially made recordings for the afternoon, including highlights from this summer's Ryedale Festival in North Yorkshire featuring music-making from Radio 3 New Generation Artists Julius Asal and Santiago Sánchez. Plus music from Benjamin Britten and his British contemporaries. Today a performance of Michael Tippett's oratorio 'A Child of Our Time' from Munich alongside music by Ruth Gipps and Britten's own masterly Serenade.
Including:
Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Op. 31
Mark Padmore (tenor)
Thomas Müller (horn)
Zurich Chamber Orchestra
Duncan Ward (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Alfred Schnittke
Six Preludes Op. 6
Julius Asal (piano)
Ruth Gipps
Horn Concerto
Martin Owen (horn)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Rumon Gamba (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Carlos Guastavino
La rosa y el sauce
Milonga de dos hermanos
Bonita rama de sauce
Santiago Sánchez (tenor)
Christopher Glynn (piano)
Michael Tippett
A Child of Our Time
Elizabeth Llewellyn (soprano)
Natalie Lewis (mezzo-soprano)
Barry Banks (tenor)
Andrew Hamilton (baritone)
Bavarian Radio Chorus
Munich Radio Orchestra
Patrick Hahn (conductor)
See also Radio 3 in Concert this week for more from Ryedale.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live"
THU 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002kgz1)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
But First, Coffee
Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering cultural icon, a composer who might be seen as the poster boy for “serious music” and spent most of his career in the service of the church. But he played many roles in the course of his life, and could be funny, sassy, conniving, obstinate, and rebellious. This week, along with the “worldly” Bach, we’ll get to know his secular music… and follow his trail as he makes his way in the world, from courts to coffee houses, building a family, two-timing his bosses, and even a stint behind bars.
Today, Bach packs up his family and heads to Leipzig, to take up the prestigious job in charge of music at the city’s four main churches. No more Dukes and Princes telling him what to do, but he still can’t escape authority – finding creative refuge and stimulation at the city’s finest coffee house.
Harpsichord Concerto BWV 1054 (iii. Allegro)
The English Concert
Trevor Pinnock, harpsichord/director
Double Violin Concerto, BWV1043 (1st movement)
Rachel Podger, violin
Bojan Cicic, violin
Brecon Baroque
Cantata, BWV214 “'Tönet, ihr Pauken'” (opening chorus)
Collegium Vocale Gent
Philippe Herreweghe, conductor
Orchestral Suite No 2, BWV1067 (3rd – 7th movements)
Dunedin Consort
John Butt, conductor
Cantata BWV211 'Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht' (Coffee Cantata)
Emma Kirkby, soprano
Rogers Covey-Crump, tenor
David Thomas, bass
Academy of Ancient Music
Christopher Hogwood, conductor
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
THU 17:00 In Tune (m002kgz5)
Sean Shibe performs live in studio
Guitarist Sean Shibe joins Petroc Trelawny live in studio to perform, ahead of his appearance with the London Symphony Orchestra on 19/10 at the Barbican in London. Petroc also chats to soprano Nadine Sierra, who joins us down the live from The MET in New York, where she is in rehearsal for Bellini's La Sonnanbula.
THU 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002kgz8)
Classical music to inspire you
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.
THU 19:30 Radio 3 in Concert (m002kgzb)
Mahler's Ninth Symphony
Sakari Oramo steers the BBC Symphony Orchestra through Mahler's last completed symphony, written after the death of his daughter.
Mahler: Symphony No.9
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Sakari Oramo (conductor)
As Gustav Mahler began his Ninth Symphony, he was well aware of its significance. Like Beethoven, Schubert and Bruckner before him, his Ninth was to be the last he finished. The very first notes seem to falter. The composer, heartbroken after the death of his daughter, put the rhythm of his heart into the orchestra, beginning the symphony with a sigh. But that’s just the beginning, and over eighty-five minutes of music, Mahler explores every last drop of beauty, terror, and love from a life of deep emotional commitment
Music this moving needs space to breathe, and as Sakari Oramo continues his journey with the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s Mahler cycle, it feels right to give it a concert of its own. “Triumphantly tragic” was how The Arts Desk described Oramo’s recent performance of Mahler’s Sixth Symphony; now, as the journey continues, there’s no more impactful way to start our new season.
Recorded at the Barbican Concert Hall, London, on October 4th 2025. Presented by Petroc Trelawny.
THU 21:45 The Essay (m001vtrz)
Women of Substance
Andrea Dunbar
Professor Sally Marlow, an addiction specialist, received a scholarship at 16, moving from Teesside to Somerset for a new life. In 1980, Andrea Dunbar, aged 18, made a life-changing trip from Bradford to London's Royal Court Theatre, where her play "The Arbor" premiered, making her the venue's youngest playwright, despite never having been in a theatre before.
Unlike Sally, Andrea returned to Bradford after the play's run, living on Buttershaw Estate with her daughter before moving to a battered wives home in Keighley. There, she completed her play started at 15, written in dialect, expressing a commitment to authenticity.
Sally is intrigued by Andrea's life and class differences. Both Andrea and Sally battled addiction in the 1980s, but while Sally quit drinking around the time Andrea passed away, the impact of women's drinking persists. Alcohol remains a significant cause of mortality among women in their 50s, particularly among white women in deprived communities.
In a recording at the Royal Court Theatre, Sally explores Andrea's scripts to comprehend her alcohol use, which subtly permeates her plays without direct commentary. Andrea authored two more plays, one of which, "Rita Sue and Bob Too," was adapted into a film that underwent significant alterations against her original intentions. Andrea's life beyond writing became increasingly challenging; she had more children and struggled to continue writing. Tragically, she died of a brain haemorrhage at 29, and her eldest daughter also battled addiction after her mother's passing. Andrea Dunbar, like other artists in this series, remains enigmatic, her life marked by struggle despite her evident talent showcased in her brilliant yet darkly comic plays. Her poverty not only curtailed her writing prematurely but exacerbated her drinking and possibly contributed to her early death.
Presented by Professor Sally Marlow
Produced by Geraldine Fitzgerald
A TellTale Industries Ltd production
THU 22:00 Night Tracks (m002kgzd)
Meditative music for night owls
Hannah Peel presents an adventurous, immersive soundtrack for late-night listening, from classical to contemporary and everything in between.
THU 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002kgzg)
One from Run Logan Run
Jamz Supernova, sitting in all week for Soweto Kinch, presents 'Round Midnight - a weeknight celebration of jazz from across the spectrum, with a particular focus on new UK music.
All this week, Italian L.A based drummer and bandleader of Collettivo Immaginario, Tommaso Cappellato, has been Jamz’s Flowers guest. Rounding off his week, Tommaso’s final bouquet goes to a legendary American jazz singer with an unmistakeable voice.
Plus there is music from Anthony Joseph, Yazz Ahmed, and Moses Boyd.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'
FRIDAY 17 OCTOBER 2025
FRI 00:30 Through the Night (m002kgzj)
100 years of the Berlin Radio Chorus
Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, soloists and conductor Gijs Leenaars perform works by Mendelssohn, Robert Heppner, Vaughan Williams and Verdi. John Shea presents.
12:31 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Richte mich, Gott, Op 78 no 2
Berlin Radio Chorus, Gijs Leenaars (conductor)
12:35 AM
Robert Heppener (1925-2009)
Bruchstücke eines alten Textes
Gesine Nowakowski (soprano), Barbara Berg-Bretschneider (soprano), Sabine Eyer (alto), Jiwon Choi (alto), Holger Marks-Simonis (tenor), Georg Streuber-Chraniuk (bass), Berlin Radio Chorus, Gijs Leenaars (conductor)
12:48 AM
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Serenade to Music
Gesine Nowakowski (soprano), Barbara Berg-Bretschneider (soprano), Sabine Eyer (alto), Jiwon Choi (alto), Joohoon Shin (tenor), Holger Marks-Simonis (tenor), Bruno Meichsner (bass), Georg Streuber-Chraniuk (bass), Berlin Radio Chorus, Gijs Leenaars (conductor), Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
01:01 AM
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
Quattro pezzi sacri
Gesine Nowakowski (soprano), Berlin Radio Chorus, Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Gijs Leenaars (conductor)
01:39 AM
Traditional, arr. Philip Mayers
Happy Birthday
Berlin Radio Chorus, Gijs Leenaars (conductor)
01:41 AM
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924), arr. Gordon Hamilton
Nessun dorma
Berlin Radio Chorus, Gijs Leenaars (conductor)
01:44 AM
Percy Grainger (1882-1961)
Apres un reve (after Faure)
Leslie Howard (piano)
01:47 AM
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Symphony No.3 in A minor (Op.56), "Scottish"
BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Richard Hickox (conductor)
02:31 AM
Louis Spohr (1784-1859)
Notturno for wind and Turkish band in C major, Op 34
Octophoros, Paul Dombrecht (conductor)
03:03 AM
César Franck (1822-1890)
Sonata for violin or cello and piano (M.8) in A major
Antonio Meneses (cello), Menahem Pressler (piano)
03:32 AM
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
3 chorales from the Schemelli collection
Marco Fink (bass baritone), Bernarda Fink (mezzo soprano), Domen Marincic (gamba), Dalibor Miklavcic (organ)
03:39 AM
Henry Eccles (c.1675-1745)
Sonata for double bass and piano
Gary Karr (double bass), Harmon Lewis (piano)
03:47 AM
Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757)
Sonata in D minor: Fugue K.41; Presto K.18
Eduardo Lopez Banzo (harpsichord)
03:57 AM
Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)
Finlandia, Op 26
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Thomas Dausgaard (conductor)
04:05 AM
Joan Baptista Pla i Agustí (1720-1773)
Sonata in D major, for flute, violin and basso continuo
La Guirlande
04:13 AM
Ferruccio Busoni (1866-1924)
Seven Elegies - no 2, All' Italia
Valerie Tryon (piano)
04:21 AM
William Walton (1902-1983)
Johannesburg Festival Overture
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, David Atherton (conductor)
04:31 AM
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Violin Concerto in F major, RV 291
Fabio Biondi (violin), Europa Galante, Fabio Biondi (director)
04:40 AM
Fryderyk Chopin (1810-1849)
Barcarolle in F sharp major, Op 60
Anastasia Vorotnaya (piano)
04:49 AM
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
Kyrie from Missa Sancti Henrici (1701)
James Griffett (tenor), Michael Schopper (bass), Regensburger Domspatzen, Collegium Aureum, Herbert Metzger (organ), Georg Ratzinger (conductor)
04:58 AM
Wojciech Kilar (1931-2013)
Orawa
Baltic Sea Youth Philharmonic, Kristjan Järvi (conductor)
05:07 AM
Balthasar Fritsch (1570-1608)
Paduan and 2 Galliards (from Primitiae musicales, Frankfurt/Main 1606)
Hortus Musicus, Andres Mustonen (director)
05:15 AM
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Sonata in E (Op. 1) no. 15
Eszter Perényi (violin), Gyula Kiss (piano)
05:24 AM
Ottorino Respighi (1879-1936)
Rossiniana - suite from Rossini's 'Les riens'
West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Jorge Mester (conductor)
05:51 AM
Jacques Gallot (1625-1696)
Pieces de Lute in C minor
Konrad Junghänel (lute)
06:01 AM
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Quartet in G major (K.387)
Quatuor Mosaïques, Erich Höbarth (violin), Andrea Bischof (violin), Anita Mitterer (viola), Christophe Coin (cello)
FRI 06:30 Breakfast (m002kh10)
Birdsong and Bach to banish those morning blues
Tom McKinney presents Radio 3’s Breakfast show live from Salford. With birdsong, Bach Before 7 and the best in classical music. You can contact the show by emailing 3breakfast@bbc.co.uk
To listen on most smart speakers, just say 'Ask BBC Sounds to play 3 Breakfast’
FRI 09:30 Essential Classics (m002kh12)
A feast of great music
Georgia Mann plays the best classical music for your morning, with discoveries and surprises rubbing shoulders with familiar favourites. Including the Playlister challenge: our regular listener-created sequence inspired by a different piece of music each day. Plus a new classical release in focus for Album of the Week.
1000 Playlister starter: listen and send us your ideas for the next step in today's musical journey. Text 83111 or email essentialclassics@bbc.co.uk.
1030 Album of the Week: an exciting new classical release in focus throughout the week.
1115 Playlister reveal: an uninterrupted sequence of music suggested by you in response to today's starter piece.
1200 Feast of a Piece: indulge your ears with an orchestral masterpiece.
To listen on most smart speakers say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Essential Classics”
FRI 13:00 Classical Live (m002kh14)
Cesar Frank's Flute Sonata from Ryedale
Mark Forrest concludes his week of highlights from the Ryedale Festival in Yorkshire with performances from Radio 3 New Generation Artists tenor Santiago Sánchez and flautist Elizaveta Ivanova. Elizaveta plays the flute arrangement of César Franck's much-loved romantic sonata for violin. And also in today's programme orchestral music from Benjamin Britten and his British contemporaries. Today, Ralph Vaughan-Williams's Fifth Symphony, written during the period of the Second World War, and a rare chance to hear William Walton's Sinfonia Concertante for piano and orchestra with pianist Clare Hammond and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
Including:
Ralph Vaughan-Williams
Symphony No. 5
BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
Michael Tippett
Concerto for Double String Orchestra
Zurich Chamber Orchestra
Duncan Ward (conductor)
From the Ryedale Festival:
César Franck
Sonata in A major
(arr. Jean-Pierre Rampal, originally for violin and piano)
Elizaveta Ivanova (flute)
Sanja Bizjak (piano)
From the Ryedale Festival:
Alberto Ginastera
Las horas de una estancia, Op. 11 -
El alba
La mañana
Canción a la luna lunanca
Santiago Sánchez (tenor)
Christopher Glynn (piano)
William Walton
Sinfonia Concertante for piano and orchestra
Clare Hammond (piano)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
George Vass (conductor)
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Romeo and Juliet - Fantasy Overture after Shakespeare
Croatian Radio & Television Symphony Orchestra
György Gyorivanyi Rath (conductor)
See also Radio 3 in Concert this week for more from Ryedale.
To listen to this programme (using most smart speakers) just say "Ask BBC Sounds to play Classical Live"
FRI 16:00 Composer of the Week (m002kh16)
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
The Last Laugh
Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering cultural icon, a composer who might be seen as the poster boy for “serious music” and spent most of his career in the service of the church. But he played many roles in the course of his life, and could be funny, sassy, conniving, obstinate, and rebellious. This week, along with the “worldly” Bach, we’ll get to know his secular music… and follow his trail as he makes his way in the world, from courts to coffee houses, building a family, two-timing his bosses, and even a stint behind bars.
Today, in Bach’s latter years in Leipzig, he finds himself under critical attack and responds with a monumental change of direction. We’ll see his patience and his pride tested, in a series of events that reveal two important sides of his character: his determination and his wit.
“Peasant” Cantata – Mer hahn ein neue Oberkeet, BWV212: “Wir gehn nun wo der Dudelsak”
Emma Kirkby, soprano
David Thomas, bass
Academy of Ancient Music
Christopher Hogwood, conductor
Double Violin Concerto, BWV1043 (2nd movement)
Arabella Steinbacher, violin
Christoph Koncz, violin
Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra
Orchestral Suite No 3, BWV1068 (iii. Gavotte to v. Gigue)
Freiburg Baroque Orchestra
Goldberg Variations, BWV988 (Aria and Variations 1-5)
Víkingur Ólafsson, piano
Musical Offering, BWV1079: Ricercar a 6
Phantasm
The Contest Between Phoebus and Pan, BWV201 (“Pan ist Meister”….end)
Roman Trenkel, bass (Phoebus)
Peter Lika, baritone (Pan)
Andreas Scholl, countertenor (Mercurius)
Maria Christina Kiehr, soprano (Momus)
Kurt Azesberger, tenor (Midas)
Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin
René Jacobs, conductor
Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West
FRI 17:00 In Tune (m002kh18)
Live music from Shani Diluka and Hilgeum trio
Pianist Shani Diluka joins Petroc Trelawny live in studio to perform music from her new album "Renaissance", out on 26/10. Also performing live is Hilgeum trio - redefining traditional Korean string instruments. The ensemble appears at London's Southbank Centre as part of the K-Music Festival 2025.
FRI 19:00 Classical Mixtape (m002kh1b)
Expand your horizons with classical music
Take time out with a 30-minute soundscape of classical music.
FRI 19:30 Friday Night is Music Night (m002kh1d)
Julie Andrews at 90
The BBC Concert Orchestra and conductor Richard Balcombe, with singers Katie Birtill, Kelly Mathieson and Graham Bickley pay tribute to the Hollywood star in music and song as she celebrates her 90th birthday. Recorded in September at Alexandra Palace Theatre, London.
Presented by Petroc Trelawny.
Loewe: My Fair Lady - Overture; I could have danced all night; Show Me; I've grown accustomed to her face; The rain in Spain
Rodgers: This can’t be Falling in Love (The Boys from Syracuse)
Sandy Wilson: Won’t you Charleston with me? (The Boyfriend)
Rodgers: A Lovely Night (Cinderella)
Sondheim: Putting it Together
Rodgers: The King and I - March of the Siamese Children; Hello Young Lovers; Something Wonderful; I have dreamed; Getting to Know You
INTERVAL
Sherman & Sherman: Mary Poppins - Overture; Chim chim cheree; Practically Perfect; Feed the Birds; Supercalifragilistic
Mancini: Le jazz hot (Victor Victoria)
Jeanine Tesori: Thoroughly Modern Millie; Nuttycracker Suite
Rodgers: The Sound of Music - My Favourite Things; Something Good; I Have Confidence; Medley
Singers: Katie Birtill, Kelly Mathieson, Graham Bickley
BBC Concert Orchestra
Conductor Richard Balcombe
FRI 21:45 The Essay (m001vtqp)
Women of Substance
Nan Goldin
Photographer Nan Goldin used the power of her fame, her art and personal experience to campaign against prescription opioids.
In the 1980s she sought help for her addictions; she went to rehab and got clean. In 2014, following wrist surgery, she was prescribed the pain killer Oxycontin and says 'I took it as directed and became addicted overnight'.
When she became sober again in 2017 she said she decided to make the personal political. Using tactics learnt in part from the Aids activist group Act Up, she turned her anger into protest. The Sackler family, some of whom owned Purdue Pharma, the manufacturers of Oxycontin, sponsored many arts institutions. Nan Goldin created activist performance pieces at these sponsored art galleries, campaigning to have their names removed. The campaign led to many institutions either removing the Sackler name from the galleries they sponsored or refusing donations.
Presenter Sally Marlow is a specialist in mental health and addiction and says it is uplifting to end her series on women artists and addiction with Nan Goldi, who leveraged her name, art and connections to bring changes and to also lobby for support, services and treatment for people addicted to opioids.
Presented by Professor Sally Marlow
Produced by Geraldine Fitzgerald
a TellTale Industries Ltd production
FRI 22:00 Late Junction (m002kh1g)
Ecka Mordecai and Tashi Dorji in session
Verity Sharp presents the latest in our series of exclusive improvised collaborative sessions. This time round, the London-based cellist, harpist and egg flautist Ecka Mordecai meets avant-garde Bhutanese guitarist Tashi Dorji.
Ecka Mordecai is a British artist based in London who works with a variety of instruments, objects and textures. Her soundworlds highlight the sensory qualities inherent in their construction, creating work that straddles the line between the traditional and the avant-garde, the recognisable and the unfamiliar. The musical qualities of creaking door hinges or attempts at recreating birdsong through instrumental means typify her sonic palette.
Tashi Dorji's guitar style skewers traditions both East and West, a hybrid born of his upbringing in Bhutan and subsequent relocation to the United States. Tashi’s releases of solo guitar improvisations and his prolific output of collaborations have cemented his status as an idiosyncratic and technically-masterful musician both in live and studio settings.
Alongside the fruits of this exciting new collaboration, Verity shares radical harp re-inventions from Bridget Ferrill, explorations of extreme fragility and strength on Zola Mennenöh’s ‘A Labour of Love’ and the melding of eerie metallic resonances, blood-curdling pizzicato echoes and knife-edge squeals on KAKUHAN & Adam Golebiewski’s ‘Repercussions’.
Produced by Alex Yates
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 3
To listen on most smart speakers just say “ask BBC Sounds to play Late Junction”
FRI 23:30 'Round Midnight (m002kh1j)
Celia Wa’s mixtape
Jamz Supernova, sitting in all week for Soweto Kinch, presents 'Round Midnight - a weeknight celebration of jazz from across the spectrum, with a particular focus on new UK music.
This Friday night Jamz is joined by Paris born, Guadeloupe based singer-songwriter Celia Wa as her Friday night guest curator. Over 30 minutes, Celia Wa takes us on a journey through some of the exciting jazz and Gwo ka music coming out of Guadeloupe.
To listen on most smart speakers, just say: 'Ask BBC Sounds to play Round Midnight.'