BBC & R3 News Archive
Older stories originally published on the BBC & R3 News page.Whilst every effort has been made to check links on these pages, it's in the nature of internet archives that some links lead nowhere or to the wrong page. If you find cases of the latter and are motivated to help us, please do send us the correct link. Thank you.
Controller's Note, Dec. 2008
Welcome to December's Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
I am sorry to start this new note on a sad theme, but I just want to comment on the tragic news of the death of Richard Hickox. Through his work with the BBC orchestras and BBC Singers and at the BBC Proms he was a regular part of our world and we have lost a wonderful musician, friend and colleague. With the death of Vernon Handley earlier this year 2008 has been a particularly sad one for British music.
Messiaen
No-one who heard the Quartet for the End of Time during the Proms this year can forget the experience of four performers in a vast hall, bringing to us a work composed by Messiaen in rather different circumstances – as a prisoner of war at Stalag VIII-A, Görlitz. Discovering Music explores the quartet on the afternoon of Sunday 7th, as a prelude to a week celebrating Messiaen whose centenary we have been marking through the year. On the eve of this birthday itself (Tuesday 9th) Performance on 3 presents the BBC Philharmonic in an all-Messiaen programme conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. His song cycle Poèmes pour Mi is Messiaen's love letter to his first wife, comprising nine poems by Messiaen himself. The concert ends with Chronochromie, whose title merges the Greek words for time and colour. It is one of his major orchestral works, all too rarely performed.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvn3t
BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year
On the evening of Monday 8th you can hear the category Finals of this competition which has involved over 5,000 singers, as the remaining six choirs compete at London's Royal Festival Hall. It is introduced by Petroc Trelawny and hosted by Aled Jones. It is the UK's largest amateur choral competition, arranged into four categories: children's, youth, adult and open. Since the competition began, 120,000 singers from over 2,000 choirs have taken part. Open to all, the competition is free and aims to encourage participation in singing across all age groups and local communities. If you have heard our coverage of the build-up to this grand final you will know how exciting the event has been so far.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvnb4
John Milton and Paradise Lost (complete)
The Sunday Feature on December 7th is John Milton's Adventurous Song, the first programme in our season marking the 400th anniversary of the birth of the great English poet. David Norbrook explores evolving views of Milton and his importance to us today. He places Milton's work within the social and political turmoil of his times and our own. Throughout the week, actor Robert Glenister will read Milton's poems in Breakfast, Afternoon on 3 and In Tune. On December 14th you can hear a new production of Samson Agonistes, the dramatic poem published three years before his death. Written in the form of a Greek tragedy, it follows the biblical story of the blind Samson wreaking his revenge on the Philistines. For total immersion, listen to Anton Lesser reading the complete Paradise Lost, Milton's best known work, every weekday at 5.00pm and at the weekend at 9.30pm, from Monday 22 December – a real holiday treat.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvn42
Opera on 3
On Saturday 6th December, Wagner's Tristan und Isolde is conducted by Daniel Barenboim in his long overdue Met debut. A leading interpreter of Wagner, Barenboim is joined by tenor Peter Seiffert as T ristan and soprano Katarina Dalayman as Isolde. Ever since its premiere in 1865, Wagner's setting of the ancient Cornish myth of two lovers locked into a doomed love affair has had enormous impact on audiences. The composer Giuseppe Verdi said that he "stood in wonder and terror", while Bernard Shaw described the opera as a "poem of destruction and death".
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvyjm
Free thinking
I trust you are finding the continuing broadcasts from the 2008 Free Thinking festival stimulating and provocative. One of the events which most captured the audience imagination was hearing from Tony Benn. You can hear his contribution in Night Waves on Thursday 11th. With ten grandchildren, Benn has found himself thinking about the world that they will live in. At a time when experience and youth are pitted against each other, Tony Benn reflected on the value of experience. There are some unforgettable moments, such as his memory of being taken by his father to meet Gandhi when he was six years old.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/2008/
Christmas
As usual, we have a strong line-up of Christmas music towards the end of the month. One event I would draw your attention to is Britten's cantata St Nicolas. It comes live from Lancing College in Sussex, the institution which commissioned it 60 years ago. The BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Singers and Choristers of St Paul's Cathedral are conducted by Paul Brough. It presents the life of Nicolas, patron saint of children, sailors and travellers, with the part of Nicolas sung by tenor Andrew Kennedy. During the interval, Louise Fryer explores how St Nicolas came to be written, using Britten's letters and conversations with some of the surviving members of the first performance. And you can watch as well as hear the concert at bbc.co.uk/radio3; it is also the first Red button offering for television from BBC Radio 3.
Throughout December, Breakfast will play a Bach dance after the news at 8am each morning, a joyous start to the day for the winter mornings. In 2009 we have a wonderful year for you – the most ambitious year of classical music programming we have ever mounted as we celebrate the anniversaries of Purcell, Handel, Haydn and Mendelssohn – more about that in due course.
With my best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
I am sorry to start this new note on a sad theme, but I just want to comment on the tragic news of the death of Richard Hickox. Through his work with the BBC orchestras and BBC Singers and at the BBC Proms he was a regular part of our world and we have lost a wonderful musician, friend and colleague. With the death of Vernon Handley earlier this year 2008 has been a particularly sad one for British music.
Messiaen
No-one who heard the Quartet for the End of Time during the Proms this year can forget the experience of four performers in a vast hall, bringing to us a work composed by Messiaen in rather different circumstances – as a prisoner of war at Stalag VIII-A, Görlitz. Discovering Music explores the quartet on the afternoon of Sunday 7th, as a prelude to a week celebrating Messiaen whose centenary we have been marking through the year. On the eve of this birthday itself (Tuesday 9th) Performance on 3 presents the BBC Philharmonic in an all-Messiaen programme conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw. His song cycle Poèmes pour Mi is Messiaen's love letter to his first wife, comprising nine poems by Messiaen himself. The concert ends with Chronochromie, whose title merges the Greek words for time and colour. It is one of his major orchestral works, all too rarely performed.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvn3t
BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year
On the evening of Monday 8th you can hear the category Finals of this competition which has involved over 5,000 singers, as the remaining six choirs compete at London's Royal Festival Hall. It is introduced by Petroc Trelawny and hosted by Aled Jones. It is the UK's largest amateur choral competition, arranged into four categories: children's, youth, adult and open. Since the competition began, 120,000 singers from over 2,000 choirs have taken part. Open to all, the competition is free and aims to encourage participation in singing across all age groups and local communities. If you have heard our coverage of the build-up to this grand final you will know how exciting the event has been so far.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvnb4
John Milton and Paradise Lost (complete)
The Sunday Feature on December 7th is John Milton's Adventurous Song, the first programme in our season marking the 400th anniversary of the birth of the great English poet. David Norbrook explores evolving views of Milton and his importance to us today. He places Milton's work within the social and political turmoil of his times and our own. Throughout the week, actor Robert Glenister will read Milton's poems in Breakfast, Afternoon on 3 and In Tune. On December 14th you can hear a new production of Samson Agonistes, the dramatic poem published three years before his death. Written in the form of a Greek tragedy, it follows the biblical story of the blind Samson wreaking his revenge on the Philistines. For total immersion, listen to Anton Lesser reading the complete Paradise Lost, Milton's best known work, every weekday at 5.00pm and at the weekend at 9.30pm, from Monday 22 December – a real holiday treat.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvn42
Opera on 3
On Saturday 6th December, Wagner's Tristan und Isolde is conducted by Daniel Barenboim in his long overdue Met debut. A leading interpreter of Wagner, Barenboim is joined by tenor Peter Seiffert as T ristan and soprano Katarina Dalayman as Isolde. Ever since its premiere in 1865, Wagner's setting of the ancient Cornish myth of two lovers locked into a doomed love affair has had enormous impact on audiences. The composer Giuseppe Verdi said that he "stood in wonder and terror", while Bernard Shaw described the opera as a "poem of destruction and death".
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00fvyjm
Free thinking
I trust you are finding the continuing broadcasts from the 2008 Free Thinking festival stimulating and provocative. One of the events which most captured the audience imagination was hearing from Tony Benn. You can hear his contribution in Night Waves on Thursday 11th. With ten grandchildren, Benn has found himself thinking about the world that they will live in. At a time when experience and youth are pitted against each other, Tony Benn reflected on the value of experience. There are some unforgettable moments, such as his memory of being taken by his father to meet Gandhi when he was six years old.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/2008/
Christmas
As usual, we have a strong line-up of Christmas music towards the end of the month. One event I would draw your attention to is Britten's cantata St Nicolas. It comes live from Lancing College in Sussex, the institution which commissioned it 60 years ago. The BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Singers and Choristers of St Paul's Cathedral are conducted by Paul Brough. It presents the life of Nicolas, patron saint of children, sailors and travellers, with the part of Nicolas sung by tenor Andrew Kennedy. During the interval, Louise Fryer explores how St Nicolas came to be written, using Britten's letters and conversations with some of the surviving members of the first performance. And you can watch as well as hear the concert at bbc.co.uk/radio3; it is also the first Red button offering for television from BBC Radio 3.
Throughout December, Breakfast will play a Bach dance after the news at 8am each morning, a joyous start to the day for the winter mornings. In 2009 we have a wonderful year for you – the most ambitious year of classical music programming we have ever mounted as we celebrate the anniversaries of Purcell, Handel, Haydn and Mendelssohn – more about that in due course.
With my best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Oct. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
There's a major theme to my note this month, namely our Free Thinking festival of ideas, which is taking place in Liverpool for the third time, in collaboration with Radio Merseyside.
Free Thinking
This year's line-up of thinkers is as impressive as ever, and they will be engaging with audience in debates, talks, performance and conversation from Friday 31 October to Sunday 2 November. Free Thinking presents leading thinkers from the arts, science, politics, philosophy and technology in front of a live audience. The festival programme also includes audience workshops, live performance, music and drama, with almost every event broadcast on BBC Radio 3 during November 2008.
We start with author and columnist Will Self giving the Free Thinking lecture this Friday evening, examining the way the mind is represented in the novel. Does literature represent the mind as we really experience it, in all its terror, exhilaration and confusion? You can hear that on Radio 3 at 9.15pm.
And we are also looking forward to hearing the Reverend Ian Paisley, one of the most prominent figures from Northern Ireland's history; he talks about his writings, his faith and his long and often controversial political career. Other speakers are Tony Benn on passing knowledge across the generations; Trevor Phillips on whether liberal democracies have all the answers; and a rare chance to hear the French intellectual Bernard-Henri Lévy.
Poet and broadcaster Ian McMillan will be hosting Radio 3's cabaret of the spoken word, The Verb. He'll be joined by the writer and comedian Alexei Sayle and this year's Free Thinking writer in residence, Angela Clarke, who has been exploring the generation gap. Free Thinking will look at the 21st-century Brain, The Value of Experience and Private Lives, Public Spaces: exploring how advances in neuroscience are questioning the way we think about ourselves; looking at the importance of age in a society where people are living longer whilst the gap between experience and outlook of the young and old seems to be growing ever wider; and examining at the meaning of public and private space today from the internet to the city.
There will be a special four-hour Free Thinking at 8.00pm on Sunday evening. As well as presenting lively conversation about the festival weekend it will include 24 Weeks, a specially commissioned drama on the subject of abortion by Tony Marchant, and a special edition of Words and Music on Shakespeare's The Seven Ages of Man with the Elias String Quartet, folk singer Belinda Sykes and rock/jazz percussionist Bill Bruford (formerly of Yes, Genesis and King Crimson) and leading British pianist Ashley Wass. It kicks off a week of evening programmes from the festival all beginning at 9.15pm, and special festival editions of Night Waves will continue until Christmas.
You may have noticed that we have been getting ready on Radio 3 for some time with our daily Free Thoughts broadcast on Breakfast and debated on Night Waves. These come from an astonishing range of contributors, and are a stimulating archive of audio ideas, which you can browse on demand. So do visit bbc.co.uk/freethinking, where you can find ways to participate, by commenting on the existing thoughts, uploading a photo of your free thinking space, and simply to find out more. And if you can join the Radio 3 team and contributors in Liverpool you are most welcome, and you can find details of events on the site. If not, I hope you will find this feast of thinking a stimulating listening experience on Radio 3. If you miss anything you will be able to catch up on http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3, where some of the talks will also be available as video.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/freethinking
Metropolitan Opera
And there's much music as ever to enjoy on the station. To mention just two events, on the final Saturday in November (29th), the new Metropolitan Opera season begins with a rarely-staged drama, Berlioz's epic contest between good and evil, The Damnation of Faust. It is the first of our many visits to New York, and the strong cast includes Susan Graham and Marcello Giordani, and the performance will be conducted by James Levine.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/schedule0809.shtml
London Jazz Festival
The annual London Jazz Festival also gets under way in November. This extraordinary rich feast of music starts with an eye-catching collaboration between the Britten Sinfonia, Joanna MacGregor, and the oud-player and vocalist Dhafer Youssef. It will certainly be an intriguing evening on November 18th.
http://www.londonjazzfestival.org.uk/
As always, you'll find details of all our broadcasts, iPlayer and other web features at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3. From next month my note will have a new format, making it easier for you to sample a variety of highlights that Radio 3 has to offer. I hope you like it. Do feel free to give us feedback about it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
There's a major theme to my note this month, namely our Free Thinking festival of ideas, which is taking place in Liverpool for the third time, in collaboration with Radio Merseyside.
Free Thinking
This year's line-up of thinkers is as impressive as ever, and they will be engaging with audience in debates, talks, performance and conversation from Friday 31 October to Sunday 2 November. Free Thinking presents leading thinkers from the arts, science, politics, philosophy and technology in front of a live audience. The festival programme also includes audience workshops, live performance, music and drama, with almost every event broadcast on BBC Radio 3 during November 2008.
We start with author and columnist Will Self giving the Free Thinking lecture this Friday evening, examining the way the mind is represented in the novel. Does literature represent the mind as we really experience it, in all its terror, exhilaration and confusion? You can hear that on Radio 3 at 9.15pm.
And we are also looking forward to hearing the Reverend Ian Paisley, one of the most prominent figures from Northern Ireland's history; he talks about his writings, his faith and his long and often controversial political career. Other speakers are Tony Benn on passing knowledge across the generations; Trevor Phillips on whether liberal democracies have all the answers; and a rare chance to hear the French intellectual Bernard-Henri Lévy.
Poet and broadcaster Ian McMillan will be hosting Radio 3's cabaret of the spoken word, The Verb. He'll be joined by the writer and comedian Alexei Sayle and this year's Free Thinking writer in residence, Angela Clarke, who has been exploring the generation gap. Free Thinking will look at the 21st-century Brain, The Value of Experience and Private Lives, Public Spaces: exploring how advances in neuroscience are questioning the way we think about ourselves; looking at the importance of age in a society where people are living longer whilst the gap between experience and outlook of the young and old seems to be growing ever wider; and examining at the meaning of public and private space today from the internet to the city.
There will be a special four-hour Free Thinking at 8.00pm on Sunday evening. As well as presenting lively conversation about the festival weekend it will include 24 Weeks, a specially commissioned drama on the subject of abortion by Tony Marchant, and a special edition of Words and Music on Shakespeare's The Seven Ages of Man with the Elias String Quartet, folk singer Belinda Sykes and rock/jazz percussionist Bill Bruford (formerly of Yes, Genesis and King Crimson) and leading British pianist Ashley Wass. It kicks off a week of evening programmes from the festival all beginning at 9.15pm, and special festival editions of Night Waves will continue until Christmas.
You may have noticed that we have been getting ready on Radio 3 for some time with our daily Free Thoughts broadcast on Breakfast and debated on Night Waves. These come from an astonishing range of contributors, and are a stimulating archive of audio ideas, which you can browse on demand. So do visit bbc.co.uk/freethinking, where you can find ways to participate, by commenting on the existing thoughts, uploading a photo of your free thinking space, and simply to find out more. And if you can join the Radio 3 team and contributors in Liverpool you are most welcome, and you can find details of events on the site. If not, I hope you will find this feast of thinking a stimulating listening experience on Radio 3. If you miss anything you will be able to catch up on http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3, where some of the talks will also be available as video.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/freethinking
Metropolitan Opera
And there's much music as ever to enjoy on the station. To mention just two events, on the final Saturday in November (29th), the new Metropolitan Opera season begins with a rarely-staged drama, Berlioz's epic contest between good and evil, The Damnation of Faust. It is the first of our many visits to New York, and the strong cast includes Susan Graham and Marcello Giordani, and the performance will be conducted by James Levine.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/schedule0809.shtml
London Jazz Festival
The annual London Jazz Festival also gets under way in November. This extraordinary rich feast of music starts with an eye-catching collaboration between the Britten Sinfonia, Joanna MacGregor, and the oud-player and vocalist Dhafer Youssef. It will certainly be an intriguing evening on November 18th.
http://www.londonjazzfestival.org.uk/
As always, you'll find details of all our broadcasts, iPlayer and other web features at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3. From next month my note will have a new format, making it easier for you to sample a variety of highlights that Radio 3 has to offer. I hope you like it. Do feel free to give us feedback about it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Sep. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
NEW SEASON
Fresh from its regular appearances at the Proms, the BBC Symphony Orchestra launches its new season at the Barbican this evening. Jiri Belohlavek directs the orchestra in a performance of Beethoven's monumental Missa Solemnis. There is a distinguished line up of soloists: the soprano Christine Brewer, who performed so memorably at the first night of the Proms, mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Semenchuk, tenor Paul Groves and bass Stephen Milling. Beethoven hoped that the work would speak directly to humanity, inscribing the score 'From the heart — may it go to the heart', and it seems to contrast divine glory with the insignificance of mankind. It's certainly a memorable start to the weekend, and another one of our new 'Live at 7' broadcasts.
Music News
The new series of Music Matters continues tomorrow at 12.15. Tom Service meets the conductor Andris Nelsons as the young Latvian takes over as Music Director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. His distinguished predecessors, Simon Rattle and Sakari Oramo, are indeed a hard act to follow and an exciting challenge for Nelsons. We continue with conductors by looking at a new life of Thomas Beecham, as author John Lucas presents new material on the conductor's private life. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00dmxzc
Kurdish Music
World Routes on Saturday afternoon at 15.00 regularly gives us the opportunity to hear output from little known musical worlds and tomorrow we have the chance to hear music of the Kurdish people. The performances are given by The Kamkars, a family ensemble from Iran, which performs arrangements of ancient Kurdish folk songs. The seven brothers and one sister play instruments ranging from the lute-like oud and setar, the Iranian hammered dulcimer and a type of frame drum. Their concert was given in the Barbican's Ramadan Nights which celebrated the diversity of Muslim cultures at the end of Ramadan. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drsyb
Composer of the Week
From Monday in our popular, long running series, we can hear Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara, who is 80 this month. His early experiences formed the basis for one of his best-known works, Cantus Arcticus, a concerto which uses recorded bird sounds and orchestra, evoking the far north, where his mother was born. You might have heard it played by the London Sinfonietta at this year's Proms. Orphaned during the Second World War, Rautavaara dedicated his composition, A Requiem in Our Time, to his mother, and it was this work which first developed his international reputation in 1954. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drwt4
Moving to warmer climes, presenter Donald Macleod has visited Venice in the footsteps of Monteverdi. In his forties, Monteverdi became maestro at the astonishing Byzantine jewel box, which is St Mark's Basilica in Venice. In Monday's programme we travel with him down the Grand Canal to the basilica, where he speaks to the vice maestro di cappella Justine Rapaccioli. The music comes from Monteverdi's epoch-making Vespers of the Blessed Virgin of 1610 and highly personal and intense Sixth Book of Madrigals. You can hear Monteverdi as Composer of the Week, starting on October 13th with its new repeat time at 10p.m. every weekday evening.
Drama on 3
On Sunday evening we follow the disturbing life of the radical philosopher Spinoza, still an influence on many modern thinkers. Michelene Wandor imagines a world in which Spinoza rubs shoulders with Rembrandt and one of Cromwell's diplomats George Downing. He was ostracised by his Jewish community due to his unorthodox views and never allowed back. Tulips in Winter explores the death of his father, a merchant; his new job as a lens grinder and a plot against him. Ben Meyjes plays Spinoza with Angela Pleasence as the Angel, Timothy Spall as Rembrandt and Gabriel Woolf as Spinoza's father. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drwby
Visualisation
You may remember our video streaming of Carmen from English National Opera. Well, we are still developing various visual ideas, and on 26th September we started a project to film some concerts with the BBC performing groups. You may have seen the opening video of the BBC Philharmonic's performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony last week. They are available on demand for seven days and the next one will be given by the BBC Concert Orchestra on the 29th of October – available online the following day. It's a programme of English Light Music with the violinist Tasmin Little as the soloist.
More highlights…
There's much more of course. If you developed a taste for Messiaen during the Proms, you can explore his influences starting on Monday afternoon in Afternoon on 3. Listen out too for the energetic pairing of the London Symphony Orchestra and Gergiev as they launch their Emigrés series, starting with a focus on Rachmaninov. On Tuesday evening that's followed by our October celebration of amateur orchestras, Play to the Nation. There is also a new London concert hall, Kings Place, and during the next week we are able to broadcast exclusively from the new venue, with contrasting concerts from their resident ensembles, the London Sinfonietta and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
As always, fulls details of all the boadcasts are available on our website – www.bbc.co.uk/radio3 – I hope you continue to enjoy what Radio 3 offers!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
NEW SEASON
Fresh from its regular appearances at the Proms, the BBC Symphony Orchestra launches its new season at the Barbican this evening. Jiri Belohlavek directs the orchestra in a performance of Beethoven's monumental Missa Solemnis. There is a distinguished line up of soloists: the soprano Christine Brewer, who performed so memorably at the first night of the Proms, mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Semenchuk, tenor Paul Groves and bass Stephen Milling. Beethoven hoped that the work would speak directly to humanity, inscribing the score 'From the heart — may it go to the heart', and it seems to contrast divine glory with the insignificance of mankind. It's certainly a memorable start to the weekend, and another one of our new 'Live at 7' broadcasts.
Music News
The new series of Music Matters continues tomorrow at 12.15. Tom Service meets the conductor Andris Nelsons as the young Latvian takes over as Music Director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. His distinguished predecessors, Simon Rattle and Sakari Oramo, are indeed a hard act to follow and an exciting challenge for Nelsons. We continue with conductors by looking at a new life of Thomas Beecham, as author John Lucas presents new material on the conductor's private life. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00dmxzc
Kurdish Music
World Routes on Saturday afternoon at 15.00 regularly gives us the opportunity to hear output from little known musical worlds and tomorrow we have the chance to hear music of the Kurdish people. The performances are given by The Kamkars, a family ensemble from Iran, which performs arrangements of ancient Kurdish folk songs. The seven brothers and one sister play instruments ranging from the lute-like oud and setar, the Iranian hammered dulcimer and a type of frame drum. Their concert was given in the Barbican's Ramadan Nights which celebrated the diversity of Muslim cultures at the end of Ramadan. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drsyb
Composer of the Week
From Monday in our popular, long running series, we can hear Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara, who is 80 this month. His early experiences formed the basis for one of his best-known works, Cantus Arcticus, a concerto which uses recorded bird sounds and orchestra, evoking the far north, where his mother was born. You might have heard it played by the London Sinfonietta at this year's Proms. Orphaned during the Second World War, Rautavaara dedicated his composition, A Requiem in Our Time, to his mother, and it was this work which first developed his international reputation in 1954. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drwt4
Moving to warmer climes, presenter Donald Macleod has visited Venice in the footsteps of Monteverdi. In his forties, Monteverdi became maestro at the astonishing Byzantine jewel box, which is St Mark's Basilica in Venice. In Monday's programme we travel with him down the Grand Canal to the basilica, where he speaks to the vice maestro di cappella Justine Rapaccioli. The music comes from Monteverdi's epoch-making Vespers of the Blessed Virgin of 1610 and highly personal and intense Sixth Book of Madrigals. You can hear Monteverdi as Composer of the Week, starting on October 13th with its new repeat time at 10p.m. every weekday evening.
Drama on 3
On Sunday evening we follow the disturbing life of the radical philosopher Spinoza, still an influence on many modern thinkers. Michelene Wandor imagines a world in which Spinoza rubs shoulders with Rembrandt and one of Cromwell's diplomats George Downing. He was ostracised by his Jewish community due to his unorthodox views and never allowed back. Tulips in Winter explores the death of his father, a merchant; his new job as a lens grinder and a plot against him. Ben Meyjes plays Spinoza with Angela Pleasence as the Angel, Timothy Spall as Rembrandt and Gabriel Woolf as Spinoza's father. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00drwby
Visualisation
You may remember our video streaming of Carmen from English National Opera. Well, we are still developing various visual ideas, and on 26th September we started a project to film some concerts with the BBC performing groups. You may have seen the opening video of the BBC Philharmonic's performance of Beethoven's 9th Symphony last week. They are available on demand for seven days and the next one will be given by the BBC Concert Orchestra on the 29th of October – available online the following day. It's a programme of English Light Music with the violinist Tasmin Little as the soloist.
More highlights…
There's much more of course. If you developed a taste for Messiaen during the Proms, you can explore his influences starting on Monday afternoon in Afternoon on 3. Listen out too for the energetic pairing of the London Symphony Orchestra and Gergiev as they launch their Emigrés series, starting with a focus on Rachmaninov. On Tuesday evening that's followed by our October celebration of amateur orchestras, Play to the Nation. There is also a new London concert hall, Kings Place, and during the next week we are able to broadcast exclusively from the new venue, with contrasting concerts from their resident ensembles, the London Sinfonietta and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
As always, fulls details of all the boadcasts are available on our website – www.bbc.co.uk/radio3 – I hope you continue to enjoy what Radio 3 offers!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Aug. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Having featured the Proms concerts prominently in the last two newsletters, I won't start with them on this occasion. However, I trust you have managed to enjoy many of the wonderful concerts during the summer.
Edinburgh
You may already have noticed the beginning of our Edinburgh coverage in our lunchtime concerts and the Early Music Show last weekend. Next week, we have lunchtime concerts from the Belcea Quartet, playing Bartok, as well as hearing the violinist Leonidas Kavakos and cellist Miska Maisky.
Once this year's Proms festival is over, we have Performance on 3 programmes which will give the chance to hear some of the leading musicians who have been visiting Scotland in the summer. We have Dimitri Hvorostovsky in Russian song, Les Arts Florissants performing French Baroque music, and as orchestral guests, the Budapest Festival Orchestra and the Dresden Staatskapelle. In addition, we have two oratorios, Handel's Israel in Egypt from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and our own BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, under Gennadi Rozhdestvensky, in Tippett's A Child of Our Time. And we also have two operas from the festival.
On September 20th, we are broadcasting Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny with a cast including Susan Bickley and Sir Willard White, directed by H.K. Gruber, and the following Saturday the Mariinsky Opera with Valery Gergiev in a critically acclaimed performance of Szymanowski's King Roger. These broadcasts end our coverage from UK Summer Festivals, which this year has taken us to Bath, Hay, Spitalfields, Wyastone, Aldeburgh, Mananan, St Magnus, York, Cheltenham, Brinkburn, and London. I hope you have been able to join us for some of the journey. The summer will live on throughout the year, since we have now a good store of recordings from festivals around Europe, which we have not been able to broadcast because of our own busy programme – we look forward to sharing them with you in the months to come.
Visit the Radio 3 Edinburgh Festival page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/festivaledinburgh.shtml
New Season
Our new season has plenty of exciting performances in store. From Manchester, we will be bringing you a live broadcast of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra's opening concert on September 26th, when it will be performing Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Berio's Formazioni, one of his most striking orchestral works, directed by Gianandrea Noseda.
The BBC Scottish Symphony, conducted by Ilan Volkov, will be starting its season with a voyage to other worlds in the UK premiere of Saariaho's Asteroid 4179: Toutatis and Holst's The Planets.
At the Wigmore Hall we start our renowned lunchtime concert series with one of the world's longest standing and most accomplished piano trios, the Kalichstein/Laredo/Robinson Trio, which will be including music by Beethoven in its concert on September 15th. The following week we have Angela Hewitt in Bach and Barber, together with a world premiere by Muldowney, and then a song recital by Kate Royal and Malcolm Martineau on the 29th. Visit the Wigmore Hall lunchtime concerts page at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/lunchtimeconcerts/
Proms
There is still plenty of fine music to come in the BBC proms season. Many of the concerts are very well sold, so queuing early or listening on Radio 3 may be your only chance to hear them. A few of the treats in store are:
Plenty to think about…
That's a veritable feast of music, and one which propels us into a busy autumn. So do enjoy it, and don't forget that with iPlayer everything is now available for a week from transmission. In addition, do look out for the growing amount of really stimulating material available on demand. You can hear the Proms Plus series of talks and lectures from the last week at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/plus.shtml, so if you enjoyed a concert and want to find out more, then that's the place.
At the same time, you may have caught our short and provocative thought-pieces during Breakfast, leading up to our next Festival of Ideas, Free Thinking. As usual it's being held in Liverpool, the European Capital of Culture, and you can hear them every morning just after 8.30am. The speakers include a diverse range of figures from across the UK, offering their personal cultural thoughts for the day. This month's Free Thinkers include the neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield, Barbican director Sir Nicholas Kenyon, the playwright Roy Williams, and Justin Welby, Dean of Liverpool Cathedral. You can find them at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/2008/free-thought/.
I have found them really stimulating and recommend them to you as an engaging two minutes, which will stay with you for the rest of the day!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
Having featured the Proms concerts prominently in the last two newsletters, I won't start with them on this occasion. However, I trust you have managed to enjoy many of the wonderful concerts during the summer.
Edinburgh
You may already have noticed the beginning of our Edinburgh coverage in our lunchtime concerts and the Early Music Show last weekend. Next week, we have lunchtime concerts from the Belcea Quartet, playing Bartok, as well as hearing the violinist Leonidas Kavakos and cellist Miska Maisky.
Once this year's Proms festival is over, we have Performance on 3 programmes which will give the chance to hear some of the leading musicians who have been visiting Scotland in the summer. We have Dimitri Hvorostovsky in Russian song, Les Arts Florissants performing French Baroque music, and as orchestral guests, the Budapest Festival Orchestra and the Dresden Staatskapelle. In addition, we have two oratorios, Handel's Israel in Egypt from the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and our own BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, under Gennadi Rozhdestvensky, in Tippett's A Child of Our Time. And we also have two operas from the festival.
On September 20th, we are broadcasting Weill's Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny with a cast including Susan Bickley and Sir Willard White, directed by H.K. Gruber, and the following Saturday the Mariinsky Opera with Valery Gergiev in a critically acclaimed performance of Szymanowski's King Roger. These broadcasts end our coverage from UK Summer Festivals, which this year has taken us to Bath, Hay, Spitalfields, Wyastone, Aldeburgh, Mananan, St Magnus, York, Cheltenham, Brinkburn, and London. I hope you have been able to join us for some of the journey. The summer will live on throughout the year, since we have now a good store of recordings from festivals around Europe, which we have not been able to broadcast because of our own busy programme – we look forward to sharing them with you in the months to come.
Visit the Radio 3 Edinburgh Festival page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/festivaledinburgh.shtml
New Season
Our new season has plenty of exciting performances in store. From Manchester, we will be bringing you a live broadcast of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra's opening concert on September 26th, when it will be performing Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Berio's Formazioni, one of his most striking orchestral works, directed by Gianandrea Noseda.
The BBC Scottish Symphony, conducted by Ilan Volkov, will be starting its season with a voyage to other worlds in the UK premiere of Saariaho's Asteroid 4179: Toutatis and Holst's The Planets.
At the Wigmore Hall we start our renowned lunchtime concert series with one of the world's longest standing and most accomplished piano trios, the Kalichstein/Laredo/Robinson Trio, which will be including music by Beethoven in its concert on September 15th. The following week we have Angela Hewitt in Bach and Barber, together with a world premiere by Muldowney, and then a song recital by Kate Royal and Malcolm Martineau on the 29th. Visit the Wigmore Hall lunchtime concerts page at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/lunchtimeconcerts/
Proms
There is still plenty of fine music to come in the BBC proms season. Many of the concerts are very well sold, so queuing early or listening on Radio 3 may be your only chance to hear them. A few of the treats in store are:
- A piano recital by Lang Lang (August 31)
- A performance of Verdi's Requiem, with Violeta Urmana (August 31)
- The BBC Singers putting Messiaen and his beloved Indian music side by side (September 1)
- In a climax to our Messiaen celebrations, Turangalila with Berlin Philhamonic and Rattle (September 2), and his Quartet for the End of Time (September 4), and the epic opera on the life of St Francis (September 7)
- The rare opera Kashchey the Immortal by Rimsky Korsakov (September 5)
- From abroad, the Chicago Symphony under Haitink (September 8/9) and the Orchestre de Paris under Eschenbach (September 11)
- And finally the Last Night, conducted by Sir Roger Norrington and Hélène Grimaud and Bryn Terfel as soloists, and a new work by Anna Meredith. (September 13)
Plenty to think about…
That's a veritable feast of music, and one which propels us into a busy autumn. So do enjoy it, and don't forget that with iPlayer everything is now available for a week from transmission. In addition, do look out for the growing amount of really stimulating material available on demand. You can hear the Proms Plus series of talks and lectures from the last week at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/plus.shtml, so if you enjoyed a concert and want to find out more, then that's the place.
At the same time, you may have caught our short and provocative thought-pieces during Breakfast, leading up to our next Festival of Ideas, Free Thinking. As usual it's being held in Liverpool, the European Capital of Culture, and you can hear them every morning just after 8.30am. The speakers include a diverse range of figures from across the UK, offering their personal cultural thoughts for the day. This month's Free Thinkers include the neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield, Barbican director Sir Nicholas Kenyon, the playwright Roy Williams, and Justin Welby, Dean of Liverpool Cathedral. You can find them at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/2008/free-thought/.
I have found them really stimulating and recommend them to you as an engaging two minutes, which will stay with you for the rest of the day!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Aug. 2008
Dear All
BBC Proms
The Proms are now up and running, and I hope you have had the chance to enjoy some of the great music making throughout the first weeks. Apart from the concerts themselves, there has been a strong festival atmosphere throughout the folk day, the literary festival, and the other Proms Plus events – talks, discussions and interviews every evening.
In a new development this year, these extras are all available on demand throughout the season and we hope that they enhance your enjoyment of the Proms. Visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/plus.shtml to see what is available; of course, the list of programmes will grow on a daily basis!
The BBC Radio 3 Proms website is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms
Composers
During August, we have two contrasting special days, focussing on the music of Stockhausen (August 2nd) and Bach (August 24th).
These give us the chance to immerse ourselves in the works of a single composer. Stockhausen did not live to celebrate his 80th birthday, and so we will be remembering his achievement his year with a rare opportunity to hear some ambitious works, including the memorable early scores, Gruppen and Kontakte. There is also the opportunity to hear some of his last work, parts of his large-scale sequence Klang – and it will be splendid to hear Stockhausen in the extraordinary space of the Royal Albert Hall. Thinking of the meditative and serene atmosphere we had the other evening with the Tallis Scholars, I am particularly looking forward to hearing Stockhausen's Stimmung as it unfolds hypnotically over a single chord. This performance by the Theatre of Voices should be a really unforgettable experience.
Stockhausen Day at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0208.shtml
Three weeks later, and three hundred years earlier, we celebrate the work of Bach in a day (August 24th) dedicated specifically to his music: we have an organ recital from Simon Preston, using the restored instrument which sounded so spectacular on the first night; a performance of the St John Passion directed by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, and finally late night, three cello suites with Jian Wang.
Bach Day at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2408.shtml
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Vaughan Williams, and on the actual anniversary (26th) we have a complete concert dedicated to his work from the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Sir Andrew Davis; this includes the much-loved Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis, along with Job, the Serenade to Music, and the Symphony no. 6. Listen out also on August 12th for a rare performance of his Piano Concerto with Ashley Wass as soloist with the BBC Philharmonic.
Vaughan Williams Anniversary at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2608.shtml
Jazz
The other evening we were able to hear Nigel Kennedy's late night jazz, as well as – of course – his stunning performance of the Elgar violin concerto. On August 9th, the Proms returns to a jazz theme, including a work by our first Radio 3 New Generation jazz Artist, pianist and composer, Gwilym Simcock. Together with the BBC Concert Orchestra, he will be giving the premiere of one of this year's Proms commissions, his piano concerto Progressions. There's also music by Jason Yarde, Stravinsky, Gershwin and Bernstein.
BBC Concert Orchestra Prom is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0908.shtml
Opera
We have three rarely heard one-act operas in this year's festival. On August 11th, the Prom features the BBC Philharmonic and BBC Singers in Puccini's Il Tabarro, the first panel of Il trittico, reflecting a particular interest of the orchestra's chief conductor, Gianandrea Noseda.
Puccini's Il Tabarro is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/1108.shtml#prom34
Leoš Janácèk died 80 years ago in 1928, and he is celebrated with a concert performance of the opera Osud (21st August); this swift-moving opera – with a melodramatic plot involving unmarried motherhood, suicide, murder and madness – was not performed for three decades after its composer's death and contains inspired and captivating music.
Leoš Janácèk – Osud is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2108.shtml#prom47
The BBC Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Janácèk's compatriot Jiøí Bìlohlávek. Finally, on September 5th, 100 years after his death, Rimsky-Korsakov's music is heard in his rarely performed one-act opera about the evil wizard, Kashchey The Immortal.
Rimsky-Korsakov's – The Immortal is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0509.shtml#prom68
Interviews
Alongside the Proms themselves, we have our annual series of interviews with Norman Lebrecht. Once again there is a wonderful line-up, providing insights into the lives and artistic influences on some of the leading figures in the musical world. German mezzo-soprano, Brigitte Fassbaender was also one of the foremost concert and Lieder singers of her day. On August 4th she talks to Norman Lebrecht about growing up in wartime Germany, the great conductors she worked with, and her current activity as a theatre and opera director in Innsbruck.
The following week, we hear Sir Peter Jonas, former director of English National Opera and Bavarian State Opera, talking about the challenges of working with such companies. We then hear from Antonio Pappano, Music Director for of the Royal Opera House, who was born in London of Italian descent, and worked as Daniel Barenboim's assistant at Bayreuth. On the 25th, the conductor Christoph von Dohnanyi shares his story; he comes from an intriguing family, which includes not only the composer and pianist Erno von Dohnanyi, but also the pastor and philosopher Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
The Lebrecht Interviews are at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/lebrechtinterview/
Unmissable
Don't forget that you should not have to miss any of the Proms, as they are on demand for seven days on the BBC iPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/bbc_radio_three. Many of you have found them already, since they are being accessed frequently, but if you have not listened this way, I am sure you will find it convenient and simple to use. And to keep in touch with us, you can use the Proms mailing list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/interactandreviews/mailinglist/ or textclub at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/promsbroadcasts/mobile.shtml.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
BBC Proms
The Proms are now up and running, and I hope you have had the chance to enjoy some of the great music making throughout the first weeks. Apart from the concerts themselves, there has been a strong festival atmosphere throughout the folk day, the literary festival, and the other Proms Plus events – talks, discussions and interviews every evening.
In a new development this year, these extras are all available on demand throughout the season and we hope that they enhance your enjoyment of the Proms. Visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/plus.shtml to see what is available; of course, the list of programmes will grow on a daily basis!
The BBC Radio 3 Proms website is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms
Composers
During August, we have two contrasting special days, focussing on the music of Stockhausen (August 2nd) and Bach (August 24th).
These give us the chance to immerse ourselves in the works of a single composer. Stockhausen did not live to celebrate his 80th birthday, and so we will be remembering his achievement his year with a rare opportunity to hear some ambitious works, including the memorable early scores, Gruppen and Kontakte. There is also the opportunity to hear some of his last work, parts of his large-scale sequence Klang – and it will be splendid to hear Stockhausen in the extraordinary space of the Royal Albert Hall. Thinking of the meditative and serene atmosphere we had the other evening with the Tallis Scholars, I am particularly looking forward to hearing Stockhausen's Stimmung as it unfolds hypnotically over a single chord. This performance by the Theatre of Voices should be a really unforgettable experience.
Stockhausen Day at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0208.shtml
Three weeks later, and three hundred years earlier, we celebrate the work of Bach in a day (August 24th) dedicated specifically to his music: we have an organ recital from Simon Preston, using the restored instrument which sounded so spectacular on the first night; a performance of the St John Passion directed by Sir John Eliot Gardiner, and finally late night, three cello suites with Jian Wang.
Bach Day at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2408.shtml
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Vaughan Williams, and on the actual anniversary (26th) we have a complete concert dedicated to his work from the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Sir Andrew Davis; this includes the much-loved Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis, along with Job, the Serenade to Music, and the Symphony no. 6. Listen out also on August 12th for a rare performance of his Piano Concerto with Ashley Wass as soloist with the BBC Philharmonic.
Vaughan Williams Anniversary at the Proms is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2608.shtml
Jazz
The other evening we were able to hear Nigel Kennedy's late night jazz, as well as – of course – his stunning performance of the Elgar violin concerto. On August 9th, the Proms returns to a jazz theme, including a work by our first Radio 3 New Generation jazz Artist, pianist and composer, Gwilym Simcock. Together with the BBC Concert Orchestra, he will be giving the premiere of one of this year's Proms commissions, his piano concerto Progressions. There's also music by Jason Yarde, Stravinsky, Gershwin and Bernstein.
BBC Concert Orchestra Prom is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0908.shtml
Opera
We have three rarely heard one-act operas in this year's festival. On August 11th, the Prom features the BBC Philharmonic and BBC Singers in Puccini's Il Tabarro, the first panel of Il trittico, reflecting a particular interest of the orchestra's chief conductor, Gianandrea Noseda.
Puccini's Il Tabarro is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/1108.shtml#prom34
Leoš Janácèk died 80 years ago in 1928, and he is celebrated with a concert performance of the opera Osud (21st August); this swift-moving opera – with a melodramatic plot involving unmarried motherhood, suicide, murder and madness – was not performed for three decades after its composer's death and contains inspired and captivating music.
Leoš Janácèk – Osud is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/2108.shtml#prom47
The BBC Symphony Orchestra is conducted by Janácèk's compatriot Jiøí Bìlohlávek. Finally, on September 5th, 100 years after his death, Rimsky-Korsakov's music is heard in his rarely performed one-act opera about the evil wizard, Kashchey The Immortal.
Rimsky-Korsakov's – The Immortal is at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/whatson/0509.shtml#prom68
Interviews
Alongside the Proms themselves, we have our annual series of interviews with Norman Lebrecht. Once again there is a wonderful line-up, providing insights into the lives and artistic influences on some of the leading figures in the musical world. German mezzo-soprano, Brigitte Fassbaender was also one of the foremost concert and Lieder singers of her day. On August 4th she talks to Norman Lebrecht about growing up in wartime Germany, the great conductors she worked with, and her current activity as a theatre and opera director in Innsbruck.
The following week, we hear Sir Peter Jonas, former director of English National Opera and Bavarian State Opera, talking about the challenges of working with such companies. We then hear from Antonio Pappano, Music Director for of the Royal Opera House, who was born in London of Italian descent, and worked as Daniel Barenboim's assistant at Bayreuth. On the 25th, the conductor Christoph von Dohnanyi shares his story; he comes from an intriguing family, which includes not only the composer and pianist Erno von Dohnanyi, but also the pastor and philosopher Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
The Lebrecht Interviews are at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/lebrechtinterview/
Unmissable
Don't forget that you should not have to miss any of the Proms, as they are on demand for seven days on the BBC iPlayer at http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/bbc_radio_three. Many of you have found them already, since they are being accessed frequently, but if you have not listened this way, I am sure you will find it convenient and simple to use. And to keep in touch with us, you can use the Proms mailing list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/interactandreviews/mailinglist/ or textclub at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2008/promsbroadcasts/mobile.shtml.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Jul. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
The festival season continues on Radio 3, and during July we shall be visiting York, Cheltenham and Womad. It promises to be another varied month and I hope you are enjoying the festival spirit on the station.
The art of interpretation is one of the most important elements of our programming. Programmes like CD Review and Classical Collection remind us that the performer of a work is vital to our understanding, and this also influences the choices we make in broadcasting. So it is good to be able to examine the work of one artist in more detail. This month we look back at the great achievement of the conductor Herbert von Karajan, born 100 years ago. For some he was a controversial figure, for others a musical and business powerhouse whose like we may never see again. Inevitably, though, the second half of the month will be dominated by the BBC Proms.
BBC PROMS
The 2008 Proms will be a particular pleasure for me, since it is my first year as Director and I am looking forward to it enormously. There will be more events than ever: 76 concerts in the Royal Albert Hall, eight at Cadogan Hall and, four Proms in the Park around the UK on the Last Night. Radio 3 listeners can of course hear every concert live on BBC Radio 3, including online via the BBC iPlayer, and on demand up to seven days later. We have also enriched the Radio 3 offering with a new series entitled Proms Plus, including talks, interviews and discussions, and developed the Proms experience for listeners both on the station and though rich new online content. Across the summer we have some special festival days encapsulating the vast range of the Proms: a Folk Day, a Stockhausen Day and Bach Day. And the Folk Day (20th) — related to the Vaughan Williams anniversary — will include the first free Prom in the Royal Albert Hall, featuring among other performers, the London Sinfonietta. We are also launching a new Sunday afternoon series featuring four organ recitals and a piano recital by Lang Lang.
COMPOSERS
2008 marks the anniversary of four major composers: 50 years since the death of Ralph Vaughan Williams, the centenaries of both Olivier Messiaen and Elliott Carter and the 80th anniversary of Karlheinz Stockhausen, who died last year. Vaughan Williams died in 1958, so we will some focus on that year in which, incidentally, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop was founded. Its most famous output was the evocative theme tune to a well-known science fiction drama — and so there will be a Dr Who Prom!
There is a particular emphasis on British music, allowing us to hear Vaughan Williams's music in context together with works by his teachers, friends and fellow students and pupils, including George Butterworth, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Gerald Finzi, Gustav Holst, Charles Stanford and Grace Williams. As always, the Proms contains many new works, including eleven BBC commissions and a further nine UK premieres. The eleven BBC commissions and nine UK premieres will include: Michael Berkeley, Chen Yi, Anna Meredith, Gwilym Simcock, Karlheinz Stockhausen, (world premieres) and Elliott Carter, Jonathan Harvey, Magnus Lindberg, Sir John Tavener and Mark-Anthony Turnage (UK premieres). There will also be the chance to hear concert performances of three rarely-heard short operas: Puccini's Il tabarro, Janácek's Osud and Rimsky-Korsakov's Kashchey the Immortal.
ARTISTS
The Proms provides a unique opportunity to hear the world's leading orchestras in close succession, so that we can compare and contrast their performances and styles. This year guests include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Bernard Haitink, the Berliner Philharmoniker with Sir Simon Rattle, the New York Philharmonic with Lorin Maazel and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra with Gustavo Dudamel. Many fine artists are performing from around the world, but it is worth mention that both Murray Perahia and Nigel Kennedy are returning to the Proms after absences of more than twenty years. Our ten Late Night Proms are another remarkably varied group of concerts, with that special Royal Albert Hall, end-of-day atmosphere. These feature the Tallis Scholars, The King's Singers, Nigel Kennedy and his quintet NKQ, the London Sinfonietta, Daniel Barenboim and members of his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Jian Wang.
THE FIRST WEEKS
Well, that was the overview… It all starts on July 18th with a concert presenting the season, including the Messiaen and Carter themes, and with some soloists who will feature in the season, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Nicholas Daniel and Wayne Marshall, and there is a special bonus in welcoming Karita Mattila who will perform the Four Last Songs by Strauss. And for this opening concert the BBC Symphony Orchestra is directed by its Chief Conductor Jirí Belohlávek.
What to look out for in July? This question is even more difficult for me than usual, but special moments will inevitably be Nigel Kennedy's return to the Proms (19th), the Folk Day (20th), the special atmosphere of the late-night Tallis Scholars (22nd), Messiaen's La Transfiguration with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (27th), and for the first time the annual concert given by the winners of the Awards for World Music as part of the Proms (30th). It's going to be a summer to remember, and I hope you can join us at Radio 3 for what is regarded as the world's largest classical music festival — live on radio, over the internet, on demand, or maybe even in the Royal Albert Hall!
www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
www.bbc.co.uk/proms
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
The festival season continues on Radio 3, and during July we shall be visiting York, Cheltenham and Womad. It promises to be another varied month and I hope you are enjoying the festival spirit on the station.
The art of interpretation is one of the most important elements of our programming. Programmes like CD Review and Classical Collection remind us that the performer of a work is vital to our understanding, and this also influences the choices we make in broadcasting. So it is good to be able to examine the work of one artist in more detail. This month we look back at the great achievement of the conductor Herbert von Karajan, born 100 years ago. For some he was a controversial figure, for others a musical and business powerhouse whose like we may never see again. Inevitably, though, the second half of the month will be dominated by the BBC Proms.
BBC PROMS
The 2008 Proms will be a particular pleasure for me, since it is my first year as Director and I am looking forward to it enormously. There will be more events than ever: 76 concerts in the Royal Albert Hall, eight at Cadogan Hall and, four Proms in the Park around the UK on the Last Night. Radio 3 listeners can of course hear every concert live on BBC Radio 3, including online via the BBC iPlayer, and on demand up to seven days later. We have also enriched the Radio 3 offering with a new series entitled Proms Plus, including talks, interviews and discussions, and developed the Proms experience for listeners both on the station and though rich new online content. Across the summer we have some special festival days encapsulating the vast range of the Proms: a Folk Day, a Stockhausen Day and Bach Day. And the Folk Day (20th) — related to the Vaughan Williams anniversary — will include the first free Prom in the Royal Albert Hall, featuring among other performers, the London Sinfonietta. We are also launching a new Sunday afternoon series featuring four organ recitals and a piano recital by Lang Lang.
COMPOSERS
2008 marks the anniversary of four major composers: 50 years since the death of Ralph Vaughan Williams, the centenaries of both Olivier Messiaen and Elliott Carter and the 80th anniversary of Karlheinz Stockhausen, who died last year. Vaughan Williams died in 1958, so we will some focus on that year in which, incidentally, the BBC Radiophonic Workshop was founded. Its most famous output was the evocative theme tune to a well-known science fiction drama — and so there will be a Dr Who Prom!
There is a particular emphasis on British music, allowing us to hear Vaughan Williams's music in context together with works by his teachers, friends and fellow students and pupils, including George Butterworth, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Gerald Finzi, Gustav Holst, Charles Stanford and Grace Williams. As always, the Proms contains many new works, including eleven BBC commissions and a further nine UK premieres. The eleven BBC commissions and nine UK premieres will include: Michael Berkeley, Chen Yi, Anna Meredith, Gwilym Simcock, Karlheinz Stockhausen, (world premieres) and Elliott Carter, Jonathan Harvey, Magnus Lindberg, Sir John Tavener and Mark-Anthony Turnage (UK premieres). There will also be the chance to hear concert performances of three rarely-heard short operas: Puccini's Il tabarro, Janácek's Osud and Rimsky-Korsakov's Kashchey the Immortal.
ARTISTS
The Proms provides a unique opportunity to hear the world's leading orchestras in close succession, so that we can compare and contrast their performances and styles. This year guests include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with Bernard Haitink, the Berliner Philharmoniker with Sir Simon Rattle, the New York Philharmonic with Lorin Maazel and the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra with Gustavo Dudamel. Many fine artists are performing from around the world, but it is worth mention that both Murray Perahia and Nigel Kennedy are returning to the Proms after absences of more than twenty years. Our ten Late Night Proms are another remarkably varied group of concerts, with that special Royal Albert Hall, end-of-day atmosphere. These feature the Tallis Scholars, The King's Singers, Nigel Kennedy and his quintet NKQ, the London Sinfonietta, Daniel Barenboim and members of his West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and Jian Wang.
THE FIRST WEEKS
Well, that was the overview… It all starts on July 18th with a concert presenting the season, including the Messiaen and Carter themes, and with some soloists who will feature in the season, Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Nicholas Daniel and Wayne Marshall, and there is a special bonus in welcoming Karita Mattila who will perform the Four Last Songs by Strauss. And for this opening concert the BBC Symphony Orchestra is directed by its Chief Conductor Jirí Belohlávek.
What to look out for in July? This question is even more difficult for me than usual, but special moments will inevitably be Nigel Kennedy's return to the Proms (19th), the Folk Day (20th), the special atmosphere of the late-night Tallis Scholars (22nd), Messiaen's La Transfiguration with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales (27th), and for the first time the annual concert given by the winners of the Awards for World Music as part of the Proms (30th). It's going to be a summer to remember, and I hope you can join us at Radio 3 for what is regarded as the world's largest classical music festival — live on radio, over the internet, on demand, or maybe even in the Royal Albert Hall!
www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
www.bbc.co.uk/proms
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Jun. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
FOCUS ON CHINA
For many reasons, China has featured in our consciousness over the past months. So it seemed a good moment to focus on the culture of this still largely unknown country, home to around one in five of the world's population. Between June 15-26th, we are presenting Focus on China, a unique view of the country experienced in villages and urban settings. We have an overview of classical music, as Petroc Trelawny travelled to Beijing for Music Matters (14th). There is a considerable revival of interest, as parents introduce their children to classical instruments – a far cry from the attempt to eradicate it during the Cultural Revolution. An extraordinary, related story is presented in the Sunday Feature: Rhapsody in Red (15th), as Petroc visits the Pearl River Piano Factory in Guangzhou, the world's largest manufacturer of pianos. He investigates the popularity of the piano, and discovers that millions of Chinese children are now learning the instrument.
For World Routes Lucy Duran travelled to two remote regions, the far south west to visit the Yi and Hani minorities in the mountains near Vietnam, Laos and Burma, where instruments are made from grass and accompany songs from the world's most spectacular paddy fields. She then travels to China's largest province Xinjiang, remote deserts bordering Mongolia, Russia and Afghanistan, to meet and record the music of the Uyghur people.
Hear and Now finds itself in a more urban setting for two City Reports. In Shanghai, Robert Worby explores electronic music, experiencing the underground 'noise' scene. In Beijing, he attends a concert devised for Hear and Now by the Beijing New Music Ensemble, featuring music from three generations: from Gao Weijie, part of the 'lost generation' who went underground, to Zhang Shouwang, a young composer inspired by the incessant rhythms of Beijing traffic.
Night Waves will consider the state of the media in modern China, and exploring the influence of government on the news agenda. Isabel Hilton talks to journalists, editors and academics about the media scenes, while Philip Dodd speaks to the key Chinese opinions formers.
Performance on 3 broadcasts a concert recorded in Beijing by the China Philharmonic Orchestra, including a new piece – extremely popular in China – based around the life of a Chinese businessman during the Boxer Rebellion.
THE MINOTAUR
In addition to China, we have a rich and wide-ranging programme to enjoy this month. Harrison Birtwistle's The Minotaur has been much discussed and reviewed, and tomorrow evening is your chance to hear it (May 31st). This is the latest opera by Birtwistle and features the larger-than-life, mythical creature. Is the Minotaur man or beast? The ambiguity interested Birtwistle and his librettist David Harsent, and the result is an extraordinary piece of musical theatre. John Tomlinson takes the title role, with the Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera conducted by Antonio Pappano. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/pip/au6ab/
THE SOFT MACHINE
And the following evening (1st June), we once again consider the human condition, this time the physical aspect, as Words and Music turns its attention to the body – a 'soft machine' of dazzling complexity. Human fascination and frustration with the flesh has often found expression in music and literature. We hear from Whitman, Homer and Auden, as well as Seamus Heaney, Vicki Feaver and Ezra Pound. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/wordsandmusic/pip/6sc62/
BATTLE OF STYLES
One of the big musical debates of the 18th century concerned the superiority of the French or Italian musical styles. We have the chance to judge for ourselves starting on Monday, when François Couperin is Composer of the Week, and we are celebrating the music of Venice in the afternoons. Coming from a long dynasty of musicians, François was known as Couperin le Grand, and the programmes take us through his keyboard and choral music.
Afternoon on 3 features four centuries of Venetian music: Monteverdi, arias premiered at La Fenice, the marriage of Venice to the Adriatic Sea, and much more besides.
Sir John Eliot Gardiner has done a great deal for Venetian music, indeed his Monteverdi Choir was founded in 1964 to perform Monteverdi Vespers in King's College Chapel, Cambridge. He joins Aled Jones on The Choir (8th) to talk about the Choir's activities, including its epic performances of Bach's sacred cantatas across Europe.
FESTIVALS
The Bath International Music Festival turns 60 this year, and starting on June 3rd we are presenting four lunchtime concerts recorded in the city's Assembly Rooms, the first of which features the Alison Balsom Ensemble. It's a colourful programme, taking us from the Italian Baroque to the dance halls of South America. Later in the month (starting on 20th), we hear from Aldeburgh and from the City of London Festival, where twelve concerts will be devoted to New Generation Artists such as the Aronowitz Ensemble, the Pavel Haas Quartet and Gwilym Simcock. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/index.shtml
STARING AT THE WALL
Between The Ears on Saturday 7th June gives us an unusual sound picture, far removed from the pleasures of summer festivals. It centres on Pentonville Prison which is surrounded by local-authority flats, private homes, factories, pubs and cafés. Using long-range microphones to capture effects from within the walls and close-held microphones to interview those who live outside and pass by the prison, Alan Dein captures the sounds and thoughts of everyday life just outside the walls. One inmate was born close to London's Pentonville Prison: lying inside his cell, he would hear noises that he recognised – including, the footsteps of his girlfriend coming home. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/betweentheears/
I hope you enjoy the range of this month's programmes on Radio 3 and thank you for your continued interest. You can find full details of all Radio 3's progrrammes [SIC], as always, at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
FOCUS ON CHINA
For many reasons, China has featured in our consciousness over the past months. So it seemed a good moment to focus on the culture of this still largely unknown country, home to around one in five of the world's population. Between June 15-26th, we are presenting Focus on China, a unique view of the country experienced in villages and urban settings. We have an overview of classical music, as Petroc Trelawny travelled to Beijing for Music Matters (14th). There is a considerable revival of interest, as parents introduce their children to classical instruments – a far cry from the attempt to eradicate it during the Cultural Revolution. An extraordinary, related story is presented in the Sunday Feature: Rhapsody in Red (15th), as Petroc visits the Pearl River Piano Factory in Guangzhou, the world's largest manufacturer of pianos. He investigates the popularity of the piano, and discovers that millions of Chinese children are now learning the instrument.
For World Routes Lucy Duran travelled to two remote regions, the far south west to visit the Yi and Hani minorities in the mountains near Vietnam, Laos and Burma, where instruments are made from grass and accompany songs from the world's most spectacular paddy fields. She then travels to China's largest province Xinjiang, remote deserts bordering Mongolia, Russia and Afghanistan, to meet and record the music of the Uyghur people.
Hear and Now finds itself in a more urban setting for two City Reports. In Shanghai, Robert Worby explores electronic music, experiencing the underground 'noise' scene. In Beijing, he attends a concert devised for Hear and Now by the Beijing New Music Ensemble, featuring music from three generations: from Gao Weijie, part of the 'lost generation' who went underground, to Zhang Shouwang, a young composer inspired by the incessant rhythms of Beijing traffic.
Night Waves will consider the state of the media in modern China, and exploring the influence of government on the news agenda. Isabel Hilton talks to journalists, editors and academics about the media scenes, while Philip Dodd speaks to the key Chinese opinions formers.
Performance on 3 broadcasts a concert recorded in Beijing by the China Philharmonic Orchestra, including a new piece – extremely popular in China – based around the life of a Chinese businessman during the Boxer Rebellion.
THE MINOTAUR
In addition to China, we have a rich and wide-ranging programme to enjoy this month. Harrison Birtwistle's The Minotaur has been much discussed and reviewed, and tomorrow evening is your chance to hear it (May 31st). This is the latest opera by Birtwistle and features the larger-than-life, mythical creature. Is the Minotaur man or beast? The ambiguity interested Birtwistle and his librettist David Harsent, and the result is an extraordinary piece of musical theatre. John Tomlinson takes the title role, with the Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera conducted by Antonio Pappano. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/pip/au6ab/
THE SOFT MACHINE
And the following evening (1st June), we once again consider the human condition, this time the physical aspect, as Words and Music turns its attention to the body – a 'soft machine' of dazzling complexity. Human fascination and frustration with the flesh has often found expression in music and literature. We hear from Whitman, Homer and Auden, as well as Seamus Heaney, Vicki Feaver and Ezra Pound. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/wordsandmusic/pip/6sc62/
BATTLE OF STYLES
One of the big musical debates of the 18th century concerned the superiority of the French or Italian musical styles. We have the chance to judge for ourselves starting on Monday, when François Couperin is Composer of the Week, and we are celebrating the music of Venice in the afternoons. Coming from a long dynasty of musicians, François was known as Couperin le Grand, and the programmes take us through his keyboard and choral music.
Afternoon on 3 features four centuries of Venetian music: Monteverdi, arias premiered at La Fenice, the marriage of Venice to the Adriatic Sea, and much more besides.
Sir John Eliot Gardiner has done a great deal for Venetian music, indeed his Monteverdi Choir was founded in 1964 to perform Monteverdi Vespers in King's College Chapel, Cambridge. He joins Aled Jones on The Choir (8th) to talk about the Choir's activities, including its epic performances of Bach's sacred cantatas across Europe.
FESTIVALS
The Bath International Music Festival turns 60 this year, and starting on June 3rd we are presenting four lunchtime concerts recorded in the city's Assembly Rooms, the first of which features the Alison Balsom Ensemble. It's a colourful programme, taking us from the Italian Baroque to the dance halls of South America. Later in the month (starting on 20th), we hear from Aldeburgh and from the City of London Festival, where twelve concerts will be devoted to New Generation Artists such as the Aronowitz Ensemble, the Pavel Haas Quartet and Gwilym Simcock. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/index.shtml
STARING AT THE WALL
Between The Ears on Saturday 7th June gives us an unusual sound picture, far removed from the pleasures of summer festivals. It centres on Pentonville Prison which is surrounded by local-authority flats, private homes, factories, pubs and cafés. Using long-range microphones to capture effects from within the walls and close-held microphones to interview those who live outside and pass by the prison, Alan Dein captures the sounds and thoughts of everyday life just outside the walls. One inmate was born close to London's Pentonville Prison: lying inside his cell, he would hear noises that he recognised – including, the footsteps of his girlfriend coming home. For more details go to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/betweentheears/
I hope you enjoy the range of this month's programmes on Radio 3 and thank you for your continued interest. You can find full details of all Radio 3's progrrammes [SIC], as always, at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, May 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
There's one main theme to my monthly note for May as we're looking forward to another of our composer 'experiences', this time immersing ourselves in the world of Frédéric Chopin. Following Beethoven, Bach, Webern, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky, it is now the turn of the great Polish composer for this comprehensive treatment.
Given the relatively modest dimensions of Chopin's output, it will only last for an intense two days. So The Chopin Experience takes place this coming weekend, 17 and 18 May. In the build-up to the weekend, Chopin has been our Composer of the Week. Like all editions of Composer of the Week, this will be available as a podcast, lasting about a hour and creating a perfect introduction to Chopin's life story.
Rather than abandoning our normal schedule, Chopin runs as the theme throughout our regular programmes. Tomorrow morning (17th) CD Review will focus on Chopin interpretation, concentrating on the Second Piano Sonata in Building a Library. We will hear the pianos played and owned by Chopin on The Early Music Show, while Discovering Music looks at how his four Ballades achieve their musical effect. Iain Burnside's Sunday morning show focuses on Paris, the city in which Chopin received some of his greatest acclaim. Our Breakfast programme will set some of Chopin's greatest works alongside music by composers influenced by him. We will be broadcasting the greatest Chopin recordings, including those by Alfred Cortot, Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Ignaz Friedman and Krystian Zimerman.
Two areas of Chopin's work will be broadcast as uninterrupted sequences with different performers: the 24 Preludes take us through a century of recorded Chopin, while the 24 Etudes feature the same number of leading interpreters. Tomorrow lunchtime, Music Matters will visit Warsaw to discover Chopin's legacy in his homeland.
Complementing the main dishes in this feast of Chopin, World Routes talks to Polish musicians who are keeping alive some of the Polish folk traditions, and Jazz Line-Up invites jazz artists to improvise on Chopin. The Nocturnes are a late-night gift to our programmers and to us all Saturday evening; Sarah Walker will present the cycle and travel to Majorca to explore the locations where Chopin and George Sand's romantic break turned sour in a stark and cold disused monastery. Rob Cowan is hosting his own Chopin Salon tomorrow evening. Joining Rob are Tamás Vásáry, Stephen Kovacevich, the critic and commentator Dermot Clinch, and the Chopin biographer Adam Zamoyski. The reflections are mixed with commentary from Vladimir Ashkenazy, Fou Ts'ong and Piotr Anderszewski. Their task will be to take us through the bigger issues – romanticism, exile, nationalism, and changing performance styles.
And for all of us who have played Chopin, but not as professionals, Erica Worth, editor of Pianist magazine, joins the group to talk about the frustrations and joys of amateur performance. If you are one of those aspiring pianists, do visit The Chopin Experience website which has video piano lessons from David Owen Norris. The online presence has much more besides, including a Chopin timeline and map, and the opportunity to test our Chopin knowledge with an interactive quiz.
Why Chopin, you may ask… Well, we often hear individual pieces, but rarely have the chance to look at his achievement in a deeper way. And there are many contradictions. He is regarded as a great composer, but his range seems to be very restricted in his concentration on the piano. At the same time, he is one of Poland's most famous sons, yet he hardly lived there as an adult. A great performer, yet he rarely played in public in later life. And for all his sickly nature, his romantic entaglement [sic] with George Sand is one of the most discussed affairs of the entire century. Having died at the age of only 39, he seems to be a true romantic hero. Join us as we discover the composer behind the various masks this weekend. I hope you enjoy it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/chopinexperience/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
There's one main theme to my monthly note for May as we're looking forward to another of our composer 'experiences', this time immersing ourselves in the world of Frédéric Chopin. Following Beethoven, Bach, Webern, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky, it is now the turn of the great Polish composer for this comprehensive treatment.
Given the relatively modest dimensions of Chopin's output, it will only last for an intense two days. So The Chopin Experience takes place this coming weekend, 17 and 18 May. In the build-up to the weekend, Chopin has been our Composer of the Week. Like all editions of Composer of the Week, this will be available as a podcast, lasting about a hour and creating a perfect introduction to Chopin's life story.
Rather than abandoning our normal schedule, Chopin runs as the theme throughout our regular programmes. Tomorrow morning (17th) CD Review will focus on Chopin interpretation, concentrating on the Second Piano Sonata in Building a Library. We will hear the pianos played and owned by Chopin on The Early Music Show, while Discovering Music looks at how his four Ballades achieve their musical effect. Iain Burnside's Sunday morning show focuses on Paris, the city in which Chopin received some of his greatest acclaim. Our Breakfast programme will set some of Chopin's greatest works alongside music by composers influenced by him. We will be broadcasting the greatest Chopin recordings, including those by Alfred Cortot, Vladimir Horowitz, Artur Rubinstein, Ignaz Friedman and Krystian Zimerman.
Two areas of Chopin's work will be broadcast as uninterrupted sequences with different performers: the 24 Preludes take us through a century of recorded Chopin, while the 24 Etudes feature the same number of leading interpreters. Tomorrow lunchtime, Music Matters will visit Warsaw to discover Chopin's legacy in his homeland.
Complementing the main dishes in this feast of Chopin, World Routes talks to Polish musicians who are keeping alive some of the Polish folk traditions, and Jazz Line-Up invites jazz artists to improvise on Chopin. The Nocturnes are a late-night gift to our programmers and to us all Saturday evening; Sarah Walker will present the cycle and travel to Majorca to explore the locations where Chopin and George Sand's romantic break turned sour in a stark and cold disused monastery. Rob Cowan is hosting his own Chopin Salon tomorrow evening. Joining Rob are Tamás Vásáry, Stephen Kovacevich, the critic and commentator Dermot Clinch, and the Chopin biographer Adam Zamoyski. The reflections are mixed with commentary from Vladimir Ashkenazy, Fou Ts'ong and Piotr Anderszewski. Their task will be to take us through the bigger issues – romanticism, exile, nationalism, and changing performance styles.
And for all of us who have played Chopin, but not as professionals, Erica Worth, editor of Pianist magazine, joins the group to talk about the frustrations and joys of amateur performance. If you are one of those aspiring pianists, do visit The Chopin Experience website which has video piano lessons from David Owen Norris. The online presence has much more besides, including a Chopin timeline and map, and the opportunity to test our Chopin knowledge with an interactive quiz.
Why Chopin, you may ask… Well, we often hear individual pieces, but rarely have the chance to look at his achievement in a deeper way. And there are many contradictions. He is regarded as a great composer, but his range seems to be very restricted in his concentration on the piano. At the same time, he is one of Poland's most famous sons, yet he hardly lived there as an adult. A great performer, yet he rarely played in public in later life. And for all his sickly nature, his romantic entaglement [sic] with George Sand is one of the most discussed affairs of the entire century. Having died at the age of only 39, he seems to be a true romantic hero. Join us as we discover the composer behind the various masks this weekend. I hope you enjoy it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/chopinexperience/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Apr. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All,
You might well have been enjoying the colourful music of de Falla as our Composer of the Week, but if you have missed the programmes, you can catch up online or by accessing the podcast. I have been enjoying the podcasts of composer of the week, as a rather different experience from following the complete series, in that they provide a one-hour introduction to a particular composer, as well as the chance to sample the music.
BBC Podcast Directory: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/
TONIGHT
Tonight in Performance on 3 we have a treat for Wagner lovers as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra makes a rare visit to Britain. Conducted by its Music Director, Mariss Jansons, the orchestra performs excerpts from some of Richard Wagner's most popular operas, including two extracts from his epic Ring Cycle. They are also joined by renowned Wagnerian mezzo-soprano, Mihoko Fujimura, for a performance of Wagner's moving Wesendonck Lieder.
And later this evening, we have Jazz Library on the tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, a major innovator in the soul jazz and hard-bop movement of the Fifties and Sixties. It includes an archive interview from 2000, in which he describes his life and work. And, of course, that programme is also available as a podcast.
Performance on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
Jazz Library: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/
OPERA
Tomorrow at 12.15 is a special edition of Music Matters, devoted to Harrison Birtwistle's new opera, The Minotaur – his first for 14 years. It will be receiving its world première at the Royal Opera House on Tuesday 15 April, and we will be broadcasting it here on Radio 3 next month. Birtwistle has once again drawn on Greek myth, and the opera explores the inner world of the Minotaur and the pitiless labyrinth he inhabits. We are going to be taken behind the scenes to find out what is involved in producing a new piece of this scale in a major opera house.
Staying in the opera house, we have another evening of theatrical music around a rather different story tomorrow evening, when we go live to the Metropolitan Opera for Puccini's La Bohème. It has a splendid cast, as Romanian soprano Angela Gheorghiu plays Puccini's tragic heroine in one of the most popular operas in the repertory, with tenor Ramón Vargas in the part of Rudolfo. Puccini's portrayal of the poverty, jealousies and tragedy of Bohemian life in Paris have made this score the stuff of operatic legend.
Music Matters: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/musicmatters/
Opera on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/
BRITISH MUSIC
A number of our programmes this month are dedicated in various ways to music from these shores. On Sunday 6th, The Early Music Show explores the turbulent times of Elizabethan London and the lives and music of two Catholic composers, Thomas Tallis and William Byrd, both of whom flourished despite the Protestant spirit of the age. Harry Christophers is Kate Bott's guest on this programme, which complements the current BBC Four series, Sacred Music, in which he has been involved.
Moving on just a few years, Composer of the Week from Monday 7th concentrates on Music at The Court of James I. Donald Macleod explores music and musicians in the age of King James I; the series is based around five key moments of his turbulent reign. Despite the turmoil, James was a keen patron of the arts. We hear stories of high living at state banquets which ended in food fights, and of great refinement, such as The Masque of Oberon – a lavish piece including dances for twenty lutes.
Moving to more modern times, we are beginning our commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the death of Vaughan Williams. We are celebrating his achievement by broadcasting a complete cycle of his symphonies over the next two weeks during the afternoons. It also represents the end of our British Symphony Series which has been exploring and reviving music over the last two years. During the fortnight, all nine symphonies are heard in performances by the BBC's performing groups, including a historic recording of the Eighth Symphony with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski at the 1964 BBC Proms.
The Early Music Show: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/earlymusicshow/
Composer of the Week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Afternoon on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/
DRAMA
We are proud of our record of commissioning new drama on Radio 3, but this month we are reviving a piece from 1675 – indeed, it perhaps follows in a logical succession from the seedier aspects of the royal court described in Composer of the Week. On the evening of Sunday 13th, Ben Miller leads the cast as the libertine Horner in a bawdy Restoration Comedy, The Country Wife by William Wycherley. Celia Imrie appears as Lady Fidget and The Fast Show's Mark Williams is in his element as the pompously foolish fop, Sparkish. Geoffrey Whitehead is the jealous cuckold Pinchwife, and Clare Corbett his wife Margery – the country wife of the title. The play tells the story of Horner, who devises a scheme for seducing London women by spreading the false rumour that he is impotent. Events soon spiral out of control…
Drama on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
AWARDS FOR WORLD MUSIC
Do listen on Friday 11th to Performance on 3, when Mary Ann Kennedy hosts an evening to announce the winners of this, our seventh Awards For World Music. The evening includes performances from Indian classical singer Kaushiki Chakrabarty, a previous winner, and from one of this year's nominees, Algerian rai-rocker Rachid Taha. The event also marks the launch of the Audience Award, a public vote on all the 30 nominated artists, the winner of which will be invited to appear at the Winners' Concert in July.
Performance on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
Awards for World Music: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/a4wm2008/
BBC PROMS 2008
And finally… Our Rites of Spring season has finished and summer is already on its way. This year's BBC Proms festival is launched on April 9th and so you will find the Proms Guide in the shops at the end of the week, and you can get the details of all the events on our website bbc.co.uk/proms. I hope you enjoy reading about what's in store. Of course, every concert will be broadcast live on Radio 3.
BBC Proms 2008: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/
With best wishes,
Roger Wright
Dear All,
You might well have been enjoying the colourful music of de Falla as our Composer of the Week, but if you have missed the programmes, you can catch up online or by accessing the podcast. I have been enjoying the podcasts of composer of the week, as a rather different experience from following the complete series, in that they provide a one-hour introduction to a particular composer, as well as the chance to sample the music.
BBC Podcast Directory: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/
TONIGHT
Tonight in Performance on 3 we have a treat for Wagner lovers as the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra makes a rare visit to Britain. Conducted by its Music Director, Mariss Jansons, the orchestra performs excerpts from some of Richard Wagner's most popular operas, including two extracts from his epic Ring Cycle. They are also joined by renowned Wagnerian mezzo-soprano, Mihoko Fujimura, for a performance of Wagner's moving Wesendonck Lieder.
And later this evening, we have Jazz Library on the tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine, a major innovator in the soul jazz and hard-bop movement of the Fifties and Sixties. It includes an archive interview from 2000, in which he describes his life and work. And, of course, that programme is also available as a podcast.
Performance on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
Jazz Library: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/
OPERA
Tomorrow at 12.15 is a special edition of Music Matters, devoted to Harrison Birtwistle's new opera, The Minotaur – his first for 14 years. It will be receiving its world première at the Royal Opera House on Tuesday 15 April, and we will be broadcasting it here on Radio 3 next month. Birtwistle has once again drawn on Greek myth, and the opera explores the inner world of the Minotaur and the pitiless labyrinth he inhabits. We are going to be taken behind the scenes to find out what is involved in producing a new piece of this scale in a major opera house.
Staying in the opera house, we have another evening of theatrical music around a rather different story tomorrow evening, when we go live to the Metropolitan Opera for Puccini's La Bohème. It has a splendid cast, as Romanian soprano Angela Gheorghiu plays Puccini's tragic heroine in one of the most popular operas in the repertory, with tenor Ramón Vargas in the part of Rudolfo. Puccini's portrayal of the poverty, jealousies and tragedy of Bohemian life in Paris have made this score the stuff of operatic legend.
Music Matters: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/musicmatters/
Opera on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/
BRITISH MUSIC
A number of our programmes this month are dedicated in various ways to music from these shores. On Sunday 6th, The Early Music Show explores the turbulent times of Elizabethan London and the lives and music of two Catholic composers, Thomas Tallis and William Byrd, both of whom flourished despite the Protestant spirit of the age. Harry Christophers is Kate Bott's guest on this programme, which complements the current BBC Four series, Sacred Music, in which he has been involved.
Moving on just a few years, Composer of the Week from Monday 7th concentrates on Music at The Court of James I. Donald Macleod explores music and musicians in the age of King James I; the series is based around five key moments of his turbulent reign. Despite the turmoil, James was a keen patron of the arts. We hear stories of high living at state banquets which ended in food fights, and of great refinement, such as The Masque of Oberon – a lavish piece including dances for twenty lutes.
Moving to more modern times, we are beginning our commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the death of Vaughan Williams. We are celebrating his achievement by broadcasting a complete cycle of his symphonies over the next two weeks during the afternoons. It also represents the end of our British Symphony Series which has been exploring and reviving music over the last two years. During the fortnight, all nine symphonies are heard in performances by the BBC's performing groups, including a historic recording of the Eighth Symphony with the BBC Symphony Orchestra under Leopold Stokowski at the 1964 BBC Proms.
The Early Music Show: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/earlymusicshow/
Composer of the Week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Afternoon on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/
DRAMA
We are proud of our record of commissioning new drama on Radio 3, but this month we are reviving a piece from 1675 – indeed, it perhaps follows in a logical succession from the seedier aspects of the royal court described in Composer of the Week. On the evening of Sunday 13th, Ben Miller leads the cast as the libertine Horner in a bawdy Restoration Comedy, The Country Wife by William Wycherley. Celia Imrie appears as Lady Fidget and The Fast Show's Mark Williams is in his element as the pompously foolish fop, Sparkish. Geoffrey Whitehead is the jealous cuckold Pinchwife, and Clare Corbett his wife Margery – the country wife of the title. The play tells the story of Horner, who devises a scheme for seducing London women by spreading the false rumour that he is impotent. Events soon spiral out of control…
Drama on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
AWARDS FOR WORLD MUSIC
Do listen on Friday 11th to Performance on 3, when Mary Ann Kennedy hosts an evening to announce the winners of this, our seventh Awards For World Music. The evening includes performances from Indian classical singer Kaushiki Chakrabarty, a previous winner, and from one of this year's nominees, Algerian rai-rocker Rachid Taha. The event also marks the launch of the Audience Award, a public vote on all the 30 nominated artists, the winner of which will be invited to appear at the Winners' Concert in July.
Performance on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
Awards for World Music: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/a4wm2008/
BBC PROMS 2008
And finally… Our Rites of Spring season has finished and summer is already on its way. This year's BBC Proms festival is launched on April 9th and so you will find the Proms Guide in the shops at the end of the week, and you can get the details of all the events on our website bbc.co.uk/proms. I hope you enjoy reading about what's in store. Of course, every concert will be broadcast live on Radio 3.
BBC Proms 2008: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/
With best wishes,
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Mar. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Whatever the date of Easter, and indeed whatever the weather, Spring will inevitably arrive towards the end of March. And this happy conjunction of Easter and Spring gives Radio 3 the chance for some special programming later in the month.
RITES OF SPRING
Spring has long been a theme in music and poetry, and our exploration goes way beyond Stravinsky and Daffodils. Our Rites of Spring run for a week from March 22nd. Inevitably, the Rite of Spring takes a prominent place as Rob Cowan, our regular morning presenter, will take on the challenge of reviewing the available recordings of Stravinsky's masterpiece in Building a Library on the Saturday morning (22nd). Do remember that like all Building a Library editions, this is now available as a podcast so you can listen where and when you want.
This is of course a time of year associated with birth and rebirth: Words and Music on Easter Sunday evening takes up this theme, with poetry and prose by Sylvia Plath, William Wordsworth, William Blake, John Donne and the Bible, and music by Delius, Warlock, JS Bach and Saint-Saens. Night Waves will be looking at Spring festivals across the world, taking us from Egypt to Calcutta, and the Balkans to China. We also look at the natural world in the Sunday Feature on the 23rd, when Richard Maybe visits the Chilterns, Norfolk and Suffolk, exploring the impact of climate change. In Hear and Now on the evening of March 22nd, we have a performance of Edward Cowie's INhabitAT, a BBC commission inspired by nature and performed by the BBC Singers together with Endymion. In the afternoons, much more Spring music, from Britten to Schumann and Copland.
EASTER
Naturally, we have a feast of seasonal choral music at the end of Holy Week, and this includes Handel's Messiah, Brahms' Requiem and Bach's St John Passion from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. This continues on Easter Sunday (23 March) itself, as Choral Evensong comes live from Winchester Cathedral. (In addition to the music, we have another series of Belief, in which Joan Bakewell talks to influential figures about how belief affects their lives. Her varied group of guests are military strategist Major-General Tim Cross, award-winning novelist A. L. Kennedy, the Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks, and Sister Frances Dominica, founder of the world's first children's hospice.
MUSIC HIGHLIGHTS
Aside from Spring and Easter, we have some important musical landmarks during March. We are making a visit to Liverpool 2008 for the premier of Tavener's Requiem in the Metropolitan Cathedral, and you can hear this in Performance on 3 tonight. This is another dramatic and ambitious work from Tavener, and follows his current interest in bringing together different faith traditions. Within the circular nave, four groups of performers set out in the shape of the cross, represent the four great faiths of Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam, while a solo cello symbolises a Primordial Light from which all things emanate and to which we return at the end. It is performed in this impressive setting by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir.
We have two other major focal points for music, namely a celebration of the music of the French composer, Henri Dutilleux. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales has made something of a speciality of his music, and recently staged a weekend festival in the presence of the 93-year old composer. Though his output is very small, he has developed a highly original use of orchestral colour, and draws on resonances of art and literature in his fascinating music. Do take the chance to explore his music on Performance on 3 on the evenings of March 10th and 11th. We also pleased to bring you an entire week of evening concerts from the current season of the New York Phlharmonic; there is no space here for full details, but this promises to be exceptional, especially since they are performing in the company of Gustavo Dudamel, Riccardo Muti, Gil Shaham and Leif Ove Andsnes.
On a rather different note, Lucy Duran has been visiting the London Flamenco Festival at Sadler's Wells for World Routes; on March 15th she will be presenting some of the highlights, featuring a wide range of performers such as Carmen Linares, Miguel Poveda, Juan Carlos Romero and Pastora Galván.
This week we are continuing our series of Greek and Latin Voices in The Essay at 11.00pm from Mondays to Thursdays, and we are featuring Euripides at the moment and Tacitus next week. Do try and tune in for these essays which make such ancient culture fresh and often very relevant to our own time. I am also looking forward to hearing Joss Ackland and Alison Steadman star in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams (16 March); this is a turbulent story of a Deep South family in crisis, and a good opportunity to hear the play which one the Pulitzer Prize rather than the various screen adaptations.
And a final note, to say that I hope many of you are discovering and enjoying our new podcasts: www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/station/radio3
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
Whatever the date of Easter, and indeed whatever the weather, Spring will inevitably arrive towards the end of March. And this happy conjunction of Easter and Spring gives Radio 3 the chance for some special programming later in the month.
RITES OF SPRING
Spring has long been a theme in music and poetry, and our exploration goes way beyond Stravinsky and Daffodils. Our Rites of Spring run for a week from March 22nd. Inevitably, the Rite of Spring takes a prominent place as Rob Cowan, our regular morning presenter, will take on the challenge of reviewing the available recordings of Stravinsky's masterpiece in Building a Library on the Saturday morning (22nd). Do remember that like all Building a Library editions, this is now available as a podcast so you can listen where and when you want.
This is of course a time of year associated with birth and rebirth: Words and Music on Easter Sunday evening takes up this theme, with poetry and prose by Sylvia Plath, William Wordsworth, William Blake, John Donne and the Bible, and music by Delius, Warlock, JS Bach and Saint-Saens. Night Waves will be looking at Spring festivals across the world, taking us from Egypt to Calcutta, and the Balkans to China. We also look at the natural world in the Sunday Feature on the 23rd, when Richard Maybe visits the Chilterns, Norfolk and Suffolk, exploring the impact of climate change. In Hear and Now on the evening of March 22nd, we have a performance of Edward Cowie's INhabitAT, a BBC commission inspired by nature and performed by the BBC Singers together with Endymion. In the afternoons, much more Spring music, from Britten to Schumann and Copland.
EASTER
Naturally, we have a feast of seasonal choral music at the end of Holy Week, and this includes Handel's Messiah, Brahms' Requiem and Bach's St John Passion from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. This continues on Easter Sunday (23 March) itself, as Choral Evensong comes live from Winchester Cathedral. (In addition to the music, we have another series of Belief, in which Joan Bakewell talks to influential figures about how belief affects their lives. Her varied group of guests are military strategist Major-General Tim Cross, award-winning novelist A. L. Kennedy, the Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks, and Sister Frances Dominica, founder of the world's first children's hospice.
MUSIC HIGHLIGHTS
Aside from Spring and Easter, we have some important musical landmarks during March. We are making a visit to Liverpool 2008 for the premier of Tavener's Requiem in the Metropolitan Cathedral, and you can hear this in Performance on 3 tonight. This is another dramatic and ambitious work from Tavener, and follows his current interest in bringing together different faith traditions. Within the circular nave, four groups of performers set out in the shape of the cross, represent the four great faiths of Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism and Islam, while a solo cello symbolises a Primordial Light from which all things emanate and to which we return at the end. It is performed in this impressive setting by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir.
We have two other major focal points for music, namely a celebration of the music of the French composer, Henri Dutilleux. The BBC National Orchestra of Wales has made something of a speciality of his music, and recently staged a weekend festival in the presence of the 93-year old composer. Though his output is very small, he has developed a highly original use of orchestral colour, and draws on resonances of art and literature in his fascinating music. Do take the chance to explore his music on Performance on 3 on the evenings of March 10th and 11th. We also pleased to bring you an entire week of evening concerts from the current season of the New York Phlharmonic; there is no space here for full details, but this promises to be exceptional, especially since they are performing in the company of Gustavo Dudamel, Riccardo Muti, Gil Shaham and Leif Ove Andsnes.
On a rather different note, Lucy Duran has been visiting the London Flamenco Festival at Sadler's Wells for World Routes; on March 15th she will be presenting some of the highlights, featuring a wide range of performers such as Carmen Linares, Miguel Poveda, Juan Carlos Romero and Pastora Galván.
This week we are continuing our series of Greek and Latin Voices in The Essay at 11.00pm from Mondays to Thursdays, and we are featuring Euripides at the moment and Tacitus next week. Do try and tune in for these essays which make such ancient culture fresh and often very relevant to our own time. I am also looking forward to hearing Joss Ackland and Alison Steadman star in Cat On A Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams (16 March); this is a turbulent story of a Deep South family in crisis, and a good opportunity to hear the play which one the Pulitzer Prize rather than the various screen adaptations.
And a final note, to say that I hope many of you are discovering and enjoying our new podcasts: www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/station/radio3
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Feb. 2008
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
PODCASTS
I am pleased to tell you that two of Radio 3's oldest and best-loved programmes are available for download from February 9th – Building A Library, starting with Mozart's last string quartet, and Composer of the Week in an omnibus edition, bringing together the week's series of programmes. At the same time BBC Radio 3 launches a World Routes podcast with a special from Azerbaijan. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/station/radio3/.
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
There are some strong highlights coming up, including a broadcast from Britain's longest-established professional orchestra on Monday 4th. Radio 3 has celebrated the partnership between Mark Elder and the Hallé orchestra in broadcasts in recent years and we are featuring the orchestra again as it celebrates 150 years since it started its life at Mr Charles Hallé's Grand Orchestral Concerts. The programme includes a work that Hallé himself played at the first concert, Weber's Konzertstück for piano and orchestra, as well as three works they have premiered: Elgar's overture In The South, Constant Lambert's jazz-inspired The Rio Grande and These Premises Are Alarmed by Adès, written for the Bridgewater Hall. Mark Elder and the orchestra are joined by Sir John Tomlinson on the stage, while Dame Janet Baker, who frequently worked with the Hallé, introduces the concert. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/.
SOUTH AMERICA
Our colleagues at the BBC Symphony Orchestra are offering to drive away winter blues with South American music. You should find their Performance on 3 on Thursday 7th enjoyable , and perhaps even transforming. There's tangos, bossanova, samba drumming and orchestral music from Brazil and Argentina. There's more South American culture the same week in the afternoons and Late Junction; a specially commissioned Drama on 3, and a Night Waves on contemporary South American culture. Starting on Sunday 3rd, we have three features on the same part of the world. In the first of these, novelist Juan Gabriel Vasquez explores how solitude has shaped his work. Vasquez takes listeners to the Colombian capital, Bogota, to share the urban environment he finds inspirational.
WORDS AND MUSIC
Our unpresented sequence is proving very popular on Sunday evenings, exploring the themes of happiness on the 3rd, and birdsong on the 10th. On the 3rd, Simon Russell Beale mixes nature, love, dreams, birthdays and pastimes – everyday experiences. And birdsong shares the songs of nature's finest musicians. We hear the nightingale, evoked by Blake, Milton and Rameau; the skylark, represented by Meredith's Lark Ascending; and the thrush, celebrated by Hardy's Darkling Thrush; the calls of the cuckoo through Wordsworth, Bunyan and Saint-Saëns; the swan, with Tennyson and Sibelius's Swan Of Tuonela; and the hen, through John Heywood and Rameau. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/.
OPERA
We have at least two operatic highlights this month. We offer you 'the best seat in the house' on the evening of Saturday 9th, we have La Traviata from the Royal Opera House. Russian soprano Anna Netrebko is perhaps the Violetta of her generation. She is joined by German tenor Jonas Kaufman as Alfredo, and Dmitri Hvorostovsky as Germont.
The following Wednesday we have another dramatic opera, Strauss's Salome, based on Oscar Wilde's play. The BBC Philharmonic and its Chief Conductor, Gianandrea Noseda, are working with a cast from Teatro Regio, Turin, where Noseda has recently become music director. Noseda's colourful conducting promises to make this a very special performance. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/.
JAZZ AND WORLD
In Jazz Library on February 8th, we are commemorating Oscar Peterson as Alyn Shipton presents a personal tribute to the pianist, who died in December. The programme includes an interview and much music. As well as his own acclaimed trios, we hear Peterson's favourite recordings with Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins and Sarah Vaughan.
We have been on the road again in World Routes: on February 9th, Lucy Duran travels to Azerbaijan. The country is growing fast economically, but the ancient song tradition and the music of virtuosic instrumentalists is proving extremely enduring. This music is rarely heard outside the country, and Lucy travels extensively in search of the most wide-ranging and authentic experience. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazz/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/.
IDEAS
On the evening of Sunday 10th, we broadcast The Trial and Death of Socrates starring Joss Ackland as Socrates. The trial and execution of Socrates puzzles historians. Why, in a society enjoying freedom and democracy, would a 71-year-old philosopher be put to death? The play was devised by Sebastian Baczkiewicz, and his investigation reveals a thin veneer of democracy in the State just emerging from a period of oligarchic rule.
In The Essay starting on Monday 11th we gain an outsider's view of the UK in A Sense of Ourselves. Four immigrants to Britain describe modern Britishness. They represent the most significant waves of immigration to Britain, offering a picture of how national identity has evolved since the War.
Between The Ears on Saturday 2nd is another reflection on the UK. The Wall of a Million Bricks explores Belfast's peace lines, which survived long after the fall of the Berlin Wall. One wall is known as the "wall of a million bricks" and separates parts of West Belfast. The programme explores the need for walls in a city which still houses pockets of hatred.
So, it's another varied and stimulating month on Radio 3. I hope you enjoy it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
PODCASTS
I am pleased to tell you that two of Radio 3's oldest and best-loved programmes are available for download from February 9th – Building A Library, starting with Mozart's last string quartet, and Composer of the Week in an omnibus edition, bringing together the week's series of programmes. At the same time BBC Radio 3 launches a World Routes podcast with a special from Azerbaijan. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/station/radio3/.
MUSICAL PERFORMANCE
There are some strong highlights coming up, including a broadcast from Britain's longest-established professional orchestra on Monday 4th. Radio 3 has celebrated the partnership between Mark Elder and the Hallé orchestra in broadcasts in recent years and we are featuring the orchestra again as it celebrates 150 years since it started its life at Mr Charles Hallé's Grand Orchestral Concerts. The programme includes a work that Hallé himself played at the first concert, Weber's Konzertstück for piano and orchestra, as well as three works they have premiered: Elgar's overture In The South, Constant Lambert's jazz-inspired The Rio Grande and These Premises Are Alarmed by Adès, written for the Bridgewater Hall. Mark Elder and the orchestra are joined by Sir John Tomlinson on the stage, while Dame Janet Baker, who frequently worked with the Hallé, introduces the concert. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/.
SOUTH AMERICA
Our colleagues at the BBC Symphony Orchestra are offering to drive away winter blues with South American music. You should find their Performance on 3 on Thursday 7th enjoyable , and perhaps even transforming. There's tangos, bossanova, samba drumming and orchestral music from Brazil and Argentina. There's more South American culture the same week in the afternoons and Late Junction; a specially commissioned Drama on 3, and a Night Waves on contemporary South American culture. Starting on Sunday 3rd, we have three features on the same part of the world. In the first of these, novelist Juan Gabriel Vasquez explores how solitude has shaped his work. Vasquez takes listeners to the Colombian capital, Bogota, to share the urban environment he finds inspirational.
WORDS AND MUSIC
Our unpresented sequence is proving very popular on Sunday evenings, exploring the themes of happiness on the 3rd, and birdsong on the 10th. On the 3rd, Simon Russell Beale mixes nature, love, dreams, birthdays and pastimes – everyday experiences. And birdsong shares the songs of nature's finest musicians. We hear the nightingale, evoked by Blake, Milton and Rameau; the skylark, represented by Meredith's Lark Ascending; and the thrush, celebrated by Hardy's Darkling Thrush; the calls of the cuckoo through Wordsworth, Bunyan and Saint-Saëns; the swan, with Tennyson and Sibelius's Swan Of Tuonela; and the hen, through John Heywood and Rameau. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/.
OPERA
We have at least two operatic highlights this month. We offer you 'the best seat in the house' on the evening of Saturday 9th, we have La Traviata from the Royal Opera House. Russian soprano Anna Netrebko is perhaps the Violetta of her generation. She is joined by German tenor Jonas Kaufman as Alfredo, and Dmitri Hvorostovsky as Germont.
The following Wednesday we have another dramatic opera, Strauss's Salome, based on Oscar Wilde's play. The BBC Philharmonic and its Chief Conductor, Gianandrea Noseda, are working with a cast from Teatro Regio, Turin, where Noseda has recently become music director. Noseda's colourful conducting promises to make this a very special performance. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/.
JAZZ AND WORLD
In Jazz Library on February 8th, we are commemorating Oscar Peterson as Alyn Shipton presents a personal tribute to the pianist, who died in December. The programme includes an interview and much music. As well as his own acclaimed trios, we hear Peterson's favourite recordings with Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Coleman Hawkins and Sarah Vaughan.
We have been on the road again in World Routes: on February 9th, Lucy Duran travels to Azerbaijan. The country is growing fast economically, but the ancient song tradition and the music of virtuosic instrumentalists is proving extremely enduring. This music is rarely heard outside the country, and Lucy travels extensively in search of the most wide-ranging and authentic experience. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazz/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/.
IDEAS
On the evening of Sunday 10th, we broadcast The Trial and Death of Socrates starring Joss Ackland as Socrates. The trial and execution of Socrates puzzles historians. Why, in a society enjoying freedom and democracy, would a 71-year-old philosopher be put to death? The play was devised by Sebastian Baczkiewicz, and his investigation reveals a thin veneer of democracy in the State just emerging from a period of oligarchic rule.
In The Essay starting on Monday 11th we gain an outsider's view of the UK in A Sense of Ourselves. Four immigrants to Britain describe modern Britishness. They represent the most significant waves of immigration to Britain, offering a picture of how national identity has evolved since the War.
Between The Ears on Saturday 2nd is another reflection on the UK. The Wall of a Million Bricks explores Belfast's peace lines, which survived long after the fall of the Berlin Wall. One wall is known as the "wall of a million bricks" and separates parts of West Belfast. The programme explores the need for walls in a city which still houses pockets of hatred.
So, it's another varied and stimulating month on Radio 3. I hope you enjoy it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
31/1/08 RAJAR, on hold
Today's published listening figures for Quarter 4, October-December 2007 are undramatic: no huge plunge into freefall but also no obvious upturn in the depressed figures of recent years.
The reach at 1.95 million would have been considered weak five or six years ago, yet now it represents the highest figure so far for the year 2007/08. This means that when the final figure, for the fourth quarter, is published in May, the yearly average is almost certain to show this year's listening as the lowest ever under RAJAR's current methodology.
The BBC press release described the performance as 'solid' which has a more positive ring than is merited. To give a historical perspective: RAJAR's current methodology has now been in operation for 36 quarters. Radio 3's average weekly reach over this period has been 2.033 million, the median 2.020 million. The average for the present year is unlikely to exceed 1.920 million; after three quarters it stands at 1.893 million, but the fourth quarter is often a stronger one.
Slightly better news was that the breakfast reach showed a sharp increase. It would not be safe to call it an 'improvement', since only a trend shows a clear improvement: individual quarters can be volatile. In spite of the substantial rise in reach from 713,000 in Quarter 3 to 809,000 in Quarter 4, the weekly average taken over the past 12 months shows a decrease from 798,000 in 2006 to 754,000 in 2007, and all four quarters are lower than the corresponding quarters in 2006 (which had 833,000 in Quarter 4). The question is therefore whether the new Breakfast programme has finally settled to near the previous Morning on 3 average, or whether it will dip again over the next few quarters.
'Share of listening' ( the station's weekly listening hours as a percentage of the total UK radio listening hours) is something which very much concerns the commercial stations, and, as a consequence, the BBC too, in that it is a clearer measurement of how well it is performing competitively. In the case of Radio 3, share is statistically of little significance since only huge (in Radio 3 terms) increases and decreases would register significantly when presented as a percentage of the over one billion listening hours clocked up by UK radio each week.
The reach at 1.95 million would have been considered weak five or six years ago, yet now it represents the highest figure so far for the year 2007/08. This means that when the final figure, for the fourth quarter, is published in May, the yearly average is almost certain to show this year's listening as the lowest ever under RAJAR's current methodology.
The BBC press release described the performance as 'solid' which has a more positive ring than is merited. To give a historical perspective: RAJAR's current methodology has now been in operation for 36 quarters. Radio 3's average weekly reach over this period has been 2.033 million, the median 2.020 million. The average for the present year is unlikely to exceed 1.920 million; after three quarters it stands at 1.893 million, but the fourth quarter is often a stronger one.
Slightly better news was that the breakfast reach showed a sharp increase. It would not be safe to call it an 'improvement', since only a trend shows a clear improvement: individual quarters can be volatile. In spite of the substantial rise in reach from 713,000 in Quarter 3 to 809,000 in Quarter 4, the weekly average taken over the past 12 months shows a decrease from 798,000 in 2006 to 754,000 in 2007, and all four quarters are lower than the corresponding quarters in 2006 (which had 833,000 in Quarter 4). The question is therefore whether the new Breakfast programme has finally settled to near the previous Morning on 3 average, or whether it will dip again over the next few quarters.
'Share of listening' ( the station's weekly listening hours as a percentage of the total UK radio listening hours) is something which very much concerns the commercial stations, and, as a consequence, the BBC too, in that it is a clearer measurement of how well it is performing competitively. In the case of Radio 3, share is statistically of little significance since only huge (in Radio 3 terms) increases and decreases would register significantly when presented as a percentage of the over one billion listening hours clocked up by UK radio each week.
21/12/07 The BBC's Purposes
The BBC Trust has now published the amended remit on the BBC's Public Purposes. The original version went to a public consultation to which FoR3 responded. This was not the most relevant paper for Radio 3 but there were certain suggestions which seemed worth making.
A study of the explanatory notes and final version reveals little change and less that owes anything to our suggestions. We tried to counterbalance the claimed necessity for an all-pervading 'accessibility', contending that all audiences needed to be challenged, including those who are most knowledgeable. The point was acknowledged but the Trust held that this was adequately covered already; however the commitments are expressed only in non-specific terms.
We also attempted to gain a higher profile for culture and the arts. This also failed (though the coverage of minority sports now received a special mention).
We presented a detailed argument for the BBC to provide programming specifically designed to bridge the cultural gap between generations (rather than simply catering separately for different age groups) by introducing younger audiences to aspects of the common cultural heritage. This was, perhaps unsurprisingly, not even acknowledged; nor was a suggestion that there should be increased coverage of contemporary non-anglophone culture, especially European.
On the matter of digital radio, we submitted that it should be a priority to improve the sound quality of DAB as well as extending UK coverage. This was referred to in the response but was not added to the document: the Trust was 'mindful of the need to balance cost effectiveness with universality'. That seems to mean that improving sound quality was considered a luxury not worth affording.
In fact the only point of ours that was accepted was that of increasing the emphasis on nurturing artistic talent rather than supporting the so-called 'creative industries'. However, this was now specified as 'UK talent' (largely excluding the New Generation Artists scheme) – a clear indication of the parochialism of much popular culture and of the BBC's outlook.
The Trust also carried out audience research on the key matters, and they seem to have been more influenced by that than by the responses to the consultation. Overall, it was a disappointing result, but the response to the Service Licence public consultation will be more crucial, and that is still to come.
Full details of the Trust's response can be read here.
An associated BBC news story is here.
A study of the explanatory notes and final version reveals little change and less that owes anything to our suggestions. We tried to counterbalance the claimed necessity for an all-pervading 'accessibility', contending that all audiences needed to be challenged, including those who are most knowledgeable. The point was acknowledged but the Trust held that this was adequately covered already; however the commitments are expressed only in non-specific terms.
We also attempted to gain a higher profile for culture and the arts. This also failed (though the coverage of minority sports now received a special mention).
We presented a detailed argument for the BBC to provide programming specifically designed to bridge the cultural gap between generations (rather than simply catering separately for different age groups) by introducing younger audiences to aspects of the common cultural heritage. This was, perhaps unsurprisingly, not even acknowledged; nor was a suggestion that there should be increased coverage of contemporary non-anglophone culture, especially European.
On the matter of digital radio, we submitted that it should be a priority to improve the sound quality of DAB as well as extending UK coverage. This was referred to in the response but was not added to the document: the Trust was 'mindful of the need to balance cost effectiveness with universality'. That seems to mean that improving sound quality was considered a luxury not worth affording.
In fact the only point of ours that was accepted was that of increasing the emphasis on nurturing artistic talent rather than supporting the so-called 'creative industries'. However, this was now specified as 'UK talent' (largely excluding the New Generation Artists scheme) – a clear indication of the parochialism of much popular culture and of the BBC's outlook.
The Trust also carried out audience research on the key matters, and they seem to have been more influenced by that than by the responses to the consultation. Overall, it was a disappointing result, but the response to the Service Licence public consultation will be more crucial, and that is still to come.
Full details of the Trust's response can be read here.
An associated BBC news story is here.
Controller's Note, Dec. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
I trust you are enjoying our feast of choral music as Christmas approaches. Tonight we have a Christmas concert given by The Cardinall's Musick, conducted by Andrew Carwood. The church of St John's Smith Square is the splendid setting for their programme, which features the music of J S Bach, as well as his great predecessors – Praetorius, Schutz and Scheidt. That's in Performance on 3 at 7.00pm this evening.
OPERA
The Metropolitan Opera provides some highlights of our Christmas season, starting with War and Peace this coming Saturday. It will be a spectacular event, as Valery Gergiev leads a huge cast in Prokofiev's adaptation of Tolstoy's novel about the Russian victory over Napoleon. As always, this is live from New York. It contains wonderful choruses and waltz music, and contrasts intimate duets with massive battle scenes. The sheer resources – 68 solo roles and the depiction of both battle and Imperial balls – make this one of the most remarkable productions in the history of the theatre. The cast is mainly Russian and includes soprano Marina Poplavskaya as Natasha, tenor Kim Begley as Pierre Bezukhov and baritone Vassily Gerello in the role of Napoleon.
On a more seasonal note, the following Saturday evening (29 December), we have a new English language production of Engelbert Humperdinck's Christmas-time classic, Hansel And Gretel, also live from the Met. The story might appear light, but there are also some dark undertones. Christine Schafer and Alice Coote star as the adventurous sister and brother; lost in the menacing forest, they do battle with the Witch who wants to devour them. The cast also includes Alan Held and Rosalind Plowright as the pair's father and mother, Lisette Oropesa as the Dew Fairy and Sasha Cooke as the Sandman. The conductor is Vladimir Jurowski.
You may well remember our broadcast of The Ring in a Day last year. Over this Christmas season, we are bringing you Wagner's epic cycle an act each day, starting with Das Rheingold complete on Christmas Eve at 2.00pm and continuing for two weeks into the New Year. The cast from this summer's production in Bayreuth includes Albert Dohmen as Wotan, Stephen Gould as Siegfried and Linda Watson as Brunnhilde. The conductor was Christian Thielemann, and it attracted a good deal of positive attention.
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK – ERIC COATES
During Christmas week, starting on the 24th,we are exploring Eric Coates as Composer of the Week. For many years, his music seemed to encapsulate the national mood. It has remained part of the national consciousness, through themes for radio and television programmes. Donald Macleod is joined by Kirsty Young who presents Desert Island Discs, where his music is still regularly heard. As Donald discovers, Coates's music tells the story of the UK in the first half of the 20th century.
PROMS REVISITED
As usual the darkness of the winter holidays gives us a moment to revisit the music of summer, in particular the Proms. We have another chance to hear a variety of programmes, including the memorable John Dankworth evening, celebrating both his 80th birthday and that of Cleo Laine. Together with the BBC Big Band and members of the BBC Concert Orchestra, they pay tribute to the enduring genius of William Shakespeare through their music. That's at 7.00pm on Christmas Eve. Later the same evening, one of the memorable early music Proms from the summer, namely the collaboration between the Tallis Scholars and BBC Singers, performing music from the late Renaissance. One highlight was the first performance in modern times of Alessandro Striggio's Mass – a forty-voice piece that lay forgotten in a Paris library for 450 years.
On Christmas Evening, you can be absorbed once again in the freshness and energy of the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela. No-one who heard it first time round will have forgotten the youthful vigour with which they perform Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony as well as music from Bernstein's West Side Story.
By way of contrast, Christmas evening ends with a concert of music from Bach's time in Leipzig, including the Mass in G major. It's performed by Masaaki Suzuki, with the Bach Collegium Japan. Look out in the days which follow for the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony and the Vienna Philharmonic, as well as our own BBC Symphony Orchestra, who bring the year to an end with the Last Night of the Proms – remember those memorable performances from Anna Netrebko and Joshua Bell. And you can wake up the next morning, New Year's Day, looking forward to hearing the traditional concert live from Vienna.
JAZZ, WORLD, IDEAS
For those passionate about jazz, Claire Martin gives her last-minute Jazz Line-Up suggestions for CD presents, and speaks to several UK jazz musicians to hear about their musical projects for the year ahead (22nd). We also have Jazz Library specials on Django Reinhardt (28th) and Milt Jackson (January 4th), and Nigel Kennedy talks about his fellow violinist Stephane Grappelli (29th), whom he knew while a student in New York. And if you are staying at home for Christmas you can travel with World Routes to Georgia (22nd), Amman (29th), and Jerusalem (31st).
And if you wish to see the earth from an entirely different viewpoint, tune in to our Sunday Feature on Sunday 23rd, when Richard Holmes presents a programme on the first balloon flights in Britain. He examines how a different view of the earth had a huge impact on the cultural and philosophical life of Britain. And on December 30th Oscar Wilde visits America: one hundred and twenty five years ago this month, a flamboyant young man returned to England. His persona was promoted by an iconic series of photographs and a devoted press, and Wilde gave no less than 140 lectures over 260 days, met leading figures from government, arts and culture, and created a legacy – both for the US and for himself.
So whether you are at home or away this Christmas, do join Radio 3 as we take you on an engaging voyage, both geographical and cultural through the world of music and ideas. It only remains to wish you all a happy festive period in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send our thanks to you for your continued interest in Radio 3, and our warmest wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful new year.
Roger Wright
Dear All
I trust you are enjoying our feast of choral music as Christmas approaches. Tonight we have a Christmas concert given by The Cardinall's Musick, conducted by Andrew Carwood. The church of St John's Smith Square is the splendid setting for their programme, which features the music of J S Bach, as well as his great predecessors – Praetorius, Schutz and Scheidt. That's in Performance on 3 at 7.00pm this evening.
OPERA
The Metropolitan Opera provides some highlights of our Christmas season, starting with War and Peace this coming Saturday. It will be a spectacular event, as Valery Gergiev leads a huge cast in Prokofiev's adaptation of Tolstoy's novel about the Russian victory over Napoleon. As always, this is live from New York. It contains wonderful choruses and waltz music, and contrasts intimate duets with massive battle scenes. The sheer resources – 68 solo roles and the depiction of both battle and Imperial balls – make this one of the most remarkable productions in the history of the theatre. The cast is mainly Russian and includes soprano Marina Poplavskaya as Natasha, tenor Kim Begley as Pierre Bezukhov and baritone Vassily Gerello in the role of Napoleon.
On a more seasonal note, the following Saturday evening (29 December), we have a new English language production of Engelbert Humperdinck's Christmas-time classic, Hansel And Gretel, also live from the Met. The story might appear light, but there are also some dark undertones. Christine Schafer and Alice Coote star as the adventurous sister and brother; lost in the menacing forest, they do battle with the Witch who wants to devour them. The cast also includes Alan Held and Rosalind Plowright as the pair's father and mother, Lisette Oropesa as the Dew Fairy and Sasha Cooke as the Sandman. The conductor is Vladimir Jurowski.
You may well remember our broadcast of The Ring in a Day last year. Over this Christmas season, we are bringing you Wagner's epic cycle an act each day, starting with Das Rheingold complete on Christmas Eve at 2.00pm and continuing for two weeks into the New Year. The cast from this summer's production in Bayreuth includes Albert Dohmen as Wotan, Stephen Gould as Siegfried and Linda Watson as Brunnhilde. The conductor was Christian Thielemann, and it attracted a good deal of positive attention.
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK – ERIC COATES
During Christmas week, starting on the 24th,we are exploring Eric Coates as Composer of the Week. For many years, his music seemed to encapsulate the national mood. It has remained part of the national consciousness, through themes for radio and television programmes. Donald Macleod is joined by Kirsty Young who presents Desert Island Discs, where his music is still regularly heard. As Donald discovers, Coates's music tells the story of the UK in the first half of the 20th century.
PROMS REVISITED
As usual the darkness of the winter holidays gives us a moment to revisit the music of summer, in particular the Proms. We have another chance to hear a variety of programmes, including the memorable John Dankworth evening, celebrating both his 80th birthday and that of Cleo Laine. Together with the BBC Big Band and members of the BBC Concert Orchestra, they pay tribute to the enduring genius of William Shakespeare through their music. That's at 7.00pm on Christmas Eve. Later the same evening, one of the memorable early music Proms from the summer, namely the collaboration between the Tallis Scholars and BBC Singers, performing music from the late Renaissance. One highlight was the first performance in modern times of Alessandro Striggio's Mass – a forty-voice piece that lay forgotten in a Paris library for 450 years.
On Christmas Evening, you can be absorbed once again in the freshness and energy of the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela. No-one who heard it first time round will have forgotten the youthful vigour with which they perform Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony as well as music from Bernstein's West Side Story.
By way of contrast, Christmas evening ends with a concert of music from Bach's time in Leipzig, including the Mass in G major. It's performed by Masaaki Suzuki, with the Bach Collegium Japan. Look out in the days which follow for the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the San Francisco Symphony and the Vienna Philharmonic, as well as our own BBC Symphony Orchestra, who bring the year to an end with the Last Night of the Proms – remember those memorable performances from Anna Netrebko and Joshua Bell. And you can wake up the next morning, New Year's Day, looking forward to hearing the traditional concert live from Vienna.
JAZZ, WORLD, IDEAS
For those passionate about jazz, Claire Martin gives her last-minute Jazz Line-Up suggestions for CD presents, and speaks to several UK jazz musicians to hear about their musical projects for the year ahead (22nd). We also have Jazz Library specials on Django Reinhardt (28th) and Milt Jackson (January 4th), and Nigel Kennedy talks about his fellow violinist Stephane Grappelli (29th), whom he knew while a student in New York. And if you are staying at home for Christmas you can travel with World Routes to Georgia (22nd), Amman (29th), and Jerusalem (31st).
And if you wish to see the earth from an entirely different viewpoint, tune in to our Sunday Feature on Sunday 23rd, when Richard Holmes presents a programme on the first balloon flights in Britain. He examines how a different view of the earth had a huge impact on the cultural and philosophical life of Britain. And on December 30th Oscar Wilde visits America: one hundred and twenty five years ago this month, a flamboyant young man returned to England. His persona was promoted by an iconic series of photographs and a devoted press, and Wilde gave no less than 140 lectures over 260 days, met leading figures from government, arts and culture, and created a legacy – both for the US and for himself.
So whether you are at home or away this Christmas, do join Radio 3 as we take you on an engaging voyage, both geographical and cultural through the world of music and ideas. It only remains to wish you all a happy festive period in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send our thanks to you for your continued interest in Radio 3, and our warmest wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful new year.
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Nov. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Thanks to all of you who sent in to Rob Cowan your descriptions of Radio 3 in five words. As you might have gathered many of you rose to the challenge. I hope you heard Rob's selection of them (praising, critical and amusing) on Breakfast.
BACH IN THE MORNING
From Saturday December 1st in the mornings, Breakfasts will include a Bach moment over a period of a few weeks. After the huge success of a Bach Christmas the breakfast team have decided to offer the chance to hear all Bach's great 48 Preludes and Fugues (the Well-Tempered Clavier) each morning after the news at 8.00 am – 48 at 8 as it were. We'll be keeping company with many of the world's leading Bach interpreters and their differing interpretations during this journey. Of course, there will also be the usual wide-ranging selection of music every morning from 7.00pm, in the company of Rob Cowan, Sara Mohr Pietsch and Martin Handley. I hope you enjoy it. Visit the 48 at 8 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/bach48/index.shtml
MOZART
In Composer of the Week, Donald Macleod unearths Mozart's friends, family and fellow musicians. He starts on Monday with a piano sonata for four hands which he performed with his sister, Nannerl, and then we have a horn concerto dedicated to his horn-player friend Joseph Leutgeb, whom he described affectionately as an "ass, ox and fool". And then we have the sopranos who figured in his life: Aloysia Weber, her sister Constanze, and Nancy Storace. Moving on through Salieri, Emanuel Schikaneder, Haydn, Stadler, and Süssmayr, we find what a vital role all these characters played in developing Mozart's unique creative legacy.
OPERA
Live from New York, the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts begin their annual season in December. Before they get under way, we have opera closer to home in Donizetti's comedy The Elixir of Love (L'Elisir d'Amore) from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. That's on December 1st at 6.30pm. The following week (Saturday 8 December) at the Metropolitan Opera, there will be Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride, with an extraordinary cast including Pl´cido Domingo and Susan Graham. With Graham in the title role, Pl´cido Domingo takes the part of her brother, Oreste, while British tenor Paul Groves is Oreste's loyal friend, Pylade. And there will be many chances during this broadcast, and through the season to hear from the performers as we hear behind the scenes, and find out what makes this great opera house tick.
DRAMA
Soldiers in the Sun by Michael Symmons Roberts is broadcast on the evening of Sunday December 2nd, and is a drama-documentary exploring Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in the Military. This poetic monologue takes listeners inside the head of Captain Shepperton. Nearing the end of a tour of duty, he comes across the hanging body of a young boy with whom he recently played football. The piece also details the link between mental illness and combat. We hear from experts including Professor Simon Wessely who researches the physical and psychological health of soldiers deployed in the 2003 war in Iraq and their 4,300 non-deployed colleagues. They discuss whether enough is being done for servicemen and women after they return home from duty. Drama on 3
NEW, JAZZ, WORLD
As always selecting from our schedule is an unenviable task, but among the programmes I would like to highlight the annual British Composer Awards on the evening of Thursday 6th – a celebration of the British new music world. The event is presented by Petroc Trelawny, and the fact that 300 new works were submitted is an interesting barometer of continuing creativity across the UK. We will also announce your BBC Radio 3 Listeners' Award.
You can hear Alyn Shipton choosing his favourite recordings of Dave Brubeck on the evening of Friday 7th. Brubeck is celebrating his 87th birthday this week, and Alyn will be introducing him in conversation alongside a selection from along Brubeck's prodigious output of over one hundred albums. For half a century, Brubeck has been one of the most celebrated pianists and prolific composers in jazz, as well as a great stylistic innovator and this should be a real "Jazz Library" treat.
Georgia — the former Soviet Republic — has been in the news recently, and in World Routes, Lucy Duran has been there to discover its rich musical tradition. She was joined by journalist Rob Parsons, the BBC's former Moscow Correspondent, who speaks Georgian and now owns a vineyard there. He takes Lucy from the wine-rich east to the sub-tropical and mist-shrouded tea plantations of the Black Sea coast, and from the capital Tbilisi to the remote mountains of Svaneti. In the first programme, at 3.00pm on Saturday 15th, Lucy attends a funeral in Tblisi, and records the beautiful and ethereal music of the Georgian Orthodox Church.
WHERE DID IT ALL START?
Well, we might get something of the idea when Ivan Hewett explores the origins and evolution of music, on the evening of Sunday December 9th . He draws on astonishing and wide-ranging research, detailing the innate musical abilities of the bonobo apes, who share 98 per cent of their DNA with human beings, to evidence of music-making 35,000 years ago in the Swabian dura, and to the tribes of the Congo where music and language are fused and music is omnipresent. We hear from Steven Pinker, who thinks music is like an optional extra in order to press the pleasure buttons rather than a necessity (what Pinker calls aural cheesecake). All most intriguing.
SHOPPING FOR PRESENTS
And if you are wondering what you might do with £50 to spend on recordings, then join Andrew McGregor on the morning of Saturday December 15th to hear how his panel of CD Review critics — Harriet Smith, Stephen Johnson and Simon Heighes — would spend their hypothetical money this Christmas. And because for some of us there is more listening time at Christmas, I will send my January message early to cover the Christmas season, when we have many more riches on offer.
As always, information on all our programmes is available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
Thanks to all of you who sent in to Rob Cowan your descriptions of Radio 3 in five words. As you might have gathered many of you rose to the challenge. I hope you heard Rob's selection of them (praising, critical and amusing) on Breakfast.
BACH IN THE MORNING
From Saturday December 1st in the mornings, Breakfasts will include a Bach moment over a period of a few weeks. After the huge success of a Bach Christmas the breakfast team have decided to offer the chance to hear all Bach's great 48 Preludes and Fugues (the Well-Tempered Clavier) each morning after the news at 8.00 am – 48 at 8 as it were. We'll be keeping company with many of the world's leading Bach interpreters and their differing interpretations during this journey. Of course, there will also be the usual wide-ranging selection of music every morning from 7.00pm, in the company of Rob Cowan, Sara Mohr Pietsch and Martin Handley. I hope you enjoy it. Visit the 48 at 8 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/bach48/index.shtml
MOZART
In Composer of the Week, Donald Macleod unearths Mozart's friends, family and fellow musicians. He starts on Monday with a piano sonata for four hands which he performed with his sister, Nannerl, and then we have a horn concerto dedicated to his horn-player friend Joseph Leutgeb, whom he described affectionately as an "ass, ox and fool". And then we have the sopranos who figured in his life: Aloysia Weber, her sister Constanze, and Nancy Storace. Moving on through Salieri, Emanuel Schikaneder, Haydn, Stadler, and Süssmayr, we find what a vital role all these characters played in developing Mozart's unique creative legacy.
OPERA
Live from New York, the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts begin their annual season in December. Before they get under way, we have opera closer to home in Donizetti's comedy The Elixir of Love (L'Elisir d'Amore) from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. That's on December 1st at 6.30pm. The following week (Saturday 8 December) at the Metropolitan Opera, there will be Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride, with an extraordinary cast including Pl´cido Domingo and Susan Graham. With Graham in the title role, Pl´cido Domingo takes the part of her brother, Oreste, while British tenor Paul Groves is Oreste's loyal friend, Pylade. And there will be many chances during this broadcast, and through the season to hear from the performers as we hear behind the scenes, and find out what makes this great opera house tick.
DRAMA
Soldiers in the Sun by Michael Symmons Roberts is broadcast on the evening of Sunday December 2nd, and is a drama-documentary exploring Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in the Military. This poetic monologue takes listeners inside the head of Captain Shepperton. Nearing the end of a tour of duty, he comes across the hanging body of a young boy with whom he recently played football. The piece also details the link between mental illness and combat. We hear from experts including Professor Simon Wessely who researches the physical and psychological health of soldiers deployed in the 2003 war in Iraq and their 4,300 non-deployed colleagues. They discuss whether enough is being done for servicemen and women after they return home from duty. Drama on 3
NEW, JAZZ, WORLD
As always selecting from our schedule is an unenviable task, but among the programmes I would like to highlight the annual British Composer Awards on the evening of Thursday 6th – a celebration of the British new music world. The event is presented by Petroc Trelawny, and the fact that 300 new works were submitted is an interesting barometer of continuing creativity across the UK. We will also announce your BBC Radio 3 Listeners' Award.
You can hear Alyn Shipton choosing his favourite recordings of Dave Brubeck on the evening of Friday 7th. Brubeck is celebrating his 87th birthday this week, and Alyn will be introducing him in conversation alongside a selection from along Brubeck's prodigious output of over one hundred albums. For half a century, Brubeck has been one of the most celebrated pianists and prolific composers in jazz, as well as a great stylistic innovator and this should be a real "Jazz Library" treat.
Georgia — the former Soviet Republic — has been in the news recently, and in World Routes, Lucy Duran has been there to discover its rich musical tradition. She was joined by journalist Rob Parsons, the BBC's former Moscow Correspondent, who speaks Georgian and now owns a vineyard there. He takes Lucy from the wine-rich east to the sub-tropical and mist-shrouded tea plantations of the Black Sea coast, and from the capital Tbilisi to the remote mountains of Svaneti. In the first programme, at 3.00pm on Saturday 15th, Lucy attends a funeral in Tblisi, and records the beautiful and ethereal music of the Georgian Orthodox Church.
WHERE DID IT ALL START?
Well, we might get something of the idea when Ivan Hewett explores the origins and evolution of music, on the evening of Sunday December 9th . He draws on astonishing and wide-ranging research, detailing the innate musical abilities of the bonobo apes, who share 98 per cent of their DNA with human beings, to evidence of music-making 35,000 years ago in the Swabian dura, and to the tribes of the Congo where music and language are fused and music is omnipresent. We hear from Steven Pinker, who thinks music is like an optional extra in order to press the pleasure buttons rather than a necessity (what Pinker calls aural cheesecake). All most intriguing.
SHOPPING FOR PRESENTS
And if you are wondering what you might do with £50 to spend on recordings, then join Andrew McGregor on the morning of Saturday December 15th to hear how his panel of CD Review critics — Harriet Smith, Stephen Johnson and Simon Heighes — would spend their hypothetical money this Christmas. And because for some of us there is more listening time at Christmas, I will send my January message early to cover the Christmas season, when we have many more riches on offer.
As always, information on all our programmes is available at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Oct. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
I hope you have enjoyed our archive features with some of the great performances of the last four decades broadcast recently as part of our 40th birthday programming. Our celebrations come to an end on Wednesday 7th, when we remember Pierre Boulez's marvellous tenure as the BBC Symphony Orchestra's Principal Conductor in the early 1970s. This concert is one of Boulez's last recorded concerts as Principal Conductor and it took place in Yokohama in 1975 during a Japanese tour. It's a typical Boulez programme with music by Webern, Birtwistle and a remarkable performance of Ravel's ballet Daphnis et Chloe. One not to be missed!
FREE THINKING
This week sees the return of Free Thinking, our unique festival of ideas. We're delighted to be back in Liverpool, inviting the public to join thinkers from the arts, science, philosophy and technology to tackle the major issues of our time. Freedom is a major theme this year, but we will also consider a range of topics from space exploration, the future of childhood and the state of the arts. The broadcast festival is launched on Friday at 9.45 pm by Phil Redmond, TV drama pioneer and creator of Grange Hill and Brookside when he delivers the Free Thinking Lecture. Phil explores the competing political and cultural forces redefining our personal identities in his talk called 'Whose Identity Is It Anyway?'
On Sunday 11th November, Matthew Sweet presents a special evening of programmes including a specially commissioned Drama on 3. 'Yesterday an Incident Occurred' is a new play by the acclaimed playwright Mark Ravenhill about people's relationship to the 'war on terror'. It will be recorded with a live audience in the atmospheric, disused Victorian civil court in Liverpool. Also on Sunday night, Words and Music will be broadcast, for the first time in front of an audience, in Liverpool's St. George's Hall – where Charles Dickens gave his public Penny Readings. From Monday 12th November to Friday 16th, there are highlights from Free Thinking on air every evening at 9.45 pm covering freedom, education, equality and space. Over the coming month, Night Waves will be also broadcasting the best of Free Thinking with a special dedicated programme every Thursday.
Visit the Free Thinking website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/
FOULDS: A WORLD REQUIEM
On the evening of Remembrance Sunday, we have a historic event broadcast live in The Choir. After 80 years we are reviving a tradition which took place in the Royal Albert Hall, as the British Legion Armistice Day commemorations after the Great War. The performance of A World Requiem by John Foulds was intended as an annual event, but the tradition abruptly finished in 1926, and the composer – an original voice in British music – was also largely forgotten. One newspaper described the significance of the occasion,' The scope of the work is beyond what anyone has dared to attempt hitherto. It is no less than to find expression for the deepest and most widespread unhappiness this generation has ever known. As such it was received by a very large number of listeners, who evidently felt that music alone could do this for them.' The performance on the evening of November 11th is presented by Aled Jones, and it combines the BBC Symphony Orchestra with an impressive line-up of performers: the soloists include Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Gerald Finley and Stuart Skelton, and the BBC Symphony Chorus is joined by the Crouch End Festival Chorus, Philharmonia Chorus and Trinity Boys' Choir, conducted by Leon Botstein. For anyone interested in British music, this is certainly one of the major events of the year.
The Choir http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/thechoir/
ELGAR
In November we are also continuing our commemoration of Elgar's 150th anniversary. On Sunday 4th in The Choir we are exploring his choral legacy, while in Performance on 3 from November 12th to 16th, we broadcast a special series of concerts. On Monday 12th, Mark Elder conducts the Hallé in two masterpieces – Elgar's Symphony No. 2 and the Cello Concerto with Norwegian cellist Truls Mørk. On Tuesday 13th, Mark Elder conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra in Elgar's most famous orchestral work, the Enigma Variations. This is combined with some lesser known national rarities, the Civic Fanfare, The Spirit of England and the Nursery Suite dedicated to 'the two little Princesses', later HRH Her Majesty The Queen and Princess Margaret. The following evening we have even more of a rarity, the original Starlight Express, dating from long before Lloyd-Webber! Elgar composed incidental music for Algernon Blackwood's escapist piece of Edwardian theatre. In this performance, the BBC Concert Orchestra is conducted by Barry Wordsworth with actors providing the dramatic context.
Performance on 3 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
THE LONDON JAZZ FESTIVAL
Later in the month, we have our annual coverage of this great festival of jazz. Since there is so much to mention, do visit the special site to see which festival events will be available on Radio 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/londonjazzfestival/onair.shtml. However let me draw your attention to the opening concert, a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald born in 1917. It's called 'We All Love Ella', and featuring Jamelia, Lea DeLaria, Claire Martin, David McAlmont, Juliet Roberts, Ian Shaw, Terri Walker and Lizz Wright with the BBC Concert Orchestra. You can hear this tribute to Ella Fitzgerald – one of the great voices of 20th-century song – on Wednesday 21st November. Our coverage kicks off with a live relay from Pizza Express on Friday 16 November at 10.30pm, with live music including the guitarist, Charlie Hunter.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
I hope you have enjoyed our archive features with some of the great performances of the last four decades broadcast recently as part of our 40th birthday programming. Our celebrations come to an end on Wednesday 7th, when we remember Pierre Boulez's marvellous tenure as the BBC Symphony Orchestra's Principal Conductor in the early 1970s. This concert is one of Boulez's last recorded concerts as Principal Conductor and it took place in Yokohama in 1975 during a Japanese tour. It's a typical Boulez programme with music by Webern, Birtwistle and a remarkable performance of Ravel's ballet Daphnis et Chloe. One not to be missed!
FREE THINKING
This week sees the return of Free Thinking, our unique festival of ideas. We're delighted to be back in Liverpool, inviting the public to join thinkers from the arts, science, philosophy and technology to tackle the major issues of our time. Freedom is a major theme this year, but we will also consider a range of topics from space exploration, the future of childhood and the state of the arts. The broadcast festival is launched on Friday at 9.45 pm by Phil Redmond, TV drama pioneer and creator of Grange Hill and Brookside when he delivers the Free Thinking Lecture. Phil explores the competing political and cultural forces redefining our personal identities in his talk called 'Whose Identity Is It Anyway?'
On Sunday 11th November, Matthew Sweet presents a special evening of programmes including a specially commissioned Drama on 3. 'Yesterday an Incident Occurred' is a new play by the acclaimed playwright Mark Ravenhill about people's relationship to the 'war on terror'. It will be recorded with a live audience in the atmospheric, disused Victorian civil court in Liverpool. Also on Sunday night, Words and Music will be broadcast, for the first time in front of an audience, in Liverpool's St. George's Hall – where Charles Dickens gave his public Penny Readings. From Monday 12th November to Friday 16th, there are highlights from Free Thinking on air every evening at 9.45 pm covering freedom, education, equality and space. Over the coming month, Night Waves will be also broadcasting the best of Free Thinking with a special dedicated programme every Thursday.
Visit the Free Thinking website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/
FOULDS: A WORLD REQUIEM
On the evening of Remembrance Sunday, we have a historic event broadcast live in The Choir. After 80 years we are reviving a tradition which took place in the Royal Albert Hall, as the British Legion Armistice Day commemorations after the Great War. The performance of A World Requiem by John Foulds was intended as an annual event, but the tradition abruptly finished in 1926, and the composer – an original voice in British music – was also largely forgotten. One newspaper described the significance of the occasion,' The scope of the work is beyond what anyone has dared to attempt hitherto. It is no less than to find expression for the deepest and most widespread unhappiness this generation has ever known. As such it was received by a very large number of listeners, who evidently felt that music alone could do this for them.' The performance on the evening of November 11th is presented by Aled Jones, and it combines the BBC Symphony Orchestra with an impressive line-up of performers: the soloists include Catherine Wyn-Rogers, Gerald Finley and Stuart Skelton, and the BBC Symphony Chorus is joined by the Crouch End Festival Chorus, Philharmonia Chorus and Trinity Boys' Choir, conducted by Leon Botstein. For anyone interested in British music, this is certainly one of the major events of the year.
The Choir http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/thechoir/
ELGAR
In November we are also continuing our commemoration of Elgar's 150th anniversary. On Sunday 4th in The Choir we are exploring his choral legacy, while in Performance on 3 from November 12th to 16th, we broadcast a special series of concerts. On Monday 12th, Mark Elder conducts the Hallé in two masterpieces – Elgar's Symphony No. 2 and the Cello Concerto with Norwegian cellist Truls Mørk. On Tuesday 13th, Mark Elder conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra in Elgar's most famous orchestral work, the Enigma Variations. This is combined with some lesser known national rarities, the Civic Fanfare, The Spirit of England and the Nursery Suite dedicated to 'the two little Princesses', later HRH Her Majesty The Queen and Princess Margaret. The following evening we have even more of a rarity, the original Starlight Express, dating from long before Lloyd-Webber! Elgar composed incidental music for Algernon Blackwood's escapist piece of Edwardian theatre. In this performance, the BBC Concert Orchestra is conducted by Barry Wordsworth with actors providing the dramatic context.
Performance on 3 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/performanceon3/
THE LONDON JAZZ FESTIVAL
Later in the month, we have our annual coverage of this great festival of jazz. Since there is so much to mention, do visit the special site to see which festival events will be available on Radio 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/londonjazzfestival/onair.shtml. However let me draw your attention to the opening concert, a tribute to Ella Fitzgerald born in 1917. It's called 'We All Love Ella', and featuring Jamelia, Lea DeLaria, Claire Martin, David McAlmont, Juliet Roberts, Ian Shaw, Terri Walker and Lizz Wright with the BBC Concert Orchestra. You can hear this tribute to Ella Fitzgerald – one of the great voices of 20th-century song – on Wednesday 21st November. Our coverage kicks off with a live relay from Pizza Express on Friday 16 November at 10.30pm, with live music including the guitarist, Charlie Hunter.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Sep. 2007
As you may have heard or seen, Radio 3 is celebrating its 40th birthday. It's impossible to compress a forty year history into a mere forty days, but we're going to try! So we're taking 40 days (between now and November 7th ) to present regular highlights from our programmes, in particular giving us the chance to hear memorable musical performances from the last four decades. Radio 3's 40th Anniversary Site is at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/40thanniversary/index.shtml
Radio 3, like the Third Programme before it, is a key player in the cultural life of the UK. Western classical music is at the heart of our programming but throughout our history we have broadcast other musical genres and in particular supported new work. It is fascinating, for example, to look at the vital role that Radio 3 has played in the development of early music in the UK. So in our celebrations we will be bringing you some of the best in performance by the world's leading players – both today's musicians and those who live on in our archives.
Our birthday programming is dropped into programmes across our schedule, for example:
In World Routes (September 29th) Lucy Duran looks back to a ground-breaking series of World Music concerts organised by Radio 3 and the South Bank Centre: the famous Music of the Royal Courts took place twenty years ago to widespread acclaim. Lucy Duran introduces highlights, including music from China and a rare re-telling of a Malian epic by veteran griot Djely Madi Sissoko. The original series presented court music from across the world, performed by musicians who, for the most part, had never played in Europe before. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldroutes/pip/bdysh/ In the Early Music Show (September 30th), Andrew Manze presents a portrait of one of the most influential early music pioneers, David Munrow, known across the UK for his relaxed and informative style of broadcasting. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/earlymusicshow/pip/adoxe/
Starting on Monday (October 1st), Afternoon on 3 focuses on Radio 3 commissions. Highlights include Anthony Payne's completion of Elgar's Symphony No.3; the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra's award-winning recording of James MacMillan's The Confession of Isobel Gowdie; Django Bates' Priceless for the BBC National Orchestra of Wales; and Danish composer Poul Ruders's Concerto in Pieces, commissioned for the 300th anniversary of Purcell's death as a 'sequel' to Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/s6k22/
In Jazz Library, next Friday (October 5th), Alyn Shipton delves into the jazz CDs that began life as Radio 3 studio recordings, showing the close relationship between Radio 3 and the development of British Jazz since the 1970s. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/pip//75y56/
Next weekend on Saturday (October 6th), Music Matters has a special feature about the history of Radio 3, with contributions from former controllers, producers and presenters, as well as composers and performers associated with the station. Tom Service charts BBC Radio 3's journey starting with its first incarnation as a combination of Music Programme, Sports Service and the Third Programme.
In Hear and Now (October 20th and 27th), composer Julian Anderson (himself 40) presents his lifelong relationship with Radio 3 and discusses how hearing contemporary music broadcasts helped develop his curiosity for composing and the figures who dominated the landscape of the latter half of the twentieth century.
CD REVIEW
This is clearly the month for anniversaries! We are also celebrating the 50th anniversary of CD Review – the fiftieth because this flagship programme actually started before Radio 3 (as Record, not CD, Review of course!). On Saturday 6 October, Andrew McGregor introduces the 50th anniversary edition. It has tracked the development of recorded music from 78s to LPs in mono and stereo, and on to the age of CDs, DVDs and digital downloads. The special edition includes the regular Building a Library feature, in this edition Stephen Johnson discusses Beethoven's Fifth Symphony; later some regular contributors, Rob Cowan, Hilary Finch and Jeremy Summerly answer listeners' questions about how they assess new recordings. CD Review can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cdreview/
GLUCK'S IPHIGENIE & TAURIDE
Normal Radio 3 life goes on still amid the anniversary celebrations, as we continue to bring you specially recorded performances. One not to miss is Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride on the evening of Saturday, October 6th. It's an exciting new production of Gluck's masterwork from the Royal Opera House, featuring mezzo-soprano Susan Graham in the title role. Opera on 3 can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/
MANCHESTER LIBERALISM
From the outset, Radio 3 has been dedicated to a wide cultural agenda; so do look out for our Sunday features, Mind Maps, starting with Geneva this Sunday, and moving to Manchester the following week (October 7th). It examines the intellectual histories of cities that have changed the way people think. In the Manchester programme, Chris Bowlby walks around key sites and buildings, discussing how our northern metropolis grew from almost nothing to a throbbing, noisy and modern new urban form – much to the alarm of many contemporary observers, including Elizabeth Gaskell and Friedrich Engels. Manchester's new leaders took a special interest in European culture – music (Beethoven and Mendelssohn, in particular), literature (notably Goethe) and art. This goes some way to explaining how the city lent its name to a political creed of this time – Manchester liberalism. More details on the Sunday Features at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/sundayfeature/
THE MAKING OF MUSIC AND NIGHT WAVES
Two quick notes to conclude. Night Waves on Tuesday October 9th is an interview with the Canadian novelist, Douglas Coupland, who has been at the forefront of literary explorations of the world of new technology and the global economy. His books, such as Microserfs and JPod, have centred on the computer-obsessed community of the West Coast of the USA. It promises to be fascinating to hear this original writer in conversation with Philip Dodd. And don't forget that our joint programme with Radio 4 is still continuing: The Making of Music has now reached the 20th century, and you can hear James Naughtie each weekday at 3.45pm providing historical, social and cultural context, following which more of the music under discussion can be heard on Radio 3. Making of Music at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/makingofmusic/ Night Waves at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/nightwaves/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Radio 3, like the Third Programme before it, is a key player in the cultural life of the UK. Western classical music is at the heart of our programming but throughout our history we have broadcast other musical genres and in particular supported new work. It is fascinating, for example, to look at the vital role that Radio 3 has played in the development of early music in the UK. So in our celebrations we will be bringing you some of the best in performance by the world's leading players – both today's musicians and those who live on in our archives.
Our birthday programming is dropped into programmes across our schedule, for example:
In World Routes (September 29th) Lucy Duran looks back to a ground-breaking series of World Music concerts organised by Radio 3 and the South Bank Centre: the famous Music of the Royal Courts took place twenty years ago to widespread acclaim. Lucy Duran introduces highlights, including music from China and a rare re-telling of a Malian epic by veteran griot Djely Madi Sissoko. The original series presented court music from across the world, performed by musicians who, for the most part, had never played in Europe before. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldroutes/pip/bdysh/ In the Early Music Show (September 30th), Andrew Manze presents a portrait of one of the most influential early music pioneers, David Munrow, known across the UK for his relaxed and informative style of broadcasting. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/earlymusicshow/pip/adoxe/
Starting on Monday (October 1st), Afternoon on 3 focuses on Radio 3 commissions. Highlights include Anthony Payne's completion of Elgar's Symphony No.3; the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra's award-winning recording of James MacMillan's The Confession of Isobel Gowdie; Django Bates' Priceless for the BBC National Orchestra of Wales; and Danish composer Poul Ruders's Concerto in Pieces, commissioned for the 300th anniversary of Purcell's death as a 'sequel' to Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/s6k22/
In Jazz Library, next Friday (October 5th), Alyn Shipton delves into the jazz CDs that began life as Radio 3 studio recordings, showing the close relationship between Radio 3 and the development of British Jazz since the 1970s. More details at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/pip//75y56/
Next weekend on Saturday (October 6th), Music Matters has a special feature about the history of Radio 3, with contributions from former controllers, producers and presenters, as well as composers and performers associated with the station. Tom Service charts BBC Radio 3's journey starting with its first incarnation as a combination of Music Programme, Sports Service and the Third Programme.
In Hear and Now (October 20th and 27th), composer Julian Anderson (himself 40) presents his lifelong relationship with Radio 3 and discusses how hearing contemporary music broadcasts helped develop his curiosity for composing and the figures who dominated the landscape of the latter half of the twentieth century.
CD REVIEW
This is clearly the month for anniversaries! We are also celebrating the 50th anniversary of CD Review – the fiftieth because this flagship programme actually started before Radio 3 (as Record, not CD, Review of course!). On Saturday 6 October, Andrew McGregor introduces the 50th anniversary edition. It has tracked the development of recorded music from 78s to LPs in mono and stereo, and on to the age of CDs, DVDs and digital downloads. The special edition includes the regular Building a Library feature, in this edition Stephen Johnson discusses Beethoven's Fifth Symphony; later some regular contributors, Rob Cowan, Hilary Finch and Jeremy Summerly answer listeners' questions about how they assess new recordings. CD Review can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cdreview/
GLUCK'S IPHIGENIE & TAURIDE
Normal Radio 3 life goes on still amid the anniversary celebrations, as we continue to bring you specially recorded performances. One not to miss is Gluck's Iphigénie en Tauride on the evening of Saturday, October 6th. It's an exciting new production of Gluck's masterwork from the Royal Opera House, featuring mezzo-soprano Susan Graham in the title role. Opera on 3 can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/
MANCHESTER LIBERALISM
From the outset, Radio 3 has been dedicated to a wide cultural agenda; so do look out for our Sunday features, Mind Maps, starting with Geneva this Sunday, and moving to Manchester the following week (October 7th). It examines the intellectual histories of cities that have changed the way people think. In the Manchester programme, Chris Bowlby walks around key sites and buildings, discussing how our northern metropolis grew from almost nothing to a throbbing, noisy and modern new urban form – much to the alarm of many contemporary observers, including Elizabeth Gaskell and Friedrich Engels. Manchester's new leaders took a special interest in European culture – music (Beethoven and Mendelssohn, in particular), literature (notably Goethe) and art. This goes some way to explaining how the city lent its name to a political creed of this time – Manchester liberalism. More details on the Sunday Features at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/sundayfeature/
THE MAKING OF MUSIC AND NIGHT WAVES
Two quick notes to conclude. Night Waves on Tuesday October 9th is an interview with the Canadian novelist, Douglas Coupland, who has been at the forefront of literary explorations of the world of new technology and the global economy. His books, such as Microserfs and JPod, have centred on the computer-obsessed community of the West Coast of the USA. It promises to be fascinating to hear this original writer in conversation with Philip Dodd. And don't forget that our joint programme with Radio 4 is still continuing: The Making of Music has now reached the 20th century, and you can hear James Naughtie each weekday at 3.45pm providing historical, social and cultural context, following which more of the music under discussion can be heard on Radio 3. Making of Music at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/makingofmusic/ Night Waves at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/nightwaves/
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Aug. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
The end of the Proms is in sight, and I hope you have enjoyed many concerts during the summer. The final week is packed with some of the great orchestras of the world. You would have to travel far to hear the San Francisco Symphony, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Leipzig Gewandhaus, the Boston Symphony, and our own BBC Symphony Orchestra all in the space of a week. So we are delighted to invite you to take the best seat in the house – wherever you are! For full details, do look at www.bbc.co.uk/proms. Following all that we have the Last Night, with Jiøí Bìlohlávek conducting for the first time. It promises to be, as ever, a great gala event, this year with Anna Netrebko, the tenor Andrew Kennedy, and violinist Joshua Bell. http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/ – BBC Proms Website
EDINBURGH
Once the Proms are finished for this year, we head straight to Edinburgh for a week of concerts as the climax of our summer festival coverage. In another remarkable week, we have two early music concerts: a Monteverdi 1610 Vespers from Hesperion XXI, directed by Jordi Savall (11th), and a concert of Vivaldi and contemporaries directed by Chiara Banchini, and with the countertenor Andrea Scholl (13th). I am also looking forward to hearing the broadcast of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra with a Stravinsky double-bill of the evocative ballet Orpheus followed by the powerful Greek drama in the opera Oedipus Rex. Jeffrey Lloyd-Roberts sings the title role, and the performance is conducted by Susanna Mälkki. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/festivaledinburgh.shtml – Radio 3 at the Edinburgh Festival
SIR COLIN DAVIS
Starting on the 24th, we have Radio 3's tribute to Sir Colin Davis on his 80th birthday, using the wide variety of archive recordings which he has made for the BBC. You will be able to hear him with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in the 1960s, and also conducting the Last Night of the Proms. In addition, we have Mozart from the Royal Opera House, and the world premiere of Tippett's The Rose Lake with the LSO. In addition, we hear him conducting Berlioz, a composer he has really made his own, and also Sir Colin working with the European Union Youth Orchestra.
SIBELIUS
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Jean Sibelius. During September we are exploring his musical legacy in Composer of the Week starting on Monday 17th the anniversary week itself. Donald Macleod presents a broad selection of the music, including a performance of the Violin Concerto with Maxim Vengerov. Much of the concentration is on his unique place in Finnish culture, and the influential role of the national saga, the Kalevala, which gave birth to pieces such as Kullervo, the Lemminkainen Suite, Pohjola's Daughter, Luonnotar and Tapiola. Do remember that you can hear Composer of the Week both at midday and at 8.45 pm in the evenings outside the Proms period. And listen out too for more Sibelius during Afternoon on 3. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/ – Composer of the Week
WORLD ROUTES IN JORDAN
We will continue to explore the world beyond western classical music in World Routes. I am looking forward to two special editions on Saturday 15th and 22nd. These have been recorded entirely on location in Jordan. The programmes contain unique field recordings in special sessions by many of Jordan's top musicians, including the 'Voice of Iraq' Ilham Al Madfai who has lived there for the past 15 years. We travel into the desert to Wadi Rum to meet the Bedouin – nomadic people who live in the heart of Arabia. As well as hearing unique recordings of their ancient songs, we learn something of their traditions and way of life. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldroutes/ – World Routes
TWO DRAMAS
Two forthcoming contrasting plays highlight the range of drama on Radio 3. On Sunday 23rd September, we will present a new production of Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe starring Paterson Joseph as Faustus and Ray Fearon as Mephistopheles. It was first published in 1604, and is the most famous of Marlowe's plays; its hero sells his soul to the devil in return for twenty-four years of power and pleasure. It is a tragic story of a man who defies the authority of God by selling his place in heaven for knowledge and power on earth. Marlowe himself was stabbed to death aged 29, while he was under investigation for heresy. The devilish displays, ghostly apparitions, angels and the horrors of hell are brought to life by an extraordinary sound score composed by Olly Fox with sound design by Steve Brooke. We regularly feature new work alongside drama from the classical canon. One of our other September plays is completely up-to-date as we hear Seven Wonders of the Divided World on September 9th. Around the sixtieth anniversary of the partition of India and Pakistan, BBC Radio Drama has commissioned short plays from seven writers living near artificial political barriers around the world. Writers range from An Sonjae – a Korean monk – to Sultan Raev – the Kyrgysztani Minister for Culture. Some of the subjects immediately caught my eye:
A woman's dying wish is to be buried with her husband whose grave, since his death, has fallen the wrong side of a new border fence. An adopted girl, who has identified strongly all her life with her birth mother, a Greek Cypriot, is thrown off balance to discover her father was 'the enemy'. Near a hermetic border, an artist pining for his missing father finds that his work becomes more and more focussed on the beauty of migrating geese. Do listen out for what promises to be moving and engaging drama event. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/ – Drama on 3
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
The end of the Proms is in sight, and I hope you have enjoyed many concerts during the summer. The final week is packed with some of the great orchestras of the world. You would have to travel far to hear the San Francisco Symphony, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Leipzig Gewandhaus, the Boston Symphony, and our own BBC Symphony Orchestra all in the space of a week. So we are delighted to invite you to take the best seat in the house – wherever you are! For full details, do look at www.bbc.co.uk/proms. Following all that we have the Last Night, with Jiøí Bìlohlávek conducting for the first time. It promises to be, as ever, a great gala event, this year with Anna Netrebko, the tenor Andrew Kennedy, and violinist Joshua Bell. http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/ – BBC Proms Website
EDINBURGH
Once the Proms are finished for this year, we head straight to Edinburgh for a week of concerts as the climax of our summer festival coverage. In another remarkable week, we have two early music concerts: a Monteverdi 1610 Vespers from Hesperion XXI, directed by Jordi Savall (11th), and a concert of Vivaldi and contemporaries directed by Chiara Banchini, and with the countertenor Andrea Scholl (13th). I am also looking forward to hearing the broadcast of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra with a Stravinsky double-bill of the evocative ballet Orpheus followed by the powerful Greek drama in the opera Oedipus Rex. Jeffrey Lloyd-Roberts sings the title role, and the performance is conducted by Susanna Mälkki. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/festivals/festivaledinburgh.shtml – Radio 3 at the Edinburgh Festival
SIR COLIN DAVIS
Starting on the 24th, we have Radio 3's tribute to Sir Colin Davis on his 80th birthday, using the wide variety of archive recordings which he has made for the BBC. You will be able to hear him with the BBC Symphony Orchestra in the 1960s, and also conducting the Last Night of the Proms. In addition, we have Mozart from the Royal Opera House, and the world premiere of Tippett's The Rose Lake with the LSO. In addition, we hear him conducting Berlioz, a composer he has really made his own, and also Sir Colin working with the European Union Youth Orchestra.
SIBELIUS
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the death of Jean Sibelius. During September we are exploring his musical legacy in Composer of the Week starting on Monday 17th the anniversary week itself. Donald Macleod presents a broad selection of the music, including a performance of the Violin Concerto with Maxim Vengerov. Much of the concentration is on his unique place in Finnish culture, and the influential role of the national saga, the Kalevala, which gave birth to pieces such as Kullervo, the Lemminkainen Suite, Pohjola's Daughter, Luonnotar and Tapiola. Do remember that you can hear Composer of the Week both at midday and at 8.45 pm in the evenings outside the Proms period. And listen out too for more Sibelius during Afternoon on 3. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/ – Composer of the Week
WORLD ROUTES IN JORDAN
We will continue to explore the world beyond western classical music in World Routes. I am looking forward to two special editions on Saturday 15th and 22nd. These have been recorded entirely on location in Jordan. The programmes contain unique field recordings in special sessions by many of Jordan's top musicians, including the 'Voice of Iraq' Ilham Al Madfai who has lived there for the past 15 years. We travel into the desert to Wadi Rum to meet the Bedouin – nomadic people who live in the heart of Arabia. As well as hearing unique recordings of their ancient songs, we learn something of their traditions and way of life. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldroutes/ – World Routes
TWO DRAMAS
Two forthcoming contrasting plays highlight the range of drama on Radio 3. On Sunday 23rd September, we will present a new production of Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe starring Paterson Joseph as Faustus and Ray Fearon as Mephistopheles. It was first published in 1604, and is the most famous of Marlowe's plays; its hero sells his soul to the devil in return for twenty-four years of power and pleasure. It is a tragic story of a man who defies the authority of God by selling his place in heaven for knowledge and power on earth. Marlowe himself was stabbed to death aged 29, while he was under investigation for heresy. The devilish displays, ghostly apparitions, angels and the horrors of hell are brought to life by an extraordinary sound score composed by Olly Fox with sound design by Steve Brooke. We regularly feature new work alongside drama from the classical canon. One of our other September plays is completely up-to-date as we hear Seven Wonders of the Divided World on September 9th. Around the sixtieth anniversary of the partition of India and Pakistan, BBC Radio Drama has commissioned short plays from seven writers living near artificial political barriers around the world. Writers range from An Sonjae – a Korean monk – to Sultan Raev – the Kyrgysztani Minister for Culture. Some of the subjects immediately caught my eye:
A woman's dying wish is to be buried with her husband whose grave, since his death, has fallen the wrong side of a new border fence. An adopted girl, who has identified strongly all her life with her birth mother, a Greek Cypriot, is thrown off balance to discover her father was 'the enemy'. Near a hermetic border, an artist pining for his missing father finds that his work becomes more and more focussed on the beauty of migrating geese. Do listen out for what promises to be moving and engaging drama event. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/ – Drama on 3
With best wishes
Roger Wright
16/8/07 RAJAR quarterly figures
The latest listening figures were published this morning. For BBC Radio there was mixed news, but on the whole it was fairly quiet. For Radio 3, sadly, the news was all bad, very bad: the lowest reach ever, the lowest percentage of the population listening ever, the lowest share of total listening ever, continuing a dispiriting downward trend.
For the first time reach has fallen below 1.8 million (in the same quarter last year it fell below 1.9 million for the first time). The figure for the new Breakfast programme also showed a significant fall, compared with Morning on 3.
Average weekly reach for the last quarter was 1.783 million (1.902m last quarter, 1.834m in the same quarter last year), 3.54% of the population; share of listening was 1.058%, weekly listening hours 11.175 million. Average Breakfast listening was 727,000, down from 765,000 last quarter and 752,000 in the same quarter last year.
The story had no chance of hitting the headlines with Capital radio being overtaken by Kiss FM, Heart and Magic battling it out for top place in London and Chris Moyles adding to his Radio 1 audience. But somewhere in Broadcasting House questions will be asked. Won't they?
For the first time reach has fallen below 1.8 million (in the same quarter last year it fell below 1.9 million for the first time). The figure for the new Breakfast programme also showed a significant fall, compared with Morning on 3.
Average weekly reach for the last quarter was 1.783 million (1.902m last quarter, 1.834m in the same quarter last year), 3.54% of the population; share of listening was 1.058%, weekly listening hours 11.175 million. Average Breakfast listening was 727,000, down from 765,000 last quarter and 752,000 in the same quarter last year.
The story had no chance of hitting the headlines with Capital radio being overtaken by Kiss FM, Heart and Magic battling it out for top place in London and Chris Moyles adding to his Radio 1 audience. But somewhere in Broadcasting House questions will be asked. Won't they?
Controller's Note, Jul. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
THE PROMS
The Proms are underway now, and I trust you are enjoying many great musical performances. We also hope that you manage to come behind the scenes with Radio 3, in musician interviews, related documentaries, and other programmes to take you to the heart of this remarkable festival. If you are not able to attend in person you can have the 'best seat in the house' as Radio 3 brings you every programme live.
From the vast array of wonderful concerts on offer, I will venture a few choices. I am personally looking forward to hearing the BBC Singers performing the new Birtwistle work, Neruda Madrigals, a BBC co-commission. That's in a late-night Prom on July 31st. A couple of weeks later on August 12th, the first-ever Proms Gotterdammerung completes the Proms Ring cycle; the BBC Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by Donald Runnicles, with an impressive cast headed by Christine Brewer, Stig Andersen and Sir John Tomlinson. On August 22nd the Lucerne Festival Orchestra is making its Proms debut in a performance of Mahler's Third Symphony under Claudio Abbado; this is a perfect work for the Royal Albert Hall, and one of many memorable Proms concerts this season.
So do tune in every evening on Radio 3 or hear many of them repeated soon afterwards in Afternoon on 3. If you can't catch those broadcasts, you can hear every concert online whenever you want in the seven days following our broadcasts. And there's a special web page for listening to the Proms online: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/promsbroadcast/radio/
WOMAD
We are of course only at the very beginning of our long summer of music from the Royal Albert Hall. However, by way of contrast, we are pleased to bring you again unique coverage of WOMAD, the great annual world music event – lets hope for those camping at the site, that the weather is better than Glastonbury. Whatever the weather, we hope to covey the full experience of being there in the twenty-fifth year of the festival. Our weekend of live broadcasts and recorded highlights is introduced by our presenters, including Andrew McGregor, Fiona Talkington, Lucy Duran, Serena Dankwa and Verity Sharp – more than seven hours of WOMAD broadcasts. You can tune in on Friday and Saturday evenings (27th and 28th) for a round-up of the day, and you can also hear a special World Routes introduced by Lucy Duran at 1pm on Saturday, as well as a special lunchtime show on the Sunday at the same time.
As always, the artists are too numerous to mention, but here are some of the highlights: Baaba Maal, the Congolese rumba maestro Samba Mapangala; Mexican singer Lila Downs; Egyptian band El Tanbura; Malkit Singh, who has been in the Guinness Book of Records as the biggest selling Bhangra artist; Palestinian oud virtuosos the Trio Joubran; the Warsaw Village Band; and Vieux Farka Touré, the son of the late great Ali Farka Touré. Something for all tastes, I hope you will agree, and much to stimulate our curiosity.
And if you miss some performances, there will be extensive coverage with the possibility of listening to full sets on the Radio 3 website. If you are there, come and visit us at the Radio 3 tent.
DUKE ELLINGTON
Jazz Library is already proving to be a popular part of our recent schedule changes. Tomorrow night, we have one of the all-time jazz greats in Jazz Library – Duke Ellington. Ellington provides a substantial challenge for presenter Alyn Shipton, as he decides what to represent from his vast recorded legacy. In the first of what will eventually be several editions of Jazz Library devoted to him, the bandleader and Ellington expert Pete Long joins propose the essential recordings from 1940 to his death in 1974. These include the long symphonic work Black Brown and Beige, his version of the Nutcracker Suite and the Second Sacred Concert. Long has an insider's knowledge of this music, having transcribed and played much of it himself, and worked with many of Ellington's friends and associates.
BREAKFAST
Talking of jazz, you might have heard Rob Cowan slip the odd track into his breakfast programme on weekdays from 7-10am. Rob's choices (not least from his increasingly infamous rucksack) seem to be finding a very appreciate audience. If you haven't yet tuned into him or Sara Mohr-Pietsch do give their programme a try – a good way to start the day!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
THE PROMS
The Proms are underway now, and I trust you are enjoying many great musical performances. We also hope that you manage to come behind the scenes with Radio 3, in musician interviews, related documentaries, and other programmes to take you to the heart of this remarkable festival. If you are not able to attend in person you can have the 'best seat in the house' as Radio 3 brings you every programme live.
From the vast array of wonderful concerts on offer, I will venture a few choices. I am personally looking forward to hearing the BBC Singers performing the new Birtwistle work, Neruda Madrigals, a BBC co-commission. That's in a late-night Prom on July 31st. A couple of weeks later on August 12th, the first-ever Proms Gotterdammerung completes the Proms Ring cycle; the BBC Symphony Orchestra will be conducted by Donald Runnicles, with an impressive cast headed by Christine Brewer, Stig Andersen and Sir John Tomlinson. On August 22nd the Lucerne Festival Orchestra is making its Proms debut in a performance of Mahler's Third Symphony under Claudio Abbado; this is a perfect work for the Royal Albert Hall, and one of many memorable Proms concerts this season.
So do tune in every evening on Radio 3 or hear many of them repeated soon afterwards in Afternoon on 3. If you can't catch those broadcasts, you can hear every concert online whenever you want in the seven days following our broadcasts. And there's a special web page for listening to the Proms online: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007/promsbroadcast/radio/
WOMAD
We are of course only at the very beginning of our long summer of music from the Royal Albert Hall. However, by way of contrast, we are pleased to bring you again unique coverage of WOMAD, the great annual world music event – lets hope for those camping at the site, that the weather is better than Glastonbury. Whatever the weather, we hope to covey the full experience of being there in the twenty-fifth year of the festival. Our weekend of live broadcasts and recorded highlights is introduced by our presenters, including Andrew McGregor, Fiona Talkington, Lucy Duran, Serena Dankwa and Verity Sharp – more than seven hours of WOMAD broadcasts. You can tune in on Friday and Saturday evenings (27th and 28th) for a round-up of the day, and you can also hear a special World Routes introduced by Lucy Duran at 1pm on Saturday, as well as a special lunchtime show on the Sunday at the same time.
As always, the artists are too numerous to mention, but here are some of the highlights: Baaba Maal, the Congolese rumba maestro Samba Mapangala; Mexican singer Lila Downs; Egyptian band El Tanbura; Malkit Singh, who has been in the Guinness Book of Records as the biggest selling Bhangra artist; Palestinian oud virtuosos the Trio Joubran; the Warsaw Village Band; and Vieux Farka Touré, the son of the late great Ali Farka Touré. Something for all tastes, I hope you will agree, and much to stimulate our curiosity.
And if you miss some performances, there will be extensive coverage with the possibility of listening to full sets on the Radio 3 website. If you are there, come and visit us at the Radio 3 tent.
DUKE ELLINGTON
Jazz Library is already proving to be a popular part of our recent schedule changes. Tomorrow night, we have one of the all-time jazz greats in Jazz Library – Duke Ellington. Ellington provides a substantial challenge for presenter Alyn Shipton, as he decides what to represent from his vast recorded legacy. In the first of what will eventually be several editions of Jazz Library devoted to him, the bandleader and Ellington expert Pete Long joins propose the essential recordings from 1940 to his death in 1974. These include the long symphonic work Black Brown and Beige, his version of the Nutcracker Suite and the Second Sacred Concert. Long has an insider's knowledge of this music, having transcribed and played much of it himself, and worked with many of Ellington's friends and associates.
BREAKFAST
Talking of jazz, you might have heard Rob Cowan slip the odd track into his breakfast programme on weekdays from 7-10am. Rob's choices (not least from his increasingly infamous rucksack) seem to be finding a very appreciate audience. If you haven't yet tuned into him or Sara Mohr-Pietsch do give their programme a try – a good way to start the day!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
4/7/07 BBC Annual Report 2006-2007
The BBC Annual Report was published yesterday. Part One (54 pages) has been produced by the BBC Trust, Part Two (148 pages) by the BBC Executive (management). It can be read in full here.
Friends of Radio 3 submitted a report of its own to the BBC Trust and to the Executive. It can be read here. However, the Trust – as they told us – have no mechanism for officially considering listener submissions when drawing up their report, though they did promise that it would be read. Management's response (when there is one) is normally to express satisfaction when praise is given but seldom to publicly acknowledge the justice of listener criticisms. On the other hand, there have been several occasions when action has been taken on matters which FoR3 has highlighted, so the least that could be said is that we got things 'right' in their eyes, even if our own representations weren't the prime reason for changes.
We draw attention to one paragraph from the Trust's report:
"When audiences are asked their views on how seriously the BBC takes their opinion, a sizeable minority – a third or more – say they feel it takes either "not very much" or "none at all". These perceptions are higher among older audiences, lower income groups and people living outside England. This is a real concern for the Trust in our role of representing the public. The Trust is currently consulting with audiences on how they want to have their say and the outcomes will inform the Trust's future engagement activity."(BBC Annual Report 2006-2007, Part One, page 26)
Facts and figures: Radio 3's expenditure was £33.9 million, down from £35.9 million last year. On output the only remarkable figure is a further reduction in drama, down from 89 hours in 2005-2006 to 84 hours last year.
We consider the main points of the report as it affects Radio 3 in the Campaign Update section.
Friends of Radio 3 submitted a report of its own to the BBC Trust and to the Executive. It can be read here. However, the Trust – as they told us – have no mechanism for officially considering listener submissions when drawing up their report, though they did promise that it would be read. Management's response (when there is one) is normally to express satisfaction when praise is given but seldom to publicly acknowledge the justice of listener criticisms. On the other hand, there have been several occasions when action has been taken on matters which FoR3 has highlighted, so the least that could be said is that we got things 'right' in their eyes, even if our own representations weren't the prime reason for changes.
We draw attention to one paragraph from the Trust's report:
"When audiences are asked their views on how seriously the BBC takes their opinion, a sizeable minority – a third or more – say they feel it takes either "not very much" or "none at all". These perceptions are higher among older audiences, lower income groups and people living outside England. This is a real concern for the Trust in our role of representing the public. The Trust is currently consulting with audiences on how they want to have their say and the outcomes will inform the Trust's future engagement activity."(BBC Annual Report 2006-2007, Part One, page 26)
Facts and figures: Radio 3's expenditure was £33.9 million, down from £35.9 million last year. On output the only remarkable figure is a further reduction in drama, down from 89 hours in 2005-2006 to 84 hours last year.
We consider the main points of the report as it affects Radio 3 in the Campaign Update section.
Controller's Note, Jun. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
BEFORE THE PROMS…
July is of course the month when the BBC Proms start, but before we get underway at the Royal Albert Hall we will bring you a variety of other musical events.
One of the highpoints will be a major celebration from the newly-refurbished Royal Festival Hall. The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment celebrates its 21st birthday this year and its gala concert is packed with many leading musicians. As befits the orchestra which pioneered the idea of working with conductors who also have careers outside the early music world, four conductors are represented in this extremely varied evening: Mark Elder, Vladimir Jurowski, Sir Charles Mackerras and Sir Roger Norrington. The music reflects the wide-ranging interests of the orchestra, as we hear a suite from Dardanus by Rameau and Mozart's Concerto for 2 pianos, K365; then we have an extract from Weber's opera Der Freischutz; and finally Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks. So there is lots to enjoy in this concert which will be broadcast on Tuesday July 3rd.
There will be more French music two evenings later on July 5th, reflecting the French theme of the City of London Festival; this concert comes from the Middle Temple Hall and features the new French chamber orchestra Les Siècles. We hear works by Lully and Rameau, as well as the Second Violin Concerto by Chevalier de Saint-Georges. This work presents the other theme of the festival, namely the abolition of the slave trade. Saint-Georges was the son of a black slave and a white plantation worker, and in an extraordinary career became not only a violinist and composer, but also the French revolutionary army's first black colonel.
On the evening of Sunday July 1st, Aled Jones presents the Music of Wales, in the first of a series in The Choir looking at singing across the British Isles. With composer and writer Geraint Lewis as his guest, Aled explains how choirs of the younger generation are reinvigorating "the land of song" and continuing its proud traditions. We begin in the valleys of South Wales with the male voice choirs formed during the industrial era. Then, travelling along the coast, we arrive at St David's, the first cathedral choir in Britain to introduce girls into its ranks.
Jazz Library continues on Friday 6th July evening with the music of the New Orleans clarinettist George Lewis. He led the traditional jazz revival from 1942 until his death in 1969. Alyn Shipton talks to Lewis's friend and protégé, Tom Sancton, and they have the difficult job of selecting highlights from a vast catalogue of recordings. Sancton was brought up in New Orleans and was a clarinet student of George Lewis. His recollections of Lewis and other musicians of the period will make for an unusually moving edition of the programme.
STOPPARD SEASON
We will celebrate the 70th birthday of playwright Tom Stoppard in an edition of Night Waves Landmarks devoted to one of his most famous plays, Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead . This extraordinary work established Stoppard's reputation overnight. On the evening of July 5th, Night Waves examines its origins with those who were involved in staging it, including the director of the very first production, Derek Goldby. This ingenious work is set "within and around the action of Hamlet", and has become a contemporary classic of British theatre. A new production will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Sunday July 15th.
However, before that on the 8th you can hear Rock 'n' Roll, Stoppard's most recent play set against a backdrop of the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe. Jan is a Czech philosophy student studying for a doctorate at Cambridge when the Russian tanks roll in to crush the Prague Spring in 1968. Jan's tutor, Max, is a Marxist idealist who is bitterly disappointed when his favourite student chooses to go home to Prague, apparently to help defend Dubcek's fragile shoots of liberalism against Soviet oppression. Meanwhile, in Cambridge, Max's faith in the Party gradually wanes as bigger truths about love and death confront him. When the Berlin Wall comes down and it is announced that "history has ended", Max and Jan are cautiously reunited. The all-new cast features Bill Paterson as Max, Daniel Evans as Jan, Penny Downie as Eleanor, Amanda Root as Esme and Ron Cook as Nigel. I hope you enjoy this radio premiere of a fascinating new Stoppard play.
THE PROMS
From mid-July the BBC Proms will play their usual prominent role on Radio 3. And if you wish to know what to look forward to over the summer, then listen on the evening of July 12nd as Petroc Trelawny presents a guide to the season in our Proms Preview Evening. Mark Padmore presents his personal highlights, and cellist Paul Watkins (soloist in the first night) plays music by Elgar and Britten. Nicholas Kenyon will talk about the landmarks in his ten years of running the Proms, and there are postcards from some of the visiting orchestras from around the world.
So, now my annual dilemma of which Proms to mention! Well, clearly the First Night of The Proms on July 13th must merit a mention by any standards! Walton's Portsmouth Point overture opens the evening, the 80th anniversary of the unique partnership between the BBC and the Proms. Walton's work was first heard in London during the BBC's first Proms season in 1927. Then British cellist Paul Watkins performs Elgar's Cello Concerto to mark the 150th anniversary of the composer's birth. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony was left unperformed last year because of a fire at the Royal Albert Hall. We're going to make up for that with two performances this season! On the First Night soprano Maria Haan, mezzo-soprano Patricia Bardon, tenor Paul Groves and bass René Pape will join conductor Jirí Belohlávek and the BBC Symphony Chorus and Orchestra to launch the season in grand style. Later in the season Maris Janssons will conduct the work with his Bavarian Radio forces.
We then move on to a season which spans eight centuries of music in 90 concerts. We hear the 13th-century Icelandic sagas that inspired Wagner, a lost and newly-discovered Renaissance Mass, the baroque genius of Handel, Bach and Rameau, great orchestral repertoire from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries (including new commissions) – all performed by leading artists from around the world. In addition to the concerts, we will be previewing and discussing the Proms concerts, meeting the artists and some of the composers on a daily basis on Radio 3, so I will say no more now.
But do take time to browse yourself on the Proms site (http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007) and earmark the events which interest you. We will bring them all to you on Radio 3. Of course it's a unique musical experience being in the hall itself, so if you can, why not try and join us in person for some of the festivities. Listen out too for our competitions in our Breakfast and In Tune programmes where you will have chance to win tickets to the Proms. I hope you enjoy this year's Proms season.
As always, the Radio 3 website provides all the information you'll need to plan your listening, and the Radio Player offers you the chance to catch up on programmes you've missed: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
BEFORE THE PROMS…
July is of course the month when the BBC Proms start, but before we get underway at the Royal Albert Hall we will bring you a variety of other musical events.
One of the highpoints will be a major celebration from the newly-refurbished Royal Festival Hall. The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment celebrates its 21st birthday this year and its gala concert is packed with many leading musicians. As befits the orchestra which pioneered the idea of working with conductors who also have careers outside the early music world, four conductors are represented in this extremely varied evening: Mark Elder, Vladimir Jurowski, Sir Charles Mackerras and Sir Roger Norrington. The music reflects the wide-ranging interests of the orchestra, as we hear a suite from Dardanus by Rameau and Mozart's Concerto for 2 pianos, K365; then we have an extract from Weber's opera Der Freischutz; and finally Handel's Music for the Royal Fireworks. So there is lots to enjoy in this concert which will be broadcast on Tuesday July 3rd.
There will be more French music two evenings later on July 5th, reflecting the French theme of the City of London Festival; this concert comes from the Middle Temple Hall and features the new French chamber orchestra Les Siècles. We hear works by Lully and Rameau, as well as the Second Violin Concerto by Chevalier de Saint-Georges. This work presents the other theme of the festival, namely the abolition of the slave trade. Saint-Georges was the son of a black slave and a white plantation worker, and in an extraordinary career became not only a violinist and composer, but also the French revolutionary army's first black colonel.
On the evening of Sunday July 1st, Aled Jones presents the Music of Wales, in the first of a series in The Choir looking at singing across the British Isles. With composer and writer Geraint Lewis as his guest, Aled explains how choirs of the younger generation are reinvigorating "the land of song" and continuing its proud traditions. We begin in the valleys of South Wales with the male voice choirs formed during the industrial era. Then, travelling along the coast, we arrive at St David's, the first cathedral choir in Britain to introduce girls into its ranks.
Jazz Library continues on Friday 6th July evening with the music of the New Orleans clarinettist George Lewis. He led the traditional jazz revival from 1942 until his death in 1969. Alyn Shipton talks to Lewis's friend and protégé, Tom Sancton, and they have the difficult job of selecting highlights from a vast catalogue of recordings. Sancton was brought up in New Orleans and was a clarinet student of George Lewis. His recollections of Lewis and other musicians of the period will make for an unusually moving edition of the programme.
STOPPARD SEASON
We will celebrate the 70th birthday of playwright Tom Stoppard in an edition of Night Waves Landmarks devoted to one of his most famous plays, Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead . This extraordinary work established Stoppard's reputation overnight. On the evening of July 5th, Night Waves examines its origins with those who were involved in staging it, including the director of the very first production, Derek Goldby. This ingenious work is set "within and around the action of Hamlet", and has become a contemporary classic of British theatre. A new production will be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Sunday July 15th.
However, before that on the 8th you can hear Rock 'n' Roll, Stoppard's most recent play set against a backdrop of the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe. Jan is a Czech philosophy student studying for a doctorate at Cambridge when the Russian tanks roll in to crush the Prague Spring in 1968. Jan's tutor, Max, is a Marxist idealist who is bitterly disappointed when his favourite student chooses to go home to Prague, apparently to help defend Dubcek's fragile shoots of liberalism against Soviet oppression. Meanwhile, in Cambridge, Max's faith in the Party gradually wanes as bigger truths about love and death confront him. When the Berlin Wall comes down and it is announced that "history has ended", Max and Jan are cautiously reunited. The all-new cast features Bill Paterson as Max, Daniel Evans as Jan, Penny Downie as Eleanor, Amanda Root as Esme and Ron Cook as Nigel. I hope you enjoy this radio premiere of a fascinating new Stoppard play.
THE PROMS
From mid-July the BBC Proms will play their usual prominent role on Radio 3. And if you wish to know what to look forward to over the summer, then listen on the evening of July 12nd as Petroc Trelawny presents a guide to the season in our Proms Preview Evening. Mark Padmore presents his personal highlights, and cellist Paul Watkins (soloist in the first night) plays music by Elgar and Britten. Nicholas Kenyon will talk about the landmarks in his ten years of running the Proms, and there are postcards from some of the visiting orchestras from around the world.
So, now my annual dilemma of which Proms to mention! Well, clearly the First Night of The Proms on July 13th must merit a mention by any standards! Walton's Portsmouth Point overture opens the evening, the 80th anniversary of the unique partnership between the BBC and the Proms. Walton's work was first heard in London during the BBC's first Proms season in 1927. Then British cellist Paul Watkins performs Elgar's Cello Concerto to mark the 150th anniversary of the composer's birth. Beethoven's Ninth Symphony was left unperformed last year because of a fire at the Royal Albert Hall. We're going to make up for that with two performances this season! On the First Night soprano Maria Haan, mezzo-soprano Patricia Bardon, tenor Paul Groves and bass René Pape will join conductor Jirí Belohlávek and the BBC Symphony Chorus and Orchestra to launch the season in grand style. Later in the season Maris Janssons will conduct the work with his Bavarian Radio forces.
We then move on to a season which spans eight centuries of music in 90 concerts. We hear the 13th-century Icelandic sagas that inspired Wagner, a lost and newly-discovered Renaissance Mass, the baroque genius of Handel, Bach and Rameau, great orchestral repertoire from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries (including new commissions) – all performed by leading artists from around the world. In addition to the concerts, we will be previewing and discussing the Proms concerts, meeting the artists and some of the composers on a daily basis on Radio 3, so I will say no more now.
But do take time to browse yourself on the Proms site (http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/2007) and earmark the events which interest you. We will bring them all to you on Radio 3. Of course it's a unique musical experience being in the hall itself, so if you can, why not try and join us in person for some of the festivities. Listen out too for our competitions in our Breakfast and In Tune programmes where you will have chance to win tickets to the Proms. I hope you enjoy this year's Proms season.
As always, the Radio 3 website provides all the information you'll need to plan your listening, and the Radio Player offers you the chance to catch up on programmes you've missed: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, May 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
We have two major themes this month. We're celebrating the anniversary of one of Britain's most renowned composers, and we are launching a major series of programmes in a project with Radio 4.
SIR EDWARD ELGAR
The 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Edward Elgar falls on June 2nd. We begin on Friday night with a concert from the Philharmonia conducted by Sir Andrew Davis, who perform some of the composer's most popular orchestral works, including the First Symphony and Cello Concerto, in which the soloist is the Norwegian cellist, Truls Mork.
Over the following week we're going to hear many of his great works, and discuss the legacy of this enigmatic composer. His biographer Michael Kennedy recently wrote in the Daily Telegraph that public interest in his music has steadily risen in the past fifty years, since his centenary. This has been due to a growing realisation of the multi-faceted nature of his achievement, and that he can no longer be categorised as a bombastic relic of the Edwardian era. During the week, from Monday to Thursday at 11.00pm, The Essay will assess and reflect on different areas of his life and his place in society; the themes are academe, the establishment, religion and Englishness, all of which reveal the complexity of his personality. On Sunday evening in Drama on 3, we have Elgar's Rondo by David Pownall, which looks at Elgar's depression in the wake of the failure of his Second Symphony. He is so often associated with the Victorian notion of Empire, that we have devoted Sunday Feature at 9.30pm to exploring this area which is far from straight-forward, given both his Catholicism and admiration for German culture.
There is also a wonderful feast of his music, as we hear the three great oratorios over the coming weekend, starting on Saturday night with The Dream of Gerontius, regarded by many as his greatest masterpiece. This is followed on Sunday by The Apostles and on Monday by The Kingdom. All three works are performed by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sakari Oramo. Appropriately enough we visit Birmingham for these events, since Elgar helped found the orchestra there and was appointed Professor of Music at Birmingham University in 1905.
On Tuesday evening, the musical celebrations continue with another concert given by the Philharmonia, including the Violin Concerto with James Ehnes as soloist, and the Second Symphony. Across lunchtimes we have four contrasting programmes including his chamber music, including songs, the Violin Sonata, the String Quartet and Piano Quintet.
Complementing all of this, Composer of the Week takes to the Malvern Hills and the surrounding area to explore Elgar's music in the context of this landscape which he loved so much.
THE MAKING OF MUSIC
We are delighted to be working closely with Radio 4 telling the story of Western classical music in its historical context. In our new series, The Making Of Music, James Naughtie will present a programme each weekday afternoon on Radio 4 at 3.45pm. Immediately following this at 4pm, we are going to broadcast performances of the works to which James has referred. These joint programmes are going to run on weekdays for twelve weeks. The first half of the series leads up to the BBC Proms. It takes us from early ecclesiastical chant to the music of Renaissance courts and cathedrals. Along with much else, we track the birth of opera in Florence; the court of Louis XIV at Versailles; Bach in Leipzig and Handel in London. The first half of the series ends with the era of optimism epitomised by the Great Exhibition of 1851, and appropriately enough we then go to the Royal Albert Hall for the first of the Proms. But more about the Proms next month!
CUBA
If you are seeking something rather different, beyond these shores, and even beyond Europe, then do listen to World Routes on Saturday afternoon (3.00pm) when Lucy Duran will be presenting the first of three editions of World Routes from Cuba. She has made a 1,000-mile journey around the island to discover its music roots, and has made special recordings with many of the leading folk musicians from all parts of the country. The first programme includes an interview exclusive with Juan de Marcos Gonzalez, one of the main movers behind the Buena Vista Social Club – the album which brought Cuban music to a global audience. And on Friday evening at 10.30pm, Jazz Library takes up the Cuban theme.
BBC CARDIFF SINGER OF THE WORLD
Finally, a word about the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. This exciting biennial internatiional event runs from 9-17 June, and is covered by BBC Four, BBC 2, Radio 3 and the regional networks in Wales. Lots of information is now available for the next competition, including everything about the competitors and what they're singing, plus details about the jury and the broadcasts. And you can enter a quiz to win tickets for the final! http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/cardiffsinger/.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
We have two major themes this month. We're celebrating the anniversary of one of Britain's most renowned composers, and we are launching a major series of programmes in a project with Radio 4.
SIR EDWARD ELGAR
The 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Edward Elgar falls on June 2nd. We begin on Friday night with a concert from the Philharmonia conducted by Sir Andrew Davis, who perform some of the composer's most popular orchestral works, including the First Symphony and Cello Concerto, in which the soloist is the Norwegian cellist, Truls Mork.
Over the following week we're going to hear many of his great works, and discuss the legacy of this enigmatic composer. His biographer Michael Kennedy recently wrote in the Daily Telegraph that public interest in his music has steadily risen in the past fifty years, since his centenary. This has been due to a growing realisation of the multi-faceted nature of his achievement, and that he can no longer be categorised as a bombastic relic of the Edwardian era. During the week, from Monday to Thursday at 11.00pm, The Essay will assess and reflect on different areas of his life and his place in society; the themes are academe, the establishment, religion and Englishness, all of which reveal the complexity of his personality. On Sunday evening in Drama on 3, we have Elgar's Rondo by David Pownall, which looks at Elgar's depression in the wake of the failure of his Second Symphony. He is so often associated with the Victorian notion of Empire, that we have devoted Sunday Feature at 9.30pm to exploring this area which is far from straight-forward, given both his Catholicism and admiration for German culture.
There is also a wonderful feast of his music, as we hear the three great oratorios over the coming weekend, starting on Saturday night with The Dream of Gerontius, regarded by many as his greatest masterpiece. This is followed on Sunday by The Apostles and on Monday by The Kingdom. All three works are performed by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sakari Oramo. Appropriately enough we visit Birmingham for these events, since Elgar helped found the orchestra there and was appointed Professor of Music at Birmingham University in 1905.
On Tuesday evening, the musical celebrations continue with another concert given by the Philharmonia, including the Violin Concerto with James Ehnes as soloist, and the Second Symphony. Across lunchtimes we have four contrasting programmes including his chamber music, including songs, the Violin Sonata, the String Quartet and Piano Quintet.
Complementing all of this, Composer of the Week takes to the Malvern Hills and the surrounding area to explore Elgar's music in the context of this landscape which he loved so much.
THE MAKING OF MUSIC
We are delighted to be working closely with Radio 4 telling the story of Western classical music in its historical context. In our new series, The Making Of Music, James Naughtie will present a programme each weekday afternoon on Radio 4 at 3.45pm. Immediately following this at 4pm, we are going to broadcast performances of the works to which James has referred. These joint programmes are going to run on weekdays for twelve weeks. The first half of the series leads up to the BBC Proms. It takes us from early ecclesiastical chant to the music of Renaissance courts and cathedrals. Along with much else, we track the birth of opera in Florence; the court of Louis XIV at Versailles; Bach in Leipzig and Handel in London. The first half of the series ends with the era of optimism epitomised by the Great Exhibition of 1851, and appropriately enough we then go to the Royal Albert Hall for the first of the Proms. But more about the Proms next month!
CUBA
If you are seeking something rather different, beyond these shores, and even beyond Europe, then do listen to World Routes on Saturday afternoon (3.00pm) when Lucy Duran will be presenting the first of three editions of World Routes from Cuba. She has made a 1,000-mile journey around the island to discover its music roots, and has made special recordings with many of the leading folk musicians from all parts of the country. The first programme includes an interview exclusive with Juan de Marcos Gonzalez, one of the main movers behind the Buena Vista Social Club – the album which brought Cuban music to a global audience. And on Friday evening at 10.30pm, Jazz Library takes up the Cuban theme.
BBC CARDIFF SINGER OF THE WORLD
Finally, a word about the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. This exciting biennial internatiional event runs from 9-17 June, and is covered by BBC Four, BBC 2, Radio 3 and the regional networks in Wales. Lots of information is now available for the next competition, including everything about the competitors and what they're singing, plus details about the jury and the broadcasts. And you can enter a quiz to win tickets for the final! http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/cardiffsinger/.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
16/5/07 R3 listening down again 2007
RAJAR last week released the listening figures for the final quarter of the year 2006-07, allowing the yearly average to be calculated.
For Radio 3, the result was very poor. Last year the final quarter had given a bit of a kick to the year, ending on something of a high note at 2.099 million, but there was no repeat this year, with a closing figure of 1.902 million.
The first quarter of 2006-07 had been the lowest quarter ever, at 1.834 million. With such a disastrous result nothing was going to make this year's performance distinguished except an impossibly high final quarter. In fact, the last quarter was the second lowest ever – 1.902 million – and the two middle quarters were mediocre. The result was that the average weekly reach over the year was the lowest ever: 1.948 million.
The percentage of people listening reflects the same pattern: over the year the weekly percentage reach was 3.91%, below 4% for the first time.
Classic FM has had all the glory this year: winning the Sony UK Station of the Year award and with its recent RAJAR figures reported in glowing terms.
The station, however, has got away with very indifferent figures for some while, compared with its real glory days. Listening hit a highpoint in March 2003 when it reached 6.872 million. Since then there has been a downward trend, and in seven out of eight of the last quarters it has failed to reach 6 million, a drop of a million listeners in three years. This quarter it just cleared 6 million for the first time since June 2005. At 6.031 million, this is not a brilliant result and there is no obvious upward trend as yet.
The other headline feature is the '50%' increase in children under 15 listening to the station since the previous quarter. On the face of it, this looks like a nonsense: 50% increases do not occur from one quarter to the next other than by some bizarre statistical anomaly or in the case of extremely low figures where, for example, an increase from 6 to 9 would not on its own be regarded as a signal for immediate celebration.
The Independent's report is doubly misleading in giving Classic FM's audience as 6.5 million; in other words, they have added on the under 15s to the RAJAR figures which refer to 15 plus listeners. The figure quoted is not comparable to any other RAJAR-published figure, present or past, for any other station, including Classic FM's.
Putting it another way, the last two years' figures for Classic FM have been low: aside from those, you have to go back to December 1999 to find a lower figure than this latest one. But a good story is a good story even if it oversells the truth. Particularly if it oversells the truth.
For Radio 3, the result was very poor. Last year the final quarter had given a bit of a kick to the year, ending on something of a high note at 2.099 million, but there was no repeat this year, with a closing figure of 1.902 million.
The first quarter of 2006-07 had been the lowest quarter ever, at 1.834 million. With such a disastrous result nothing was going to make this year's performance distinguished except an impossibly high final quarter. In fact, the last quarter was the second lowest ever – 1.902 million – and the two middle quarters were mediocre. The result was that the average weekly reach over the year was the lowest ever: 1.948 million.
The percentage of people listening reflects the same pattern: over the year the weekly percentage reach was 3.91%, below 4% for the first time.
Classic FM has had all the glory this year: winning the Sony UK Station of the Year award and with its recent RAJAR figures reported in glowing terms.
The station, however, has got away with very indifferent figures for some while, compared with its real glory days. Listening hit a highpoint in March 2003 when it reached 6.872 million. Since then there has been a downward trend, and in seven out of eight of the last quarters it has failed to reach 6 million, a drop of a million listeners in three years. This quarter it just cleared 6 million for the first time since June 2005. At 6.031 million, this is not a brilliant result and there is no obvious upward trend as yet.
The other headline feature is the '50%' increase in children under 15 listening to the station since the previous quarter. On the face of it, this looks like a nonsense: 50% increases do not occur from one quarter to the next other than by some bizarre statistical anomaly or in the case of extremely low figures where, for example, an increase from 6 to 9 would not on its own be regarded as a signal for immediate celebration.
The Independent's report is doubly misleading in giving Classic FM's audience as 6.5 million; in other words, they have added on the under 15s to the RAJAR figures which refer to 15 plus listeners. The figure quoted is not comparable to any other RAJAR-published figure, present or past, for any other station, including Classic FM's.
Putting it another way, the last two years' figures for Classic FM have been low: aside from those, you have to go back to December 1999 to find a lower figure than this latest one. But a good story is a good story even if it oversells the truth. Particularly if it oversells the truth.
Controller's Note, Apr. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
RADIO 3 REQUESTS
I have decided to write a little earlier than usual this month, because I am pleased to announce the launch of our new request show: Radio 3 Requests. It starts this Sunday at 2pm, and is presented by Chi-chi Nwanoku. As the principal bass player of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, she brings to the programme her experience as a performer. She is looking forward to her first programmes, and embarking upon this personal musical discovery in the company of the listeners. Each week there will be a contribution from a musician who shares something of their personal choice of music; on Sunday Chi-chi's first guest is the pianist Roger Vignoles.
PROMS 2007
You might by now have seen some details of the 2007 Proms programmes, and I know that many of you plan your summer listening around these special concerts. We have just had a conference in London about the Proms and its history, and it has shown the extraordinary place which this season holds in our music life. I am thrilled to have been asked to take on the responsibility for the BBC Proms in future seasons. It is an enormous honour.
ELGAR AND MORE
Next month there is more remarkable music making in the evenings. On May 1st there is the continuation of the acclaimed interpretation of Richard Strauss's orchestral music by the Hallé Orchestra and Mark Elder. Till Eulenspiegel is performed alongside Mendelssohn's miniature musical picture, The Fair Melusine; Sibelius's quietly radical Third Symphony, and Nielsen's Clarinet Concerto. And on Friday 4th we anticipate our Elgar celebrations as Nicholas McGegan conducts a concert from the Symphony Hall, Birmingham. It's part of the CBSO celebrations of the 150th anniversary of Sir Edward Elgar's birth, and includes his two Wand of Youth Suites. These are complemented by the Mendelssohn Concerto for Two Pianos and the Bizet Symphony in C. More, much more about Elgar next month!
TAKING THE PLUNGE
Starting on May 21st, we go live to the Bath Festival for four evening concerts, featuring some remarkably engaging performers: The Festival's Artistic Director, pianist Joanna MacGregor , interleaves Bach and Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues, in a concert culminating in Gershwin; then the Borodin Quartet presents Galynin, Tchaikovsky and Beethoven, and continuing the Russian theme we also have a recital by Maxim Vengerov. Friday evening of the same week is dedicated to the memory of the celebrated English pianist Clifford Curzon, who was born 100 years ago. We hear a wide range of his performances, concentrating on the classical repertoire for which he so renowned from Mozart to Schumann. And there is more Mozart in the afternoons starting on Monday 21st, as his piano concertos are featured throughout the week in Afternoon on 3.
RPS MUSIC AWARDS
On Wednesday 9th Petroc Trelawny presents Performance on 3 with highlights from this year's Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards. Dame Josephine Barstow presents this year's ceremony, which is hosted by Sean Rafferty. Nicholas Hytner, Director of the Royal National Theatre, is the keynote speaker. These awards recognise achievement in the field of classical music, and honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and arts organisations. Some listeners have already made their nominations in an online vote for the BBC Radio 3 Listeners Award; the musicians nominated include include Sir Colin Davis, the pianist Paul Lewis, tenor Mark Padmore and Swedish soprano Miah Persson. Do listen out for this celebration of music making.
BACH'S MENTOR
An unusual and interesting series of Composer of The Week this month is based around the music of Buxtehude, a great influence on J S Bach. As usual, the programmes start on Monday 7th at noon, and are repeated each evening. The Dutch scholar and performer Ton Koopman is a great champion of his music, and Donald Macleod spent time in conversation with him in his preparation for the series. Though this year marks the 300th anniversary of Buxtehude, we still know little about him. We don't know his date of birth or what he looked like, and Germans, Danes and Swedes are still discussing (or arguing about) his nationality. The music is full of unexpected twists, groundbreaking techniques and intellectual games – for instance, seven sonatas are based on the mathematics of Kepler's astronomical research. Musical highlights include Koopman's recordings on the 1683 organ of the St Jacobi Church in Lüdingworth, with its remarkably colourful sounds, and the counter-tenor Andreas Scholl and soprano Emma Kirkby performing cantatas which wonderfully prefigure Bach's later output.
THE ESSAY
Our new programme, The Essay, has been very well received. Starting on May 14th in The Essay, poet and broadcaster Michael Rosen presents a second series of Lingua Franca, an investigation into the roots of European language. He deals with narrower bands of European language, starting with the Celts and the celtic group of languages. He then moves on to the so-called Finno-Ugric family – Finnish, Estonian and Hungarian; these don't come from the same Indo-European root as most of the rest. And we'll also be looking at Basque, which if you've been on holiday in north-east Spain, looks very unusual to our eyes. The third programme will deal with Borderlands – languages that are half-and-half, in countries like Switzerland and Liechtenstein and Luxembourg. And finally we'll be taking a short, sad look at the languages of Europe that are dead or dying. And The Essay ends its month with Night Walks. There's a long tradtion of writers walking to encourage their imagination, and simply – in the case of Dickens – to counteract insomnia. Starting of May 29th, four writers take to the streets, lanes and countryside, and recount their thoughts as they do so. Join Will Self, Tim Parks, Alain de Botton and Kate Pullinger on their nocturnal rambles. I hope you enjoy these and many other prorgammes [sic].
You'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
RADIO 3 REQUESTS
I have decided to write a little earlier than usual this month, because I am pleased to announce the launch of our new request show: Radio 3 Requests. It starts this Sunday at 2pm, and is presented by Chi-chi Nwanoku. As the principal bass player of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, she brings to the programme her experience as a performer. She is looking forward to her first programmes, and embarking upon this personal musical discovery in the company of the listeners. Each week there will be a contribution from a musician who shares something of their personal choice of music; on Sunday Chi-chi's first guest is the pianist Roger Vignoles.
PROMS 2007
You might by now have seen some details of the 2007 Proms programmes, and I know that many of you plan your summer listening around these special concerts. We have just had a conference in London about the Proms and its history, and it has shown the extraordinary place which this season holds in our music life. I am thrilled to have been asked to take on the responsibility for the BBC Proms in future seasons. It is an enormous honour.
ELGAR AND MORE
Next month there is more remarkable music making in the evenings. On May 1st there is the continuation of the acclaimed interpretation of Richard Strauss's orchestral music by the Hallé Orchestra and Mark Elder. Till Eulenspiegel is performed alongside Mendelssohn's miniature musical picture, The Fair Melusine; Sibelius's quietly radical Third Symphony, and Nielsen's Clarinet Concerto. And on Friday 4th we anticipate our Elgar celebrations as Nicholas McGegan conducts a concert from the Symphony Hall, Birmingham. It's part of the CBSO celebrations of the 150th anniversary of Sir Edward Elgar's birth, and includes his two Wand of Youth Suites. These are complemented by the Mendelssohn Concerto for Two Pianos and the Bizet Symphony in C. More, much more about Elgar next month!
TAKING THE PLUNGE
Starting on May 21st, we go live to the Bath Festival for four evening concerts, featuring some remarkably engaging performers: The Festival's Artistic Director, pianist Joanna MacGregor , interleaves Bach and Shostakovich Preludes and Fugues, in a concert culminating in Gershwin; then the Borodin Quartet presents Galynin, Tchaikovsky and Beethoven, and continuing the Russian theme we also have a recital by Maxim Vengerov. Friday evening of the same week is dedicated to the memory of the celebrated English pianist Clifford Curzon, who was born 100 years ago. We hear a wide range of his performances, concentrating on the classical repertoire for which he so renowned from Mozart to Schumann. And there is more Mozart in the afternoons starting on Monday 21st, as his piano concertos are featured throughout the week in Afternoon on 3.
RPS MUSIC AWARDS
On Wednesday 9th Petroc Trelawny presents Performance on 3 with highlights from this year's Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards. Dame Josephine Barstow presents this year's ceremony, which is hosted by Sean Rafferty. Nicholas Hytner, Director of the Royal National Theatre, is the keynote speaker. These awards recognise achievement in the field of classical music, and honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and arts organisations. Some listeners have already made their nominations in an online vote for the BBC Radio 3 Listeners Award; the musicians nominated include include Sir Colin Davis, the pianist Paul Lewis, tenor Mark Padmore and Swedish soprano Miah Persson. Do listen out for this celebration of music making.
BACH'S MENTOR
An unusual and interesting series of Composer of The Week this month is based around the music of Buxtehude, a great influence on J S Bach. As usual, the programmes start on Monday 7th at noon, and are repeated each evening. The Dutch scholar and performer Ton Koopman is a great champion of his music, and Donald Macleod spent time in conversation with him in his preparation for the series. Though this year marks the 300th anniversary of Buxtehude, we still know little about him. We don't know his date of birth or what he looked like, and Germans, Danes and Swedes are still discussing (or arguing about) his nationality. The music is full of unexpected twists, groundbreaking techniques and intellectual games – for instance, seven sonatas are based on the mathematics of Kepler's astronomical research. Musical highlights include Koopman's recordings on the 1683 organ of the St Jacobi Church in Lüdingworth, with its remarkably colourful sounds, and the counter-tenor Andreas Scholl and soprano Emma Kirkby performing cantatas which wonderfully prefigure Bach's later output.
THE ESSAY
Our new programme, The Essay, has been very well received. Starting on May 14th in The Essay, poet and broadcaster Michael Rosen presents a second series of Lingua Franca, an investigation into the roots of European language. He deals with narrower bands of European language, starting with the Celts and the celtic group of languages. He then moves on to the so-called Finno-Ugric family – Finnish, Estonian and Hungarian; these don't come from the same Indo-European root as most of the rest. And we'll also be looking at Basque, which if you've been on holiday in north-east Spain, looks very unusual to our eyes. The third programme will deal with Borderlands – languages that are half-and-half, in countries like Switzerland and Liechtenstein and Luxembourg. And finally we'll be taking a short, sad look at the languages of Europe that are dead or dying. And The Essay ends its month with Night Walks. There's a long tradtion of writers walking to encourage their imagination, and simply – in the case of Dickens – to counteract insomnia. Starting of May 29th, four writers take to the streets, lanes and countryside, and recount their thoughts as they do so. Join Will Self, Tim Parks, Alain de Botton and Kate Pullinger on their nocturnal rambles. I hope you enjoy these and many other prorgammes [sic].
You'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
19/4/07 New Proms Director appointed 2007
It was announced this afternoon that Roger Wright, Controller of Radio 3, would take over as Director of the Proms in October, when Nicholas Kenyon, the present Director, becomes Managing Director at the Barbican.
Mr Wright will continue as Controller of Radio 3.
Mr Wright will continue as Controller of Radio 3.
6/4/07 New head for BBC Trust 2007
The government has appointed Sir Michael Lyons to take over as the first chairman of the BBC Trust, the position Michael Grade would have succeeded to but for his unexpected departure from the BBC last November.
We wish him well, though on the whole the higher they stand the less interest they take in the detail. Points of interest are that Michael Lyons is chairman of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and a governor of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Will he be a champion of the arts? Perhaps – but it's not part of the job brief. The BBC needs to regain its commitment to seriousness before we are likely to see any change in policy. In the meantime, Public Value is light entertainment, and success is measured by healthy ratings. Television and New Media are the key areas. None of this looks hopeful for Radio 3.
We wish him well, though on the whole the higher they stand the less interest they take in the detail. Points of interest are that Michael Lyons is chairman of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and a governor of the Royal Shakespeare Company. Will he be a champion of the arts? Perhaps – but it's not part of the job brief. The BBC needs to regain its commitment to seriousness before we are likely to see any change in policy. In the meantime, Public Value is light entertainment, and success is measured by healthy ratings. Television and New Media are the key areas. None of this looks hopeful for Radio 3.
Controller's Note, Apr. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
EASTER SEASON
We have a special weekend of programming for you, and for a number of events we are basing ourselves in Cambridge, at the King's Easter Festival. First however, on Good Friday (April 6th), the Archbishop of Canterbury introduces W.H. Auden's Horae Canonicae. This is Auden's personal reflection on the events and significance of this day in the Christian calendar. The poems themselves are read by the actor Tom Durham, concluding the station's celebration of the Auden centenary.
You can also hear Dr Williams – a poet himself – discussing Auden in an interview featured on The Verb later the same evening (9.45pm). During Good Friday afternoon, there is a remarkable line-up of soloists in Bach's St John Passion: Michael Chance, Susan Gritton, Mark Padmore, Toby Spence and Thomas Quasthoff. Sir Simon Rattle conducts the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in this performance. There is another setting of the St John Passion, this one by Arvo Pärt, in a live broadcast on Good Friday evening. It will be performed by the Hilliard Ensemble and King's College Choir and appears alongside a new work by British composer Michael Zev Gordon.
We stay with King's on Easter Sunday (April 8th), when Choral Evensong comes from the College Chapel at 4pm. Our visit continues on Easter Monday with an organ recital in which David Goode performs Liszt's magnificent treatment of the Crucifixus theme from Bach's Mass in B minor, and Michael Williamson's major organ fantasy 'Vision of Christ-Phoenix' in celebration of Easter.
Go to Choral Evensong – Easter Sunday at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/choralevensong/pip/qn1jg/
NEW PROGRAMMES
I hope you have had the chance to enjoy some of our new programmes on Radio 3. The Essay, our late night speech series of talks – at 11.00 from Monday to Thursday – will feature nature in springtime starting on April 9th. Lengthening days, singing birds, and budding trees, all have become poetic shorthand for spring. In this week of new nature writing, as Mark Cocker (author of Birds Britannica) watches the cranes that have re-colonised Norfolk after centuries away; cyclist Matt Seaton bikes through the congested south-east of England; poet Kathleen Jamie witnesses the black grouse in a Scottish glen; and poet John Burnside waits for spring and dreams of Pan.
Go to The Essay page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/theessay/
In Words and Music on the 22nd, we turn to the subject of music itself as Dame Diana Rigg and Samuel West read poetry ranging from Marvell's Music Empire, through Larkin's tribute to Sidney Bechet and Auden's The Composer to contemporary poems by Jo Shapcott, Mario Petrucci and Seamus Heaney. We are also including a rare archive recording of Yeats reading his own poem The Fiddler of Donney. The music in this unpresented sequence includes Webern's orchestration of Bach's A Musical Offering and works by Handel, Mendelssohn, Britten and Dowland.
Go to the Words and Music page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/wordsandmusic/
Our new programme Jazz Library continues on Friday evenings. One of the great figures of jazz, Miles Davis, is discussed by Alyn Shipton on April 20th. It's impossible to cover the recorded legacy of Davis in one programme, so Alyn is focussing on some aspects of his work up to and including his iconic album Kind of Blue.
Go to the Jazz Library page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary
LIGETI
The Hungarian composer GyĊrgy Ligeti died in June last year. In Hear and Now on the evening of April 21st, we present a tribute from two musicians who knew and had worked with him on many occasions, composer George Benjamin and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard. In the first of the London Sinfonietta's Ligeti Remembered concerts, the unearthly sound world of Ligeti's Ramifications and Melodien are contrasted with the rhythmic intensity of his Piano Concerto, a piece Pierre-Laurent Aimard has described as requiring 'an unbridled imagination' from its interpreters. Both musicians also share their memories of working with the composer with Ivan Hewett.
NEXT WEEK
We have Bach as Composer of the Week starting on April 2nd. Remembering the warm reaction to our Bach Experience in 2005, I hope many of you will be able to find time for this week of programmes which concentrates on a single year in Bach's life, his first year in Leipzig where he arrived in 1723. This was an astonishingly productive period, and one wonders at the composer's prolific output, including the first cantata cycle and the St John Passion. Do remember that you can now hear Composer of the Week at midday and in the evenings at 8.45pm.
Go to Composer of the Week at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Also in the evenings, we return to our occasional series, Belief, on Monday, as Joan Bakewell talks to artists, thinkers and other public figures. In a society where religion remains a significant influence, she explores the influences that have shaped their thinking, and how what they believe affects both their personal and working lives. Her guests are Theodore Zeldin, Simon Conway Morris, Nasser Mansour and Janet Martin Soskice. Belief
Go to Belief at http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/belief/
AND MORE
Before I sign off, a few other reminders and tips for future listening – you can hear seven more concerts from our new relationship with the New York Philharmonic in afternoons and evenings, starting on the 16th April. There is a Beethoven Violin Sonata cycle with Christian Tetzlaff and pianist Alexander Lonquich starting in Performance on 3 on April 11th , afternoons with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Holst and Schubert as Composers of the Week – all this and much much more.
I trust you find much to enjoy.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
EASTER SEASON
We have a special weekend of programming for you, and for a number of events we are basing ourselves in Cambridge, at the King's Easter Festival. First however, on Good Friday (April 6th), the Archbishop of Canterbury introduces W.H. Auden's Horae Canonicae. This is Auden's personal reflection on the events and significance of this day in the Christian calendar. The poems themselves are read by the actor Tom Durham, concluding the station's celebration of the Auden centenary.
You can also hear Dr Williams – a poet himself – discussing Auden in an interview featured on The Verb later the same evening (9.45pm). During Good Friday afternoon, there is a remarkable line-up of soloists in Bach's St John Passion: Michael Chance, Susan Gritton, Mark Padmore, Toby Spence and Thomas Quasthoff. Sir Simon Rattle conducts the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in this performance. There is another setting of the St John Passion, this one by Arvo Pärt, in a live broadcast on Good Friday evening. It will be performed by the Hilliard Ensemble and King's College Choir and appears alongside a new work by British composer Michael Zev Gordon.
We stay with King's on Easter Sunday (April 8th), when Choral Evensong comes from the College Chapel at 4pm. Our visit continues on Easter Monday with an organ recital in which David Goode performs Liszt's magnificent treatment of the Crucifixus theme from Bach's Mass in B minor, and Michael Williamson's major organ fantasy 'Vision of Christ-Phoenix' in celebration of Easter.
Go to Choral Evensong – Easter Sunday at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/choralevensong/pip/qn1jg/
NEW PROGRAMMES
I hope you have had the chance to enjoy some of our new programmes on Radio 3. The Essay, our late night speech series of talks – at 11.00 from Monday to Thursday – will feature nature in springtime starting on April 9th. Lengthening days, singing birds, and budding trees, all have become poetic shorthand for spring. In this week of new nature writing, as Mark Cocker (author of Birds Britannica) watches the cranes that have re-colonised Norfolk after centuries away; cyclist Matt Seaton bikes through the congested south-east of England; poet Kathleen Jamie witnesses the black grouse in a Scottish glen; and poet John Burnside waits for spring and dreams of Pan.
Go to The Essay page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/theessay/
In Words and Music on the 22nd, we turn to the subject of music itself as Dame Diana Rigg and Samuel West read poetry ranging from Marvell's Music Empire, through Larkin's tribute to Sidney Bechet and Auden's The Composer to contemporary poems by Jo Shapcott, Mario Petrucci and Seamus Heaney. We are also including a rare archive recording of Yeats reading his own poem The Fiddler of Donney. The music in this unpresented sequence includes Webern's orchestration of Bach's A Musical Offering and works by Handel, Mendelssohn, Britten and Dowland.
Go to the Words and Music page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/wordsandmusic/
Our new programme Jazz Library continues on Friday evenings. One of the great figures of jazz, Miles Davis, is discussed by Alyn Shipton on April 20th. It's impossible to cover the recorded legacy of Davis in one programme, so Alyn is focussing on some aspects of his work up to and including his iconic album Kind of Blue.
Go to the Jazz Library page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary
LIGETI
The Hungarian composer GyĊrgy Ligeti died in June last year. In Hear and Now on the evening of April 21st, we present a tribute from two musicians who knew and had worked with him on many occasions, composer George Benjamin and pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard. In the first of the London Sinfonietta's Ligeti Remembered concerts, the unearthly sound world of Ligeti's Ramifications and Melodien are contrasted with the rhythmic intensity of his Piano Concerto, a piece Pierre-Laurent Aimard has described as requiring 'an unbridled imagination' from its interpreters. Both musicians also share their memories of working with the composer with Ivan Hewett.
NEXT WEEK
We have Bach as Composer of the Week starting on April 2nd. Remembering the warm reaction to our Bach Experience in 2005, I hope many of you will be able to find time for this week of programmes which concentrates on a single year in Bach's life, his first year in Leipzig where he arrived in 1723. This was an astonishingly productive period, and one wonders at the composer's prolific output, including the first cantata cycle and the St John Passion. Do remember that you can now hear Composer of the Week at midday and in the evenings at 8.45pm.
Go to Composer of the Week at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Also in the evenings, we return to our occasional series, Belief, on Monday, as Joan Bakewell talks to artists, thinkers and other public figures. In a society where religion remains a significant influence, she explores the influences that have shaped their thinking, and how what they believe affects both their personal and working lives. Her guests are Theodore Zeldin, Simon Conway Morris, Nasser Mansour and Janet Martin Soskice. Belief
Go to Belief at http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/belief/
AND MORE
Before I sign off, a few other reminders and tips for future listening – you can hear seven more concerts from our new relationship with the New York Philharmonic in afternoons and evenings, starting on the 16th April. There is a Beethoven Violin Sonata cycle with Christian Tetzlaff and pianist Alexander Lonquich starting in Performance on 3 on April 11th , afternoons with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and Holst and Schubert as Composers of the Week – all this and much much more.
I trust you find much to enjoy.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Mar. 2007
Hello and welcome to the Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
OPERA
One of the advantages of the new schedule is the greater flexibility we now have in the afternoons. Tomorrow (Friday 2nd) is a good example of how we intend to make use of our newly found space by broadcasting complete operas. Peter Grimes from Opera North was not originally part of our planning, but after its success we decided to send a recording team to capture this thrilling production. It also ties in well with our 'Performing Britten' series currently running on Sunday afternoons. You might have heard Philip Langridge talking about Peter Grimes last Sunday, when he gave a fascinating insight into the role. If you are interested, don't forget that you can to listen to it again on our radio player as preparation for the complete Peter Grimes performance. This Sunday at 3.00pm you can hear Janet Baker in conversation with John Evans; they discuss The Rape of Lucretia, Britten's first chamber opera, which was successfully revived at Aldeburgh in 1966 with Dame Janet as the doomed Roman heroine. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/dr0fs/
We continue our weekly visits to the Metropolitan Opera, and what a cast there is on Saturday evening for Simon Boccanegra. Thomas Hampson makes his role debut as the lead in Verdi's drama of political struggle in 14th-century Genoa. Alongside him, Angela Gheorghiu co-stars as Maria, the Doge's daughter. And of course, the ever-popular Opera Quiz takes place during the second interval.
Did Wagner tell the real story in his opera? Well, join the Early Music Show on Saturday 10th at 1.00pm to learn about the real lives of the celebrated 16th-century Mastersingers in the company of Lucie Skeaping. We hear examples of their songs, including works by Hans Sachs himself. And later in the evening, you can attend the Metropolitan Opera performance to hear the complete Wagner opera.
BLAKE
We have already received positive comments about the way in which we are using our new programmes to link certain themes together. For example, we're celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of William Blake, with The Fiery World by Peter Ackroyd, his first radio play, in our drama on Sunday evening. This great English polymath comes to life through the drama of his arrest in 1805 on a charge of sedition. It portrays Blake as an outspoken visionary whose radical ideas did not sit comfortably in an England at war. We continue the same theme later in the evening with our new programme, Words and Music (at 10.15pm), which explores his poetry in Innocence and Experience, alongside settings of music. During the week which follows, The Essay explores the language of Blake at 11.00pm each evening. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/pip/iiqjx/
International Orchestras
We continue to reflect music making throughout the world, and starting on Monday 5th we spend the week in Lucerne at its internationally renowned festival. The extra space we have in the afternoons allows us to bring you more of high profile events from festivals across the world: so on Monday we have the wonderful Lucerne Festival Orchestra, made up of top musicians from all over the world, under the artistic leadership of Claudio Abbado in Mahler's Sixth Symphony. Other conductors featured during the week are Mariss Jansons and Pierre Boulez. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/tplzq/
We are also pleased to announce a new arrangement with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in which ten concerts each year will be broadcast from the current season at New York's Lincoln Centre. In the first concert on Tuesday 6th, the orchestra's Music Director Lorin Maazel directs the orchestra in an all-French programme with Ravel's L'Enfant et les sortilèges and Saint-Säens' Symphony No. 3 in C minor, his Organ Symphony. Watch out for more to follow!
And in the UK we are pleased to give you the chance to hear Valery Gergiev, the new Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, in his first concerts in that role with the orchestra. On March 29th and 30th you can hear him featuring the music of Stravinsky, Debussy and Prokofiev. We are broadcasting all the concerts in this series, and the first programme was received with great critical acclaim. It promises to be a memorable series.
Jazz Library In this new programme, on Friday nights at 10.30pm, Alyn Shipton suggests the essential recordings for building a jazz library. On February 9th, he turns his attention to Charlie Parker, who is still regarded as one of the greatest soloists and innovators in jazz. Given how prolific he was, which are the essential items for your collection? Alyn explores his work and his partnerships with Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Fats Navarro. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/
The Essay
Another of our new programmes, The Essay, is broadcast on weekdays at 11.00pm from Monday to Thursday. These are short reflections on a particular subject; starting on March 12th, four prominent cultural figures talk about their first impressions of America, and how these developed into their ideas of the country. Among others, we hear from the writer PD James and the composer Errollyn Wallen. The series ties in with an exhibition at the British Museum, A New World: England's First View of America, which opens this month. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/theessay/
AND…
Don't miss out on an astonishingly eclectic selection of music and thought in Private Passions on March 11th, when Michael Berkeley's guest is the travel writer and historian William Dalrymple. He takes us on a musical journey from Tomás Luis de Victoria to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and music from a Sufi shrine in Lahore. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/privatepassions/
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
OPERA
One of the advantages of the new schedule is the greater flexibility we now have in the afternoons. Tomorrow (Friday 2nd) is a good example of how we intend to make use of our newly found space by broadcasting complete operas. Peter Grimes from Opera North was not originally part of our planning, but after its success we decided to send a recording team to capture this thrilling production. It also ties in well with our 'Performing Britten' series currently running on Sunday afternoons. You might have heard Philip Langridge talking about Peter Grimes last Sunday, when he gave a fascinating insight into the role. If you are interested, don't forget that you can to listen to it again on our radio player as preparation for the complete Peter Grimes performance. This Sunday at 3.00pm you can hear Janet Baker in conversation with John Evans; they discuss The Rape of Lucretia, Britten's first chamber opera, which was successfully revived at Aldeburgh in 1966 with Dame Janet as the doomed Roman heroine. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/dr0fs/
We continue our weekly visits to the Metropolitan Opera, and what a cast there is on Saturday evening for Simon Boccanegra. Thomas Hampson makes his role debut as the lead in Verdi's drama of political struggle in 14th-century Genoa. Alongside him, Angela Gheorghiu co-stars as Maria, the Doge's daughter. And of course, the ever-popular Opera Quiz takes place during the second interval.
Did Wagner tell the real story in his opera? Well, join the Early Music Show on Saturday 10th at 1.00pm to learn about the real lives of the celebrated 16th-century Mastersingers in the company of Lucie Skeaping. We hear examples of their songs, including works by Hans Sachs himself. And later in the evening, you can attend the Metropolitan Opera performance to hear the complete Wagner opera.
BLAKE
We have already received positive comments about the way in which we are using our new programmes to link certain themes together. For example, we're celebrating the 250th anniversary of the birth of William Blake, with The Fiery World by Peter Ackroyd, his first radio play, in our drama on Sunday evening. This great English polymath comes to life through the drama of his arrest in 1805 on a charge of sedition. It portrays Blake as an outspoken visionary whose radical ideas did not sit comfortably in an England at war. We continue the same theme later in the evening with our new programme, Words and Music (at 10.15pm), which explores his poetry in Innocence and Experience, alongside settings of music. During the week which follows, The Essay explores the language of Blake at 11.00pm each evening. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/pip/iiqjx/
International Orchestras
We continue to reflect music making throughout the world, and starting on Monday 5th we spend the week in Lucerne at its internationally renowned festival. The extra space we have in the afternoons allows us to bring you more of high profile events from festivals across the world: so on Monday we have the wonderful Lucerne Festival Orchestra, made up of top musicians from all over the world, under the artistic leadership of Claudio Abbado in Mahler's Sixth Symphony. Other conductors featured during the week are Mariss Jansons and Pierre Boulez. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/afternoonon3/pip/tplzq/
We are also pleased to announce a new arrangement with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in which ten concerts each year will be broadcast from the current season at New York's Lincoln Centre. In the first concert on Tuesday 6th, the orchestra's Music Director Lorin Maazel directs the orchestra in an all-French programme with Ravel's L'Enfant et les sortilèges and Saint-Säens' Symphony No. 3 in C minor, his Organ Symphony. Watch out for more to follow!
And in the UK we are pleased to give you the chance to hear Valery Gergiev, the new Principal Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra, in his first concerts in that role with the orchestra. On March 29th and 30th you can hear him featuring the music of Stravinsky, Debussy and Prokofiev. We are broadcasting all the concerts in this series, and the first programme was received with great critical acclaim. It promises to be a memorable series.
Jazz Library In this new programme, on Friday nights at 10.30pm, Alyn Shipton suggests the essential recordings for building a jazz library. On February 9th, he turns his attention to Charlie Parker, who is still regarded as one of the greatest soloists and innovators in jazz. Given how prolific he was, which are the essential items for your collection? Alyn explores his work and his partnerships with Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis and Fats Navarro. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzlibrary/
The Essay
Another of our new programmes, The Essay, is broadcast on weekdays at 11.00pm from Monday to Thursday. These are short reflections on a particular subject; starting on March 12th, four prominent cultural figures talk about their first impressions of America, and how these developed into their ideas of the country. Among others, we hear from the writer PD James and the composer Errollyn Wallen. The series ties in with an exhibition at the British Museum, A New World: England's First View of America, which opens this month. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/theessay/
AND…
Don't miss out on an astonishingly eclectic selection of music and thought in Private Passions on March 11th, when Michael Berkeley's guest is the travel writer and historian William Dalrymple. He takes us on a musical journey from Tomás Luis de Victoria to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and music from a Sufi shrine in Lahore. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/privatepassions/
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Feb. 2007
Hello and welcome to this extra Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Thanks for your messages about our Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky season. As usual, your views have been incredibly broad, ranging from 'Why do you do these seasons of complete works?' to 'Please let us have more of these special weeks'! We have also had many suggestions about possible composers and themes for the future. It was wonderful to have an overwhelming response to the Valentine's Day poem competition. You can find some of the poems on our site – a snapshot of our listeners' creativity. www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/tchaikovsky/competition/
I am writing an extra message to you this month, since our new schedule (described recently as a 'spring clean') begins this weekend. It's the first time in five years we have made significant changes to our programming. All radio stations change their programming from time to time, adapting to changing tastes and developing ideas. If Radio 3 hadn't changed since its first day in 1967 we would still be broadcasting sailing, swimming and football in addition to speech and music! We wanted to respond to specific listener comments in revising the schedule on this occasion – not least the view that there should be more classical music in the late evening and that the Composer of the Week repeat should be earlier.
We also wanted to build room for sixty hours (Weekdays, 4-5 pm in the summer) devoted to the history of western classical music, in collaboration with Radio 4. More news on this nearer the time.
At the same time, our interactive colleagues are overhauling the website (in common with other BBC stations). It will be good to have your responses to the site once you have had time to explore, and do look out on the message board for references to external sites featuring discussion about Radio 3. www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
We are looking forward to the arrival of our new programmes – and not least to having Rob Cowan as our breakfast show presenter (along with Sara Mohr-Pietsch who now joins Martin Handley as the third morning presenter). We are also welcoming Iain Burnside to his new slot on Sunday mornings. Try and catch his occasional 'Music 101' moments when we hope to encourage strong debate by playing classical music which some distinguished guests would gladly consign to oblivion!
We hope you enjoy our new sequence of classical music (Monday-Thursday 10.30 pm) beginning with programmes featuring the remarkable pianist Angela Hewitt. There has been great interest in our new non-presented programme of words and music at 10.15 on Sunday evening; it is thrilling to have Derek Jacobi and Juliet Stevenson launch it.
Listen out also for the first four programmes in 'The Essay' for different views of Auden in his centenary year.
We welcome back Alyn Shipton to a regular slot in the new programme Jazz Library on Friday evenings – a response to those seeking a jazz equivalent to CD Review's popular Building a Library.
The amount of specially recorded live music increases in our new schedule. So I'm particularly pleased that the afternoons presented by Penny Gore, Louise Fryer and Fiona Talkington bring a greater breadth of music to listeners. We will range from recitals to operas, so look forward to an exciting spring ahead with performances by the New York Philharmonic; the Berlin Philharmonic (including Mark Elder conducting Hansel and Gretel . Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra; San Francisco Symphony Orchestra; Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; Abbado and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and opera afternoons including Opera North's Peter Grimes, Les Troyens from Paris, Gergiev conducting Shostakovich's The Nose and that 'Alagna Aida' from La Scala!
Finally, talking of Britten and opera… I hope you enjoy our new ten-part series (Sunday 3 pm), Performing Britten, which will examine each of his operas and their performing traditions with interviews with the interpreters most closely associated with the roles in the operas. I trust you will find much to enjoy.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
Dear All
Thanks for your messages about our Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky season. As usual, your views have been incredibly broad, ranging from 'Why do you do these seasons of complete works?' to 'Please let us have more of these special weeks'! We have also had many suggestions about possible composers and themes for the future. It was wonderful to have an overwhelming response to the Valentine's Day poem competition. You can find some of the poems on our site – a snapshot of our listeners' creativity. www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/tchaikovsky/competition/
I am writing an extra message to you this month, since our new schedule (described recently as a 'spring clean') begins this weekend. It's the first time in five years we have made significant changes to our programming. All radio stations change their programming from time to time, adapting to changing tastes and developing ideas. If Radio 3 hadn't changed since its first day in 1967 we would still be broadcasting sailing, swimming and football in addition to speech and music! We wanted to respond to specific listener comments in revising the schedule on this occasion – not least the view that there should be more classical music in the late evening and that the Composer of the Week repeat should be earlier.
We also wanted to build room for sixty hours (Weekdays, 4-5 pm in the summer) devoted to the history of western classical music, in collaboration with Radio 4. More news on this nearer the time.
At the same time, our interactive colleagues are overhauling the website (in common with other BBC stations). It will be good to have your responses to the site once you have had time to explore, and do look out on the message board for references to external sites featuring discussion about Radio 3. www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
We are looking forward to the arrival of our new programmes – and not least to having Rob Cowan as our breakfast show presenter (along with Sara Mohr-Pietsch who now joins Martin Handley as the third morning presenter). We are also welcoming Iain Burnside to his new slot on Sunday mornings. Try and catch his occasional 'Music 101' moments when we hope to encourage strong debate by playing classical music which some distinguished guests would gladly consign to oblivion!
We hope you enjoy our new sequence of classical music (Monday-Thursday 10.30 pm) beginning with programmes featuring the remarkable pianist Angela Hewitt. There has been great interest in our new non-presented programme of words and music at 10.15 on Sunday evening; it is thrilling to have Derek Jacobi and Juliet Stevenson launch it.
Listen out also for the first four programmes in 'The Essay' for different views of Auden in his centenary year.
We welcome back Alyn Shipton to a regular slot in the new programme Jazz Library on Friday evenings – a response to those seeking a jazz equivalent to CD Review's popular Building a Library.
The amount of specially recorded live music increases in our new schedule. So I'm particularly pleased that the afternoons presented by Penny Gore, Louise Fryer and Fiona Talkington bring a greater breadth of music to listeners. We will range from recitals to operas, so look forward to an exciting spring ahead with performances by the New York Philharmonic; the Berlin Philharmonic (including Mark Elder conducting Hansel and Gretel . Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra; San Francisco Symphony Orchestra; Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra; Abbado and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and opera afternoons including Opera North's Peter Grimes, Les Troyens from Paris, Gergiev conducting Shostakovich's The Nose and that 'Alagna Aida' from La Scala!
Finally, talking of Britten and opera… I hope you enjoy our new ten-part series (Sunday 3 pm), Performing Britten, which will examine each of his operas and their performing traditions with interviews with the interpreters most closely associated with the roles in the operas. I trust you will find much to enjoy.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
Controller's Note, Feb. 2007
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Another composer season is upon us. So there is only one subject this month:
THE TCHAIKOVSKY EXPERIENCE
From Saturday 10th until Friday the 16th, Radio 3 will broadcast the complete works of Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky – and nothing else.
Little did we know when we started our first complete works project (with Beethoven less than two years ago) that these seasons would create such interest. Each one has been really different, reflecting the individual composers under the microscope. We have had a Webern day with his music presented chronologically dotted through the day, a major focus on the Cantatas in our Bach Christmas, and Wagner's Ring Cycle as an Easter Monday offering. Your suggestions are still coming in about other composers you would like us to feature; no doubt the forthcoming week will encourage even more ideas.
Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky were popular choices in our postbag and I think they make for an intriguing pairing – linked yet contrasting. No matter how much you know about these composers and their music, these special seasons make us all listen in a new way to familiar repertoire and introduce pieces that we haven't heard before.
There is so much to discover. The slow movement of Tchaikovsky's Third Symphony is a particular favourite of mine, and yet we only rarely hear the symphony in concert. A fine cycle of Tchaikovsky's symphonies, specially recorded by the BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda, will be a particular highlight of the week. And if it is rare to hear the third symphony, what chance do we have to explore less familiar operas: has anyone at all heard Vakula the Smith, other than in Radio 3's legendary recording which we are repeating this week?.
And we also have all the solo piano music and songs, as well as real rarities such as A Greeting to Anton Rubinstein for his golden jubilee as an artist; The Cantata in commemoration of the bicentenary of the birth of Peter the Great (Polytechnic); the Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem. There's also my favourite title of all, the Jurists' Song in honour of the 50th year of the Imperial School of Jurisprudence! I am also looking forward to hearing alternative versions of well known pieces – the four versions of the Romeo and Juliet overture and the original version of the First Symphony which the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Ilan Volkov have specially recorded for us.
If you don't know Stravinsky's Faun and Shepherdess, the three versions of Scherzo à la Russe, How the mushrooms prepared for war, or In Memoriam Dylan Thomas you are in for a treat. Listen out too for the early Symphony in E flat – a real reminder of Stravinsky's romantic Russian roots.
I always forget to mention how intense the discussions are in the Radio 3 offices when we organise these seasons. Heated arguments develop around many of our editorial issues. Which is the best recording of Tchaikovsky 6 or Stravinsky's Rite of Spring? How many different versions of which pieces should we play? Which are the great works that we now take for granted and which really are the neglected great works? So let the discussions continue and please join in.
Our interactive offering is more wide-ranging and richer than ever. For the first time we have listener diaries to follow and respond to – you can make your views known on your favourite pieces and recordings and help us shape the week as it progresses. There will be five of the recent Tchaikovsky TV programmes to watch, speech audio files to listen to, competitions to enter, and plenty to read: informative articles about the history of the Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky period, music repertoire-, CD-, book- and weblink guides, and an interactive timeline – in fact there is more on the site than I have room to mention here; much of the material is already on The Tchaikovsky Experience website, which will take over the Radio 3 Home Page when the broadcasts begin. Please take a moment to look at what's on offer at www.bbc.co.uk/tchaikovsky, or via the Radio 3 website: www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
And don't forget that you can hear anything you may have missed on our Listen Again facility. I do hope that you enjoy the week and that, if you are not familiar with that Third Symphony slow movement, you will seek it out and love it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
Dear All
Another composer season is upon us. So there is only one subject this month:
THE TCHAIKOVSKY EXPERIENCE
From Saturday 10th until Friday the 16th, Radio 3 will broadcast the complete works of Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky – and nothing else.
Little did we know when we started our first complete works project (with Beethoven less than two years ago) that these seasons would create such interest. Each one has been really different, reflecting the individual composers under the microscope. We have had a Webern day with his music presented chronologically dotted through the day, a major focus on the Cantatas in our Bach Christmas, and Wagner's Ring Cycle as an Easter Monday offering. Your suggestions are still coming in about other composers you would like us to feature; no doubt the forthcoming week will encourage even more ideas.
Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky were popular choices in our postbag and I think they make for an intriguing pairing – linked yet contrasting. No matter how much you know about these composers and their music, these special seasons make us all listen in a new way to familiar repertoire and introduce pieces that we haven't heard before.
There is so much to discover. The slow movement of Tchaikovsky's Third Symphony is a particular favourite of mine, and yet we only rarely hear the symphony in concert. A fine cycle of Tchaikovsky's symphonies, specially recorded by the BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda, will be a particular highlight of the week. And if it is rare to hear the third symphony, what chance do we have to explore less familiar operas: has anyone at all heard Vakula the Smith, other than in Radio 3's legendary recording which we are repeating this week?.
And we also have all the solo piano music and songs, as well as real rarities such as A Greeting to Anton Rubinstein for his golden jubilee as an artist; The Cantata in commemoration of the bicentenary of the birth of Peter the Great (Polytechnic); the Festival Overture on the Danish National Anthem. There's also my favourite title of all, the Jurists' Song in honour of the 50th year of the Imperial School of Jurisprudence! I am also looking forward to hearing alternative versions of well known pieces – the four versions of the Romeo and Juliet overture and the original version of the First Symphony which the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Ilan Volkov have specially recorded for us.
If you don't know Stravinsky's Faun and Shepherdess, the three versions of Scherzo à la Russe, How the mushrooms prepared for war, or In Memoriam Dylan Thomas you are in for a treat. Listen out too for the early Symphony in E flat – a real reminder of Stravinsky's romantic Russian roots.
I always forget to mention how intense the discussions are in the Radio 3 offices when we organise these seasons. Heated arguments develop around many of our editorial issues. Which is the best recording of Tchaikovsky 6 or Stravinsky's Rite of Spring? How many different versions of which pieces should we play? Which are the great works that we now take for granted and which really are the neglected great works? So let the discussions continue and please join in.
Our interactive offering is more wide-ranging and richer than ever. For the first time we have listener diaries to follow and respond to – you can make your views known on your favourite pieces and recordings and help us shape the week as it progresses. There will be five of the recent Tchaikovsky TV programmes to watch, speech audio files to listen to, competitions to enter, and plenty to read: informative articles about the history of the Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky period, music repertoire-, CD-, book- and weblink guides, and an interactive timeline – in fact there is more on the site than I have room to mention here; much of the material is already on The Tchaikovsky Experience website, which will take over the Radio 3 Home Page when the broadcasts begin. Please take a moment to look at what's on offer at www.bbc.co.uk/tchaikovsky, or via the Radio 3 website: www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
And don't forget that you can hear anything you may have missed on our Listen Again facility. I do hope that you enjoy the week and that, if you are not familiar with that Third Symphony slow movement, you will seek it out and love it.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
16/1/07 The Trust and the public
On January 1st the BBC Trust took over the governance of the BBC from the old Board of Governors and today they launched their first public consultations as part of their duty to communicate with licence fee payers.
The first of the consultations concerns the remits of the BBC's new Public Purposes, part of the duties enshrined in the new Charter and agreed with government. You can read or download the consultation paper here and, if you want to do a really thorough job, the seven associated documents which explain the Public Purposes here. Having read all the documents we feel that there is little that we would wish to respond to, though we may submit comments as an indication that we have considered the issues which are here set out very lucidly.
This consultation is open to individual members of the public as well as to organisations and will close on Tuesday, April 10th 2007.
The second consultation is of more immediate relevance to us: this concerns the new Service Licences which lay down in some detail what each service (TV channels, radio stations) is expected to do. We shall submit a full reply on Radio 3's licence on the basis of a group view. You can read or download the Service Licence consultation paper here and the Service Licence documentation here.
This consultation is also open to individual members of the public and, again, will close on Tuesday, April 10th 2007.
The first of the consultations concerns the remits of the BBC's new Public Purposes, part of the duties enshrined in the new Charter and agreed with government. You can read or download the consultation paper here and, if you want to do a really thorough job, the seven associated documents which explain the Public Purposes here. Having read all the documents we feel that there is little that we would wish to respond to, though we may submit comments as an indication that we have considered the issues which are here set out very lucidly.
This consultation is open to individual members of the public as well as to organisations and will close on Tuesday, April 10th 2007.
The second consultation is of more immediate relevance to us: this concerns the new Service Licences which lay down in some detail what each service (TV channels, radio stations) is expected to do. We shall submit a full reply on Radio 3's licence on the basis of a group view. You can read or download the Service Licence consultation paper here and the Service Licence documentation here.
This consultation is also open to individual members of the public and, again, will close on Tuesday, April 10th 2007.
Controller's Note, Jan. 2007
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
A Happy New Year!
I hope that you are enjoying the Proms repeats in the evenings: it's an annual way of reliving the great music making we enjoyed throughout the summer. As 2007 gets under way, there is also much that is new and original for you to enjoy: we mark the beginning of the Sibelius anniversary year and we give you the chance to immerse yourselves in the music of one of the most original musical voices to come out of Russia – Sofia Gubaidulina.
THE EARLY MUSIC SHOW – QUEEN ANNE
We start closer to home, some three hundred years ago, through music from the time of Queen Anne. It's inevitable that we now see 18th-century London as dominated by Handel, but our Early Music Show programme sets the record straight as we discover Daniel Purcell, Gottfried Finger and John Eccles. Then as now, London was a great cosmopolitan centre, and its exceptional affluence meant that many Londoners had the inclination and funds to seek out the best cultural entertainment available. Lucie Skeaping takes us back across the centuries on Saturday 6th at 1pm.
METROPOLITAN OPERA – BELLINI'S I PURITANI
We remain in London for the subject matter of Bellini's opera from the Metropolitan Opera. I Puritani (also on 6th January) is set against the background of the English Civil War. I am not certain that we get to reflect too much on the history or social aspects of the period, but it's an original setting for the most stock of all operatic plots – a rich mix of love and intrigue. In this performance, the cast is greatly enhanced by the presence of the marvellous soprano Anna Netrebko, who leads the cast in the role of Elvira for this live broadcast.
METROPOLITAN OPERA – TAN DUN'S THE FIRST EMPEROR
Throughout the music world, there are many first performances, but fewer subsequent ones. That's the reason behind our Radio 3 involvement with the Royal Philharmonic Society encore scheme. But I have a feeling that this new Tan Dun opera, which receives its first broadcast performance from New York on Saturday 13th, is quickly going to establish itself in the repertory. It is an attractive combination of drama, love and history based around the life of Chin, the First Emperor of China, who unified the country in the third century BC and built the Great Wall. I am sure many of us will be listening with interest to see what this original composer brings to the operatic stage. We can also look forward to the performance of Plácido Domingo in the title role.
SOFIA GUBAIDULINA
The annual composer weekend of the BBC Symphony Orchestra this year features Sofia Gubaidulina and it has been planned in collaboration with the composer herself. Describing music in words can be difficult: as Elvis Costello said, "Writing about music is rather like dancing about architecture". In the case of Gubaidulina it's particularly hard, since she has such a unique, original means of expression. The weekend is called 'A Journey of the Soul', which reflects her strong Russian Orthodox faith, but it's a journey in other ways too, as her music travelled to the West for the first time in the early 1980s. 'Alleluja' recalls the journey of history in the fall of the Berlin Wall, seen as a reawakening and the triumph of faith over Soviet oppression. For all her journeying (she now lives in Germany), Russian roots are never far from the surface, and on Tuesday evening (16th) we can hear the UK première of her concerto for the Russian accordion, the bayan: 'Under The Sign Of Scorpio'.
For further details of the weekend, please look at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/performances/gubaidulina_home.shtml
You may also find our timeline interesting at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/performances/gubaidulina_timeline.shtml.
A further sense of occasion comes from the presence with the BBC Symphony Orchestra of Valery Gergiev, who is a leading champion of Gubaildulina's music. During the weekend you can also hear Gergiev's first concert as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra as its Music Director.
SIBELIUS
Staying in the North, during the week of the 22nd January we have an opportunity to hear the Sibelius symphonies in a cycle of four concerts with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under four conductors: Vanska, Volkov, Segerstam and Solyom. Colleagues in Scotland tell me that the series has been a great success, with some truly memorable playing. So I am looking forward to celebrating the beginning of the Sibelius 50th anniversary year.
The following week we mark another anniversary, what would have been the 70th birthday of the pianist John Ogdon. There is a celebration of his life and work over three nights starting on Monday 29th January.
REGIME CHANGE
Our drama on Sunday 14th January is set in a run-down apartment block in Istanbul. Regime Change is a major new comedy by Peter Straughan taking its cue from a speech in the second Act of Julius Caesar, when the statesman Brutus suffers one night of anguish as he contemplates assassinating the Emperor. It gives birth to a wickedly dark comedy of ambition, desire and self-deceit. The play has been developed and recorded with members of the Royal Shakespeare Company ensemble, led by Henry Goodman as the would-be dictator, Lutz.
FRANK BRIDGE
If he had not taught Benjamin Britten, Frank Bridge may well have been forgotten. After they met at a music festival in Norfolk, Bridge became both teacher and friend to the young musician. Our five programmes, continuing our British music theme from 2006, reveal him in his later works as a more adventurous figure than we may have guessed. It's high time for a re-evaluation.
As always, you can find a wealth of material in support of our programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
I hope you will find much to enjoy on Radio 3 during January and the whole of 2007.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
A Happy New Year!
I hope that you are enjoying the Proms repeats in the evenings: it's an annual way of reliving the great music making we enjoyed throughout the summer. As 2007 gets under way, there is also much that is new and original for you to enjoy: we mark the beginning of the Sibelius anniversary year and we give you the chance to immerse yourselves in the music of one of the most original musical voices to come out of Russia – Sofia Gubaidulina.
THE EARLY MUSIC SHOW – QUEEN ANNE
We start closer to home, some three hundred years ago, through music from the time of Queen Anne. It's inevitable that we now see 18th-century London as dominated by Handel, but our Early Music Show programme sets the record straight as we discover Daniel Purcell, Gottfried Finger and John Eccles. Then as now, London was a great cosmopolitan centre, and its exceptional affluence meant that many Londoners had the inclination and funds to seek out the best cultural entertainment available. Lucie Skeaping takes us back across the centuries on Saturday 6th at 1pm.
METROPOLITAN OPERA – BELLINI'S I PURITANI
We remain in London for the subject matter of Bellini's opera from the Metropolitan Opera. I Puritani (also on 6th January) is set against the background of the English Civil War. I am not certain that we get to reflect too much on the history or social aspects of the period, but it's an original setting for the most stock of all operatic plots – a rich mix of love and intrigue. In this performance, the cast is greatly enhanced by the presence of the marvellous soprano Anna Netrebko, who leads the cast in the role of Elvira for this live broadcast.
METROPOLITAN OPERA – TAN DUN'S THE FIRST EMPEROR
Throughout the music world, there are many first performances, but fewer subsequent ones. That's the reason behind our Radio 3 involvement with the Royal Philharmonic Society encore scheme. But I have a feeling that this new Tan Dun opera, which receives its first broadcast performance from New York on Saturday 13th, is quickly going to establish itself in the repertory. It is an attractive combination of drama, love and history based around the life of Chin, the First Emperor of China, who unified the country in the third century BC and built the Great Wall. I am sure many of us will be listening with interest to see what this original composer brings to the operatic stage. We can also look forward to the performance of Plácido Domingo in the title role.
SOFIA GUBAIDULINA
The annual composer weekend of the BBC Symphony Orchestra this year features Sofia Gubaidulina and it has been planned in collaboration with the composer herself. Describing music in words can be difficult: as Elvis Costello said, "Writing about music is rather like dancing about architecture". In the case of Gubaidulina it's particularly hard, since she has such a unique, original means of expression. The weekend is called 'A Journey of the Soul', which reflects her strong Russian Orthodox faith, but it's a journey in other ways too, as her music travelled to the West for the first time in the early 1980s. 'Alleluja' recalls the journey of history in the fall of the Berlin Wall, seen as a reawakening and the triumph of faith over Soviet oppression. For all her journeying (she now lives in Germany), Russian roots are never far from the surface, and on Tuesday evening (16th) we can hear the UK première of her concerto for the Russian accordion, the bayan: 'Under The Sign Of Scorpio'.
For further details of the weekend, please look at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/performances/gubaidulina_home.shtml
You may also find our timeline interesting at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/performances/gubaidulina_timeline.shtml.
A further sense of occasion comes from the presence with the BBC Symphony Orchestra of Valery Gergiev, who is a leading champion of Gubaildulina's music. During the weekend you can also hear Gergiev's first concert as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra as its Music Director.
SIBELIUS
Staying in the North, during the week of the 22nd January we have an opportunity to hear the Sibelius symphonies in a cycle of four concerts with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under four conductors: Vanska, Volkov, Segerstam and Solyom. Colleagues in Scotland tell me that the series has been a great success, with some truly memorable playing. So I am looking forward to celebrating the beginning of the Sibelius 50th anniversary year.
The following week we mark another anniversary, what would have been the 70th birthday of the pianist John Ogdon. There is a celebration of his life and work over three nights starting on Monday 29th January.
REGIME CHANGE
Our drama on Sunday 14th January is set in a run-down apartment block in Istanbul. Regime Change is a major new comedy by Peter Straughan taking its cue from a speech in the second Act of Julius Caesar, when the statesman Brutus suffers one night of anguish as he contemplates assassinating the Emperor. It gives birth to a wickedly dark comedy of ambition, desire and self-deceit. The play has been developed and recorded with members of the Royal Shakespeare Company ensemble, led by Henry Goodman as the would-be dictator, Lutz.
FRANK BRIDGE
If he had not taught Benjamin Britten, Frank Bridge may well have been forgotten. After they met at a music festival in Norfolk, Bridge became both teacher and friend to the young musician. Our five programmes, continuing our British music theme from 2006, reveal him in his later works as a more adventurous figure than we may have guessed. It's high time for a re-evaluation.
As always, you can find a wealth of material in support of our programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
I hope you will find much to enjoy on Radio 3 during January and the whole of 2007.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
22/12/06 Is this a Licence to thrill?
The BBC Trust which takes over from the Board of Governors on 1st January 2007 has issued a press release about the new Service Licences which it published on 18th December and which lay down the scope of each BBC service. The text of Radio 3's licence can be read here (pdf) and it is worth comparing it with those of the other network radio stations.
A public consultation will be launched soon and we understand it will be open for three months. FoR3 will be responding and we shall be pleased to hear the views of any Radio 3 listeners. Everyone, of course, will be free to send in their views indiividually to the BBC Trust.
We shall publish our own response on this website before submitting it and, again, any further comments from listeners will be welcomed.
A public consultation will be launched soon and we understand it will be open for three months. FoR3 will be responding and we shall be pleased to hear the views of any Radio 3 listeners. Everyone, of course, will be free to send in their views indiividually to the BBC Trust.
We shall publish our own response on this website before submitting it and, again, any further comments from listeners will be welcomed.
21/12/06 What's new for the New Year?
The heavily leaked new schedule was finally unveiled today just making the promised Christmas deadline. When all the persuasive PR language ('ambitious', 'vibrant', 'engaging', 'acclaimed', 'evocative', 'eclectic', and, of course, the old standby 'stellar line-up') have been removed, can we gauge whether this is a bold new direction for Radio 3, or is it a further limp down the well-worn path of personality cult and cool?
Top billing is given to the change of presenter for Morning on 3: Rob Cowan takes on the 7am-10am slot with a new programme to be called (eponymously, so we're informed) – Rob Cowan. Will this be an appropriate vehicle for Rob's encyclopaedic knowledge of recorded performance history or will he have to pick his way, like previous presenters, through the litter of news bulletins, programme trails, time checks and sundry announcements and musical odds and ends which have made the slot unlistenable for many people? We shall see.
There is probably a Golden Rule which advises that a change of presenter should be accompanied by a change of programme name. Consequently, the name CD Masters is axed and replaced by Classical Collection, to run from 10 am until noon. Apparently there will be different presenters of whom only one is so far named, Sarah Walker, an acknowledged expert on new music, while the programme will continue with the historical recordings remit of CD Masters. No word yet on Jonathan Swain, able co-presenter of CD Masters and an acknowledged expert on historical recordings.
We assume, since nothing is said to the contrary, that Composer of the Week will remain at noon and the lunchtime concert at 1pm. In the afternoons, as has already been announced, the children's programme Making Tracks, which unexpectedly failed to reappear at the beginning of the school year, is permanently dropped. All the weekday 4pm programmes are also dropped (with Choral Evensong moving to 4pm on Sundays). This will now clear a three-hour slot, 2pm – 5pm, when In Tune begins. One innovation will be the inclusion of full-length opera broadcasts, though whether these will be regular or occasional is not stated. We assume that most of the orchestral content throughout the week will, as usual, be supplied by BBC orchestras though there is a promised performance by the Berlin Phil.
'More classical music in the afternoon' is the headline. It remains to be seen whether the extended three-hour slot of studio-presented concert excerpts turns out to be a longer stretch of unadventurous wallpaper (possibly now with the unavoidable programme trails inserted), or whether some real spice can be injected into the sometimes lack-lustre afternoon sequence. More is not necessarily better.
In Tune is cut by half an hour to allow for a 7pm start to the evening concert. Or evening 'concert': we have yet to see whether the announcement that live concert broadcasts – apart from the Proms – are to end is also heralding, as strongly rumoured, the extension of the 'afternoon format': concert excerpts introduced from the continuity studio by a regular announcer rather than full recordings of the concert with presentation from the concert hall. The loss of concert atmosphere would be regretted by many. Another point is that at present the evening concert, normally beginning at 7.30pm, attracts the biggest audience of the evening. Listening peaks between 7.30pm and 8pm and the concert slot ends at 9.30pm. Will a 7pm start be too early for people coming home from work and getting an evening meal? People unable to tune in until 8pm will now find the concert is more than half over, with only the final item of the programme left.
'More classical music in the evening', it says here. Well, fair enough, the repeat of Composer of the Week is moved down from midnight to follow the evening 'concert' at 8.45pm. Those who have found both the midday and the midnight broadcasts inconvenient now have their chance to hear the programme across the week. Against that, it will now separate daytime listeners and evening listeners, since many who previously listened to the evening concert up to 9.30pm will not want to listen to Composer of the Week if they have already heard the programme earlier in the day. Also, though this is marketed as 'classical music' it is speech-based and classified as a 'music documentary', the music being mainly shorter pieces and excerpts as illustration rather than undiluted music. The success of this move will be judged in time but it does not have the immediate look of a good idea, putting a bit of a dead weight on a valued part of the listening schedule.
Night Waves will now begin at 9.45pm. The press release curiously does not make it clear that the 'flagship arts and ideas programme' is being cut from five editions a week to four (with The Verb moving into the Friday slot).
A brand new 30-minute programme, Artist Focus, follows at 10.30pm, presumably Monday to Thursday. This seems to be a revival of the old Artist of the Week programme, dropped when CD Masters was introduced a few years ago. This is also a supposed response to the 'not enough classical music in the evenings' complaint, though the meaning of the description 'a spontaneous musical journey' can only be guessed at, and, as with Composer of the Week, an across the week programme does reduce the amount of variety in this part of the schedule.
Another headline is an 'ambitious series of cultural talks', Monday to Thursday from 11pm to 11.15pm. The Essay is in fact the old Twenty Minutes concert interval talk, removed from the early evening and slightly shortened. The good point about this is that we shall be spared those dire interval 'features' which consisted of brief snippets from anyone and everyone involved with the concert, from child timpanist to orchestra manager, from rehearsal pianist to piano tuner. The reasons given for such changes (in this case to give it a fixed start time, unaffected by the vagaries of the concert programme) are always suspect. There are probably just as many people who appreciate a serendipitous interval talk but broadcasting wisdom prevails: people like fixed times.
The 'mixed genre' music moves from 10.15pm to 11.15pm and runs through until 1am. Andy Kershaw moves from Sunday to Monday, cutting Late Junction to three nights, Tuesday to Thursday. On Fridays it appears that there will be no Artist Focus, but Jazz Library (a sort of jazz Building a Library) will run from 10.30pm to 11.30pm, to be followed as usual by Jazz on 3. Mixing It is dropped.
The weekends are not fully accounted for. Morning on 3 will now be called what? Martin Handley? Louise Fryer? On Saturdays it will presumably still be two hours long, followed by CD Review which is cut by 45 minutes (after being extended only three years ago). Music Matters, which moved to Sunday afternoon three years ago, now moves in at 12.15pm. No mention of a change to the Early Music Show but with Discovering Music moving to Sundays, it is not clear what will be on from 2pm until 3pm. An extension of World Routes? Jazz and opera are presumably unchanged but The Verb moves to Friday and it is not clear how Saturday evening will be rejigged to fill it.
On Sundays it looks as if Morning on 3/Martin Handley/Louise Fryer etc will be extended to 10am when The Cowan Collection is replaced by a new programme 'hosted' [sic] by Iain Burnside. There are no further details except that it will apparently be called Iain Burnside: Radio 3 does appear to be brain-dead when it comes to thinking up programme titles; unless, of course, there is an agenda to calling programmes by the name of the presenter…
No further changes are announced until 4pm when 3 for All is dropped and Choral Evensong (still broadcast live) will take over this 'prime slot'. Discovering Music then returns to Sunday evenings after its removal and revamp three years ago. It will be extended to 90 minutes and will regularly feature exam syllabus pieces. Whether in this format it will satisfy the enthusiasts who still remember the old, pre-revamp Discovering Music is a little doubtful. At 6.30pm we presume the present Sunday schedule applies (with The Choir possibly being renamed Aled Jones). With Andy Kershaw moving to Mondays, there will be a new 'unpresented' music and poetry/readings programme, eponymously entitled Music and Words, at 10.30pm. Apparently featuring classical music and well-known actors reading, an 'evocative evening listen' is promised. Will it go on until 1am? If so, it may be a bit of a soporific drift, rather like a literary Late Junction with music.
We will return to this later with a view on how the balance of the schedule has changed
Top billing is given to the change of presenter for Morning on 3: Rob Cowan takes on the 7am-10am slot with a new programme to be called (eponymously, so we're informed) – Rob Cowan. Will this be an appropriate vehicle for Rob's encyclopaedic knowledge of recorded performance history or will he have to pick his way, like previous presenters, through the litter of news bulletins, programme trails, time checks and sundry announcements and musical odds and ends which have made the slot unlistenable for many people? We shall see.
There is probably a Golden Rule which advises that a change of presenter should be accompanied by a change of programme name. Consequently, the name CD Masters is axed and replaced by Classical Collection, to run from 10 am until noon. Apparently there will be different presenters of whom only one is so far named, Sarah Walker, an acknowledged expert on new music, while the programme will continue with the historical recordings remit of CD Masters. No word yet on Jonathan Swain, able co-presenter of CD Masters and an acknowledged expert on historical recordings.
We assume, since nothing is said to the contrary, that Composer of the Week will remain at noon and the lunchtime concert at 1pm. In the afternoons, as has already been announced, the children's programme Making Tracks, which unexpectedly failed to reappear at the beginning of the school year, is permanently dropped. All the weekday 4pm programmes are also dropped (with Choral Evensong moving to 4pm on Sundays). This will now clear a three-hour slot, 2pm – 5pm, when In Tune begins. One innovation will be the inclusion of full-length opera broadcasts, though whether these will be regular or occasional is not stated. We assume that most of the orchestral content throughout the week will, as usual, be supplied by BBC orchestras though there is a promised performance by the Berlin Phil.
'More classical music in the afternoon' is the headline. It remains to be seen whether the extended three-hour slot of studio-presented concert excerpts turns out to be a longer stretch of unadventurous wallpaper (possibly now with the unavoidable programme trails inserted), or whether some real spice can be injected into the sometimes lack-lustre afternoon sequence. More is not necessarily better.
In Tune is cut by half an hour to allow for a 7pm start to the evening concert. Or evening 'concert': we have yet to see whether the announcement that live concert broadcasts – apart from the Proms – are to end is also heralding, as strongly rumoured, the extension of the 'afternoon format': concert excerpts introduced from the continuity studio by a regular announcer rather than full recordings of the concert with presentation from the concert hall. The loss of concert atmosphere would be regretted by many. Another point is that at present the evening concert, normally beginning at 7.30pm, attracts the biggest audience of the evening. Listening peaks between 7.30pm and 8pm and the concert slot ends at 9.30pm. Will a 7pm start be too early for people coming home from work and getting an evening meal? People unable to tune in until 8pm will now find the concert is more than half over, with only the final item of the programme left.
'More classical music in the evening', it says here. Well, fair enough, the repeat of Composer of the Week is moved down from midnight to follow the evening 'concert' at 8.45pm. Those who have found both the midday and the midnight broadcasts inconvenient now have their chance to hear the programme across the week. Against that, it will now separate daytime listeners and evening listeners, since many who previously listened to the evening concert up to 9.30pm will not want to listen to Composer of the Week if they have already heard the programme earlier in the day. Also, though this is marketed as 'classical music' it is speech-based and classified as a 'music documentary', the music being mainly shorter pieces and excerpts as illustration rather than undiluted music. The success of this move will be judged in time but it does not have the immediate look of a good idea, putting a bit of a dead weight on a valued part of the listening schedule.
Night Waves will now begin at 9.45pm. The press release curiously does not make it clear that the 'flagship arts and ideas programme' is being cut from five editions a week to four (with The Verb moving into the Friday slot).
A brand new 30-minute programme, Artist Focus, follows at 10.30pm, presumably Monday to Thursday. This seems to be a revival of the old Artist of the Week programme, dropped when CD Masters was introduced a few years ago. This is also a supposed response to the 'not enough classical music in the evenings' complaint, though the meaning of the description 'a spontaneous musical journey' can only be guessed at, and, as with Composer of the Week, an across the week programme does reduce the amount of variety in this part of the schedule.
Another headline is an 'ambitious series of cultural talks', Monday to Thursday from 11pm to 11.15pm. The Essay is in fact the old Twenty Minutes concert interval talk, removed from the early evening and slightly shortened. The good point about this is that we shall be spared those dire interval 'features' which consisted of brief snippets from anyone and everyone involved with the concert, from child timpanist to orchestra manager, from rehearsal pianist to piano tuner. The reasons given for such changes (in this case to give it a fixed start time, unaffected by the vagaries of the concert programme) are always suspect. There are probably just as many people who appreciate a serendipitous interval talk but broadcasting wisdom prevails: people like fixed times.
The 'mixed genre' music moves from 10.15pm to 11.15pm and runs through until 1am. Andy Kershaw moves from Sunday to Monday, cutting Late Junction to three nights, Tuesday to Thursday. On Fridays it appears that there will be no Artist Focus, but Jazz Library (a sort of jazz Building a Library) will run from 10.30pm to 11.30pm, to be followed as usual by Jazz on 3. Mixing It is dropped.
The weekends are not fully accounted for. Morning on 3 will now be called what? Martin Handley? Louise Fryer? On Saturdays it will presumably still be two hours long, followed by CD Review which is cut by 45 minutes (after being extended only three years ago). Music Matters, which moved to Sunday afternoon three years ago, now moves in at 12.15pm. No mention of a change to the Early Music Show but with Discovering Music moving to Sundays, it is not clear what will be on from 2pm until 3pm. An extension of World Routes? Jazz and opera are presumably unchanged but The Verb moves to Friday and it is not clear how Saturday evening will be rejigged to fill it.
On Sundays it looks as if Morning on 3/Martin Handley/Louise Fryer etc will be extended to 10am when The Cowan Collection is replaced by a new programme 'hosted' [sic] by Iain Burnside. There are no further details except that it will apparently be called Iain Burnside: Radio 3 does appear to be brain-dead when it comes to thinking up programme titles; unless, of course, there is an agenda to calling programmes by the name of the presenter…
No further changes are announced until 4pm when 3 for All is dropped and Choral Evensong (still broadcast live) will take over this 'prime slot'. Discovering Music then returns to Sunday evenings after its removal and revamp three years ago. It will be extended to 90 minutes and will regularly feature exam syllabus pieces. Whether in this format it will satisfy the enthusiasts who still remember the old, pre-revamp Discovering Music is a little doubtful. At 6.30pm we presume the present Sunday schedule applies (with The Choir possibly being renamed Aled Jones). With Andy Kershaw moving to Mondays, there will be a new 'unpresented' music and poetry/readings programme, eponymously entitled Music and Words, at 10.30pm. Apparently featuring classical music and well-known actors reading, an 'evocative evening listen' is promised. Will it go on until 1am? If so, it may be a bit of a soporific drift, rather like a literary Late Junction with music.
We will return to this later with a view on how the balance of the schedule has changed
Controller's Note, Dec. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
RADIO 3 CHOIR OF THE YEAR
On the evening of Monday 11th December Aled Jones takes us to the final of the BBC Radio 3 Choir Of The Year competition recorded in the Wales Millennium Centre.
Eight of the UK's best amateur choirs will be competing in various categories, including an audience prize decided in the hall. The build-up rounds to this final were a great tribute to, and reminder of, the the vitality of amateur singing in the UK. It promises to be a splendid occasion.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/choiroftheyear/index.shtml
METROPOLITAN OPERA
Our annual extensive coverage of the Metropolitan Opera is underway, and as usual you can share the experience of being at the opera with the New York audience live on Radio 3.
On Saturday 19th Carlos Alvarez plays the embittered hunchback court jester Rigoletto, in Verdi's first operatic masterpiece, a piece which has captivated opera lovers for 150 years. The opera was not always as well received as nowadays. The work's first version, featuring the attempted murder of the crowned head of state, was offensive to the Austrians who ruled Venice at the time; Verdi was seen as contributing to the rise of sentiment against the occupying power. After some controversial passages were changed it was first heard in Venice at La Fenice on 11 March 1851.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/met_opera.shtml
CYMBELINE
Cymbeline is one of Shakespeare's most rarely performed plays but you can hear it on Radio 3 on the evening of Sunday 17th December. It's a type of 'archetypal fairytale'. Strangely, for a fairytale there are elements where the narrative comes into contact with reality, namely the town of Milford Haven. Some scenes set near there were recorded on location in Wales, including the use of a Neolithic burial mound as Belarius's cave. It tells of the semi-legendary King's dealings with the Romans, the secret marriage of his daughter, and the exiled Belarius, living in a cave at Milford Haven with the abducted sons of Cymbeline. The cast features Sian Phillips, Nia Roberts and William Houston. I hope you enjoy this new production.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
WH AUDEN
Another rarely heard drama is WH Auden's mystery cycle, For The Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio, which we are broadcasting on Christmas Eve. It is narrated by Rufus Sewell. Next February is the centenary of the poet's birth, and with this production we begin a year-long celebration of his life and work. This cycle traces the Nativity narrative, but recasts it in a contemporary setting to form a meditation on the meaning of the divine in everyday life. It reflects the heart of Auden's spirituality and I think forms a fitting start to our Auden celebrations.
CHRISTMAS MUSIC
For a purely musical celebration of Christmas, tune in for our annual EBU Day of Christmas Music. The journey will take us rapidly from Russia back to the UK and to Finland and the Czech Republic, as well as many other countries. You can hear it from midday on Sunday 17th, when our BBC contribution will be a concert with the BBC Singers. From Germany we have an organ recital encompassing three magnificent instruments in Karlsruhe; the orchestral music from Russia has a strong winter theme; while from Romania we hear their ancient tradition of church music, one of the less known of Orthodox singing traditions.
During the week which follows, we continue with great performances of Christmas music: On Thursday 21st, the BBC Symphony Orchestra is joined by the BBC Singers for a performance of Hector Berlioz's 'L'Enfance du Christ' (The Childhood Of Christ), one of the composer's most popular works. On the following evening, recalling our Bach Christmas last year, the English Baroque Soloists are directed by John Eliot Gardiner in their annual Christmas concert – a selection of Bach's Advent cantatas including the much-loved 'Wachet auf' and 'Nun komm der Heiden Heiland', BWV 61.
CHRISTMAS REFLECTIONS
The season is also marked by the return of our occasional series, Belief, starting on Christmas morning. Joan Bakewell will be talking with artists, thinkers and other public figures about their beliefs. Her first guest is Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, a Roman Catholic priest for 50 years, who has been Archbishop of Westminster since 2000.
Another influential spiritual leader is profiled on Sunday 17th during the evening – Brother Roger of Taizé. His death in August 2005 shocked people all over the world, when he was attacked and killed before a congregation of almost 3,000 pilgrims. The programme looks at the quiet revolution he achieved in a remote part of France, bringing together Christians of all denominations in a way unseen since the Reformation. In this programme, Mike Ford visits Taizé to meet the Brothers and pilgrims preparing to mark the first anniversary of his death.
FOR YOUNGER LISTENERS…
And if you are with children at Christmas, do encourage them to listen (with you!) to Kids And Carols, starting on Boxing Day afternoon. Angellica Bell and Adrian Dickson will present an introduction to the world of classical music and the orchestra. In this short series the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra perform parts of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Strauss's Thunder And Lightning Polka.
FINALLY, PERU…
Though winter and particularly Christmas is often the time for being at home, we have not forgotten the rest of the world. Listen this Saturday as Lucy Duran heads to Peru in World Routes to explore its musical culture – the first of a three programme special. The programmes will feature unique field recordings from the capital, Lima and take us on a magical Peruvian journey. As Lucy says, 'There's more to the music of Peru than cheesy panpipe covers of El Cóndor Pasa!' – and she certainly found it! She starts at the Machu Picchu, where we hear music said to have originated in the music of the pre-Columbian Andes.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/onlocation/peru.shtml
It only remains to wish you all a happy festive period in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send our thanks to you for your continued interest in Radio 3, and our warmest wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful new year.
Roger Wright
Dear All
RADIO 3 CHOIR OF THE YEAR
On the evening of Monday 11th December Aled Jones takes us to the final of the BBC Radio 3 Choir Of The Year competition recorded in the Wales Millennium Centre.
Eight of the UK's best amateur choirs will be competing in various categories, including an audience prize decided in the hall. The build-up rounds to this final were a great tribute to, and reminder of, the the vitality of amateur singing in the UK. It promises to be a splendid occasion.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/choiroftheyear/index.shtml
METROPOLITAN OPERA
Our annual extensive coverage of the Metropolitan Opera is underway, and as usual you can share the experience of being at the opera with the New York audience live on Radio 3.
On Saturday 19th Carlos Alvarez plays the embittered hunchback court jester Rigoletto, in Verdi's first operatic masterpiece, a piece which has captivated opera lovers for 150 years. The opera was not always as well received as nowadays. The work's first version, featuring the attempted murder of the crowned head of state, was offensive to the Austrians who ruled Venice at the time; Verdi was seen as contributing to the rise of sentiment against the occupying power. After some controversial passages were changed it was first heard in Venice at La Fenice on 11 March 1851.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/operaon3/met_opera.shtml
CYMBELINE
Cymbeline is one of Shakespeare's most rarely performed plays but you can hear it on Radio 3 on the evening of Sunday 17th December. It's a type of 'archetypal fairytale'. Strangely, for a fairytale there are elements where the narrative comes into contact with reality, namely the town of Milford Haven. Some scenes set near there were recorded on location in Wales, including the use of a Neolithic burial mound as Belarius's cave. It tells of the semi-legendary King's dealings with the Romans, the secret marriage of his daughter, and the exiled Belarius, living in a cave at Milford Haven with the abducted sons of Cymbeline. The cast features Sian Phillips, Nia Roberts and William Houston. I hope you enjoy this new production.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
WH AUDEN
Another rarely heard drama is WH Auden's mystery cycle, For The Time Being: A Christmas Oratorio, which we are broadcasting on Christmas Eve. It is narrated by Rufus Sewell. Next February is the centenary of the poet's birth, and with this production we begin a year-long celebration of his life and work. This cycle traces the Nativity narrative, but recasts it in a contemporary setting to form a meditation on the meaning of the divine in everyday life. It reflects the heart of Auden's spirituality and I think forms a fitting start to our Auden celebrations.
CHRISTMAS MUSIC
For a purely musical celebration of Christmas, tune in for our annual EBU Day of Christmas Music. The journey will take us rapidly from Russia back to the UK and to Finland and the Czech Republic, as well as many other countries. You can hear it from midday on Sunday 17th, when our BBC contribution will be a concert with the BBC Singers. From Germany we have an organ recital encompassing three magnificent instruments in Karlsruhe; the orchestral music from Russia has a strong winter theme; while from Romania we hear their ancient tradition of church music, one of the less known of Orthodox singing traditions.
During the week which follows, we continue with great performances of Christmas music: On Thursday 21st, the BBC Symphony Orchestra is joined by the BBC Singers for a performance of Hector Berlioz's 'L'Enfance du Christ' (The Childhood Of Christ), one of the composer's most popular works. On the following evening, recalling our Bach Christmas last year, the English Baroque Soloists are directed by John Eliot Gardiner in their annual Christmas concert – a selection of Bach's Advent cantatas including the much-loved 'Wachet auf' and 'Nun komm der Heiden Heiland', BWV 61.
CHRISTMAS REFLECTIONS
The season is also marked by the return of our occasional series, Belief, starting on Christmas morning. Joan Bakewell will be talking with artists, thinkers and other public figures about their beliefs. Her first guest is Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, a Roman Catholic priest for 50 years, who has been Archbishop of Westminster since 2000.
Another influential spiritual leader is profiled on Sunday 17th during the evening – Brother Roger of Taizé. His death in August 2005 shocked people all over the world, when he was attacked and killed before a congregation of almost 3,000 pilgrims. The programme looks at the quiet revolution he achieved in a remote part of France, bringing together Christians of all denominations in a way unseen since the Reformation. In this programme, Mike Ford visits Taizé to meet the Brothers and pilgrims preparing to mark the first anniversary of his death.
FOR YOUNGER LISTENERS…
And if you are with children at Christmas, do encourage them to listen (with you!) to Kids And Carols, starting on Boxing Day afternoon. Angellica Bell and Adrian Dickson will present an introduction to the world of classical music and the orchestra. In this short series the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra perform parts of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Strauss's Thunder And Lightning Polka.
FINALLY, PERU…
Though winter and particularly Christmas is often the time for being at home, we have not forgotten the rest of the world. Listen this Saturday as Lucy Duran heads to Peru in World Routes to explore its musical culture – the first of a three programme special. The programmes will feature unique field recordings from the capital, Lima and take us on a magical Peruvian journey. As Lucy says, 'There's more to the music of Peru than cheesy panpipe covers of El Cóndor Pasa!' – and she certainly found it! She starts at the Machu Picchu, where we hear music said to have originated in the music of the pre-Columbian Andes.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/worldmusic/onlocation/peru.shtml
It only remains to wish you all a happy festive period in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send our thanks to you for your continued interest in Radio 3, and our warmest wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful new year.
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Nov. 2006
Controller's Note, Dec. 2006
Controller's Note, Dec. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
We have an exciting month on Radio 3 with two major projects. One of these comprises an in-depth look at the contemporary world, while the other takes us back ninety years to reflect on the horrors of the First World War through the words of Wilfred Owen
FREE THINKING
Free Thinking begins on Friday 3rd November. It's a festival of ideas which will take place annually in Liverpool bringing writers, artists, scientists, philosophers and political thinkers together to tackle contemporary issues including new technology, cities, loneliness, sex and morality.
We start with an opening lecture from Brian Eno on Friday night at 9.30pm, in which he deals with the culture of creativity. The week on Radio 3 continues each evening at the same time with debates about contemporary values, an alternative global vision, and related dramas to provoke reflection on our society.
If you would like to come along to the events then most tickets are free. Vist the The Free Thinking Website for more details of the events and how to obtain tickets – and if you cannot be there, then do join the debate in the webblogs and listen to the broadcasts (which will also be available to listen to online). http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/index.shtml
WILFRED OWEN WEEK
On the evening of Remembrance Sunday, November 12th, we turn to the poetry of Wilfred Owen (1893-1918).
After our complete Beethoven, Webern and Bach seasons we now present the complete canon of Owen's war poems. Beginning during The Choir, which features a performance of Britten's War Requiem, including settings of Owen, Paul Farley introduces the first in our sequence of poems read by the actor Ben Whishaw. The same evening we have a documentary following Owen's life from childhood in Birkenhead to his grave in Ors in Northern France. On Thursday 16th we broadcast the premiere of a new choral work by Judith Bingham, commissioned by Radio 3 and based upon Owen's letters.
During the week you will be able to hear the poems positioned throughout the schedule which promises to be a very moving experience. To find out more visit Radio 3's Wilfred Owen website http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/wilfredowen.shtml
OPERA
Do look out for our opera highlights during November. On Saturday 4th November we are broadcasting Prokoviev's 'Betrothal in a Monastery', which is rarely heard outside Russia. This sparkling early opera was recorded at Glyndebourne and conducted by the new musical director, Vladimir Jurowski. Well known in Russia, it's appropriate that we in the UK should know it better, since the narrative comes from Sheridan's comedy 'The Duenna'. The composer thought the original play was 'like champagne', with a plot about swapping identities around an arranged marriage. It's a most amusing piece, with great music and a full Russian cast.
We have not forgotten Mozart, and we are really pleased to bring you three Mozart operas recorded at this year's Salzburg Festival. 'Mitridate, Re di Ponto' dates from 1770, while the 14-year-old Mozart was in Milan. Like the Prokofiev it's a tangled web based around love with a cast including Swedish soprano Miah Persson and American tenor Robert Croft in the title role. Listen out for more of the Salzburg Mozart cycle: 'Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail' on November 18th and 'Don Giovanni' on December 2nd.
EARLY MUSIC
During November the Early Music Show has a British theme: Made In Britain. On Sunday November 5th, Lucie Skeaping visits Eton College to look at the Eton Choirbook – an extremely rare source of pre-Reformation church music and the most important choirbook to survive the upheavals under Henry VIII. Some remarkable 15th-century composers are only known to us through this one book. Later on Sunday, we find out that the British choral tradition is still evolving when we hear about the growing trend of girls' choirs in British cathedrals in The Choir, presented by Aled Jones.
AWARDS FOR WORLD MUSIC
The nominations for next year's awards are shortly being announced as part of the WOMEX World Music Fair, and you can find out who they are during World Routes on Saturday 4th November at 3.00 pm. We are going to hear from many leading musicians during the programme, representing all corners of the globe. Lucy Duran presents the show from Seville.
LONDON JAZZ FESTIVAL
We launch this annual jazz extravaganza at 10.30pm on the evening of November 18th. Jez Nelson will be presenting a live extended edition of Jazz on 3. This special programme is a preview of the top jazz stars performing in the Festival: pianist Randy Weston, Mike Westbrook's Village Band, Evan Parker with Henry Grimes and the Martin Speake Quartet.
This year's London Jazz Festival has an extremely strong line-up with over 150 events taking place in 30 venues. The festival is presented in association with Radio 3 and we are delighted to bring you the highlights during the second half of the month. Find out more from Radio 3's London Jazz Festival website. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/londonjazzfest/
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK
One of the most neglected British composers of the 20th century was George Lloyd, who died in 1998. Starting on Monday 13th November, we're featuring him in Composer of the Week for the first time. There is plenty of music to choose from, with twelve symphonies, three operas, seven concertos, music for solo piano, brass band pieces, chamber music and three large-scale cantatas.
Lloyd's career offered great promise, but he has suffered from periods of near oblivion. The bright beginning was cut short by the Second World War, as he was badly injured while serving on HMS Trinidad. In later years, he led a double life, rising every morning to write music before his day's work as a market gardener.
We hope that this prominent placing on Radio 3 will provide the chance to reassess and appreciate Lloyd and his works – and in Afternoon Performance you can hear more of Lloyd's music as we continue our feature on British symphonists including his Symphony no.4 specially recorded recently by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
As ever, I hope you enjoy this varied and distinctive line-up of programmes.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
We have an exciting month on Radio 3 with two major projects. One of these comprises an in-depth look at the contemporary world, while the other takes us back ninety years to reflect on the horrors of the First World War through the words of Wilfred Owen
FREE THINKING
Free Thinking begins on Friday 3rd November. It's a festival of ideas which will take place annually in Liverpool bringing writers, artists, scientists, philosophers and political thinkers together to tackle contemporary issues including new technology, cities, loneliness, sex and morality.
We start with an opening lecture from Brian Eno on Friday night at 9.30pm, in which he deals with the culture of creativity. The week on Radio 3 continues each evening at the same time with debates about contemporary values, an alternative global vision, and related dramas to provoke reflection on our society.
If you would like to come along to the events then most tickets are free. Vist the The Free Thinking Website for more details of the events and how to obtain tickets – and if you cannot be there, then do join the debate in the webblogs and listen to the broadcasts (which will also be available to listen to online). http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/index.shtml
WILFRED OWEN WEEK
On the evening of Remembrance Sunday, November 12th, we turn to the poetry of Wilfred Owen (1893-1918).
After our complete Beethoven, Webern and Bach seasons we now present the complete canon of Owen's war poems. Beginning during The Choir, which features a performance of Britten's War Requiem, including settings of Owen, Paul Farley introduces the first in our sequence of poems read by the actor Ben Whishaw. The same evening we have a documentary following Owen's life from childhood in Birkenhead to his grave in Ors in Northern France. On Thursday 16th we broadcast the premiere of a new choral work by Judith Bingham, commissioned by Radio 3 and based upon Owen's letters.
During the week you will be able to hear the poems positioned throughout the schedule which promises to be a very moving experience. To find out more visit Radio 3's Wilfred Owen website http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/wilfredowen.shtml
OPERA
Do look out for our opera highlights during November. On Saturday 4th November we are broadcasting Prokoviev's 'Betrothal in a Monastery', which is rarely heard outside Russia. This sparkling early opera was recorded at Glyndebourne and conducted by the new musical director, Vladimir Jurowski. Well known in Russia, it's appropriate that we in the UK should know it better, since the narrative comes from Sheridan's comedy 'The Duenna'. The composer thought the original play was 'like champagne', with a plot about swapping identities around an arranged marriage. It's a most amusing piece, with great music and a full Russian cast.
We have not forgotten Mozart, and we are really pleased to bring you three Mozart operas recorded at this year's Salzburg Festival. 'Mitridate, Re di Ponto' dates from 1770, while the 14-year-old Mozart was in Milan. Like the Prokofiev it's a tangled web based around love with a cast including Swedish soprano Miah Persson and American tenor Robert Croft in the title role. Listen out for more of the Salzburg Mozart cycle: 'Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail' on November 18th and 'Don Giovanni' on December 2nd.
EARLY MUSIC
During November the Early Music Show has a British theme: Made In Britain. On Sunday November 5th, Lucie Skeaping visits Eton College to look at the Eton Choirbook – an extremely rare source of pre-Reformation church music and the most important choirbook to survive the upheavals under Henry VIII. Some remarkable 15th-century composers are only known to us through this one book. Later on Sunday, we find out that the British choral tradition is still evolving when we hear about the growing trend of girls' choirs in British cathedrals in The Choir, presented by Aled Jones.
AWARDS FOR WORLD MUSIC
The nominations for next year's awards are shortly being announced as part of the WOMEX World Music Fair, and you can find out who they are during World Routes on Saturday 4th November at 3.00 pm. We are going to hear from many leading musicians during the programme, representing all corners of the globe. Lucy Duran presents the show from Seville.
LONDON JAZZ FESTIVAL
We launch this annual jazz extravaganza at 10.30pm on the evening of November 18th. Jez Nelson will be presenting a live extended edition of Jazz on 3. This special programme is a preview of the top jazz stars performing in the Festival: pianist Randy Weston, Mike Westbrook's Village Band, Evan Parker with Henry Grimes and the Martin Speake Quartet.
This year's London Jazz Festival has an extremely strong line-up with over 150 events taking place in 30 venues. The festival is presented in association with Radio 3 and we are delighted to bring you the highlights during the second half of the month. Find out more from Radio 3's London Jazz Festival website. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/londonjazzfest/
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK
One of the most neglected British composers of the 20th century was George Lloyd, who died in 1998. Starting on Monday 13th November, we're featuring him in Composer of the Week for the first time. There is plenty of music to choose from, with twelve symphonies, three operas, seven concertos, music for solo piano, brass band pieces, chamber music and three large-scale cantatas.
Lloyd's career offered great promise, but he has suffered from periods of near oblivion. The bright beginning was cut short by the Second World War, as he was badly injured while serving on HMS Trinidad. In later years, he led a double life, rising every morning to write music before his day's work as a market gardener.
We hope that this prominent placing on Radio 3 will provide the chance to reassess and appreciate Lloyd and his works – and in Afternoon Performance you can hear more of Lloyd's music as we continue our feature on British symphonists including his Symphony no.4 specially recorded recently by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.
As ever, I hope you enjoy this varied and distinctive line-up of programmes.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
26/10/06 Proms fail to lift RAJAR gloom
Listening figures for the Proms quarter, July–September, were released by RAJAR, the audience research organisation, today.
At a weekly average audience of 2.026 million this was the lowest Proms quarter since the year 2000, and represented a fall of 41,000 (2 %) on last year's Proms quarter. The previous quarter, April–June, was the lowest reach ever, by some margin, at 1.834 million so an improvement on that was a certainty.
To put this in context: over the last seven years for which comparable figures are available, the Proms quarter has been the highest of the year on three occasions, and second highest also three times (anomalously, in 1999, it was the lowest quarter). If 2.026 million turns out to be either the highest or second highest this year, the overall average for the year will be very poor indeed.
What does this mean? It means that the downward trend which began two and a half years ago is continuing. The median (and also the average) for Proms quarters is 2.068 million. The median for all quarters is 2.021 million, so this Proms quarter is only a fraction above the median; it should be a lot better than that. Listening hours, at 13.942 million were surprisingly high, giving an average per listener of 6.9 hours per week (the combination of a low reach and high listening hours). The share of listening, at 1.3% is reasonable. A lower number of people were listening for longer than average which is a small crumb of comfort.
The RAJAR figures are calculated from a sample so anomalies occur in individual quarters. Trends, on the other hand, are more reliable and that's bad new for Radio 3's management.
At a weekly average audience of 2.026 million this was the lowest Proms quarter since the year 2000, and represented a fall of 41,000 (2 %) on last year's Proms quarter. The previous quarter, April–June, was the lowest reach ever, by some margin, at 1.834 million so an improvement on that was a certainty.
To put this in context: over the last seven years for which comparable figures are available, the Proms quarter has been the highest of the year on three occasions, and second highest also three times (anomalously, in 1999, it was the lowest quarter). If 2.026 million turns out to be either the highest or second highest this year, the overall average for the year will be very poor indeed.
What does this mean? It means that the downward trend which began two and a half years ago is continuing. The median (and also the average) for Proms quarters is 2.068 million. The median for all quarters is 2.021 million, so this Proms quarter is only a fraction above the median; it should be a lot better than that. Listening hours, at 13.942 million were surprisingly high, giving an average per listener of 6.9 hours per week (the combination of a low reach and high listening hours). The share of listening, at 1.3% is reasonable. A lower number of people were listening for longer than average which is a small crumb of comfort.
The RAJAR figures are calculated from a sample so anomalies occur in individual quarters. Trends, on the other hand, are more reliable and that's bad new for Radio 3's management.
26/10/06 Live concerts 'face the axe'
The Evening Standard has broken a story that Radio 3 plans to cut its broadcasts of live concerts. As yet there is no official confirmation. The story claims that concerts will now be recorded for broadcast 'a few days later', though not in full. The reason given for the change is that variation in the timing of live concerts 'wreaks havoc' with the schedule.
This would be a strange explanation since the concert's fixed slot of 7.30pm-9.30pm was created by Mr Wright when Night Waves was moved to 9.30pm. When Night Waves began at 10.45pm longer concerts and varying start times could be accommodated. To edit the content of a programme to fit a fixed time slot is the exact reverse of the original aim that each programme should be given the time it needs.
The official reply that "We will be announcing changes to the schedule in the near future" suggests that other changes are in the offing for the New Year. On past experience this does not seem like good news. To be clear: it is not the fact that changes are made, but the nature of those changes, that we query. It will be surprising if the new schedules are a cause for celebration, but we can hope.
This would be a strange explanation since the concert's fixed slot of 7.30pm-9.30pm was created by Mr Wright when Night Waves was moved to 9.30pm. When Night Waves began at 10.45pm longer concerts and varying start times could be accommodated. To edit the content of a programme to fit a fixed time slot is the exact reverse of the original aim that each programme should be given the time it needs.
The official reply that "We will be announcing changes to the schedule in the near future" suggests that other changes are in the offing for the New Year. On past experience this does not seem like good news. To be clear: it is not the fact that changes are made, but the nature of those changes, that we query. It will be surprising if the new schedules are a cause for celebration, but we can hope.
Controller's Note, Oct. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
THIRD PROGRAMME ANNIVERSARY
I hope you have been able to enjoy our Radio 3 birthday weekend, when we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Third Programme, which became Radio 3 in 1967. We are all grateful for the vision of those who took the bold step of founding such a radio station. It was very encouraging to read the press coverage of the anniversary, not least the Daily Telegraph which regards the station as 'not simply the best thing about the BBC, but one of the best things about Britain'. And the Sunday Times said about Radio 3, 'You feel better as a human being for listening to it, and there are not many stations you can say that about.'
You can still enjoy on demand the irreverent but affectionate soundscape of the station 'Three and a Third', produced by Alan Hall, and broadcast last Saturday at 1015pm. Sadly, Sir John Drummond, former Radio 3 Controller and Proms Director, died last month at the age of 71. We had hoped he could be with us at Friday's concert to join in our celebrations – he was and is much missed. Sir John Tusa's tribute to this great figure in the arts world was broadcast on Saturday lunchtime, and is also available on the Radio Player.
LISTEN UP!
On Friday night we also launched the 2006 Listen Up! Festival of Orchestras. This represents a major collaboration between Radio 3, the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music (representing amateur music organisations) in association with Creative Partnerships (providing creative learning opportunities in schools). Each evening on Radio 3 until November you can hear performances by orchestras from the length and breadth of the UK. Next week alone we shall be going to Glasgow, Aberdeen, Leeds, Birmingham, London, Edinburgh and Brighton. There's much more activity than I can possibly write about, so why not click here to view the broadcast details…http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/r3broadcasts.shtml and http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/whatson.shtml to find out which concerts will be happening near you. Listen Up! is not just a broadcast showcase for the talent and vitality of Britain's professional and amateur performers: it will be happening in your area in concert halls, shopping centres, schools, hospitals, and even living rooms across the land. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/
CHORAL EVENSONG
There is another quite remarkable anniversary this month, as Choral Evensong celebrates its 80th birthday with a special service from Westminster Abbey. This is the longest running outside broadcast in the history of radio: the first live Choral Evensong took place on the National Programme on Thursday 7 October 1926 from Westminster Abbey. After ten years of weekly broadcasts from the Abbey, the programme expanded to include St Paul's and York Minster. Now, of course, many cathedrals, abbeys, monasteries and churches are included, and it remains for many a weekly appointment to listen. It is also among the most popular programmes on the Radio 3 Listen Again website, reaching an audience across the world.
>From a different spiritual tradition, World Routes on Saturday 14th features the best known African musician in the world today, Youssou N'Dour. He is singing music dedicated to the Sufi saints of West Africa. Sufism – the mystic tradition whose teachings include universal love attained through a music-induced trance – is especially popular in his home country of Senegal.
HEAR AND NOW
Our musical journeys of discovery continue on Friday evening (6th) at 10.15 as Mixing It presenters Mark Russell and Robert Sandall take the programme into the countryside. In the middle of King's Wood in rural Kent, they listen to the otherworldly music coming from a huge metal trumpet, rising over 20 feet out of the leaves and bracken. A specially created pond feeds a pipe that drips water into an underground chamber, in which various tuned bowls and rods are suspended. The resulting harmonies are amplified by the chamber and emerge from the trumpet, serenading the walkers as they pass by. Music as you have never quite heard it before…
COMPOSERS AT HOME
Also at the weekend (Sunday 8th at 3.30pm), we have the opportunity to visit another composer's house in the company of Loyd Grossman. He travels to Eynsford in Kent, where Peter Warlock moved in the Twenties. Warlock was one of the most talented English composers of the early 20th century, who died in suspicious circumstances at the age of 36. Simon Callow reads from the composer's letters, and Malcolm Rudland talks about the composer's works, including the Capriol Suite and song-cycle The Curlew.
DRAMA ON 3
In An Enemy of The People, on Sunday 15th, the Northern Irish playwright Martin Lynch reinterprets Ibsen's classic 19th-century drama of the same name in his new play set in contemporary Belfast. Ibsen's play examines what happens when someone challenges the perceived consensus of his community. In Lynch's story, a mother is forced to stand up for justice when her brother-in-law is savagely killed. At first, it looks like another sectarian murder but in reality Moya McGovern's struggle for justice is only just beginning. Susan Lynch plays the part of Moya McGovern, and the cast features Charles Lawson, Harry Towb, Seainin Brennan and Patrick O'Kane.
BBC SINGERS
The BBC Singers are currently on tour in Mexico with conductor Odaline de la Martinez. On their travels, they will be performing music ranging from Thomas Tallis to Judith Bingham. To follow their journey, go to the BBC Singers website www.bbc.co.uk/singers where the BBC Singers' producer and intrepid explorer Michael Emery is keeping an account of their trip in his online diary.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
As ever, I hope you enjoy this varied and distinctive line-up of programmes.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
THIRD PROGRAMME ANNIVERSARY
I hope you have been able to enjoy our Radio 3 birthday weekend, when we celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Third Programme, which became Radio 3 in 1967. We are all grateful for the vision of those who took the bold step of founding such a radio station. It was very encouraging to read the press coverage of the anniversary, not least the Daily Telegraph which regards the station as 'not simply the best thing about the BBC, but one of the best things about Britain'. And the Sunday Times said about Radio 3, 'You feel better as a human being for listening to it, and there are not many stations you can say that about.'
You can still enjoy on demand the irreverent but affectionate soundscape of the station 'Three and a Third', produced by Alan Hall, and broadcast last Saturday at 1015pm. Sadly, Sir John Drummond, former Radio 3 Controller and Proms Director, died last month at the age of 71. We had hoped he could be with us at Friday's concert to join in our celebrations – he was and is much missed. Sir John Tusa's tribute to this great figure in the arts world was broadcast on Saturday lunchtime, and is also available on the Radio Player.
LISTEN UP!
On Friday night we also launched the 2006 Listen Up! Festival of Orchestras. This represents a major collaboration between Radio 3, the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music (representing amateur music organisations) in association with Creative Partnerships (providing creative learning opportunities in schools). Each evening on Radio 3 until November you can hear performances by orchestras from the length and breadth of the UK. Next week alone we shall be going to Glasgow, Aberdeen, Leeds, Birmingham, London, Edinburgh and Brighton. There's much more activity than I can possibly write about, so why not click here to view the broadcast details…http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/r3broadcasts.shtml and http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/whatson.shtml to find out which concerts will be happening near you. Listen Up! is not just a broadcast showcase for the talent and vitality of Britain's professional and amateur performers: it will be happening in your area in concert halls, shopping centres, schools, hospitals, and even living rooms across the land. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/
CHORAL EVENSONG
There is another quite remarkable anniversary this month, as Choral Evensong celebrates its 80th birthday with a special service from Westminster Abbey. This is the longest running outside broadcast in the history of radio: the first live Choral Evensong took place on the National Programme on Thursday 7 October 1926 from Westminster Abbey. After ten years of weekly broadcasts from the Abbey, the programme expanded to include St Paul's and York Minster. Now, of course, many cathedrals, abbeys, monasteries and churches are included, and it remains for many a weekly appointment to listen. It is also among the most popular programmes on the Radio 3 Listen Again website, reaching an audience across the world.
>From a different spiritual tradition, World Routes on Saturday 14th features the best known African musician in the world today, Youssou N'Dour. He is singing music dedicated to the Sufi saints of West Africa. Sufism – the mystic tradition whose teachings include universal love attained through a music-induced trance – is especially popular in his home country of Senegal.
HEAR AND NOW
Our musical journeys of discovery continue on Friday evening (6th) at 10.15 as Mixing It presenters Mark Russell and Robert Sandall take the programme into the countryside. In the middle of King's Wood in rural Kent, they listen to the otherworldly music coming from a huge metal trumpet, rising over 20 feet out of the leaves and bracken. A specially created pond feeds a pipe that drips water into an underground chamber, in which various tuned bowls and rods are suspended. The resulting harmonies are amplified by the chamber and emerge from the trumpet, serenading the walkers as they pass by. Music as you have never quite heard it before…
COMPOSERS AT HOME
Also at the weekend (Sunday 8th at 3.30pm), we have the opportunity to visit another composer's house in the company of Loyd Grossman. He travels to Eynsford in Kent, where Peter Warlock moved in the Twenties. Warlock was one of the most talented English composers of the early 20th century, who died in suspicious circumstances at the age of 36. Simon Callow reads from the composer's letters, and Malcolm Rudland talks about the composer's works, including the Capriol Suite and song-cycle The Curlew.
DRAMA ON 3
In An Enemy of The People, on Sunday 15th, the Northern Irish playwright Martin Lynch reinterprets Ibsen's classic 19th-century drama of the same name in his new play set in contemporary Belfast. Ibsen's play examines what happens when someone challenges the perceived consensus of his community. In Lynch's story, a mother is forced to stand up for justice when her brother-in-law is savagely killed. At first, it looks like another sectarian murder but in reality Moya McGovern's struggle for justice is only just beginning. Susan Lynch plays the part of Moya McGovern, and the cast features Charles Lawson, Harry Towb, Seainin Brennan and Patrick O'Kane.
BBC SINGERS
The BBC Singers are currently on tour in Mexico with conductor Odaline de la Martinez. On their travels, they will be performing music ranging from Thomas Tallis to Judith Bingham. To follow their journey, go to the BBC Singers website www.bbc.co.uk/singers where the BBC Singers' producer and intrepid explorer Michael Emery is keeping an account of their trip in his online diary.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
As ever, I hope you enjoy this varied and distinctive line-up of programmes.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
6/9/06 BBC Annual Report 2005-2006
The BBC Governors' Annual Report for the year 2005-06 was published in July. The review for Radio 3 reported that reach was 'broadly stable', last year's weekly reach being 2 million as was this year's. In fact, last year's weekly average was 2.045 million and this year's was 2.013 million – the second lowest since RAJAR introduced its new methodology in 1999 and the lowest since 2000-01. The percentage of the population listening was given as 4.1% (more accurately, 4.08%), rescued by a fairly strong fourth quarter. This compared with 4.2% the previous year (4.19%). This year's percentage figure was, by a small margin, the lowest ever under RAJAR's current methodology.
The Beethoven Experience and A Bach Christmas were singled out as two highlights, 'indeed two of the highlights of the BBC's year' and the controversy over the Beethoven symphony downloads was dwelt on at some length. Harold Pinter's collaboration with James Clarke was the only arts/speech programme mentioned and highlights of the Proms were 'Placido Domingo and Ravi Shankar'.
Cost: it has been difficult over the past few years to understand what exactly has happened to individual station's costs since the basis for the calculation has been altered at least twice. In recent Annual Reports the cost for the current year has been given, with the previous year's alongside for comparison. It would appear that Radio 3's cost has gone down for four consecutive years, by an estimated 7.4%, and certainly by more than 5% in the past three years. This is in contrast to the other music stations (analogue and digital) which have seen their budgets rise. Radio 4's is slightly up on the period and only Five Live's has decreased, though its budget fluctuates from year to year more than any of the others.
Since 1997 Radio 3's expenditure has been:
('adjusted' indicates a change in the basis for calculation)
1997-1998 £63 m
1998-1999 £62 m
1999-2000 £64 m
2000-2001 £54 m
2001-2002 £53.0 m (adjusted to £31.0 m)
2002-2003 £30.2 m (adjusted to £32.8 m)
2003-2004 £32.1 m
2004-2005 £32.0 m
2005-2006 £31.1 m
Radio 3 is the third most (and least!) expensive of the five analogue network stations (Radio 1 £17.7 m, Radio 2 £24.1 m, Radio 3 £31.1 m, Radio 4 £71.4 m, Five Live £48.9 m). It is the most expensive of the music stations, though it has no digital counterpart: Radio 1 + 1Xtra cost £23.4 m and Radio 2 + 6 Music cost £28.5 m which is not so far below the cost of Radio 3.
Output hours by genre:
There have been no dramatic changes this year compared with last. For the first time in a while, the comparative figures quoted for the preceding year coincide, reassuringly, with the corresponding figures as published in last year's Annual Report.
News has gone down marginally from 80 hours to 75 hours which may reflect the fact that bulletins have been slightly shortened. Last year, for the first time, the bulletins in Morning on 3 and In Tune were included in the total; until then, mystifyingly, they had been omitted leaving a reported 18/19 hours of news per year (or 3 minutes per day), representing the 1pm bulletin. We drew attention to this anomaly two years running though whether that had anything to do with the subsequent inclusion of all bulletins is debatable.
Drama has been steadily decreasing and was at it lowest ever at 89 hours, compared with 106 hours in 2002-03.
The figure for arts has always been a mess and it has been virtually impossible to work out what is included under this heading. In the Annual Report for 2003-04 there were a reported 169 hours; the following year this rose to 315 hours but the comparative figure for 2003-04 was given as 298 hours instead of 169. One explanation could be that the concert interval talks had previously been omitted and were now included under arts (in reality, some are arts, some are musical).
Children's programming has risen to 99 hours (more than drama), its highest ever. This is a lot more than would be accounted for by Making Tracks and it's not clear what other programmes have been included in this figure.
The full table is (last year's figure in brackets):
Music (music genres are not separated) 8,073 (8,068)
News bulletins 75 (80)
Drama (Drama on 3, The Wire) 89 (93)
Arts (Night Waves, The Verb, Sunday Feature, Twenty minutes, Between the Ears) 309 (315)
Religion (Choral Evensong?, Belief?) 59 (67)
Children's (mainly Making Tracks) 99 (86)
Presentation (announcements, trailing) 56 (51)
Total hours 8,760
It has been hard for the BBC to ignore Radio 3 over the last year: Beethoven, Bach, music downloads have raised the profile inside and outside the BBC. It's no bad thing if the BBC becomes more aware that Radio 3 matters.
The Beethoven Experience and A Bach Christmas were singled out as two highlights, 'indeed two of the highlights of the BBC's year' and the controversy over the Beethoven symphony downloads was dwelt on at some length. Harold Pinter's collaboration with James Clarke was the only arts/speech programme mentioned and highlights of the Proms were 'Placido Domingo and Ravi Shankar'.
Cost: it has been difficult over the past few years to understand what exactly has happened to individual station's costs since the basis for the calculation has been altered at least twice. In recent Annual Reports the cost for the current year has been given, with the previous year's alongside for comparison. It would appear that Radio 3's cost has gone down for four consecutive years, by an estimated 7.4%, and certainly by more than 5% in the past three years. This is in contrast to the other music stations (analogue and digital) which have seen their budgets rise. Radio 4's is slightly up on the period and only Five Live's has decreased, though its budget fluctuates from year to year more than any of the others.
Since 1997 Radio 3's expenditure has been:
('adjusted' indicates a change in the basis for calculation)
1997-1998 £63 m
1998-1999 £62 m
1999-2000 £64 m
2000-2001 £54 m
2001-2002 £53.0 m (adjusted to £31.0 m)
2002-2003 £30.2 m (adjusted to £32.8 m)
2003-2004 £32.1 m
2004-2005 £32.0 m
2005-2006 £31.1 m
Radio 3 is the third most (and least!) expensive of the five analogue network stations (Radio 1 £17.7 m, Radio 2 £24.1 m, Radio 3 £31.1 m, Radio 4 £71.4 m, Five Live £48.9 m). It is the most expensive of the music stations, though it has no digital counterpart: Radio 1 + 1Xtra cost £23.4 m and Radio 2 + 6 Music cost £28.5 m which is not so far below the cost of Radio 3.
Output hours by genre:
There have been no dramatic changes this year compared with last. For the first time in a while, the comparative figures quoted for the preceding year coincide, reassuringly, with the corresponding figures as published in last year's Annual Report.
News has gone down marginally from 80 hours to 75 hours which may reflect the fact that bulletins have been slightly shortened. Last year, for the first time, the bulletins in Morning on 3 and In Tune were included in the total; until then, mystifyingly, they had been omitted leaving a reported 18/19 hours of news per year (or 3 minutes per day), representing the 1pm bulletin. We drew attention to this anomaly two years running though whether that had anything to do with the subsequent inclusion of all bulletins is debatable.
Drama has been steadily decreasing and was at it lowest ever at 89 hours, compared with 106 hours in 2002-03.
The figure for arts has always been a mess and it has been virtually impossible to work out what is included under this heading. In the Annual Report for 2003-04 there were a reported 169 hours; the following year this rose to 315 hours but the comparative figure for 2003-04 was given as 298 hours instead of 169. One explanation could be that the concert interval talks had previously been omitted and were now included under arts (in reality, some are arts, some are musical).
Children's programming has risen to 99 hours (more than drama), its highest ever. This is a lot more than would be accounted for by Making Tracks and it's not clear what other programmes have been included in this figure.
The full table is (last year's figure in brackets):
Music (music genres are not separated) 8,073 (8,068)
News bulletins 75 (80)
Drama (Drama on 3, The Wire) 89 (93)
Arts (Night Waves, The Verb, Sunday Feature, Twenty minutes, Between the Ears) 309 (315)
Religion (Choral Evensong?, Belief?) 59 (67)
Children's (mainly Making Tracks) 99 (86)
Presentation (announcements, trailing) 56 (51)
Total hours 8,760
It has been hard for the BBC to ignore Radio 3 over the last year: Beethoven, Bach, music downloads have raised the profile inside and outside the BBC. It's no bad thing if the BBC becomes more aware that Radio 3 matters.
Controller's Note, Sep. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
THIRD PROGRAMME ANNIVERSARY
September is an important month for us on Radio 3 – it's is the 60th anniversary of the Third Programme, which started broadcasting on September 29th, 1946. The Third Programme formed the model for many other stations based around music and the arts, including both our own Radio 3 and similar stations across the world. We're marking this long history but also looking towards the future: on the evening itself, Friday 29th, we have an evening dedicated to the anniversary. There's a special In Tune, presented by Sean Rafferty, and containing music heard on the opening night in 1946. We also have a BBC Symphony Orchestra concert, featuring the world premiere of a Radio 3 commission by Jonathan Dove, and performed by the counter tenor David Daniels – this recalls the memorable performance by Alfred Deller on the opening night. We also look at Radio 3 as a major commissioner of new music and survey the changing cultural landscape over the past sixty years. On the following day, we have a Between the Ears which captures the key moments in cultural broadcasting since 1946, in Three and the Third. Around the anniversary weekend, we will have short commentaries from performers, cultural figures and listeners, telling us what their landmarks have been over the past sixty years.
LISTEN UP!
This unique celebration of orchestral music-making starts at the anniversary and runs throughout October. It is a reminder of the continuing vitality of the UK 's musical and cultural life brought to you by the station – more than 30 British orchestras are represented in our broadcast every evening throughout the month and over 20 living British composers are featured. This is the second Listen Up! Festival and will also include a celebration of non-professional orchestral life which is also so important to our musical health. There is too much to mention in this note so I will tell you more next month.
Go to the Listen Up! website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/
HUNGARY 1956
Another major anniversary is that of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956. We are devoting the evening of September 28th to looking back at that event and its impact. Kirsty Lang, who was BBC World correspondent in Budapest, will also examine the effect of Hungarian immigration; what makes Hungarians distinctive thinkers; and how the uprising was seen by the rest of the world. There's also an interesting story about the Soviet and Hungarian water-polo teams meeting in a highly symbolic 'battle' in the Melbourne Olympics later in the year…
THE PROMS
As I write, the Proms are still continuing towards the inevitable climax of the Last Night! On the way we have a number of exceptional events, including a pair of Mozart celebrations in his anniversary year. Late in the evening of Monday 4th we can hear the Camerata Salzburg perform music by Mozart and Haydn with the violinist Leonidas Kavakos. They are performing the first of Mozart symphonies, dating from 1764, and written for London at the age of eight! And there's much more mature Mozart later in the week, on Friday, the UK premiere of Robert Levin's completion of the C minor Mass. I am looking forward to this revitalised version of a familiar work, as Sir Charles Mackerras conducts the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. And on September 9th for the Last Night, the final party itself under the direction of Mark Elder, we have a Russian theme with a Shostakovich overture, and the Prokofiev second violin concerto, played by Viktoria Mullova.
For more information go to the Proms website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/
LEEDS AND EDINBURGH
The music of course carries on after the Last Night! We quickly turn ourselves around to present our coverage of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Leeds International Piano Competition. From Edinburgh , you can hear a cycle by different orchestras of the Beethoven and Bruckner symphonies side by side – it promises to be a fascinating juxtaposition of these two master symphonists. That starts on Monday 11th. And later in the month, Sarah Walker presents three consecutive evenings from Leeds (21st-23rd), including the live concerto finals with Mark Elder and the Hallé Orchestra. As always, we are promised a high standard of music-making from this well established competition. So do join us to hear who will be the new talent of 2006.
For more information go to Radio 3's Edinburgh Festival website @:http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/edinburgh2006/index.shtml
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK
And further afield, don't forget The Venetians as Composer of the Week, starting on the 18th; using a number of important architectural landmarks, this series charts the importance of Venice as a city which has inspired composers through the centuries. In a varied week, we move from the Gabrielis to Wagner, Stravinsky and Britten.
For more information go to the Composer of the Week website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
As always, I trust you will find much to enjoy!
Best wishes
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
Dear All
THIRD PROGRAMME ANNIVERSARY
September is an important month for us on Radio 3 – it's is the 60th anniversary of the Third Programme, which started broadcasting on September 29th, 1946. The Third Programme formed the model for many other stations based around music and the arts, including both our own Radio 3 and similar stations across the world. We're marking this long history but also looking towards the future: on the evening itself, Friday 29th, we have an evening dedicated to the anniversary. There's a special In Tune, presented by Sean Rafferty, and containing music heard on the opening night in 1946. We also have a BBC Symphony Orchestra concert, featuring the world premiere of a Radio 3 commission by Jonathan Dove, and performed by the counter tenor David Daniels – this recalls the memorable performance by Alfred Deller on the opening night. We also look at Radio 3 as a major commissioner of new music and survey the changing cultural landscape over the past sixty years. On the following day, we have a Between the Ears which captures the key moments in cultural broadcasting since 1946, in Three and the Third. Around the anniversary weekend, we will have short commentaries from performers, cultural figures and listeners, telling us what their landmarks have been over the past sixty years.
LISTEN UP!
This unique celebration of orchestral music-making starts at the anniversary and runs throughout October. It is a reminder of the continuing vitality of the UK 's musical and cultural life brought to you by the station – more than 30 British orchestras are represented in our broadcast every evening throughout the month and over 20 living British composers are featured. This is the second Listen Up! Festival and will also include a celebration of non-professional orchestral life which is also so important to our musical health. There is too much to mention in this note so I will tell you more next month.
Go to the Listen Up! website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/
HUNGARY 1956
Another major anniversary is that of the Hungarian Uprising in 1956. We are devoting the evening of September 28th to looking back at that event and its impact. Kirsty Lang, who was BBC World correspondent in Budapest, will also examine the effect of Hungarian immigration; what makes Hungarians distinctive thinkers; and how the uprising was seen by the rest of the world. There's also an interesting story about the Soviet and Hungarian water-polo teams meeting in a highly symbolic 'battle' in the Melbourne Olympics later in the year…
THE PROMS
As I write, the Proms are still continuing towards the inevitable climax of the Last Night! On the way we have a number of exceptional events, including a pair of Mozart celebrations in his anniversary year. Late in the evening of Monday 4th we can hear the Camerata Salzburg perform music by Mozart and Haydn with the violinist Leonidas Kavakos. They are performing the first of Mozart symphonies, dating from 1764, and written for London at the age of eight! And there's much more mature Mozart later in the week, on Friday, the UK premiere of Robert Levin's completion of the C minor Mass. I am looking forward to this revitalised version of a familiar work, as Sir Charles Mackerras conducts the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. And on September 9th for the Last Night, the final party itself under the direction of Mark Elder, we have a Russian theme with a Shostakovich overture, and the Prokofiev second violin concerto, played by Viktoria Mullova.
For more information go to the Proms website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/
LEEDS AND EDINBURGH
The music of course carries on after the Last Night! We quickly turn ourselves around to present our coverage of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Leeds International Piano Competition. From Edinburgh , you can hear a cycle by different orchestras of the Beethoven and Bruckner symphonies side by side – it promises to be a fascinating juxtaposition of these two master symphonists. That starts on Monday 11th. And later in the month, Sarah Walker presents three consecutive evenings from Leeds (21st-23rd), including the live concerto finals with Mark Elder and the Hallé Orchestra. As always, we are promised a high standard of music-making from this well established competition. So do join us to hear who will be the new talent of 2006.
For more information go to Radio 3's Edinburgh Festival website @:http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/edinburgh2006/index.shtml
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK
And further afield, don't forget The Venetians as Composer of the Week, starting on the 18th; using a number of important architectural landmarks, this series charts the importance of Venice as a city which has inspired composers through the centuries. In a varied week, we move from the Gabrielis to Wagner, Stravinsky and Britten.
For more information go to the Composer of the Week website @: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
As always, I trust you will find much to enjoy!
Best wishes
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
Controller's Note, Aug. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
BBC PROMS
The Proms is now well under way but we are not even half way through the season yet! There have been welcomes and farewells, as we have greeted Jirí Belohlávek as the incoming chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and given our best wishes to Barry Wordsworth and Richard Hickox on leaving their positions at the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC National Orchestra of Wales. We hope you have enjoyed the music-making so far. For me, some of the highlights have been the sublime performance of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto by Julian Bliss at the Queen's 80th birthday Prom, and the thrilling music of Gabrieli and other Venetians, directed by John Eliot Gardiner with the musicians scattered around the arena. It's remarkable that such music can have so powerful an effect in a building as unlike St Mark's Venice as it is possible to imagine – the only common factor being the humidity at this time of year! It was also fun to have the choruses of rabblers at last Saturday's Voices Prom day, using the hall to great effect.
I'm particularly excited about tomorrow's concert (August 2nd – Prom 26) when we have the rare experience of an Elgar first performance. It's his Pomp and Circumstance March No. 6; this new work has been constructed by Anthony Payne from the composer's sketches – including one page on which Elgar himself has written 'jolly good'. As a reminder of the range of the Proms there is the prospect of another thrilling premiere next week on August 10th with Ilan Volkov directing the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in a BBC commission James Dillon's piano concerto, Andromeda, with Noriko Kawai as the soloist. I have always regarded Dillon as one of the most powerful compositional voices in British music and this score looks like a fascinating addition to the piano and orchestra repertoire.
It's always a pleasure that the Proms season provides the opportunity to hear some of the leading American orchestras in live concerts. Many of them are rarely heard on the airwaves even in the US, so we're delighted to present them to you live. On August 24th we welcome the Minnesota Orchestra with its Chief Conductor, Osmo Vänskä. Apart from their performance of Mahler's Fifth Symphony, it will be good to hear music from Osvaldo Golijov, whose music has made such a strong impact on audiences recently. We also welcome a very popular Proms regular, Sir Andrew Davis, with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on August 30th; he is joined by Lang Lang to perform Chopin's First Piano Concerto. And bringing us a fresh take on some standard repertoire, we welcome the Philadelphia Orchestra with Christoph Eschenbach for the fifth symphonies of both Beethoven and Tchaikovsky on September 4th. You might also like to find some new ways of interacting with the Proms as Radio 3 listeners. You can have your own reviews of concerts posted on the BBC website by accessing http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/reviews/.
And if you want to keep in touch throughout the rest of the season, you can sign up for the mailing list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/mailinglist/, or use your mobile phone to receive daily updates by texting PROMS CLUB to 83111 (normal text rates apply). And don't forget that the Proms, like all Radio 3 output, are available for a week after broadcast through the BBC Radio Player.
STRAVINSKY
We have a Russian flavour this week, as the Composer of the Week at midday is Stravinsky, and our Lunchtime Concerts from the City of London Festival are postcards from St Petersburg with the Brodsky Quartet, the Gould Piano Trio, Frederick Kempf and Joan Rodgers. Next week, we spend our lunchtimes in Ireland at the West Cork Chamber Festival, and this is complemented by a rare chance to immerse ourselves in the music of a Vaughan Williams' pupil, the Welsh composer Grace Williams, the centenary of whose birth falls this year. She had a very individual voice, and her highly melodic style was criticised for being out of step with the trends of the day. The week brings her music alive as Donald Macleod visits South Wales to meet some of the people who knew her. We also present some new recordings of Williams' work specially recorded for Radio 3 – the Violin Concerto, choral pieces from the BBC Singers, and some songs performed by Jeremy Huw Williams. From August 15th, we start our annual visits to the Edinburgh International Festival for three weeks of concerts from the Queen's Hall.
TALKS & PODCASTS
I find that one of the stimulating things about our summer broadcasting is the chance to hear features on a wide selection of subjects. Immediately after the evening Proms relays you can hear a range of documentaries, reflecting something of the serendipity of Radio 3. We can visit Timbuktu; find out about the Cold War in Mozambique; visit a composer in Elizabethan England; rediscover Brecht; or discover the role of Islamic philosophers in preserving classical sources – that's just a small selection of the topics covered. You can also sample our Arts Podcast (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/podcasts.shtml), called Arts Talk; you don't need to possess an MP3 Player, since you can simply listen to this weekly round-up on your computer.
ANDY KERSHAW
In the same spirit of travel to unusual places, one of our most intrepid Radio 3 voyagers, Andy Kershaw, presents an on-location programme from Algeria with sessions recorded in Algiers, Oran, the Kabilian Mountains, and deep in the heart of the Sahara Desert. As Andy says, 'I'd wanted to visit Algeria from the moment I first heard Rai music in 1986, and it never stands still. Algerian music is always changing, innovating, picking up and adapting new tricks and ideas." Do listen out on Sunday August 6th for this unique programme from this extraordinary country.
For those of you who are taking a break at this time of the year, I hope you are having or will have an enjoyable time.
Roger Wright
Go to the Radio 3 website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
BBC Radio 3|Radio 3 Schedule|BBC Radio Player|Message Boards
Dear All
BBC PROMS
The Proms is now well under way but we are not even half way through the season yet! There have been welcomes and farewells, as we have greeted Jirí Belohlávek as the incoming chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and given our best wishes to Barry Wordsworth and Richard Hickox on leaving their positions at the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC National Orchestra of Wales. We hope you have enjoyed the music-making so far. For me, some of the highlights have been the sublime performance of the Mozart Clarinet Concerto by Julian Bliss at the Queen's 80th birthday Prom, and the thrilling music of Gabrieli and other Venetians, directed by John Eliot Gardiner with the musicians scattered around the arena. It's remarkable that such music can have so powerful an effect in a building as unlike St Mark's Venice as it is possible to imagine – the only common factor being the humidity at this time of year! It was also fun to have the choruses of rabblers at last Saturday's Voices Prom day, using the hall to great effect.
I'm particularly excited about tomorrow's concert (August 2nd – Prom 26) when we have the rare experience of an Elgar first performance. It's his Pomp and Circumstance March No. 6; this new work has been constructed by Anthony Payne from the composer's sketches – including one page on which Elgar himself has written 'jolly good'. As a reminder of the range of the Proms there is the prospect of another thrilling premiere next week on August 10th with Ilan Volkov directing the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in a BBC commission James Dillon's piano concerto, Andromeda, with Noriko Kawai as the soloist. I have always regarded Dillon as one of the most powerful compositional voices in British music and this score looks like a fascinating addition to the piano and orchestra repertoire.
It's always a pleasure that the Proms season provides the opportunity to hear some of the leading American orchestras in live concerts. Many of them are rarely heard on the airwaves even in the US, so we're delighted to present them to you live. On August 24th we welcome the Minnesota Orchestra with its Chief Conductor, Osmo Vänskä. Apart from their performance of Mahler's Fifth Symphony, it will be good to hear music from Osvaldo Golijov, whose music has made such a strong impact on audiences recently. We also welcome a very popular Proms regular, Sir Andrew Davis, with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra on August 30th; he is joined by Lang Lang to perform Chopin's First Piano Concerto. And bringing us a fresh take on some standard repertoire, we welcome the Philadelphia Orchestra with Christoph Eschenbach for the fifth symphonies of both Beethoven and Tchaikovsky on September 4th. You might also like to find some new ways of interacting with the Proms as Radio 3 listeners. You can have your own reviews of concerts posted on the BBC website by accessing http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/reviews/.
And if you want to keep in touch throughout the rest of the season, you can sign up for the mailing list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/mailinglist/, or use your mobile phone to receive daily updates by texting PROMS CLUB to 83111 (normal text rates apply). And don't forget that the Proms, like all Radio 3 output, are available for a week after broadcast through the BBC Radio Player.
STRAVINSKY
We have a Russian flavour this week, as the Composer of the Week at midday is Stravinsky, and our Lunchtime Concerts from the City of London Festival are postcards from St Petersburg with the Brodsky Quartet, the Gould Piano Trio, Frederick Kempf and Joan Rodgers. Next week, we spend our lunchtimes in Ireland at the West Cork Chamber Festival, and this is complemented by a rare chance to immerse ourselves in the music of a Vaughan Williams' pupil, the Welsh composer Grace Williams, the centenary of whose birth falls this year. She had a very individual voice, and her highly melodic style was criticised for being out of step with the trends of the day. The week brings her music alive as Donald Macleod visits South Wales to meet some of the people who knew her. We also present some new recordings of Williams' work specially recorded for Radio 3 – the Violin Concerto, choral pieces from the BBC Singers, and some songs performed by Jeremy Huw Williams. From August 15th, we start our annual visits to the Edinburgh International Festival for three weeks of concerts from the Queen's Hall.
TALKS & PODCASTS
I find that one of the stimulating things about our summer broadcasting is the chance to hear features on a wide selection of subjects. Immediately after the evening Proms relays you can hear a range of documentaries, reflecting something of the serendipity of Radio 3. We can visit Timbuktu; find out about the Cold War in Mozambique; visit a composer in Elizabethan England; rediscover Brecht; or discover the role of Islamic philosophers in preserving classical sources – that's just a small selection of the topics covered. You can also sample our Arts Podcast (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/podcasts.shtml), called Arts Talk; you don't need to possess an MP3 Player, since you can simply listen to this weekly round-up on your computer.
ANDY KERSHAW
In the same spirit of travel to unusual places, one of our most intrepid Radio 3 voyagers, Andy Kershaw, presents an on-location programme from Algeria with sessions recorded in Algiers, Oran, the Kabilian Mountains, and deep in the heart of the Sahara Desert. As Andy says, 'I'd wanted to visit Algeria from the moment I first heard Rai music in 1986, and it never stands still. Algerian music is always changing, innovating, picking up and adapting new tricks and ideas." Do listen out on Sunday August 6th for this unique programme from this extraordinary country.
For those of you who are taking a break at this time of the year, I hope you are having or will have an enjoyable time.
Roger Wright
Go to the Radio 3 website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
BBC Radio 3|Radio 3 Schedule|BBC Radio Player|Message Boards
21/7/06 Poor DAB
A fortnight ago listeners accessing Radio 3 via DAB radios noticed a clear degradation in the sound quality of the music. 'Some instruments sounded distorted', 'absolutely dire', 'the DAB sounded dreadful', 'it's rubbish', 'miserable situation', 'can't believe how bad the sound is on DAB', 'at worst it is distortion of a kind not experienced for years and unlistenable unless through a table radio', 'most music now sounds incredibly nasty', 'I was listening this evening on DAB. It sounded terrible', 'the quality wasn't great at 192kbps. Now it's just impossible to listen to', and so on. This was in the week before the Proms were due to begin.
Listeners also noticed that the bit rate had been reduced from the normal 192kbps to 160kbps, something which happened before, but only when there was a major sporting event being covered on Radio Five Live Sports Extra. This time, instead of returning to 192kbps after a few hours, the bit rate remained at 160kbps with the resulting very poor sound quality. A check on Five Live Sports Extra revealed that, although it was not covering any sporting event, it was relaying a continuous trail for Five Live.
A check on recording data showed that the reduction had apparently taken place on the morning of Thursday 6 July. Two weeks later the situation remains the same. Many listeners have written in and emailed with complaints and received a standard reply which gave no indication as to whether the reduction was permanent or not. It pointed out that Radio 3 still had the highest bit rate of any other BBC station (true, just), and 'significantly higher' than any commercial stations (untrue – Classic FM also transmits at 160kbps).
Compensating improvements had been made, we were told, so that the reduction was 'almost indistinguishable' from the higher bit rate (this was monumentally untrue).
It 'explained' that the BBC held the rights to broadcast many big sporting events on Radio Five Live Sports Extra and the preferences of different audiences had to be balanced. One point it failed to acknowledge was that Five Live Sports Extra was not covering any sporting events at the time: it was running a non-stop, repeating station trail for Five Live, and that was what was apparently taking up the bit rate normally allocated to Radio 3 – a bit rate which made all the difference between acceptable sound quality and distortion.
FoR3 has sent in complaints to various BBC managers. The only reply so far received – from the Controller of Radio 3 – says that he has no responsibility for this but has forwarded our letter. We await the standard reply telling us what we already know, including what we know to be untrue.
There appears to be no conception at the BBC (except, certainly, with the Controller of Radio 3) of the kind of high quality audio needed for a full appreciation of classical music. Broadcasts on DAB car radios and kitchen portables, free of 'hiss and crackle' are not in any way comparable to the sound quality needed for music broadcasts on Radio 3.
Facts:
Listeners also noticed that the bit rate had been reduced from the normal 192kbps to 160kbps, something which happened before, but only when there was a major sporting event being covered on Radio Five Live Sports Extra. This time, instead of returning to 192kbps after a few hours, the bit rate remained at 160kbps with the resulting very poor sound quality. A check on Five Live Sports Extra revealed that, although it was not covering any sporting event, it was relaying a continuous trail for Five Live.
A check on recording data showed that the reduction had apparently taken place on the morning of Thursday 6 July. Two weeks later the situation remains the same. Many listeners have written in and emailed with complaints and received a standard reply which gave no indication as to whether the reduction was permanent or not. It pointed out that Radio 3 still had the highest bit rate of any other BBC station (true, just), and 'significantly higher' than any commercial stations (untrue – Classic FM also transmits at 160kbps).
Compensating improvements had been made, we were told, so that the reduction was 'almost indistinguishable' from the higher bit rate (this was monumentally untrue).
It 'explained' that the BBC held the rights to broadcast many big sporting events on Radio Five Live Sports Extra and the preferences of different audiences had to be balanced. One point it failed to acknowledge was that Five Live Sports Extra was not covering any sporting events at the time: it was running a non-stop, repeating station trail for Five Live, and that was what was apparently taking up the bit rate normally allocated to Radio 3 – a bit rate which made all the difference between acceptable sound quality and distortion.
FoR3 has sent in complaints to various BBC managers. The only reply so far received – from the Controller of Radio 3 – says that he has no responsibility for this but has forwarded our letter. We await the standard reply telling us what we already know, including what we know to be untrue.
There appears to be no conception at the BBC (except, certainly, with the Controller of Radio 3) of the kind of high quality audio needed for a full appreciation of classical music. Broadcasts on DAB car radios and kitchen portables, free of 'hiss and crackle' are not in any way comparable to the sound quality needed for music broadcasts on Radio 3.
Facts:
- The bit rate required for the best sound quality is 256kbps (and some foreign stations do transmit at that level).
- A BBC Research and Development White Paper, written in 1994 and published in 2003, reads: "A value of 256 kbit/s has been judged to provide a high quality stereo broadcast signal. However, a small reduction, to 224 kbit/s is often adequate, and in some cases it may be possible to accept a further reduction to 192 kbit/s, especially if redundancy in the stereo signal is exploited by a process of `joint stereo' encoding (i.e. some sounds appearing at the centre of the stereo image need not be sent twice). At 192 kbit/s, it is relatively easy to hear imperfections in critical audio material."
This confirms what many listeners felt – that Radio 3's normal bit rate of 192kbps was considered the minimum necessary for high quality stereo reproduction. - There was no announcement of any kind about the reduction in the bit rate, which suggests at least a hope, if not an expectation, that few people would notice; and no information as to whether it is to be permanent has yet been given, creating the suspicion that it will be permanent but the BBC is not willing to admit this.
- The explanation given to those who complained was inaccurate and inadequate, with no mention made of the apparent reason for the bit rate reduction – the Five Live continuous trail. To sacrifice audio quality of Radio 3 in order to relay a continuous, looped station trail seems to call for some sort of justification which is not as yet forthcoming.
- DAB at 160kbps degrades the quality of Radio 3 so much that an FM tuner – technology which is now forty years old – sounds better.
- The BBC's website still says: "…a good digital radio hi–fi set-up produces stunning sound." Few Radio 3 listeners with such equipment would agree with this now.
- Many people have invested in high quality DAB equipment, with a roof aerial, to get the best possible sound. At 160kbps there is no way they will get acceptable sound quality. They have been conned.
Controller's Note, Jul. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
TOSCA
We begin the month with high drama: Puccini's Tosca from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, its first new production of this opera for 40 years. Unsurprisingly, it seems to be a complete sell-out in the theatre, so Radio 3 provides you with a unique chance to experience the production.
Conductor Antonio Pappano will be leading a cast of outstanding operatic talent, as Angela Gheorghiu plays the heroine Tosca; Marcelo Alvarez appears in the role of her lover, Cavaradossi, and baritone Bryn Terfel is Baron Scarpia, the Chief of Police.
It's been said that the tragic part of Tosca is made for Gheorghiu, but this will be the first time she has appeared on the stage in this role. Definitely an occasion not to miss live on the evening of July 1st!
DELIUS IN BRADFORD
Throughout 2006 we have had a continuing theme of British music, and July starts with a special opportunity to appreciate the music of Delius from his home city of Bradford. In six concerts from the St George's Hall, starting on July 3rd, we will be broadcasting a wide range of his music. Tasmin Little has been championing his works in recent years, and she is directing this week-long festival. The music of Delius will be explored in the context of his influences and contemporaries. Delius brings a continental voice to British music, but his music is complemented by our Vaughan Williams symphony cycle which is running throughout Afternoon Performance – also starting on Monday 3rd with his choral Sea Symphony.
ARTISTS' CRAWLS
I have always been amused by the story of Kemp's Jigg, the story of the Elizabethan actor who danced his way from London to Norwich. It's good to see that we are equally energetic as our forebears: on Boxing Day 2005, performance artist Mark McGowan started his epic crawl from Southwark to Canterbury, but you can hear it on Saturday July 1st at 10.40pm. He recorded the adventures of his pilgrimage on mini-disc, and a radio producer met him along the way to monitor his progress. His audio diary entries, in which he proclaims his artistic (and athletic) integrity are juxtaposed with events from the increasingly farcical journey. Unlike Kemp, he probably will not receive an annual payment from the mayor of his destination! Of course, this programme is best appreciated on a walkman while crawling around your locality, but it might also prove pleasant in an armchair!
LLANGOLLEN EISTEDDFOD
One of the best known and longest-running music festivals is held each year in Llangollen. It has created a unique meeting place for choirs from around the world, and has even been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for the way in which is draws cultures and people together. Aled Jones visits the Eisteddfod for a live broadcast on the evening of Sunday July 9th, as our programme The Choir features visiting choirs from all parts of the globe. The special guest is Terry Waite who has done much to promote the Eisteddfod's role in bringing cultures together.
WOMAD
We find ourselves in the open-air once more at WOMAD, with a great line-up of artists, including the Malian superstar Salif Keita and the Latin sound of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra. Our coverage starts on the 28th and accompanying us on our visit will be Lucy Duran, Andy Kershaw, Andrew McGregor and Fiona Talkington. For the first time Radio 3 has its own broadcast stage, hosted by Fiona Talkington and Serena Dankwa; we're promoting intimate acoustic performances by some of WOMAD's top names, plus some UK musicians who are making their WOMAD and Radio 3 debuts.
BBC PROMS
And lastly, but certainly not least, the Proms! it is always difficult to know which events to mention. Clearly, the First Night on July 14th is a big moment for all of us, since it marks the arrival of Jirí Belohlávek as the BBC SO's new Chief Conductor. Appropriately enough, on this occasion, we celebrate Mozart in his anniversary year and we will also hear the music of Dvorák. The Te Deum in the programme was the work with which Dvorák launched his own new position as director of New York's National Conservatory of Music over 100 years ago.
On Tuesday 18th Glyndebourne comes to the Proms with Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte, directed by Ivan Fischer. Friday July 21st will sadly now be a memorial to the recently departed Ligeti, as the Northern Sinfonia perform his Ramifications. The 22nd and 23rd provide two opportunities for children to enjoy the Proms experience, as the BBC Philharmonic performs in the Blue Peter Proms. And late on the evening of the Wednesday 26th, we travel to the golden age of Venice in the company of John Eliot Gardiner for Gabrieli and Monteverdi.
For something more extensive than my brief notes, join us on Radio 3 on the evening of Thursday July 13th, when we are presenting a special Proms Preview, with music and opinion about the whole season.
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
We hope you find much to enjoy on Radio 3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
TOSCA
We begin the month with high drama: Puccini's Tosca from the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, its first new production of this opera for 40 years. Unsurprisingly, it seems to be a complete sell-out in the theatre, so Radio 3 provides you with a unique chance to experience the production.
Conductor Antonio Pappano will be leading a cast of outstanding operatic talent, as Angela Gheorghiu plays the heroine Tosca; Marcelo Alvarez appears in the role of her lover, Cavaradossi, and baritone Bryn Terfel is Baron Scarpia, the Chief of Police.
It's been said that the tragic part of Tosca is made for Gheorghiu, but this will be the first time she has appeared on the stage in this role. Definitely an occasion not to miss live on the evening of July 1st!
DELIUS IN BRADFORD
Throughout 2006 we have had a continuing theme of British music, and July starts with a special opportunity to appreciate the music of Delius from his home city of Bradford. In six concerts from the St George's Hall, starting on July 3rd, we will be broadcasting a wide range of his music. Tasmin Little has been championing his works in recent years, and she is directing this week-long festival. The music of Delius will be explored in the context of his influences and contemporaries. Delius brings a continental voice to British music, but his music is complemented by our Vaughan Williams symphony cycle which is running throughout Afternoon Performance – also starting on Monday 3rd with his choral Sea Symphony.
ARTISTS' CRAWLS
I have always been amused by the story of Kemp's Jigg, the story of the Elizabethan actor who danced his way from London to Norwich. It's good to see that we are equally energetic as our forebears: on Boxing Day 2005, performance artist Mark McGowan started his epic crawl from Southwark to Canterbury, but you can hear it on Saturday July 1st at 10.40pm. He recorded the adventures of his pilgrimage on mini-disc, and a radio producer met him along the way to monitor his progress. His audio diary entries, in which he proclaims his artistic (and athletic) integrity are juxtaposed with events from the increasingly farcical journey. Unlike Kemp, he probably will not receive an annual payment from the mayor of his destination! Of course, this programme is best appreciated on a walkman while crawling around your locality, but it might also prove pleasant in an armchair!
LLANGOLLEN EISTEDDFOD
One of the best known and longest-running music festivals is held each year in Llangollen. It has created a unique meeting place for choirs from around the world, and has even been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for the way in which is draws cultures and people together. Aled Jones visits the Eisteddfod for a live broadcast on the evening of Sunday July 9th, as our programme The Choir features visiting choirs from all parts of the globe. The special guest is Terry Waite who has done much to promote the Eisteddfod's role in bringing cultures together.
WOMAD
We find ourselves in the open-air once more at WOMAD, with a great line-up of artists, including the Malian superstar Salif Keita and the Latin sound of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra. Our coverage starts on the 28th and accompanying us on our visit will be Lucy Duran, Andy Kershaw, Andrew McGregor and Fiona Talkington. For the first time Radio 3 has its own broadcast stage, hosted by Fiona Talkington and Serena Dankwa; we're promoting intimate acoustic performances by some of WOMAD's top names, plus some UK musicians who are making their WOMAD and Radio 3 debuts.
BBC PROMS
And lastly, but certainly not least, the Proms! it is always difficult to know which events to mention. Clearly, the First Night on July 14th is a big moment for all of us, since it marks the arrival of Jirí Belohlávek as the BBC SO's new Chief Conductor. Appropriately enough, on this occasion, we celebrate Mozart in his anniversary year and we will also hear the music of Dvorák. The Te Deum in the programme was the work with which Dvorák launched his own new position as director of New York's National Conservatory of Music over 100 years ago.
On Tuesday 18th Glyndebourne comes to the Proms with Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte, directed by Ivan Fischer. Friday July 21st will sadly now be a memorial to the recently departed Ligeti, as the Northern Sinfonia perform his Ramifications. The 22nd and 23rd provide two opportunities for children to enjoy the Proms experience, as the BBC Philharmonic performs in the Blue Peter Proms. And late on the evening of the Wednesday 26th, we travel to the golden age of Venice in the company of John Eliot Gardiner for Gabrieli and Monteverdi.
For something more extensive than my brief notes, join us on Radio 3 on the evening of Thursday July 13th, when we are presenting a special Proms Preview, with music and opinion about the whole season.
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
We hope you find much to enjoy on Radio 3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
31/5/06 RAJAR: The Unanswered Question
Last quarter's RAJAR listening figures (January – March 2006) completed the set for the year 2005 – 2006 which will be the subject of the next Annual Report, due out in the next few weeks. The quarter itself showed something of a recovery, with reach averaging 2.099 million per week (4.251% of the listening population), and the Radio 3 listeners' average weekly listening at almost 6.7 hours.
The year has been unpredictable, with two poor quarters (the first quarter hit the lowest reach ever at 1.913 million) alternating with two better ones. Taking the year as a whole, reach averaged 2.013 million (4.077%), down on the previous year (2.045 million and 4.185%); and that year was itself down on the year before (2.174 million and 4.493%); so. after 'peaking' in March 2004, there has been a downward trend over the past two years.
Radio 3's total listening hours for last quarter were good, seemingly in line with the overall rising trend in radio listening. People in the UK now listen to radio, on average, for 23.8 hours per week, almost two hours longer than in March 1999 (in spite of the wider facilities for On Demand listening which does not appear in the RAJAR figures). However, the year as a whole showed no clear upward trend: this was the sole quarter during the year when total Radio 3 listening exceeded a weekly average of 13 million hours.
The most striking fact is that since RAJAR's current methodology was introduced in January 1999, only one year, 2000 – 2001, has had a lower weekly average reach than the one just ended; and the percentage of the population listening to Radio 3 is at its lowest. As usual, we pose the question: if such programmes as World Routes, Late Junction, Andy Kershaw etc. having been drawing new listeners to Radio 3, why have the listening figures not gone up? We say that changes in the scheduling and presentation have caused many listeners to desert Radio 3 for good. The Controller has never addressed this fact though we shall continue to press him on the point.
The year has been unpredictable, with two poor quarters (the first quarter hit the lowest reach ever at 1.913 million) alternating with two better ones. Taking the year as a whole, reach averaged 2.013 million (4.077%), down on the previous year (2.045 million and 4.185%); and that year was itself down on the year before (2.174 million and 4.493%); so. after 'peaking' in March 2004, there has been a downward trend over the past two years.
Radio 3's total listening hours for last quarter were good, seemingly in line with the overall rising trend in radio listening. People in the UK now listen to radio, on average, for 23.8 hours per week, almost two hours longer than in March 1999 (in spite of the wider facilities for On Demand listening which does not appear in the RAJAR figures). However, the year as a whole showed no clear upward trend: this was the sole quarter during the year when total Radio 3 listening exceeded a weekly average of 13 million hours.
The most striking fact is that since RAJAR's current methodology was introduced in January 1999, only one year, 2000 – 2001, has had a lower weekly average reach than the one just ended; and the percentage of the population listening to Radio 3 is at its lowest. As usual, we pose the question: if such programmes as World Routes, Late Junction, Andy Kershaw etc. having been drawing new listeners to Radio 3, why have the listening figures not gone up? We say that changes in the scheduling and presentation have caused many listeners to desert Radio 3 for good. The Controller has never addressed this fact though we shall continue to press him on the point.
Controller's Note, Jun. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
I hope you have had a relaxing and enjoyable bank holiday weekend.
TCHAIKOVSKY
Here on Radio 3, we have just have begun our cycle of Tchaikovsky symphonies with Gianandrea Noseda, who is conducting the BBC Philharmonic and the Kirov Orchestra. If you missed the first instalment on Monday night, with the Kirov Orchestra and the 3rd and 4th symphonies, you will have the chance to listen again on the BBC Radio Player. Noseda continues with the remainder of the symphonies tonight and on Friday.
FRENCH OPERA
Listen out for an unusual operatic experience on the evening of June 3rd, when we have a rare performance of the only opera by the French Baroque composer Jean-Marie Leclair. He was a violinist and dancer who composed his only opera, Scylla and Glaucus, at the age of 50. The pastoral tale of unrequited love was recorded in the most appropriate venue, the opulent Royal Theatre in the Palace of Versailles, where the French monarchs enjoyed stylish entertainment. This performance features Les Talens Lyriques under their director Christophe Rousset.
SCHUMANN AND HEINE
On Wednesday and Thursday June 7th and 8th, we have another of our special mini-seasons. On this occasion it is two evenings celebrating the poetry of Heinrich Heine, so frequently set to music by Robert Schumann – both died 150 years ago this year. Song forms the central point of the evenings, as we hear classic recordings of the songs (featuring – among others – Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Fritz Wunderlich), and hear the singers give their personal views of performing the songs. The first evening has been recorded in Germany, with Iain Burnside visiting places associated with the artists, including Dusseldorf, Cologne, Bonn and the Lorelei rock. And in between, we have five short episodes of a newly commissioned drama by Hattie Naylor, which takes as its starting point the only meeting between Schumann and Heine in Munich in 1828.
BETWEEN THE EARS
On Saturday 3rd June in our experimental radio slot, Sir Paul McCartney and Martin Scorsese explore the world of Albert Maysles who created a revolution in documentary film-making in the US in the '60s. He developed 'direct cinema' in films such as What's Happening! The Beatles in the USA from 1964. An interview with Albert Maysles was recorded in the Dakota Building where John Lennon was killed, and McCartney and Scorsese provide their reminiscences.
And on a rather different note… Listeners to Radio 3 on Wednesday afternoons are familiar with the words of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer from our regular Choral Evensong. Between the Ears on Saturday 24th explores some of the less frequented byways of this book which defined both the English language and worship for generations. In 1662 sickness, infant mortality and the prospect of sudden death were ever-present. These Occasional Offices marked the human path from the 'wretchedness of this world into the everlasting joy of the Kingdom of Heaven' and have been given a fascinating examination in this feature…
BREAKFAST WITH MUGABE
From the Royal Shakespeare Company we bring you the production of this play, first performed late last year. The play is set in 2001. President Mugabe and his wife are holed up in the State House in Harare. Mugabe believes he is being stalked by an ngozi or bitter spirit – the murderous ghost of a long-dead comrade – and turns to a white psychiatrist for help. Fraser Grace's new play presents the relationship between the black president and his white psychiatrist. You can hear this on the evening of Sunday 4th . It is preceded by a special edition of The Choir surveying the choral music scene in South Africa – a pair of linked but contrasting programmes!
BEETHOVEN
And to mark the end of the month, we have an important Beethoven marathon – a rather short one in comparison with our complete Beethoven this time last year! However, it will be a great experience to follow Paul Lewis' journey through the thirty-two piano sonatas, beginning in these four concerts. This young British pianist created a lot of interest recently with his Schubert cycle, and his Beethoven has attracted a huge and positive response and I feel sure they will be performanes to treasure. Our broadcasts start on June 27th .
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
I hope you will find much to enjoy!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
I hope you have had a relaxing and enjoyable bank holiday weekend.
TCHAIKOVSKY
Here on Radio 3, we have just have begun our cycle of Tchaikovsky symphonies with Gianandrea Noseda, who is conducting the BBC Philharmonic and the Kirov Orchestra. If you missed the first instalment on Monday night, with the Kirov Orchestra and the 3rd and 4th symphonies, you will have the chance to listen again on the BBC Radio Player. Noseda continues with the remainder of the symphonies tonight and on Friday.
FRENCH OPERA
Listen out for an unusual operatic experience on the evening of June 3rd, when we have a rare performance of the only opera by the French Baroque composer Jean-Marie Leclair. He was a violinist and dancer who composed his only opera, Scylla and Glaucus, at the age of 50. The pastoral tale of unrequited love was recorded in the most appropriate venue, the opulent Royal Theatre in the Palace of Versailles, where the French monarchs enjoyed stylish entertainment. This performance features Les Talens Lyriques under their director Christophe Rousset.
SCHUMANN AND HEINE
On Wednesday and Thursday June 7th and 8th, we have another of our special mini-seasons. On this occasion it is two evenings celebrating the poetry of Heinrich Heine, so frequently set to music by Robert Schumann – both died 150 years ago this year. Song forms the central point of the evenings, as we hear classic recordings of the songs (featuring – among others – Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau and Fritz Wunderlich), and hear the singers give their personal views of performing the songs. The first evening has been recorded in Germany, with Iain Burnside visiting places associated with the artists, including Dusseldorf, Cologne, Bonn and the Lorelei rock. And in between, we have five short episodes of a newly commissioned drama by Hattie Naylor, which takes as its starting point the only meeting between Schumann and Heine in Munich in 1828.
BETWEEN THE EARS
On Saturday 3rd June in our experimental radio slot, Sir Paul McCartney and Martin Scorsese explore the world of Albert Maysles who created a revolution in documentary film-making in the US in the '60s. He developed 'direct cinema' in films such as What's Happening! The Beatles in the USA from 1964. An interview with Albert Maysles was recorded in the Dakota Building where John Lennon was killed, and McCartney and Scorsese provide their reminiscences.
And on a rather different note… Listeners to Radio 3 on Wednesday afternoons are familiar with the words of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer from our regular Choral Evensong. Between the Ears on Saturday 24th explores some of the less frequented byways of this book which defined both the English language and worship for generations. In 1662 sickness, infant mortality and the prospect of sudden death were ever-present. These Occasional Offices marked the human path from the 'wretchedness of this world into the everlasting joy of the Kingdom of Heaven' and have been given a fascinating examination in this feature…
BREAKFAST WITH MUGABE
From the Royal Shakespeare Company we bring you the production of this play, first performed late last year. The play is set in 2001. President Mugabe and his wife are holed up in the State House in Harare. Mugabe believes he is being stalked by an ngozi or bitter spirit – the murderous ghost of a long-dead comrade – and turns to a white psychiatrist for help. Fraser Grace's new play presents the relationship between the black president and his white psychiatrist. You can hear this on the evening of Sunday 4th . It is preceded by a special edition of The Choir surveying the choral music scene in South Africa – a pair of linked but contrasting programmes!
BEETHOVEN
And to mark the end of the month, we have an important Beethoven marathon – a rather short one in comparison with our complete Beethoven this time last year! However, it will be a great experience to follow Paul Lewis' journey through the thirty-two piano sonatas, beginning in these four concerts. This young British pianist created a lot of interest recently with his Schubert cycle, and his Beethoven has attracted a huge and positive response and I feel sure they will be performanes to treasure. Our broadcasts start on June 27th .
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
I hope you will find much to enjoy!
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, May 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
Thanks for your positive reactions to our Wagner Ring in a Day, and to the day of English Music last Sunday. We enjoy planning these specials, and it good to hear from you that they are well received!
May is another busy month on Radio 3.
METROPOLITAN OPERA
On the evening of Saturday 6th, we end our series of broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera. Unusually, we finish with a Baroque opera, Rodelinda by Handel – a feast of singing, as Renée Fleming and the countertenor Andreas Scholl, take the leading roles. During the interval you can hear about the social context in which the operas were written; our feature claims that opera singers (particularly castrati) were the footballers of their day – vast salaries and egos to match.
We hear more from the Metropolitan Opera later in the month, as the theatre says goodbye to its outgoing director, Joseph Volpe with a gala performance featuring a line-up which seems to include almost everyone who is anyone in the operatic world. As the plans now stand, Domingo, Fleming, Hampson, Heppner, Mattila, Pavarotti, and te Kanawa will all appear on the same stage – an operatic night to remember! Listen out for this extraordinary event on the evening of Tuesday 23rd and in the following Sunday Gala.
BRITISH OPERA HOUSES
We head towards the Royal Opera House on Saturday 13th for Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. It is based on Pushkin's novel of 1833, chosen by Tchaikovsky because of its 'intimate and powerful drama… which can touch me to the quick'. Dmitri Hvorostovsky sings the role of Eugene Onegin alongside Amanda Roocroft as Tatiana.
In the following week, Saturday 20th, we are at the English National Opera for the the first professional staging for nearly 50 years of Vaughan Williams' delightful comedy inspired by Shakespeare's Merry Wives of Windsor, Sir John in Love. "Have you ever heard so many tunes in one evening?" says Ian Judge, who directs the English National Opera's new production. Andrew Shore takes the title role of Falstaff, leading an all-British cast in this operatic rarity.
SPANISH CHURCH MUSIC
Miles away from the operatic stage, we celebrate a rather different culture in our week of Iberian church music in the Composer of the Week slot starting on May 8th. It features the writing of Victoria who worked both in Rome and in Spanish court circles and whose music is thought of as being suffused with Catholic mysticism – but there is a lot of politics there too! And in this packed month, the summer music festivals are making their first appearance: look out for the Lufthansa Festival which has two great Vivaldi concerts at the end of the month.
RPS MUSIC AWARDS
Do also listen out for the Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards on Wednesday May 10th, an annual celebration of the classical music scene in the UK. The RPS Awards take place in collaboration with Radio 3, and celebrate a broad range of musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. They are also completely international, the only qualification for an award being that the arts activity has taken place in the UK. There is a Radio 3 Listeners Award – whether you voted or not, you will be able to find out something about the taste of your fellow listeners. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/rpsawards06.shtml
THE CHOIR
Morten Lauridsen is one of those names which seems to be heard with increasing frequency on both side of the Atlantic. Over the last few years, he has established himself as one of America's most performed and best-loved choral composers with music of an extrordinary radiance. Some works have recently been recorded here by Stephen Layton and his choir Polyphony. In The Choir on May 7th you can hear Lauridsen talk to Aled Jones about his life, his influences and music. It's a fascinating insight into the work of a composer whose influences stretch from Palestrina to French cabaret.
MILES DAVIS
Over the weekend of May 26th to 27th, we are celebrating the legacy of one of the musical giants of the 20th century, by marking what would have been Miles Davis' 80th birthday. Jazz on 3 (on Friday at 2330) will feature a Miles Davis concert. On Saturday 27th, Discovering Music is included in the Davis tribute, as Geoff Smith examines the classic 1959 recording Kind of Blue – one of the most famous jazz records of all time – with the help of UK trumpeter Guy Barker. Jazz Record Requests (at 1700) will include many of Miles's best-known recordings and some rarities.
DOSTOEVSKY
In Drama on 3 on Sunday 7th we are broadcasting a new version by Lou Stein of The Possessed by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Based on his novel of the same name, the play has a distinctly contemporary feel, with strong reminders of recent events in London and elsewhere. A group of dissidents and self-proclaimed revolutionaries are intent on subverting local political and social structures in a small provincial town in 1870s Russia. They wreak havoc in a dangerous and chaotic way, spurred on by a demonic and manipulative ringleader, Peter Verhovensky (played by Paul McGann). Stein's version departs from the expansiveness of the original novel and focuses on the psychology of the development of a dangerous local terrorist cell, seen through the eyes of a local journalist, Govorov (played by John Sessions). It also features originally composed music by award-winning composer Deirdre Gribbin.
THE JEWISH DISPORA
This weekend we begin a three-part series on Sunday evening, The Search for Sepharad. Dennis Marks travels across the Mediterranean in the footsteps of the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain in 1492. Travelling from Israel via Greece to Andalucia, he discovers a unique collaboration between Jews and Moslems which lasted half a millennium and a culture which still influences our lives today. These programmes are a search for the Sephardic diaspora – the Jewish communities who took root in Spain, North Africa and the near East, between the rise of Islam and the fall of the Ottoman Empire. They tell the story of ancient alliances between Moslem and Jewish societies across the trade routes of the Mediterranean, through the memories and experiences of scholars, writers, politicians, artists and tradespeople, from Seville and Salonika to Istanbul and Jerusalem.
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
Thanks for your positive reactions to our Wagner Ring in a Day, and to the day of English Music last Sunday. We enjoy planning these specials, and it good to hear from you that they are well received!
May is another busy month on Radio 3.
METROPOLITAN OPERA
On the evening of Saturday 6th, we end our series of broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera. Unusually, we finish with a Baroque opera, Rodelinda by Handel – a feast of singing, as Renée Fleming and the countertenor Andreas Scholl, take the leading roles. During the interval you can hear about the social context in which the operas were written; our feature claims that opera singers (particularly castrati) were the footballers of their day – vast salaries and egos to match.
We hear more from the Metropolitan Opera later in the month, as the theatre says goodbye to its outgoing director, Joseph Volpe with a gala performance featuring a line-up which seems to include almost everyone who is anyone in the operatic world. As the plans now stand, Domingo, Fleming, Hampson, Heppner, Mattila, Pavarotti, and te Kanawa will all appear on the same stage – an operatic night to remember! Listen out for this extraordinary event on the evening of Tuesday 23rd and in the following Sunday Gala.
BRITISH OPERA HOUSES
We head towards the Royal Opera House on Saturday 13th for Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. It is based on Pushkin's novel of 1833, chosen by Tchaikovsky because of its 'intimate and powerful drama… which can touch me to the quick'. Dmitri Hvorostovsky sings the role of Eugene Onegin alongside Amanda Roocroft as Tatiana.
In the following week, Saturday 20th, we are at the English National Opera for the the first professional staging for nearly 50 years of Vaughan Williams' delightful comedy inspired by Shakespeare's Merry Wives of Windsor, Sir John in Love. "Have you ever heard so many tunes in one evening?" says Ian Judge, who directs the English National Opera's new production. Andrew Shore takes the title role of Falstaff, leading an all-British cast in this operatic rarity.
SPANISH CHURCH MUSIC
Miles away from the operatic stage, we celebrate a rather different culture in our week of Iberian church music in the Composer of the Week slot starting on May 8th. It features the writing of Victoria who worked both in Rome and in Spanish court circles and whose music is thought of as being suffused with Catholic mysticism – but there is a lot of politics there too! And in this packed month, the summer music festivals are making their first appearance: look out for the Lufthansa Festival which has two great Vivaldi concerts at the end of the month.
RPS MUSIC AWARDS
Do also listen out for the Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards on Wednesday May 10th, an annual celebration of the classical music scene in the UK. The RPS Awards take place in collaboration with Radio 3, and celebrate a broad range of musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. They are also completely international, the only qualification for an award being that the arts activity has taken place in the UK. There is a Radio 3 Listeners Award – whether you voted or not, you will be able to find out something about the taste of your fellow listeners. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/rpsawards06.shtml
THE CHOIR
Morten Lauridsen is one of those names which seems to be heard with increasing frequency on both side of the Atlantic. Over the last few years, he has established himself as one of America's most performed and best-loved choral composers with music of an extrordinary radiance. Some works have recently been recorded here by Stephen Layton and his choir Polyphony. In The Choir on May 7th you can hear Lauridsen talk to Aled Jones about his life, his influences and music. It's a fascinating insight into the work of a composer whose influences stretch from Palestrina to French cabaret.
MILES DAVIS
Over the weekend of May 26th to 27th, we are celebrating the legacy of one of the musical giants of the 20th century, by marking what would have been Miles Davis' 80th birthday. Jazz on 3 (on Friday at 2330) will feature a Miles Davis concert. On Saturday 27th, Discovering Music is included in the Davis tribute, as Geoff Smith examines the classic 1959 recording Kind of Blue – one of the most famous jazz records of all time – with the help of UK trumpeter Guy Barker. Jazz Record Requests (at 1700) will include many of Miles's best-known recordings and some rarities.
DOSTOEVSKY
In Drama on 3 on Sunday 7th we are broadcasting a new version by Lou Stein of The Possessed by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Based on his novel of the same name, the play has a distinctly contemporary feel, with strong reminders of recent events in London and elsewhere. A group of dissidents and self-proclaimed revolutionaries are intent on subverting local political and social structures in a small provincial town in 1870s Russia. They wreak havoc in a dangerous and chaotic way, spurred on by a demonic and manipulative ringleader, Peter Verhovensky (played by Paul McGann). Stein's version departs from the expansiveness of the original novel and focuses on the psychology of the development of a dangerous local terrorist cell, seen through the eyes of a local journalist, Govorov (played by John Sessions). It also features originally composed music by award-winning composer Deirdre Gribbin.
THE JEWISH DISPORA
This weekend we begin a three-part series on Sunday evening, The Search for Sepharad. Dennis Marks travels across the Mediterranean in the footsteps of the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain in 1492. Travelling from Israel via Greece to Andalucia, he discovers a unique collaboration between Jews and Moslems which lasted half a millennium and a culture which still influences our lives today. These programmes are a search for the Sephardic diaspora – the Jewish communities who took root in Spain, North Africa and the near East, between the rise of Islam and the fall of the Ottoman Empire. They tell the story of ancient alliances between Moslem and Jewish societies across the trade routes of the Mediterranean, through the memories and experiences of scholars, writers, politicians, artists and tradespeople, from Seville and Salonika to Istanbul and Jerusalem.
As always, you'll find details of all Radio 3's programmes at the Radio 3 website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Mar. 2006
Hello and welcome to the latest Controller's Monthly Note
Dear All
The two great anniversaries of 2006 again feature prominently this month, with a good deal of live music-making. At the very end of the month, we have a Mozart piano concerto marathon from the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. All 27 concertos, including those for multiple pianos, will be performed. Barry Douglas, the artistic director of this event, has invited an international cast of soloists including Kathryn Stott, Jean-Philippe Collard and Freddy Kempf. A group of Manchester's orchestras – both professional and student – will be taking part: the Hallé, the Royal Northern College, the BBC Philharmonic, the Manchester Camerata, together with Barry Douglas's Camerata Ireland.
The complete cycle of concertos will be broadcast in a single week starting in Sunday Gala on 26th March and each subsequent evening in Performance on 3. Rather like the recent Shostakovich symphony cycle, this represents a really creative partnership between the performing groups in that dynamic musical city.
Shostakovich
Following the great success of the Shostakovich symphonies project we're now giving you the chance to hear the quartets, the more private side of his musical output. Between March 12th to 17th Sunday Gala and Performance on 3 will take us on this extraordinary journey through some of the most intimate music of the last century. All fifteen string quartets will be broadcast from specially recorded concerts given by two young string quartets – the Aviv Quartet and the Jerusalem Quartet.
Ring in a Day
Our listeners have responded positively to our recent intense artistic experiences here at Radio 3. Following the success of Bach and Beethoven last year, we have just announced the highlights of our Spring schedule, and are now looking forward to arguably the most concentrated eighteen hours ever broadcast!
You may already have read about Wagner's Ring in a Day, of which more next time. Perhaps you might like to blank this Bank Holiday (Easter Monday, 17th April) out in your diary and invite Wagner-loving friends to experience the marathon with you, or if you are near London you might like to join us during the day at the Royal Opera House where we will screen the Bayreuth performance of Die Walküre. Perhaps we should give a prize for the most imaginative way of spending the day. more on The Ring next month.
Confucius
You may have caught some of our short reflections on Confucius during the last week; if you found them interesting do tune in for our Sunday Feature, Goodbye Confucius on March 5th. China expert Rana Mitter explores how Confucius is being rehabilitated in today's China as ancient sage, contemporary business guru and tourist attraction. The nation's ancient philosopher is now being promoted as a possible solution to the country's 21st-century dilemmas.
Drama Highlights
We have a particularly striking drama double-bill the following Sunday, as Drama On 3 features Swan Song by Anton Chekhov followed by The History Boys by Alan Bennett. The Chekhov captures all the pain and self-delusion of an elderly Russian actor struggling to come to terms with his enforced retirement: he will never act again. In the new production of Chekhov's brilliant short play translated by Michael Frayn, Paul Scofield will star alongside Alec McCowen. And then, the National Theatre's sell-out production of the 2005 Olivier Award-winning Best New Play comes to radio with Richard Griffiths in his Olivier Best Actor role. Griffiths plays Hector, a romantic motorbike-riding maverick English teacher with a habit of quoting poetry, who is devoted to the passing on of knowledge and a love of literature to his beloved unruly boys. Clearly an evening to settle down and enjoy two special trips to! the theatre!
Night Waves on Religion in Society
Religious issues influence our lives and world view in ways we might never have anticipated in the 21st century. We have moved beyond the world of private faith to a world in which religion is strongly defining the societies in which many of us live. From March 13th, Night Waves undertakes its largest scale project, as it spends an entire week examining this phenomenon – from the Turkish middle class, and what has been described as Islamic Calvinism to how the Chinese authorities are attempting to devise a moral framework for their new breed of so-called 'Little Emperors'. We also look at Evangelical Christianity in the United State and in conclusion discuss the reasons for the resurgence of religion on the world stage.
Featured concert
As well as offering analyses of contemporary issues, in programmes like Night Waves, we also exist simply to bring you wonderful musical performance, not least our specially recorded concerts. So let me close this note by bringing to your attention a chance to hear Mark Padmore performing Schubert's great song cycle Winterreise together with pianist Roger Vignoles in a recent recording from Wigmore Hall. That's in Sunday Gala on March 5th. It was a wonderful occasion, and one which we are delighted to share with you all.
As always, you can find more details of all our programmes – together with opportunities to listen again to virtually the whole of Radio 3's schedule for seven days after broadcast – by visiting the Radio 3 website: www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Dear All
The two great anniversaries of 2006 again feature prominently this month, with a good deal of live music-making. At the very end of the month, we have a Mozart piano concerto marathon from the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. All 27 concertos, including those for multiple pianos, will be performed. Barry Douglas, the artistic director of this event, has invited an international cast of soloists including Kathryn Stott, Jean-Philippe Collard and Freddy Kempf. A group of Manchester's orchestras – both professional and student – will be taking part: the Hallé, the Royal Northern College, the BBC Philharmonic, the Manchester Camerata, together with Barry Douglas's Camerata Ireland.
The complete cycle of concertos will be broadcast in a single week starting in Sunday Gala on 26th March and each subsequent evening in Performance on 3. Rather like the recent Shostakovich symphony cycle, this represents a really creative partnership between the performing groups in that dynamic musical city.
Shostakovich
Following the great success of the Shostakovich symphonies project we're now giving you the chance to hear the quartets, the more private side of his musical output. Between March 12th to 17th Sunday Gala and Performance on 3 will take us on this extraordinary journey through some of the most intimate music of the last century. All fifteen string quartets will be broadcast from specially recorded concerts given by two young string quartets – the Aviv Quartet and the Jerusalem Quartet.
Ring in a Day
Our listeners have responded positively to our recent intense artistic experiences here at Radio 3. Following the success of Bach and Beethoven last year, we have just announced the highlights of our Spring schedule, and are now looking forward to arguably the most concentrated eighteen hours ever broadcast!
You may already have read about Wagner's Ring in a Day, of which more next time. Perhaps you might like to blank this Bank Holiday (Easter Monday, 17th April) out in your diary and invite Wagner-loving friends to experience the marathon with you, or if you are near London you might like to join us during the day at the Royal Opera House where we will screen the Bayreuth performance of Die Walküre. Perhaps we should give a prize for the most imaginative way of spending the day. more on The Ring next month.
Confucius
You may have caught some of our short reflections on Confucius during the last week; if you found them interesting do tune in for our Sunday Feature, Goodbye Confucius on March 5th. China expert Rana Mitter explores how Confucius is being rehabilitated in today's China as ancient sage, contemporary business guru and tourist attraction. The nation's ancient philosopher is now being promoted as a possible solution to the country's 21st-century dilemmas.
Drama Highlights
We have a particularly striking drama double-bill the following Sunday, as Drama On 3 features Swan Song by Anton Chekhov followed by The History Boys by Alan Bennett. The Chekhov captures all the pain and self-delusion of an elderly Russian actor struggling to come to terms with his enforced retirement: he will never act again. In the new production of Chekhov's brilliant short play translated by Michael Frayn, Paul Scofield will star alongside Alec McCowen. And then, the National Theatre's sell-out production of the 2005 Olivier Award-winning Best New Play comes to radio with Richard Griffiths in his Olivier Best Actor role. Griffiths plays Hector, a romantic motorbike-riding maverick English teacher with a habit of quoting poetry, who is devoted to the passing on of knowledge and a love of literature to his beloved unruly boys. Clearly an evening to settle down and enjoy two special trips to! the theatre!
Night Waves on Religion in Society
Religious issues influence our lives and world view in ways we might never have anticipated in the 21st century. We have moved beyond the world of private faith to a world in which religion is strongly defining the societies in which many of us live. From March 13th, Night Waves undertakes its largest scale project, as it spends an entire week examining this phenomenon – from the Turkish middle class, and what has been described as Islamic Calvinism to how the Chinese authorities are attempting to devise a moral framework for their new breed of so-called 'Little Emperors'. We also look at Evangelical Christianity in the United State and in conclusion discuss the reasons for the resurgence of religion on the world stage.
Featured concert
As well as offering analyses of contemporary issues, in programmes like Night Waves, we also exist simply to bring you wonderful musical performance, not least our specially recorded concerts. So let me close this note by bringing to your attention a chance to hear Mark Padmore performing Schubert's great song cycle Winterreise together with pianist Roger Vignoles in a recent recording from Wigmore Hall. That's in Sunday Gala on March 5th. It was a wonderful occasion, and one which we are delighted to share with you all.
As always, you can find more details of all our programmes – together with opportunities to listen again to virtually the whole of Radio 3's schedule for seven days after broadcast – by visiting the Radio 3 website: www.bbc.co.uk/radio3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
3/1/06 All that Bach
For ten days, up to the afternoon performance on Christmas Day of the Christmas Oratorio, Radio 3's airwaves were filled with nothing but what became known as ABC – A Bach Christmas. Everything that survives of the great man's work was heard: cantatas, suites, oratorios, concertos, organ works, harpsichord works, chorales, mostly in live performances and with interviews, mini features (the so-called 'Bach bites') and reminiscences to add context and some breathing space between the works.
The special messageboard set up on the Radio3 website rapidly clocked up even more messages than the well used Beethoven Experience board did back in June as new 'posters' appeared in their hundreds to add their views. And the listeners' verdict? There were two opinions, both held with varying degrees of vehemence: 1) Brilliant and 2) Awful. And virtually every individual aspect of the event met with similar divided opinions: Angela Hewitt? Brilliant and Awful. Glenn Gould? Brilliant and Awful. Bach on piano, Bach on harpsichord – both were the sole possibility. Ten days? Too long and too short. Such is life.
The Controller reported that he had received thousands of emails, 98% favourable. More accurately, if less precisely, that probably meant 'the large majority of them favourable'. The evidence of the messageboard suggested that, compared with the Beethoven week, a rather bigger percentage was in some degree unhappy this time, 15% at least. However, the antis also divided between those who 'didn't like' Bach, harpsichords, organs, cantatas etc, and those who, on the contrary, loved it all, but the non-stop broadcasting made it impossible for them to listen to more than a small fraction and they would have preferred a less concentrated presentation.
The final word, however, has to lie with the majority 'Ayes': there's no arguing with those who declared that the experience extended their knowledge and deepened their understanding of the music; nor is there any denying the level of enthusiasm which the event engendered, not merely among regular Radio 3 listeners but among Bach lovers in the country too, and that has to be good.
Nevertheless, with Easter Monday (April 17th) designated Wagner Day – 16 hours devoted to the complete Ring cycle – perhaps the question should be asked as to why 'total immersion' is now preferred to the magisterial projects, extending over many months, which were made up of focused, self-contained programmes and which have not been heard since Nicholas Kenyon's Sounding the Century back in 1999.
The special messageboard set up on the Radio3 website rapidly clocked up even more messages than the well used Beethoven Experience board did back in June as new 'posters' appeared in their hundreds to add their views. And the listeners' verdict? There were two opinions, both held with varying degrees of vehemence: 1) Brilliant and 2) Awful. And virtually every individual aspect of the event met with similar divided opinions: Angela Hewitt? Brilliant and Awful. Glenn Gould? Brilliant and Awful. Bach on piano, Bach on harpsichord – both were the sole possibility. Ten days? Too long and too short. Such is life.
The Controller reported that he had received thousands of emails, 98% favourable. More accurately, if less precisely, that probably meant 'the large majority of them favourable'. The evidence of the messageboard suggested that, compared with the Beethoven week, a rather bigger percentage was in some degree unhappy this time, 15% at least. However, the antis also divided between those who 'didn't like' Bach, harpsichords, organs, cantatas etc, and those who, on the contrary, loved it all, but the non-stop broadcasting made it impossible for them to listen to more than a small fraction and they would have preferred a less concentrated presentation.
The final word, however, has to lie with the majority 'Ayes': there's no arguing with those who declared that the experience extended their knowledge and deepened their understanding of the music; nor is there any denying the level of enthusiasm which the event engendered, not merely among regular Radio 3 listeners but among Bach lovers in the country too, and that has to be good.
Nevertheless, with Easter Monday (April 17th) designated Wagner Day – 16 hours devoted to the complete Ring cycle – perhaps the question should be asked as to why 'total immersion' is now preferred to the magisterial projects, extending over many months, which were made up of focused, self-contained programmes and which have not been heard since Nicholas Kenyon's Sounding the Century back in 1999.
28/10/05 RAJAR figures take the pressure off
After the previous quarter's dire RAJAR figures, this last quarter (Proms quarter) has seen enough of a rally to take the pressure off for the moment. Reach/audience was 2.067 million (4.186% of the population), listening was 12.711 million hours, a share of 1.186% of total radio listening hours.
Average reach over the last seven Proms quarters, 1999 – 2005, is 2.074 million, the current result being the third lowest, though close to the average. Only 1999 and 2000 were lower, the better results had all been more recent. The percentage reach this time was 4.186% of the 15+ listening population, fractionally higher than in 2000. The percentage reach for 1999, 2000 and 2005 is markedly below the next lowest, 2001. The average percentage over the seven years is 4.266%.
As always, the relatively small numbers involved means individual figures are not wholly reliable (and inclined to be volatile). The overall trend in listening since 1999 has shown something of a rise in audience when the new programming was introduced but that has fallen away over the last eighteen months: there are now no more people listening to R3 than there were before the introduction of Late Junction, Andy Kershaw, World Routes, Stage & Screen and Brian Kay's Light Programme, and other adjustments to the schedule (the extension of Mixing It and the rescheduling of the jazz programmes).
The question still remains: if R3 has attracted 'many new listeners' for the new programmes, as is claimed, why is the reach not substantially greater? The BBC never answers this question, from which we may infer that they know that in the wake of at least four years of complaints, dissatisfied listeners have deserted the station. It appears that the BBC doesn't care as long as other listeners are being drawn in for non-arts programmes, much of whose content FoR3 is questioning. Whereas Radio 3 previously made the arts available to all, the concern now is to make them accessible to all. The ethos of the old Third/Radio 3, which called for commitment and concentration, has been replaced by programming which in style and content expects less of the audience. Accessible to some listeners, unlistenable to others, 'inclusive' to new listeners, excluding old ones. And the listeners who are dissatisfied are the ones whose interests lie at the very heart of what Radio 3 is supposed to be about.
Average reach over the last seven Proms quarters, 1999 – 2005, is 2.074 million, the current result being the third lowest, though close to the average. Only 1999 and 2000 were lower, the better results had all been more recent. The percentage reach this time was 4.186% of the 15+ listening population, fractionally higher than in 2000. The percentage reach for 1999, 2000 and 2005 is markedly below the next lowest, 2001. The average percentage over the seven years is 4.266%.
As always, the relatively small numbers involved means individual figures are not wholly reliable (and inclined to be volatile). The overall trend in listening since 1999 has shown something of a rise in audience when the new programming was introduced but that has fallen away over the last eighteen months: there are now no more people listening to R3 than there were before the introduction of Late Junction, Andy Kershaw, World Routes, Stage & Screen and Brian Kay's Light Programme, and other adjustments to the schedule (the extension of Mixing It and the rescheduling of the jazz programmes).
The question still remains: if R3 has attracted 'many new listeners' for the new programmes, as is claimed, why is the reach not substantially greater? The BBC never answers this question, from which we may infer that they know that in the wake of at least four years of complaints, dissatisfied listeners have deserted the station. It appears that the BBC doesn't care as long as other listeners are being drawn in for non-arts programmes, much of whose content FoR3 is questioning. Whereas Radio 3 previously made the arts available to all, the concern now is to make them accessible to all. The ethos of the old Third/Radio 3, which called for commitment and concentration, has been replaced by programming which in style and content expects less of the audience. Accessible to some listeners, unlistenable to others, 'inclusive' to new listeners, excluding old ones. And the listeners who are dissatisfied are the ones whose interests lie at the very heart of what Radio 3 is supposed to be about.
Controller's Note, Oct. 2005
Dear All
October is a varied month for opera on Radio 3. You might have caught the spectacular, energetic broadcast premiere of Gerald Barry's opera, The Bitter Tears of Petra van Kant last Saturday. Well, we continue this month with two visits to the Royal Opera House for contrasting works: this Saturday we have a live broadcast of Nielsen's Maskarade, a lively comedy with a typical operatic plot in which one of the main characters falls in love with a girl at a masked ball – not quite the choice that his father might have made for him. As a marked contrast, on October 29th we are broadcasting Wagner's Siegfried from Covent Garden – the 'Ring' cycle begun last season continuing with the third opera in Keith Warner's new production. It is conducted by Antonio Pappano, with John Treleaven, John Tomlinson and Lisa Gasteen in the major roles. And Wagner lovers will also be able to hear Tristan and Isolde from the Bastille in Paris, on the previous Saturday – October 22nd.
If you are looking for music from earlier centuries in the Radio 3 schedule, you can listen to two events from the Tetbury Festival on Wednesday 11th and Friday 13th; in the first, the King's Consort perform church music by Pergolesi and Scarlatti, including the famous Pergolesi Stabat Mater. Two days later we have an all-Bach programme performed by the tenor Mark Padmore and friends, including two Bach solo cantatas. This gives me a chance to remind you about our week of continuous Bach – A Bach Christmas – like Beethoven, another total immersion experience which you will be able to hear in the week leading up to Christmas: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/bachindex.shtml. In the meantime, if you would like to tell us what the music of Bach means to you, then… call the audience line on 08700 100 300; or write to BACH, PO Box 125, GLASGOW G2 3WD. We would be keen to hear your views on Bach and his music.
Starting on Monday 9th, Ockeghem and Obrecht are Composers of the Week, taking us back to the Low Countries at the height of the Renaissance. If you've ever enjoyed the chance to visit the streets and churches of Antwerp and Bruges, do tune in and encounter their aural equivalent. And just when you thought that we could head no further back in history, we have Choral Evensong celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the birth of Edward the Confessor, a distant event taking us back to a completely different era in English history, before the Norman Conquest. The service will be live from Westminster Abbey on Wednesday 12th.
And while we are commemorating national events, our minds turn to the commemoration of the Battle of Trafalgar. The heart of the musical celebration will be the Trafalgar Concert from Portsmouth on the 21st, featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC Singers. The obvious work to include is Haydn's Nelson Mass, and during the interval we are going to hear about an 'unlikely friendship', which resulted from Nelson meeting the composer. Equally appropriate is a new work, Our English Heart, by Errollyn Wallen. This describes the sea in wartime and personal experience of loss, death, separation, bravery and sacrifice. Catherine Bott plays the love of Nelson's life, Lady Emma Hamilton, accompanied by the male voices of The BBC Singers. The previous weekend, Drama On 3 presents A Bequest To The Nation by Terence Rattigan, with Kenneth Branagh as Admiral Lord Nelson and Janet McTeer as Emma Hamilton. Set in autumn 1805 in Bath and London, the play explores the enigmatic relationship between the greatest naval hero of the day and a lady considered by many as rather vulgar. And in the Early Music Show on the weekend of the 22nd and 23rd, Catherine Bott appears in her R3 presenting role with two editions dedicated to the Nelson legacy. The first is a concert Catherine recorded with the pianist David Owen Norris, celebrating the life and musical aspirations of Emma Hamilton; this features songs taken from Lady Hamilton's songbook. The second programme comes from the deck of HMS Victory, where Catherine Bott discusses life in Nelson's Navy, and the songs and shanties Nelson's men would have sung.
By the time we have visited the Cotswolds, and commemorated Westminster Abbey and Trafalgar, we seem to be having a month in which our island history and culture looms large! So let's stay on that theme by noting that it is also the 500th anniversary of the birth of one of our greatest composers from the Reformation period, Thomas Tallis. Before the dissolution of the monasteries, he directed music at Waltham Abbey. We visit that church for Choral Evensong on Wednesday October 26th, and on the afternoon of Thursday 13th we have a concert from the BBC Singers, featuring and celebrating the same composer!
On a much more contemporary note, on Monday 10th we also present a new radio play – Voices – to mark Harold Pinter's 75th birthday. This new dramatic work for radio is a collaboration between Pinter and composer James Clarke, specially commissioned by Radio 3, and features a cast including Roger Lloyd-Pack, Douglas Hodge, Andy de la Tour, Indira Varma and Pinter himself. Pinter's late, dark political plays, in which man's humanity and inhumanity is starkly demonstrated, form the textual core of the piece. The language of torturers and the tortured is set to a haunting radiophonic score by Clarke – richly layered music in which symphony orchestra and solo voice, silences, ensembles and an Azeri singer combine to provide a disturbing but compelling listening experience. Voices will be available to Listen Again during the two weeks after the broadcast, with the additional option of listening – for the first time – in 5.1 Surround Sound. [Please note that you will need a 5.1 speaker system in order to listen to 5.1 Surround Sound].
And in between, we have the usual mix of music from the classical, jazz and world music traditions from this country and beyond! We hope you find much to enjoy.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
October is a varied month for opera on Radio 3. You might have caught the spectacular, energetic broadcast premiere of Gerald Barry's opera, The Bitter Tears of Petra van Kant last Saturday. Well, we continue this month with two visits to the Royal Opera House for contrasting works: this Saturday we have a live broadcast of Nielsen's Maskarade, a lively comedy with a typical operatic plot in which one of the main characters falls in love with a girl at a masked ball – not quite the choice that his father might have made for him. As a marked contrast, on October 29th we are broadcasting Wagner's Siegfried from Covent Garden – the 'Ring' cycle begun last season continuing with the third opera in Keith Warner's new production. It is conducted by Antonio Pappano, with John Treleaven, John Tomlinson and Lisa Gasteen in the major roles. And Wagner lovers will also be able to hear Tristan and Isolde from the Bastille in Paris, on the previous Saturday – October 22nd.
If you are looking for music from earlier centuries in the Radio 3 schedule, you can listen to two events from the Tetbury Festival on Wednesday 11th and Friday 13th; in the first, the King's Consort perform church music by Pergolesi and Scarlatti, including the famous Pergolesi Stabat Mater. Two days later we have an all-Bach programme performed by the tenor Mark Padmore and friends, including two Bach solo cantatas. This gives me a chance to remind you about our week of continuous Bach – A Bach Christmas – like Beethoven, another total immersion experience which you will be able to hear in the week leading up to Christmas: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/bachindex.shtml. In the meantime, if you would like to tell us what the music of Bach means to you, then… call the audience line on 08700 100 300; or write to BACH, PO Box 125, GLASGOW G2 3WD. We would be keen to hear your views on Bach and his music.
Starting on Monday 9th, Ockeghem and Obrecht are Composers of the Week, taking us back to the Low Countries at the height of the Renaissance. If you've ever enjoyed the chance to visit the streets and churches of Antwerp and Bruges, do tune in and encounter their aural equivalent. And just when you thought that we could head no further back in history, we have Choral Evensong celebrating the 1000th anniversary of the birth of Edward the Confessor, a distant event taking us back to a completely different era in English history, before the Norman Conquest. The service will be live from Westminster Abbey on Wednesday 12th.
And while we are commemorating national events, our minds turn to the commemoration of the Battle of Trafalgar. The heart of the musical celebration will be the Trafalgar Concert from Portsmouth on the 21st, featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra and BBC Singers. The obvious work to include is Haydn's Nelson Mass, and during the interval we are going to hear about an 'unlikely friendship', which resulted from Nelson meeting the composer. Equally appropriate is a new work, Our English Heart, by Errollyn Wallen. This describes the sea in wartime and personal experience of loss, death, separation, bravery and sacrifice. Catherine Bott plays the love of Nelson's life, Lady Emma Hamilton, accompanied by the male voices of The BBC Singers. The previous weekend, Drama On 3 presents A Bequest To The Nation by Terence Rattigan, with Kenneth Branagh as Admiral Lord Nelson and Janet McTeer as Emma Hamilton. Set in autumn 1805 in Bath and London, the play explores the enigmatic relationship between the greatest naval hero of the day and a lady considered by many as rather vulgar. And in the Early Music Show on the weekend of the 22nd and 23rd, Catherine Bott appears in her R3 presenting role with two editions dedicated to the Nelson legacy. The first is a concert Catherine recorded with the pianist David Owen Norris, celebrating the life and musical aspirations of Emma Hamilton; this features songs taken from Lady Hamilton's songbook. The second programme comes from the deck of HMS Victory, where Catherine Bott discusses life in Nelson's Navy, and the songs and shanties Nelson's men would have sung.
By the time we have visited the Cotswolds, and commemorated Westminster Abbey and Trafalgar, we seem to be having a month in which our island history and culture looms large! So let's stay on that theme by noting that it is also the 500th anniversary of the birth of one of our greatest composers from the Reformation period, Thomas Tallis. Before the dissolution of the monasteries, he directed music at Waltham Abbey. We visit that church for Choral Evensong on Wednesday October 26th, and on the afternoon of Thursday 13th we have a concert from the BBC Singers, featuring and celebrating the same composer!
On a much more contemporary note, on Monday 10th we also present a new radio play – Voices – to mark Harold Pinter's 75th birthday. This new dramatic work for radio is a collaboration between Pinter and composer James Clarke, specially commissioned by Radio 3, and features a cast including Roger Lloyd-Pack, Douglas Hodge, Andy de la Tour, Indira Varma and Pinter himself. Pinter's late, dark political plays, in which man's humanity and inhumanity is starkly demonstrated, form the textual core of the piece. The language of torturers and the tortured is set to a haunting radiophonic score by Clarke – richly layered music in which symphony orchestra and solo voice, silences, ensembles and an Azeri singer combine to provide a disturbing but compelling listening experience. Voices will be available to Listen Again during the two weeks after the broadcast, with the additional option of listening – for the first time – in 5.1 Surround Sound. [Please note that you will need a 5.1 speaker system in order to listen to 5.1 Surround Sound].
And in between, we have the usual mix of music from the classical, jazz and world music traditions from this country and beyond! We hope you find much to enjoy.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Sep. 2005
Dear All
Well, the long summer of Proms concerts is almost finished. I trust you have had the chance to enjoy many of them, a particularly rich selection of music for summer evenings. The final party takes place on Saturday, involving all parts of the UK, and with a stronger nautical theme than ever, picking up one of the main idea of the season – the sea. Not only have the original bugle calls been restored to the Henry Wood Sea Songs, but there is also music by Walton, Lambert and Korngold on the same theme. There is also the rare addition of a guitar soloist, in the person of John Williams, who will play the Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez. So do join us here on Radio 3 for the season finale. You might also be able to attend one of the local events, the Proms in the Park, happening this year in Belfast, Glasgow, Manchester and Swansea, as well as London. And on the Sunday, if you are within travelling distance of London, you might like to bring family and friends to the BBC Family Prom in the Park.
I seem to remember that this time last year I wrote that music on Radio 3 does not end with the end of the Proms. Marvellous concerts though they are, the range and quality of the network does not diminish on Sunday 11th. The 'morning after' can definitely be as engaging as the 'night before'! The post-Proms weeks give us the chance to catch up with the festival in Edinburgh. We start with the International Festival's opening concert, a Verdi Requiem on Sunday evening, conducted by Donald Runnicles – you can decide for yourself whether this is Verdi's 'greatest opera'! On a more modest scale Monday brings us a recital by Jean-Philippe Collard concentrating mainly on French music, and later in the week we have four concerts (starting on Wednesday 14th) from the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra – the Festival's orchestra in residence with its British conductor Jonathan Nott who has been receiving much critical acclaim recently. The final concert, broadcast on Saturday 17th, is not for the musically faint-hearted; it is an extremely generous three-hour array of music including works by Schubert, Mozart and Bruckner.
You will probably just have had long enough to recover from the excitement of The Beethoven Experience. From much of the correspondence we had at the time, we had the impression that people's life and work patterns were being really disrupted by the way in which Beethoven captured their imagnation. We cannot and should not apologise for the extraordinary power of Beethoven's music. We are going (rather more discreetly) to cover the complete works of another composer during September Anton Webern. The composer was shot accidentally at the end of the war, and his early death and the loss of his original mind was a great blow to musical life. Unlike Beethoven, his complete works fit into the course of a single day, and that is precisely how we are commemorating him on September 15th, the 60th anniversary of his death. We hope that the chance to hear the five hours of his complete works in chronological order will shed some new light on our appreciation of this extraordinary miniaturist. And in preparation, on Saturday 10th, Discovering Music is devoted to the composer, and providing a 'routemap' of how to listen to his music; in the same vein, Music Matters on Sunday will be asking Sir John Tavener for his opinion of Webern – I suspect it will be a fascinating discussion!
Our new Wigmore Hall season of chamber music begins on Monday with a lunchtime concert given by the Irish mezzo-soprano, Ann Murray and the Royal String Quartet, and including some Webern and Berg. On Saturday 24th, we have the first visit this season to the Royal Opera House, for Puccini's La fanciulla del West – described on the Covent Garden website as 'a substantially refurbished version of one of the most celebrated pieces in The Royal Opera's repertory'. From an established work at the Royal Opera House, we move to a bold new start of the season at English National Opera with Gerald Barry's new opera, The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant. Based on the Rainer Fassbinder stage play, and performed by an all-female cast, the advance publicity uses adjectives such as 'explosive', 'gladiatorial', and 'formidable' – Radio 3 gives you the chance to experience it and judge for yourself. So tune in and compare your reactions with those of the critics!
In our continuing focus on Africa, we have a special evening on Wednesday 28th September hosted by Zeinab Badawi and celebrating the spoken word in Africa. From the village story teller to the urban DJ, Radio Africa, explores the current life of oral culture in Africa. Performers, story tellers, musicians, anthropologists, journalists and cultural commentators will be debating its strengths and weakness today. A series of radio moments will mark key points in history when radio played a crucial role in Africa's history, from the announcement of the independence coup in Mozambique, to private incidents remembered now in tranquillity.
This Sunday Drama on 3 broadcasts the cold war drama, The Orchid Grower, by Sebastian Baczkiewicz. In 1964, Yuri Nosenko, a senior KBG agent, defected to the USA. Rather than being a major coup for the CIA, Nosenko found himself a victim of the power struggle that damaged almost every major Western intelligence agency at the height of the Cold War. It's a dramatic narrative redolent of another age.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Well, the long summer of Proms concerts is almost finished. I trust you have had the chance to enjoy many of them, a particularly rich selection of music for summer evenings. The final party takes place on Saturday, involving all parts of the UK, and with a stronger nautical theme than ever, picking up one of the main idea of the season – the sea. Not only have the original bugle calls been restored to the Henry Wood Sea Songs, but there is also music by Walton, Lambert and Korngold on the same theme. There is also the rare addition of a guitar soloist, in the person of John Williams, who will play the Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez. So do join us here on Radio 3 for the season finale. You might also be able to attend one of the local events, the Proms in the Park, happening this year in Belfast, Glasgow, Manchester and Swansea, as well as London. And on the Sunday, if you are within travelling distance of London, you might like to bring family and friends to the BBC Family Prom in the Park.
I seem to remember that this time last year I wrote that music on Radio 3 does not end with the end of the Proms. Marvellous concerts though they are, the range and quality of the network does not diminish on Sunday 11th. The 'morning after' can definitely be as engaging as the 'night before'! The post-Proms weeks give us the chance to catch up with the festival in Edinburgh. We start with the International Festival's opening concert, a Verdi Requiem on Sunday evening, conducted by Donald Runnicles – you can decide for yourself whether this is Verdi's 'greatest opera'! On a more modest scale Monday brings us a recital by Jean-Philippe Collard concentrating mainly on French music, and later in the week we have four concerts (starting on Wednesday 14th) from the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra – the Festival's orchestra in residence with its British conductor Jonathan Nott who has been receiving much critical acclaim recently. The final concert, broadcast on Saturday 17th, is not for the musically faint-hearted; it is an extremely generous three-hour array of music including works by Schubert, Mozart and Bruckner.
You will probably just have had long enough to recover from the excitement of The Beethoven Experience. From much of the correspondence we had at the time, we had the impression that people's life and work patterns were being really disrupted by the way in which Beethoven captured their imagnation. We cannot and should not apologise for the extraordinary power of Beethoven's music. We are going (rather more discreetly) to cover the complete works of another composer during September Anton Webern. The composer was shot accidentally at the end of the war, and his early death and the loss of his original mind was a great blow to musical life. Unlike Beethoven, his complete works fit into the course of a single day, and that is precisely how we are commemorating him on September 15th, the 60th anniversary of his death. We hope that the chance to hear the five hours of his complete works in chronological order will shed some new light on our appreciation of this extraordinary miniaturist. And in preparation, on Saturday 10th, Discovering Music is devoted to the composer, and providing a 'routemap' of how to listen to his music; in the same vein, Music Matters on Sunday will be asking Sir John Tavener for his opinion of Webern – I suspect it will be a fascinating discussion!
Our new Wigmore Hall season of chamber music begins on Monday with a lunchtime concert given by the Irish mezzo-soprano, Ann Murray and the Royal String Quartet, and including some Webern and Berg. On Saturday 24th, we have the first visit this season to the Royal Opera House, for Puccini's La fanciulla del West – described on the Covent Garden website as 'a substantially refurbished version of one of the most celebrated pieces in The Royal Opera's repertory'. From an established work at the Royal Opera House, we move to a bold new start of the season at English National Opera with Gerald Barry's new opera, The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant. Based on the Rainer Fassbinder stage play, and performed by an all-female cast, the advance publicity uses adjectives such as 'explosive', 'gladiatorial', and 'formidable' – Radio 3 gives you the chance to experience it and judge for yourself. So tune in and compare your reactions with those of the critics!
In our continuing focus on Africa, we have a special evening on Wednesday 28th September hosted by Zeinab Badawi and celebrating the spoken word in Africa. From the village story teller to the urban DJ, Radio Africa, explores the current life of oral culture in Africa. Performers, story tellers, musicians, anthropologists, journalists and cultural commentators will be debating its strengths and weakness today. A series of radio moments will mark key points in history when radio played a crucial role in Africa's history, from the announcement of the independence coup in Mozambique, to private incidents remembered now in tranquillity.
This Sunday Drama on 3 broadcasts the cold war drama, The Orchid Grower, by Sebastian Baczkiewicz. In 1964, Yuri Nosenko, a senior KBG agent, defected to the USA. Rather than being a major coup for the CIA, Nosenko found himself a victim of the power struggle that damaged almost every major Western intelligence agency at the height of the Cold War. It's a dramatic narrative redolent of another age.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Aug. 2005
Dear All
The Proms is now well underway, and I hope you are finding much to enjoy. August 21st sees the new Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek, performing Eternal Longing by Novàk; appropriately enough, for this Hans Christian Andersen year, it is based on the tale of the swan falling to the sea and being raised by the force of life. This concert also features one of the Radio 3 New Generation artists, Llŷr Williams, in the Schumann Piano Concerto. And on September 1st, we have the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with Mariss Jansons in one powerful and massive work in the concert – Mahler Symphony 6. Jansons has only recently been appointed Principal Conductor of the orchestra. I will certainly be making an appointment to experience that superb combination of orchestra, conductor and music.
If you want to enjoy the special atmosphere of the Proms concerts, do enter the competitions on In Tune throughout August. We have started running a series of competitions, including one for Last Night tickets; the Last Night prize includes hotel and travel. Each week on In Tune you will be able to win tickets to a different Proms, and in the last week of August we shall be starting the special Last Night competition. The competitions are also available on the web at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/intune/promscompetitions.shtml. Do take part and the best of luck!
Contrasting with the orchestral repertory which dominates the Proms, we have a strong programme of chamber music during August. First comes a week from the City of London Festival, and then we head to Scotland for the St Magnus Festival in the Orkneys. On Thursday August 11th we hear Steven Osborne playing Debussy and Ravel, and on the following day we can hear Nigel Osborne's Forest, river, ocean which features the ancient Scottish war instrument, the carnyx, a long Celtic trumpet made of beaten bronze and held vertically. Back on the mainland in Edinburgh, we have a song recital by the baritone Christopher Maltman with Malcolm Martineau (24th), the Janacek Quartet performing chamber music by Dvorak, and Lars Vogt performing as a soloist and together with Christian Tetzlaff (31st/2nd September). There is also a Choral Evensong from Edinburgh on August 17th, as well as more evening concerts from the Festival broadcast after the Proms. Apart from our regular Early Music Show at weekends, there is a good deal of concentration on early music during the week with two Composers of the Week dedicated to this area: starting on August 1st we have music from the court of Louis XIV, and on August 15th contemporaries of Schutz and Praetorius in choral and organ music from the German Baroque.
Listen out for 'The Adverb' – running in some of the Twenty Minutes slots across the summer and recorded on Mondays at 2.15pm at Cadogan Hall (immediately after the Proms Chamber Music concerts). Ian McMillan and Paul Farley introduce new writing on the proms themes of the Sea and Fairy Tales. There is also another chance to hear two series from the recent past: 'Nile Lands' – a journey down the Nile with Zeinab Badawi – is re-broadcast as part of the Africa season from 9th – 12th August. The following week historians Mia Rodriguez-Salgado, Miri Rubin and Misha Glenny examine the culture cultural roots of Europe in 'The Europe of the Mind' (17th – 19th).
In order to keep in touch with Radio 3 and its programmes during the summer, why not subscribe to the Proms text club which sends alerts to your mobile phone about concerts and broadcasts. You simply need to text PROMS CLUB to 83111; for more details of this service, please see http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/textclub/index.shtml.
And of course there is much more information on the Radio 3 website http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3, which is closely linked for August to the Proms website http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms, where you can find more information and post your own reactions to concerts.
All best wishes for an enjoyable and restful summer
Roger Wright
The Proms is now well underway, and I hope you are finding much to enjoy. August 21st sees the new Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Jiří Bělohlávek, performing Eternal Longing by Novàk; appropriately enough, for this Hans Christian Andersen year, it is based on the tale of the swan falling to the sea and being raised by the force of life. This concert also features one of the Radio 3 New Generation artists, Llŷr Williams, in the Schumann Piano Concerto. And on September 1st, we have the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra with Mariss Jansons in one powerful and massive work in the concert – Mahler Symphony 6. Jansons has only recently been appointed Principal Conductor of the orchestra. I will certainly be making an appointment to experience that superb combination of orchestra, conductor and music.
If you want to enjoy the special atmosphere of the Proms concerts, do enter the competitions on In Tune throughout August. We have started running a series of competitions, including one for Last Night tickets; the Last Night prize includes hotel and travel. Each week on In Tune you will be able to win tickets to a different Proms, and in the last week of August we shall be starting the special Last Night competition. The competitions are also available on the web at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/intune/promscompetitions.shtml. Do take part and the best of luck!
Contrasting with the orchestral repertory which dominates the Proms, we have a strong programme of chamber music during August. First comes a week from the City of London Festival, and then we head to Scotland for the St Magnus Festival in the Orkneys. On Thursday August 11th we hear Steven Osborne playing Debussy and Ravel, and on the following day we can hear Nigel Osborne's Forest, river, ocean which features the ancient Scottish war instrument, the carnyx, a long Celtic trumpet made of beaten bronze and held vertically. Back on the mainland in Edinburgh, we have a song recital by the baritone Christopher Maltman with Malcolm Martineau (24th), the Janacek Quartet performing chamber music by Dvorak, and Lars Vogt performing as a soloist and together with Christian Tetzlaff (31st/2nd September). There is also a Choral Evensong from Edinburgh on August 17th, as well as more evening concerts from the Festival broadcast after the Proms. Apart from our regular Early Music Show at weekends, there is a good deal of concentration on early music during the week with two Composers of the Week dedicated to this area: starting on August 1st we have music from the court of Louis XIV, and on August 15th contemporaries of Schutz and Praetorius in choral and organ music from the German Baroque.
Listen out for 'The Adverb' – running in some of the Twenty Minutes slots across the summer and recorded on Mondays at 2.15pm at Cadogan Hall (immediately after the Proms Chamber Music concerts). Ian McMillan and Paul Farley introduce new writing on the proms themes of the Sea and Fairy Tales. There is also another chance to hear two series from the recent past: 'Nile Lands' – a journey down the Nile with Zeinab Badawi – is re-broadcast as part of the Africa season from 9th – 12th August. The following week historians Mia Rodriguez-Salgado, Miri Rubin and Misha Glenny examine the culture cultural roots of Europe in 'The Europe of the Mind' (17th – 19th).
In order to keep in touch with Radio 3 and its programmes during the summer, why not subscribe to the Proms text club which sends alerts to your mobile phone about concerts and broadcasts. You simply need to text PROMS CLUB to 83111; for more details of this service, please see http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/textclub/index.shtml.
And of course there is much more information on the Radio 3 website http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3, which is closely linked for August to the Proms website http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms, where you can find more information and post your own reactions to concerts.
All best wishes for an enjoyable and restful summer
Roger Wright
24/7/05 BBC Ask the Governors
On July 19th, as an earnest of open government and accountability, the BBC Governors held their first ever public meeting with licence-payers. Open to all and say what you like, it was webcast live – the recording can be seen via the Governors' new website.
There was not a lot which was of specific relevance to radio listeners, but the meeting offered an opportunity to hear various Governors and form judgements. A factual account is given here and a campaign view elsewhere.
Eleven of the twelve Governors, headed by Michael Grade, plus the Director-General, Mark Thompson, made up the panel and other senior BBC staff were in the audience. Written questions were submitted just before the meeting began; it appears that only a fairly small proportion of these were used, and it was not easy for any but the most determinedly vociferous to join in a discussion; most were listening politely most of the time. But, then, having heard a fair question, the interest lay in what the Governors had to say in reply – not in a diversity of contradictory supplementary comments from the audience.
Politics – the independence of the BBC and the impartiality of news reporting – attracted strong views; so did the question of catering for ethnic minorities. The Governors in each case jumped as predictably as the Bishop on sin, albeit in the opposite direction: they were for all three. On the latter point there were conflicting views: some want to feel that they, collectively, are fairly represented and their preferences catered for, others resent, as individuals, being pigeon-holed on account of their ethnic origin. A delicate balance for the BBC between ignoring social inequities and over compensating for them, between natural justice and indoctrination.
There seemed to be less interest in the licence fee, other than that the BBC should provide value for money. Certainly, there was no clamour to abolish it, but that was perhaps unlikely given that this was, to all appearances, a broadly pro-BBC audience who had taken some trouble to attend a BBC-organised meeting.
Most of the remaining questions touched on the content and quality of television programmes, though the Jerry Springer saga did lead on to the general matter of complaints, how they could be lodged and how they were considered by Governors. The kind of programmes that people felt were over represented – repeats and derivatives, lifestyle and makeover programmes – were not defended by the Governors. Right at the end the issue of accountability was raised but there was little time to pursue it.
It seemed that the subjects were aired thoroughly enough to satisfy most questioners – no cutting people off or leaving matters unresolved, but there wasn't time for all – or possibly even a majority – of the questions to be asked. The impression was of a rather overlong speech from the Chairman at the beginning, followed by a montage of the BBC's finest screen moments and a Vox Pop. In future it would surely be better to give a greater proportion of the limited time to the concerns of the audience.
Was it a success? Probably. Perhaps slightly tame. The Governors weren't in much trouble; they came over as being firm in their convictions, well able to justify them, and individually – most of them had an opportunity to speak – very well-informed. Since there are only twelve Governors (will the new Trustees be of the same number?) the idea that they should somehow be a more 'representative' cross-section of the population seems unfeasible. It was noted that no Governor was under 30: strangely (no, perhaps predictably) it was not pointed out – surely, more validly – that none of them appeared to be over 65 either. But that way madness lies: people should be appointed because they have experience, an impressive track-record and a commitment to do the job. If in practice that excludes most of the under-10s, under-20s and under-30s, so be it.
There was no overwhelming evidence of interest in the event from the public in general – one man said he had been rung up by the organisers a few days before and asked if he wanted to come, and he could have had more tickets if he had wanted them. Apathy, or could the meeting have been better promoted by the BBC? Other meetings are apparently planned, perhaps elsewhere in the country. Watch the Governors' website for details.
You can read about FoR3 at the Governors' meeting here.
There was not a lot which was of specific relevance to radio listeners, but the meeting offered an opportunity to hear various Governors and form judgements. A factual account is given here and a campaign view elsewhere.
Eleven of the twelve Governors, headed by Michael Grade, plus the Director-General, Mark Thompson, made up the panel and other senior BBC staff were in the audience. Written questions were submitted just before the meeting began; it appears that only a fairly small proportion of these were used, and it was not easy for any but the most determinedly vociferous to join in a discussion; most were listening politely most of the time. But, then, having heard a fair question, the interest lay in what the Governors had to say in reply – not in a diversity of contradictory supplementary comments from the audience.
Politics – the independence of the BBC and the impartiality of news reporting – attracted strong views; so did the question of catering for ethnic minorities. The Governors in each case jumped as predictably as the Bishop on sin, albeit in the opposite direction: they were for all three. On the latter point there were conflicting views: some want to feel that they, collectively, are fairly represented and their preferences catered for, others resent, as individuals, being pigeon-holed on account of their ethnic origin. A delicate balance for the BBC between ignoring social inequities and over compensating for them, between natural justice and indoctrination.
There seemed to be less interest in the licence fee, other than that the BBC should provide value for money. Certainly, there was no clamour to abolish it, but that was perhaps unlikely given that this was, to all appearances, a broadly pro-BBC audience who had taken some trouble to attend a BBC-organised meeting.
Most of the remaining questions touched on the content and quality of television programmes, though the Jerry Springer saga did lead on to the general matter of complaints, how they could be lodged and how they were considered by Governors. The kind of programmes that people felt were over represented – repeats and derivatives, lifestyle and makeover programmes – were not defended by the Governors. Right at the end the issue of accountability was raised but there was little time to pursue it.
It seemed that the subjects were aired thoroughly enough to satisfy most questioners – no cutting people off or leaving matters unresolved, but there wasn't time for all – or possibly even a majority – of the questions to be asked. The impression was of a rather overlong speech from the Chairman at the beginning, followed by a montage of the BBC's finest screen moments and a Vox Pop. In future it would surely be better to give a greater proportion of the limited time to the concerns of the audience.
Was it a success? Probably. Perhaps slightly tame. The Governors weren't in much trouble; they came over as being firm in their convictions, well able to justify them, and individually – most of them had an opportunity to speak – very well-informed. Since there are only twelve Governors (will the new Trustees be of the same number?) the idea that they should somehow be a more 'representative' cross-section of the population seems unfeasible. It was noted that no Governor was under 30: strangely (no, perhaps predictably) it was not pointed out – surely, more validly – that none of them appeared to be over 65 either. But that way madness lies: people should be appointed because they have experience, an impressive track-record and a commitment to do the job. If in practice that excludes most of the under-10s, under-20s and under-30s, so be it.
There was no overwhelming evidence of interest in the event from the public in general – one man said he had been rung up by the organisers a few days before and asked if he wanted to come, and he could have had more tickets if he had wanted them. Apathy, or could the meeting have been better promoted by the BBC? Other meetings are apparently planned, perhaps elsewhere in the country. Watch the Governors' website for details.
You can read about FoR3 at the Governors' meeting here.
24/7/05 BBC & R3 News: Annual Report 2004/2005
The Governors published the Annual Report on July 12th and the 148-page document is available for download here – either in full or in sections, radio being one section. Last year's report, in the wake of Hutton, was a rather sober affair, factual, objective. We took some comfort from the fact that the comments on Radio 3 included an acknowledgement of some listener unhappiness, and a commitment to take this into consideration in judging the station's performance. This year's report showed signs of what the Iannucci BBC Annual Report has described as 'an unyielding tone of confidence in your public and press pronouncements' and, with that, some unsupported value judgements.
Ratings are not the sole indication of performance. Nevertheless, in the light of the Governors' duty to assess performance, we would draw attention to one point. Last year much was made of Radio 3's 'record' figures – and good they certainly were; this year's ratings have been down. It is surprising to see a fall in reach of almost 7% described as 'a slight dip' – this is either an inadvertent slip, statistical ineptitude or spin. The percentage (of population) reach fell from 4.5% to 4.2%, that is, 0.3% of the total UK 15+ population. This is the equivalent of 145,000 – 147,000 fewer listeners each week than the previous year, a negligible amount in comparison with R2's 13 million listeners, but significant compared with R3's 2 million. If R2's reach had fallen by 7%, that would have been almost a million listeners.
The quarterly figures last year were 2.021m, 2.072m, 2.100m, 1.988m. Each quarter, and each year, has to be seen in the context not only of what comes before but also what comes after, so the full significance of these figures has yet to emerge. But, in terms of reach, last year was a weak year, percentage reach the second lowest since RAJAR's change in methodology in January 1999. We ask for that to be borne in mind in the light of expressed listener dissatisfaction.
Whereas last year the report spoke of listener unhappiness at 'the share of output given to non-classical music on Radio 3' and the Governor's intention to consider this in assessing the station's performance, this year, disappointingly, it reads: "We have noted the desire of some listeners for more classical music, but, having examined the output with the help of our advisers and taken into account the interests of the audience as a whole, we feel that the current schedule offers an appropriate balance of musical genres."
We are not asking for 'more classical music'. As far as we are concerned, in total hours, there is enough classical music. This is no response to the complaints that we have made, and it might appear from this that, unless we pursue the matter further, we are not going to be given one. How can we be assured that the nature of the output has been considered in the light of our complaints if we are not given any reply that suggests our complaints have even been understood?
Facts and figures
The cost of Radio 3 is given as £32m, compared with £32.1m last year, making it the only network station whose expenditure has not increased. In 2002/2003 the cost was given as £32.8m. Expenditure on the orchestras and performing groups decreased from £18.3m to £17.9m (however £16.1m in 2002/2003). Roughly £200m is spent on network radio, of which: R1 9%; R2 12%; R3 16%; R4 36%; R5L 27%.
Total licence fee revenue was £2,940.3m of which R3 is 1.09%. Of last year's £121 colour licence fee, £1.32 (a third of one penny per day) was spent on R3 and 61p (less than a fifth of one penny per day) on the orchestras and performing groups. The percentage of BBC expenditure allocated specifically to Radio 3, over the past few years, has been slightly decreasing; in fact, so, apparently, has the actual amount.
Output
It is difficult to interpret the figures here since, as we have said in the past, much of this table (Table 11) has the look of back-of-envelope calculations. Although the figures for 2003/2004 are given for comparison, the figures published in the Annual Report for 2003/2004 frequently don't correspond.
News: it appears that it has at last been conceded that R3 broadcasts more than 3 minutes of news per day. Instead of 18 or 19 hours (as given for 2002/2003 and 2003/2004), the figure is now given as 80 hours (and last year's figure has been amended to 79 hours instead of 19). This is nearer the mark, though certainly isn't an overestimate. It does mean that 60-odd hours which were previously classified as (classical) music have now been rightly allocated to news.
Drama (Drama on 3 and The Wire) appears to have been reduced from 103 hours in 2003/2004 to 93 hours last year. This is an average of 107 minutes per week (we may run a check on this), roughly the same as Andy Kershaw gets. Arts is given as 315 hours, compared with 298 hours in 2003/2004. There is a discrepancy here, since last year's Annual Report gave only 169 hours, not 298 hours. Since we are concerned about the small amount of arts coverage compared with light entertainment, it complicates matters if figures are inaccurate or classified in ways that are impossible to check. All we can say is that 315 hours is 52 minutes per day on average, which looks like a 45-minute Night Waves/Verb/Feature every day, plus Between the Ears. That amounts to an average of 6 hours a week, while Late Junction alone gets 7 hours in a typical week. And that, give or take, is the sum total of arts coverage on R3.
Religion has increased from 60 hours to 67. This is approximately 52 hours of Choral Evensong, seasonal discussion and perhaps some seasonal music programmes. All (night time) schools programming has now been dropped. Children's programmes have increased from 50 hours last year to 86. It's not at all clear where this extra 36 hours comes from. This is roughly 100 minutes per week. Making Tracks takes up 100 minutes per week but isn't on during school holidays. A couple of Blue Peter Proms and a Discovering Music for a school audience wouldn't account for all the extra. This is probably another figure to be amended in time for next year.
Presentation (we are assured) is down again: last year 51 hours, the year before 55 hours and the year before that 59 hours.
Music: It always seems as if the system here is to work out how much there was of the various bits and pieces and then count whatever is left as music. Last year there were 8,068 hours of (all genres) music. Depending where you're looking, in the year 2003/2004 there were either 8,075 hours (this year's report) or 8,264 hours (last year's report). What that's all about is anyone's guess.
There are no official figures published giving a breakdown of the music genres and the percentages fluctuate throughout the year: the Proms increase the proportion of classical music, whereas Christmas/New Year has seen Broadway and world music dominating. What one can say is that in a 'typical week' – and the schedule maintains a rigid formula – the regular non-classical music shows (i.e. excluding the one-offs and hybrid programmes) represent 10.7% of output but occupy a third of the evening schedules. The arts programming occupies the evenings too. Music documentaries and magazines (CD Review, Music Matters, Discovering Music, Composer of the Week) are included as classical music. Such programmes as Private Passions, Voices and In Tune, with a variable amount of non-classical music, are also rated as classical. The percentage of classical music also includes the music that is broadcast throughout the night.
We note that the Director-General opened his statement with the words which Beethoven inscribed on his manuscript of the Missa solemnis: "From the heart – may it go to the heart!" He also added: "Radio 3's range of music continued to broaden in what was also an exceptionally strong year for drama and documentary." No further details about the broadening range of music, so we are left to wonder how much more it will broaden and by how much more it will increase.
In declaring that they must take into account the interests of the audience as a whole, do the Governors not feel this is a peculiar form of logic? First alter the range of programming to bring in new audiences; when, as a result, some of this content is questioned, reply that this new audience must also be catered for, even though they wouldn't be there at all if you hadn't introduced the new content in the first place. This is carte blanche to do anything you want.
Ratings are not the sole indication of performance. Nevertheless, in the light of the Governors' duty to assess performance, we would draw attention to one point. Last year much was made of Radio 3's 'record' figures – and good they certainly were; this year's ratings have been down. It is surprising to see a fall in reach of almost 7% described as 'a slight dip' – this is either an inadvertent slip, statistical ineptitude or spin. The percentage (of population) reach fell from 4.5% to 4.2%, that is, 0.3% of the total UK 15+ population. This is the equivalent of 145,000 – 147,000 fewer listeners each week than the previous year, a negligible amount in comparison with R2's 13 million listeners, but significant compared with R3's 2 million. If R2's reach had fallen by 7%, that would have been almost a million listeners.
The quarterly figures last year were 2.021m, 2.072m, 2.100m, 1.988m. Each quarter, and each year, has to be seen in the context not only of what comes before but also what comes after, so the full significance of these figures has yet to emerge. But, in terms of reach, last year was a weak year, percentage reach the second lowest since RAJAR's change in methodology in January 1999. We ask for that to be borne in mind in the light of expressed listener dissatisfaction.
Whereas last year the report spoke of listener unhappiness at 'the share of output given to non-classical music on Radio 3' and the Governor's intention to consider this in assessing the station's performance, this year, disappointingly, it reads: "We have noted the desire of some listeners for more classical music, but, having examined the output with the help of our advisers and taken into account the interests of the audience as a whole, we feel that the current schedule offers an appropriate balance of musical genres."
We are not asking for 'more classical music'. As far as we are concerned, in total hours, there is enough classical music. This is no response to the complaints that we have made, and it might appear from this that, unless we pursue the matter further, we are not going to be given one. How can we be assured that the nature of the output has been considered in the light of our complaints if we are not given any reply that suggests our complaints have even been understood?
Facts and figures
The cost of Radio 3 is given as £32m, compared with £32.1m last year, making it the only network station whose expenditure has not increased. In 2002/2003 the cost was given as £32.8m. Expenditure on the orchestras and performing groups decreased from £18.3m to £17.9m (however £16.1m in 2002/2003). Roughly £200m is spent on network radio, of which: R1 9%; R2 12%; R3 16%; R4 36%; R5L 27%.
Total licence fee revenue was £2,940.3m of which R3 is 1.09%. Of last year's £121 colour licence fee, £1.32 (a third of one penny per day) was spent on R3 and 61p (less than a fifth of one penny per day) on the orchestras and performing groups. The percentage of BBC expenditure allocated specifically to Radio 3, over the past few years, has been slightly decreasing; in fact, so, apparently, has the actual amount.
Output
It is difficult to interpret the figures here since, as we have said in the past, much of this table (Table 11) has the look of back-of-envelope calculations. Although the figures for 2003/2004 are given for comparison, the figures published in the Annual Report for 2003/2004 frequently don't correspond.
News: it appears that it has at last been conceded that R3 broadcasts more than 3 minutes of news per day. Instead of 18 or 19 hours (as given for 2002/2003 and 2003/2004), the figure is now given as 80 hours (and last year's figure has been amended to 79 hours instead of 19). This is nearer the mark, though certainly isn't an overestimate. It does mean that 60-odd hours which were previously classified as (classical) music have now been rightly allocated to news.
Drama (Drama on 3 and The Wire) appears to have been reduced from 103 hours in 2003/2004 to 93 hours last year. This is an average of 107 minutes per week (we may run a check on this), roughly the same as Andy Kershaw gets. Arts is given as 315 hours, compared with 298 hours in 2003/2004. There is a discrepancy here, since last year's Annual Report gave only 169 hours, not 298 hours. Since we are concerned about the small amount of arts coverage compared with light entertainment, it complicates matters if figures are inaccurate or classified in ways that are impossible to check. All we can say is that 315 hours is 52 minutes per day on average, which looks like a 45-minute Night Waves/Verb/Feature every day, plus Between the Ears. That amounts to an average of 6 hours a week, while Late Junction alone gets 7 hours in a typical week. And that, give or take, is the sum total of arts coverage on R3.
Religion has increased from 60 hours to 67. This is approximately 52 hours of Choral Evensong, seasonal discussion and perhaps some seasonal music programmes. All (night time) schools programming has now been dropped. Children's programmes have increased from 50 hours last year to 86. It's not at all clear where this extra 36 hours comes from. This is roughly 100 minutes per week. Making Tracks takes up 100 minutes per week but isn't on during school holidays. A couple of Blue Peter Proms and a Discovering Music for a school audience wouldn't account for all the extra. This is probably another figure to be amended in time for next year.
Presentation (we are assured) is down again: last year 51 hours, the year before 55 hours and the year before that 59 hours.
Music: It always seems as if the system here is to work out how much there was of the various bits and pieces and then count whatever is left as music. Last year there were 8,068 hours of (all genres) music. Depending where you're looking, in the year 2003/2004 there were either 8,075 hours (this year's report) or 8,264 hours (last year's report). What that's all about is anyone's guess.
There are no official figures published giving a breakdown of the music genres and the percentages fluctuate throughout the year: the Proms increase the proportion of classical music, whereas Christmas/New Year has seen Broadway and world music dominating. What one can say is that in a 'typical week' – and the schedule maintains a rigid formula – the regular non-classical music shows (i.e. excluding the one-offs and hybrid programmes) represent 10.7% of output but occupy a third of the evening schedules. The arts programming occupies the evenings too. Music documentaries and magazines (CD Review, Music Matters, Discovering Music, Composer of the Week) are included as classical music. Such programmes as Private Passions, Voices and In Tune, with a variable amount of non-classical music, are also rated as classical. The percentage of classical music also includes the music that is broadcast throughout the night.
We note that the Director-General opened his statement with the words which Beethoven inscribed on his manuscript of the Missa solemnis: "From the heart – may it go to the heart!" He also added: "Radio 3's range of music continued to broaden in what was also an exceptionally strong year for drama and documentary." No further details about the broadening range of music, so we are left to wonder how much more it will broaden and by how much more it will increase.
In declaring that they must take into account the interests of the audience as a whole, do the Governors not feel this is a peculiar form of logic? First alter the range of programming to bring in new audiences; when, as a result, some of this content is questioned, reply that this new audience must also be catered for, even though they wouldn't be there at all if you hadn't introduced the new content in the first place. This is carte blanche to do anything you want.
Controller's Note, Jun. 2005
BEETHOVEN
We are on the verge of another Proms season, a landmark in the Radio 3 schedule. Before concentrating on the coming month, I would like to thank you for making another network event so memorable with all your comments and your enthusiasm for the downloading initiative. The overwhelmingly positive reaction to The Beethoven Experience in June was really appreciated; so many of you took the time to write, and did so in an extremely memorable way. We met the school children whose exam revision was being disrupted; the septuaganarian insisting on walking around Birmingham with his Walkman; the immigrant who said that the broadcasts made her proud of her adopted country; and various people who had become insomniacs so as not to miss the music. People also shared with us the ways in which the music of Beethoven helped them through difficult life experiences. It was a great privilege to read these reactions, and thank you for sharing them with us.
For our part, we were extremely pleased to have had such an effect on so many people, an impact which is ultimately due to the continuing vitality of Beethoven's music. The downloads, too, had an interesting outcome: apart from the astonishing number of download requests (over 650,000) of just symphonies one to five, offering the music in this way was encouraging people who had not discovered classical music to sample his music. As one email said, 'I am really enjoying a new style of music'. The later symphonies are being broadcast this week, with downloads available for seven days: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/downloads.shtml. Later this year we will be playing the complete works of Webern (much less than Beethoven!) during the course of one day, and then before Christmas we will be presenting another marathon, the complete works of Bach. We don't wish any of you sleepless nights in December, but we are delighted that you so many of you found this way of prese!nting a composer's works to be so appealing.
THE PROMS
And so to the Proms: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/. This great festival forms the backbone of Radio 3 evenings during the next two months: as usual there are a number of themes which take us through the season, The Sea, Fairy Tales commemorating Hans Christian Andersen, and a number of anniversaries, among which pride of place must be given to Tippett. You can get yourself ready for the season by listening to the Proms Preview Night on Monday 11th July. Stephanie Hughes and Andrew McGregor will be discussing the season with Nicholas Kenyon, Director of the festival. Rob Cowan presents Innocent Ear selections based on the Proms themes and Andrew Marr launches an A-Z of The Proms. There is also a competition in which listeners can win tickets.
The opening night, Friday 15th July, will also be relayed to London's Trafalgar Square on giant screens, and it puts Tippett at the heart of the celebrations with his A Child of Our Time, marking his own anniversary and 60 years from the end of the war. We continue in a very English vein on the following night with Gilbert and Sullivan – HMS Pinafore – and then the Gabrieli Consort & Players are directed by Paul McCreesh. And on Monday 18th July, we have the Royal Opera House production of Wagner's Die Walküre, as Plácido Domingo makes his Proms debut. It is difficult to single out individual events from such a rich season, but if you have children in your family, you might note the two Blue Peter Proms on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th; these are extremely enjoyable events designed to appeal to a younger audience. We also have new commissions, such as James MacMillan (July 21st) with his A Scotch Bestiary, a 'fantasy menagerie', and the UK Premiere of John Corigliano's Vi!olin Concerto – 'The Red Violin' – performed by Joshua Bell on 28th July – you might have seen the film, now hear the concerto!
WOMAD
But the Proms is not the only festival in July, we are also going to the weekend WOMAD in Reading (from the evening of Friday 29th). In the company of Lucy Duran, Andrew McGregor and Andy Kershaw, we are presenting a day-to-day account of musicians at the "world music Glastonbury". As always, there is a great line-up of artists, well-known and less familiar to us in the UK, and we will be bringing you the unique atmosphere and excitement of this festival. You have probably noticed that the BBC is concentrating on Africa during 2005, and Radio 3 is playing a major part covering the continent's culture and music.
On the evening of Sunday 10th you can visit the Maasai tribe in Kenya in the company of Ben Zephaniah, and explore their nomadic way of live. Later the same evening, Andy Kershaw introduce a session introduces with Rise Kagona, guitarist, and only surviving member of Zimbabwe's leading group of the Eighties, the Bhundu Boys.
We're always keen to find out what you think about email newsletters, and so we would be very grateful if you could take a few minutes to complete a survey. You can launch the survey by clicking on this link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/survey/emailsurveys/controller/controlleremailnewsletter.htm Thank you.
As usual, we hope you find much to enjoy on Radio 3. And if you are having a holiday break during the summer, do have an enjoyable and relaxing time.
Roger Wright
We are on the verge of another Proms season, a landmark in the Radio 3 schedule. Before concentrating on the coming month, I would like to thank you for making another network event so memorable with all your comments and your enthusiasm for the downloading initiative. The overwhelmingly positive reaction to The Beethoven Experience in June was really appreciated; so many of you took the time to write, and did so in an extremely memorable way. We met the school children whose exam revision was being disrupted; the septuaganarian insisting on walking around Birmingham with his Walkman; the immigrant who said that the broadcasts made her proud of her adopted country; and various people who had become insomniacs so as not to miss the music. People also shared with us the ways in which the music of Beethoven helped them through difficult life experiences. It was a great privilege to read these reactions, and thank you for sharing them with us.
For our part, we were extremely pleased to have had such an effect on so many people, an impact which is ultimately due to the continuing vitality of Beethoven's music. The downloads, too, had an interesting outcome: apart from the astonishing number of download requests (over 650,000) of just symphonies one to five, offering the music in this way was encouraging people who had not discovered classical music to sample his music. As one email said, 'I am really enjoying a new style of music'. The later symphonies are being broadcast this week, with downloads available for seven days: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/downloads.shtml. Later this year we will be playing the complete works of Webern (much less than Beethoven!) during the course of one day, and then before Christmas we will be presenting another marathon, the complete works of Bach. We don't wish any of you sleepless nights in December, but we are delighted that you so many of you found this way of prese!nting a composer's works to be so appealing.
THE PROMS
And so to the Proms: http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/. This great festival forms the backbone of Radio 3 evenings during the next two months: as usual there are a number of themes which take us through the season, The Sea, Fairy Tales commemorating Hans Christian Andersen, and a number of anniversaries, among which pride of place must be given to Tippett. You can get yourself ready for the season by listening to the Proms Preview Night on Monday 11th July. Stephanie Hughes and Andrew McGregor will be discussing the season with Nicholas Kenyon, Director of the festival. Rob Cowan presents Innocent Ear selections based on the Proms themes and Andrew Marr launches an A-Z of The Proms. There is also a competition in which listeners can win tickets.
The opening night, Friday 15th July, will also be relayed to London's Trafalgar Square on giant screens, and it puts Tippett at the heart of the celebrations with his A Child of Our Time, marking his own anniversary and 60 years from the end of the war. We continue in a very English vein on the following night with Gilbert and Sullivan – HMS Pinafore – and then the Gabrieli Consort & Players are directed by Paul McCreesh. And on Monday 18th July, we have the Royal Opera House production of Wagner's Die Walküre, as Plácido Domingo makes his Proms debut. It is difficult to single out individual events from such a rich season, but if you have children in your family, you might note the two Blue Peter Proms on Saturday 23rd and Sunday 24th; these are extremely enjoyable events designed to appeal to a younger audience. We also have new commissions, such as James MacMillan (July 21st) with his A Scotch Bestiary, a 'fantasy menagerie', and the UK Premiere of John Corigliano's Vi!olin Concerto – 'The Red Violin' – performed by Joshua Bell on 28th July – you might have seen the film, now hear the concerto!
WOMAD
But the Proms is not the only festival in July, we are also going to the weekend WOMAD in Reading (from the evening of Friday 29th). In the company of Lucy Duran, Andrew McGregor and Andy Kershaw, we are presenting a day-to-day account of musicians at the "world music Glastonbury". As always, there is a great line-up of artists, well-known and less familiar to us in the UK, and we will be bringing you the unique atmosphere and excitement of this festival. You have probably noticed that the BBC is concentrating on Africa during 2005, and Radio 3 is playing a major part covering the continent's culture and music.
On the evening of Sunday 10th you can visit the Maasai tribe in Kenya in the company of Ben Zephaniah, and explore their nomadic way of live. Later the same evening, Andy Kershaw introduce a session introduces with Rise Kagona, guitarist, and only surviving member of Zimbabwe's leading group of the Eighties, the Bhundu Boys.
We're always keen to find out what you think about email newsletters, and so we would be very grateful if you could take a few minutes to complete a survey. You can launch the survey by clicking on this link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/survey/emailsurveys/controller/controlleremailnewsletter.htm Thank you.
As usual, we hope you find much to enjoy on Radio 3. And if you are having a holiday break during the summer, do have an enjoyable and relaxing time.
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, May 2005
I only have one subject this month, namely The Beethoven Experience. We are just about to plunge into the most intense week of broadcasts Radio 3 has ever undertaken: the complete works of Beethoven – an in-depth look at both the well-known works, as well as some which, remarkably, remain to be more widely appreciated.
Rob Cowan will be starting us off on Sunday morning, and after that the long and fascinating journey will continue, including many surprises: three large-scale cantatas for soloists, chorus and orchestra; the 'Romance Cantabile' for piano, flute, bassoon and orchestra; ten themes and variations for flute and piano lasting more than 45 minutes; the scene from 'Vestas Feuer', for soloists, chorus and orchestra; 'Germania', and 'Es ist vollbracht' for bass, chorus and orchestra, etc. Perhaps you know of the more than 100 arrangements of folk songs for voice and piano trio, but how many times have we heard the pieces listed above? How many more pieces by Beethoven do we hear all too rarely – works which provide a landscape against which to view the standard repertoire?
When I was head of Artists and Repertoire at Deutsche Grammophon, we created a complete Beethoven edition. It was a real journey of discovery: not only were we able to discover works that are hardly known but, crucially, it also gave us the opportunity to discuss comparative performances of the better known music – and we had some really lively debates about our preferred versions! Ten years on I find myself in the middle of another Beethoven voyage of discovery – The Beethoven Experience on Radio 3. 'Every note, one week' is certainly a challenge, but it is in some respects like any other Radio 3 week – live and specially recorded music, complete works, and music in context, with authoritative presenters; and who better than Alfred Brendel, Sir Roger Norrington and Peter Cropper to guide us through some of the core works and discuss points of interpretation?
I hope you will enjoy the stimulation of the week and the challenge of hearing the music you don't know; you will be able to listen again to all the music online within a week of the original broadcasts. We have created a really informative website to help you navigate The Beethoven Experience: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/. You can find out about the highlights, listen to the Beethoven letters, do the Beethoven quiz and much more besides.
In addition, you can sign up for Beethoven newsletters: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/newsletters/index.shtml#beethovenexperience and SMS text alerts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/textalert.shtml to steer you through the week.
And if you still want even more music, you can download the symphonies performed by the BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda to your MP3 player http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/downloads.shtml, and listen to the piano sonatas online performed by Artur Pizarro: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/pizarro/index.shtml together with programme notes. There are many ways to enjoy Beethoven's music on Radio 3!
We also want to hear your views, on the Beethoven message board. Let the discussions about favourite pieces and interpreters rage and be lively and fun: the debate has already started. One thing is certain, there will be some bleary-eyed Beethoven lovers by the middle of June – and then it is on to Webern in September and Bach at Christmas.
Best wishes for an enjoyable rediscovery of Beethoven's music in all its variety.
Roger Wright
Rob Cowan will be starting us off on Sunday morning, and after that the long and fascinating journey will continue, including many surprises: three large-scale cantatas for soloists, chorus and orchestra; the 'Romance Cantabile' for piano, flute, bassoon and orchestra; ten themes and variations for flute and piano lasting more than 45 minutes; the scene from 'Vestas Feuer', for soloists, chorus and orchestra; 'Germania', and 'Es ist vollbracht' for bass, chorus and orchestra, etc. Perhaps you know of the more than 100 arrangements of folk songs for voice and piano trio, but how many times have we heard the pieces listed above? How many more pieces by Beethoven do we hear all too rarely – works which provide a landscape against which to view the standard repertoire?
When I was head of Artists and Repertoire at Deutsche Grammophon, we created a complete Beethoven edition. It was a real journey of discovery: not only were we able to discover works that are hardly known but, crucially, it also gave us the opportunity to discuss comparative performances of the better known music – and we had some really lively debates about our preferred versions! Ten years on I find myself in the middle of another Beethoven voyage of discovery – The Beethoven Experience on Radio 3. 'Every note, one week' is certainly a challenge, but it is in some respects like any other Radio 3 week – live and specially recorded music, complete works, and music in context, with authoritative presenters; and who better than Alfred Brendel, Sir Roger Norrington and Peter Cropper to guide us through some of the core works and discuss points of interpretation?
I hope you will enjoy the stimulation of the week and the challenge of hearing the music you don't know; you will be able to listen again to all the music online within a week of the original broadcasts. We have created a really informative website to help you navigate The Beethoven Experience: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/. You can find out about the highlights, listen to the Beethoven letters, do the Beethoven quiz and much more besides.
In addition, you can sign up for Beethoven newsletters: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/newsletters/index.shtml#beethovenexperience and SMS text alerts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/textalert.shtml to steer you through the week.
And if you still want even more music, you can download the symphonies performed by the BBC Philharmonic and Gianandrea Noseda to your MP3 player http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven/downloads.shtml, and listen to the piano sonatas online performed by Artur Pizarro: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/pizarro/index.shtml together with programme notes. There are many ways to enjoy Beethoven's music on Radio 3!
We also want to hear your views, on the Beethoven message board. Let the discussions about favourite pieces and interpreters rage and be lively and fun: the debate has already started. One thing is certain, there will be some bleary-eyed Beethoven lovers by the middle of June – and then it is on to Webern in September and Bach at Christmas.
Best wishes for an enjoyable rediscovery of Beethoven's music in all its variety.
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Apr. 2005
Dear All
We are soon coming to the end of this season of operas from the Metropolitan Opera, New York. We hope to be able to present the final opera of the season with surtitles available on DAB and Freeview. This is something we tried a few months ago with Wagner's Das Rheingold. Both long-standing Wagner fans and newcomers liked the way that the translation drew them into the opera. Do listen and and keep your eyes open for the performance of Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito with text on the evening of Saturday May 7th. Clearly, this is something we would like to achieve more frequently in the future, and we would like your feedback on the experience. Whether or not you choose to follow the text, you can certainly enjoy the singing of Anne Sofie von Otter and Sarah Connolly.
Later in the same week we will be broadcasting the Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) Music Awards, which are presented in association with Radio 3. You, the listeners, have been voting on the Radio 3 Listener Award category, and as you can see from the website ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/rpsawards05.shtml) Sir Colin Davis, The Florestan Trio, and Sir Charles Mackerras are on the shortlist. These annual awards are the UK's leading way of recognising achievement in the field of classical music, and honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. Thursday 12th May promises to be an exciting evening celebrating some great British musical talent, as Sir Andrew Davis and Radio 3's Stephanie Hughes present the awards. There is a keynote speech by Jude Kelly, and In Tune presenter Sean Rafferty talks to the musicians and introduces performances of their music.
We are continuing our ongoing Tippett celebrations for his aniversary year with A Child of Our Time (Sunday 8th) and The Knot Garden (Saturday 14th); the latter is performed live by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. On the 25th, we have a recording from the world premiere performances of 1984 by Lorin Maazel, conducted by the composer at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Based on George Orwell's novel, this promises to be a graphic warning about the threat of intolerant and impersonal society, and highly relevant in today's world. "I think the audience will be utterly traumatised, because, I'm afraid, we have gone all the way," Maazel says. "Orwell deserves that, and the fears of our day deserve that. If people walk out of that theatre saying that we have to do everything in our power to make sure that 1984 never happens, then we'll have accomplished something". We have another chilling moment on Sunday May 8th, when Corin Redgrave narrates his new adaptation of Primo Levi's celebrated novel, If Not Now, When?, broadcast to mark the 60th anniversary of VE Day. Levi based his gripping account of the lives of a group of Jewish partisans who fight their way from Russia towards Italy on a story recounted to him by a friend who worked in an Italian refugee centre at the end of the War. It is a novel about the moral choices with which total warfare confronts people.
Normally, World Routes takes us on a wide-ranging journey across the globe, but on May 7th we are closer to home, as Fiona Talkington presents a rough guide to the music of Northern Europe, and Swedish Nyckelharpa player Johan Hedin plays live in the studio. Hedin, who grew up in a flourishing folk music environment in Småland in the south of Sweden, creates astonishing sounds on the national instrument. The Sunday Feature on May 29th goes further afield as we visit Somaliland: after nearly fifteen years of relative peace and democratic stability, the citizens insist that this separated part of Somalia is a model African nation – yet the international community refuses to recognise its right to exist. Shaheera Asante tells the story through the eyes of its people and of the Somali expat community in Wales, many of whom devote themselves to helping their relatives in nurturing the fledgling state. Also listen out for the BBC Symphony Orchestra's Africa concert the same evening!
On Sunday afternoon, May 29th, we begin an occasional series presenting the music and sonic arts scene in the United States. Presented by Jamie Bernstein, this will be centered around New York, and offers an informed insider's view of the vitality and diversity of US cultural life. This introduces our week-long Bernstein season (from May 29th) when we assess Leonard Bernstein's achievement fifteen years after his death, and Performance on 3 is centered around the BBC Orchestras. During the week we will be reflecting a great range of his music, culminating in a performance of Candide by the BBC Concert Orchestra on Saturday 4th June. In the same week, we draw on the BBC archives in discovering his music for Broadway, while CD Masters concentrates on Bernstein as a performer of other people's music.
From Sunday June 5th we will be playing nothing but Beethoven, covering the entire works – every piece – including many byways of the repertory only known to the real Beethoven experts. Given the vitality of Beethoven's music this will probably be exhausting, but we trust it will also be envigorating. More about Beethoven in my next note…
In the meantime, I hope you continue to enjoy and be engaged by what we have to offer you on Radio 3 and have taken a chance to look at our website to find out about this year's Proms season which has just been announced: www.bbc.co.uk/proms.
Roger Wright
We are soon coming to the end of this season of operas from the Metropolitan Opera, New York. We hope to be able to present the final opera of the season with surtitles available on DAB and Freeview. This is something we tried a few months ago with Wagner's Das Rheingold. Both long-standing Wagner fans and newcomers liked the way that the translation drew them into the opera. Do listen and and keep your eyes open for the performance of Mozart's La Clemenza di Tito with text on the evening of Saturday May 7th. Clearly, this is something we would like to achieve more frequently in the future, and we would like your feedback on the experience. Whether or not you choose to follow the text, you can certainly enjoy the singing of Anne Sofie von Otter and Sarah Connolly.
Later in the same week we will be broadcasting the Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) Music Awards, which are presented in association with Radio 3. You, the listeners, have been voting on the Radio 3 Listener Award category, and as you can see from the website ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/rpsawards05.shtml) Sir Colin Davis, The Florestan Trio, and Sir Charles Mackerras are on the shortlist. These annual awards are the UK's leading way of recognising achievement in the field of classical music, and honour musicians, composers, writers, broadcasters and inspirational arts organisations. Thursday 12th May promises to be an exciting evening celebrating some great British musical talent, as Sir Andrew Davis and Radio 3's Stephanie Hughes present the awards. There is a keynote speech by Jude Kelly, and In Tune presenter Sean Rafferty talks to the musicians and introduces performances of their music.
We are continuing our ongoing Tippett celebrations for his aniversary year with A Child of Our Time (Sunday 8th) and The Knot Garden (Saturday 14th); the latter is performed live by the BBC Symphony Orchestra. On the 25th, we have a recording from the world premiere performances of 1984 by Lorin Maazel, conducted by the composer at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Based on George Orwell's novel, this promises to be a graphic warning about the threat of intolerant and impersonal society, and highly relevant in today's world. "I think the audience will be utterly traumatised, because, I'm afraid, we have gone all the way," Maazel says. "Orwell deserves that, and the fears of our day deserve that. If people walk out of that theatre saying that we have to do everything in our power to make sure that 1984 never happens, then we'll have accomplished something". We have another chilling moment on Sunday May 8th, when Corin Redgrave narrates his new adaptation of Primo Levi's celebrated novel, If Not Now, When?, broadcast to mark the 60th anniversary of VE Day. Levi based his gripping account of the lives of a group of Jewish partisans who fight their way from Russia towards Italy on a story recounted to him by a friend who worked in an Italian refugee centre at the end of the War. It is a novel about the moral choices with which total warfare confronts people.
Normally, World Routes takes us on a wide-ranging journey across the globe, but on May 7th we are closer to home, as Fiona Talkington presents a rough guide to the music of Northern Europe, and Swedish Nyckelharpa player Johan Hedin plays live in the studio. Hedin, who grew up in a flourishing folk music environment in Småland in the south of Sweden, creates astonishing sounds on the national instrument. The Sunday Feature on May 29th goes further afield as we visit Somaliland: after nearly fifteen years of relative peace and democratic stability, the citizens insist that this separated part of Somalia is a model African nation – yet the international community refuses to recognise its right to exist. Shaheera Asante tells the story through the eyes of its people and of the Somali expat community in Wales, many of whom devote themselves to helping their relatives in nurturing the fledgling state. Also listen out for the BBC Symphony Orchestra's Africa concert the same evening!
On Sunday afternoon, May 29th, we begin an occasional series presenting the music and sonic arts scene in the United States. Presented by Jamie Bernstein, this will be centered around New York, and offers an informed insider's view of the vitality and diversity of US cultural life. This introduces our week-long Bernstein season (from May 29th) when we assess Leonard Bernstein's achievement fifteen years after his death, and Performance on 3 is centered around the BBC Orchestras. During the week we will be reflecting a great range of his music, culminating in a performance of Candide by the BBC Concert Orchestra on Saturday 4th June. In the same week, we draw on the BBC archives in discovering his music for Broadway, while CD Masters concentrates on Bernstein as a performer of other people's music.
From Sunday June 5th we will be playing nothing but Beethoven, covering the entire works – every piece – including many byways of the repertory only known to the real Beethoven experts. Given the vitality of Beethoven's music this will probably be exhausting, but we trust it will also be envigorating. More about Beethoven in my next note…
In the meantime, I hope you continue to enjoy and be engaged by what we have to offer you on Radio 3 and have taken a chance to look at our website to find out about this year's Proms season which has just been announced: www.bbc.co.uk/proms.
Roger Wright
20/4/05 Statements of Intent
The BBC's Statements of Programme Policy 2005/2006 have now been published. Last year's statements were poorly received in some quarters of the press ('a dog's breakfast', 'spectacularly pointless'). We posted our misgivings about the terms in which Radio 3's policy was expressed and the fact that it found little to say about classical music at all.
Our submission to the Governors, prior to the publication of last year's statements, drew attention to the 'apologetic note in the remit whenever classical music is mentioned':
'The network offers more than traditional classical music, including world music and jazz'
'Classical music remains at the heart of the schedule, but enriched by jazz and world music'
'Helping to rejuvenate established brands such as Radio 3 by creating a permanent presence for the network's jazz and world music output'
We also said that there was too much arts discussion and too little of the spoken arts.
This year we have no complaint about the emphasis, which is indicated from the start. Compare the standfirst last year: 'BBC Radio 3 provides a broad spectrum of classical music, jazz, world music, drama and arts discussions' with this year: 'BBC Radio 3 is centred on classical music, and also provides a broad spectrum of jazz, world music, drama and arts programmes.'
Whether there will be any perceptible results for the listener is another matter, but we can assume that this represents a tacit acceptance of our complaint, if only in recognising that the poor drafting of last year's document clearly needed amendment.
It may be that even with this classical-centred policy statement management will not feel under an obligation to make any other on-air concessions; but this is a public document which is clearly sending out a message (notably to government during Charter review) that classical music and the arts are Radio 3's main business, and they can be held to that.
Our submission to the Governors, prior to the publication of last year's statements, drew attention to the 'apologetic note in the remit whenever classical music is mentioned':
'The network offers more than traditional classical music, including world music and jazz'
'Classical music remains at the heart of the schedule, but enriched by jazz and world music'
'Helping to rejuvenate established brands such as Radio 3 by creating a permanent presence for the network's jazz and world music output'
We also said that there was too much arts discussion and too little of the spoken arts.
This year we have no complaint about the emphasis, which is indicated from the start. Compare the standfirst last year: 'BBC Radio 3 provides a broad spectrum of classical music, jazz, world music, drama and arts discussions' with this year: 'BBC Radio 3 is centred on classical music, and also provides a broad spectrum of jazz, world music, drama and arts programmes.'
Whether there will be any perceptible results for the listener is another matter, but we can assume that this represents a tacit acceptance of our complaint, if only in recognising that the poor drafting of last year's document clearly needed amendment.
It may be that even with this classical-centred policy statement management will not feel under an obligation to make any other on-air concessions; but this is a public document which is clearly sending out a message (notably to government during Charter review) that classical music and the arts are Radio 3's main business, and they can be held to that.
Controller's Note, Apr. 2005
Dear All
We hope you found much to enjoy during the Easter weekend with our residency at King's College, Cambridge. We have had some very positive feedback about the performances and the atmosphere that the broadcasts created; and I am delighted that so many of you enjoyed the chance to hear again Anthony Pitts "Passion 4 Radio".
During much of the rest of the year we are on the travel round, presenting music from across the whole UK: during April we will visit London, Birmingham, Manchester, Poole, Belfast and Glasgow, as well as following the BBC National Orchestra of Wales on tour in Stuttgart. Our partnerships with many performing groups across the country make this possible: for instance, the two upcoming broadcasts from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra are part of an ongoing relationship which has benefited the orchestra's local profile as well as giving more national coverage to the orchestra's excellent work under its chief conductor Marin Alsop. You can hear the first of these concerts on Wednesday 13th, when Marin Alsop conducts a concert including Stravinsky's Petrushka and featuring Tasmin Little in Bruch's first violin concerto.
Before that, we have one of our special evenings, over four hours in which we can reflect on the wonderful singing of one of the greatest singers of the 20th century: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, now in her 90th year. On Wednesday evening (6th), Iain Burnside presents Radio 3's tribute to her life and artistry, including extracts from some of her recordings with lively discussion and debate from studio guests including Mary King, Jeremy Sams and Edward Seckerson. Schwarzkopf was famous for her Strauss and Mozart on the operatic stage, and equally for her Wolf and Schubert on the concert platform. These varied facets of her musical character will be covered in a fascinating series of extracts from different stages in her career. We will hear her singing Schubert in the 1940s, and then performing Strauss songs with Gerald Moore at the 1956 Salzburg Festival. From the same astonishing year, there is her performance, under the direction of Karajan, of the roles of Alice in Verdi's Falstaff and the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier – and in the course of the evening there's Puccini, Wolf, Walton, Bach and of course Mozart as well.
Messiaen was extremely eclectic in his influences: from Indian rhythms to birdsong, not to mention innumerable other facets of his music, such as colours, mountains, and writings from the scriptures and theologians. Birdsong takes centre stage on the evening of Thursday 21st, when we have a special evening, 'Landscape with Birds', when the music of Messiaen's Catalogue des Oiseaux meets the birdsong in which the composer found his inspiration and material. It's worth hearing from the diary of Grant Sonnex, the producer, about the lengths he went to in order to recreate Messiaen's experience:
'My dripping microphone leads and sodden windshields are hung to dry over the shower door in this small hotel room on the wild island of Ouessant –– a stomach-churning hour by ferry off the Brittany coast –– and all around me are wet clothes and the damp paraphernalia of sound recording. But it's been a good day: this morning, the piping of Oystercatchers on a rock beach sloping down to the broken surf; then the raucous calls of herring gulls clattering round the cliff faces of a hollow cove, and, before the rain set in, I heard a distant curlew through the wind on La Point de Pern – just where Messiaen heard that sound more than 50 years ago. This place and this bird was the inspiration for his composition, Le Courlis Cendré – the curlew. Recording the birds today it was tempting to try to get close to them; to isolate their calls and tease them out of the sounds of the wild weather. But the voices of the birds are part of the fabric here. They can't be unpicked from the warp and weft of wind and waves. And together these sounds speak of the structure and mood of the landscape.'
Complementing that extraordinary experience, we hear some poems commissioned specially for the network from Andrew Motion by Radio 3. These express his growing interest in, and love for British birds. That leads to Edward Cowie's Birdsong Bagatelles. Cowie is Artist in Association for the RSPB, and these twenty-four bagatelles express his long-standing interest in birdsong, as each piece presents an acoustic portrait of a single bird.
Among our drama highlights this month, there is Michael Grandage's version of Schiller's Don Carlos, which stars Sir Derek Jacobi; this specially recorded production for Radio 3 has been performed on stage (first in Sheffield then London) to great acclaim, and this is a unique chance to hear this story of royal intrigue in which both the throne and marriage bed of the Spanish King Philip II are compromised by his ambitious son, Carlos.
As usual this is only the tip of the Radio 3 iceberg of music and ideas which we have for you this month. Just glancing through the schedules for this month, there are two piano recitals containing Schubert from two great artists, Mitsuko Uchida and Louis Lortie (18th and 12th); we have an exploration of Stravinsky in Composer of the Week (from 18th); the Early Music Show gives us two sides of Bach (9th and 10th), influences on him and his influences on others; and in Sunday Gala, also on the 10th, we have the baritone Thomas Quasthoff and James Levine performing Schubert's song-cycle Winterreise. And we have not forgotten the Tippett anniversary, since we shall be exploring his Concerto for Double String Orchestra in Discovering Music on Saturday 16th.
And there is much else to enjoy… don't forget that if you miss a programme, it will normally be available online for one week afterwards. So if you did miss our rare broadcast in Latin, Pliny's Naturalis Historia, it is still there as part of a magnificent natural soundscape on the site under Between the Ears.
Best wishes from all of us at Radio 3
Roger Wright
We hope you found much to enjoy during the Easter weekend with our residency at King's College, Cambridge. We have had some very positive feedback about the performances and the atmosphere that the broadcasts created; and I am delighted that so many of you enjoyed the chance to hear again Anthony Pitts "Passion 4 Radio".
During much of the rest of the year we are on the travel round, presenting music from across the whole UK: during April we will visit London, Birmingham, Manchester, Poole, Belfast and Glasgow, as well as following the BBC National Orchestra of Wales on tour in Stuttgart. Our partnerships with many performing groups across the country make this possible: for instance, the two upcoming broadcasts from the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra are part of an ongoing relationship which has benefited the orchestra's local profile as well as giving more national coverage to the orchestra's excellent work under its chief conductor Marin Alsop. You can hear the first of these concerts on Wednesday 13th, when Marin Alsop conducts a concert including Stravinsky's Petrushka and featuring Tasmin Little in Bruch's first violin concerto.
Before that, we have one of our special evenings, over four hours in which we can reflect on the wonderful singing of one of the greatest singers of the 20th century: Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, now in her 90th year. On Wednesday evening (6th), Iain Burnside presents Radio 3's tribute to her life and artistry, including extracts from some of her recordings with lively discussion and debate from studio guests including Mary King, Jeremy Sams and Edward Seckerson. Schwarzkopf was famous for her Strauss and Mozart on the operatic stage, and equally for her Wolf and Schubert on the concert platform. These varied facets of her musical character will be covered in a fascinating series of extracts from different stages in her career. We will hear her singing Schubert in the 1940s, and then performing Strauss songs with Gerald Moore at the 1956 Salzburg Festival. From the same astonishing year, there is her performance, under the direction of Karajan, of the roles of Alice in Verdi's Falstaff and the Marschallin in Der Rosenkavalier – and in the course of the evening there's Puccini, Wolf, Walton, Bach and of course Mozart as well.
Messiaen was extremely eclectic in his influences: from Indian rhythms to birdsong, not to mention innumerable other facets of his music, such as colours, mountains, and writings from the scriptures and theologians. Birdsong takes centre stage on the evening of Thursday 21st, when we have a special evening, 'Landscape with Birds', when the music of Messiaen's Catalogue des Oiseaux meets the birdsong in which the composer found his inspiration and material. It's worth hearing from the diary of Grant Sonnex, the producer, about the lengths he went to in order to recreate Messiaen's experience:
'My dripping microphone leads and sodden windshields are hung to dry over the shower door in this small hotel room on the wild island of Ouessant –– a stomach-churning hour by ferry off the Brittany coast –– and all around me are wet clothes and the damp paraphernalia of sound recording. But it's been a good day: this morning, the piping of Oystercatchers on a rock beach sloping down to the broken surf; then the raucous calls of herring gulls clattering round the cliff faces of a hollow cove, and, before the rain set in, I heard a distant curlew through the wind on La Point de Pern – just where Messiaen heard that sound more than 50 years ago. This place and this bird was the inspiration for his composition, Le Courlis Cendré – the curlew. Recording the birds today it was tempting to try to get close to them; to isolate their calls and tease them out of the sounds of the wild weather. But the voices of the birds are part of the fabric here. They can't be unpicked from the warp and weft of wind and waves. And together these sounds speak of the structure and mood of the landscape.'
Complementing that extraordinary experience, we hear some poems commissioned specially for the network from Andrew Motion by Radio 3. These express his growing interest in, and love for British birds. That leads to Edward Cowie's Birdsong Bagatelles. Cowie is Artist in Association for the RSPB, and these twenty-four bagatelles express his long-standing interest in birdsong, as each piece presents an acoustic portrait of a single bird.
Among our drama highlights this month, there is Michael Grandage's version of Schiller's Don Carlos, which stars Sir Derek Jacobi; this specially recorded production for Radio 3 has been performed on stage (first in Sheffield then London) to great acclaim, and this is a unique chance to hear this story of royal intrigue in which both the throne and marriage bed of the Spanish King Philip II are compromised by his ambitious son, Carlos.
As usual this is only the tip of the Radio 3 iceberg of music and ideas which we have for you this month. Just glancing through the schedules for this month, there are two piano recitals containing Schubert from two great artists, Mitsuko Uchida and Louis Lortie (18th and 12th); we have an exploration of Stravinsky in Composer of the Week (from 18th); the Early Music Show gives us two sides of Bach (9th and 10th), influences on him and his influences on others; and in Sunday Gala, also on the 10th, we have the baritone Thomas Quasthoff and James Levine performing Schubert's song-cycle Winterreise. And we have not forgotten the Tippett anniversary, since we shall be exploring his Concerto for Double String Orchestra in Discovering Music on Saturday 16th.
And there is much else to enjoy… don't forget that if you miss a programme, it will normally be available online for one week afterwards. So if you did miss our rare broadcast in Latin, Pliny's Naturalis Historia, it is still there as part of a magnificent natural soundscape on the site under Between the Ears.
Best wishes from all of us at Radio 3
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Mar. 2005
We have just started a week-long celebration of the music of Sir Michael Tippett in his centenary year. Throughout the week, a number of orchestras will be making their tribute to him in their performances. Listen out on Friday evening for The Rose Lake, performed by the London Symphony Orchestra which commissioned the work – a hauntingly beautiful 'Song without Words' – and look out for more Tippett celebrations throughout the year culminating in a Radio 3 Tippett Evening.
Michael Tippett profile: http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/profiles/tippettm.shtml
During Holy Week and Easter, we are going to be spending a good deal of time in Cambridge, at King's College, for its new Easter at King's festival. There will be much seasonal music to enjoy, including Bach's St John Passion performed by the Academy of Ancient Music and the King's Choir, the Gesualdo Tenebrae Responsories performed by the King's Singers and the Haydn Seven Last Words. On Easter Sunday, we have the chance to share in a joyous feast of music, including the Bach Easter Oratorio, performed by the college choir and the Academy of Ancient Music under Stephen Cleobury. In addition, Choral Evensong will be broadcast from King's on Wednesday 23rd (including Allegri's Misere) and a special Easter service will also be broadcast live on Easter Day at 4p.m. On Good Friday we move temporarily from Cambridge to London to hear Bach's St Matthew Passion performed by a strong line -up of soloists with the BBC Singers and the City of London Sinfonia conducted by Richard Hickox.
Choral Evensong: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/choralevensong/
On the evening of Monday March 21st you can hear the BBC Philharmonic and Leeds Festival Chorus give the first UK performance of the most recent substantial choral work by Peter Maxwell Davies, Canticum Canticorum. This is based on the Song of Songs, and is paired with Haydn's dramatic Nelson mass – and anyone who loves the music of Messiaen should make two appointments this month, for the BBC Symphony Orchestra performing L'Ascension on March 22nd, and Des Canyons aux Etoiles with the Northern Sinfonia a week later.
As we move into April, we have on Wednesday 6th an entire evening dedicated to Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, probably the best known female lieder singer of the post-war decades. Iain Burnside will present her life and music in the company of Jeremy Sams and Edward Seckerson. The great recordings – Strauss's Four Last Songs, Wolf Lieder, Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier amongst others – are featured together with some of the music with which she is less often associated – Walton, Wagner, Verdi and even Christmas Carols! Do listen out on the previous night (5th) for a rare opportunity to hear one of the leading orchestras of the USA, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, perform live, as Daniel Barenboim conducts Mahler's Ninth Symphony from the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.
We've an exciting drama double-bill coming up with the broadcast premiere of David Mamet's Pulitzer prize-winning satire Glengarry Glen Ross, set in the 1980s in the cut-throat world of tough-talking Chicago property dealers. The play has been adapted for radio by Mamet himself and is broadcast in Drama on 3 on Sunday March 20th. The following week Mamet himself directs his new play Faustus, a powerful new interpretation of the Faustus myth for the 21st century. The play has not yet received its stage premiere in Europe so don't miss this opportunity to hear this brand new work from one of America's leading contemporary dramatists.
Drama on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
Meanwhile our Between the Ears series on Saturday nights continues to push the boundaries of imaginative feature-making. Listen out on Saturday, March 26th for a reading from Pliny's classic Naturalis Historia. The reading will be in the original Latin interpreted with music and sounds from the natural world. It promises to be an intriguing experience…
Between the Ears: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/betweentheears/
I have rather concentrated on our evening concerts this month, but there is, of course, lots of wonderful music elsewhere in our schedule: Clementi, Elgar and Chausson as Composers of the Week; Barbara Bonney and Angelika Kirchschlager in Sunday Gala (20th); while Discovering Music ranges from Stravinsky to Brahms, and Renee Fleming is the subject of a special edition of Voices (15th)
Composer of the Week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Sunday Gala: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/sundaygala/
Discovering Music: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/discoveringmusic/
Voices: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/voices/
I hope that you will enjoy this month on Radio 3 and thanks for your continuing interest in our programmes.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Radio 3 homepage: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
Michael Tippett profile: http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/profiles/tippettm.shtml
During Holy Week and Easter, we are going to be spending a good deal of time in Cambridge, at King's College, for its new Easter at King's festival. There will be much seasonal music to enjoy, including Bach's St John Passion performed by the Academy of Ancient Music and the King's Choir, the Gesualdo Tenebrae Responsories performed by the King's Singers and the Haydn Seven Last Words. On Easter Sunday, we have the chance to share in a joyous feast of music, including the Bach Easter Oratorio, performed by the college choir and the Academy of Ancient Music under Stephen Cleobury. In addition, Choral Evensong will be broadcast from King's on Wednesday 23rd (including Allegri's Misere) and a special Easter service will also be broadcast live on Easter Day at 4p.m. On Good Friday we move temporarily from Cambridge to London to hear Bach's St Matthew Passion performed by a strong line -up of soloists with the BBC Singers and the City of London Sinfonia conducted by Richard Hickox.
Choral Evensong: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/choralevensong/
On the evening of Monday March 21st you can hear the BBC Philharmonic and Leeds Festival Chorus give the first UK performance of the most recent substantial choral work by Peter Maxwell Davies, Canticum Canticorum. This is based on the Song of Songs, and is paired with Haydn's dramatic Nelson mass – and anyone who loves the music of Messiaen should make two appointments this month, for the BBC Symphony Orchestra performing L'Ascension on March 22nd, and Des Canyons aux Etoiles with the Northern Sinfonia a week later.
As we move into April, we have on Wednesday 6th an entire evening dedicated to Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, probably the best known female lieder singer of the post-war decades. Iain Burnside will present her life and music in the company of Jeremy Sams and Edward Seckerson. The great recordings – Strauss's Four Last Songs, Wolf Lieder, Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier amongst others – are featured together with some of the music with which she is less often associated – Walton, Wagner, Verdi and even Christmas Carols! Do listen out on the previous night (5th) for a rare opportunity to hear one of the leading orchestras of the USA, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, perform live, as Daniel Barenboim conducts Mahler's Ninth Symphony from the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester.
We've an exciting drama double-bill coming up with the broadcast premiere of David Mamet's Pulitzer prize-winning satire Glengarry Glen Ross, set in the 1980s in the cut-throat world of tough-talking Chicago property dealers. The play has been adapted for radio by Mamet himself and is broadcast in Drama on 3 on Sunday March 20th. The following week Mamet himself directs his new play Faustus, a powerful new interpretation of the Faustus myth for the 21st century. The play has not yet received its stage premiere in Europe so don't miss this opportunity to hear this brand new work from one of America's leading contemporary dramatists.
Drama on 3: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/
Meanwhile our Between the Ears series on Saturday nights continues to push the boundaries of imaginative feature-making. Listen out on Saturday, March 26th for a reading from Pliny's classic Naturalis Historia. The reading will be in the original Latin interpreted with music and sounds from the natural world. It promises to be an intriguing experience…
Between the Ears: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/betweentheears/
I have rather concentrated on our evening concerts this month, but there is, of course, lots of wonderful music elsewhere in our schedule: Clementi, Elgar and Chausson as Composers of the Week; Barbara Bonney and Angelika Kirchschlager in Sunday Gala (20th); while Discovering Music ranges from Stravinsky to Brahms, and Renee Fleming is the subject of a special edition of Voices (15th)
Composer of the Week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/cotw/
Sunday Gala: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/sundaygala/
Discovering Music: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/discoveringmusic/
Voices: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/voices/
I hope that you will enjoy this month on Radio 3 and thanks for your continuing interest in our programmes.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Radio 3 homepage: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/
Controller's Note, Feb. 2005
I hope you managed to enjoy much of what we had to offer you in January, including the weekend dedicated to James MacMillan and our evening of conversation and performance centred around Jacqueline du Pré on what would have been her 60th birthday.
Inevitably, none of us is available to listen to everything we would like to at the time of broadcast. However, the new version of the BBC Radio Player may well solve many of your problems; you can access it by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio and clicking on the link which says, 'Launch BBC Radio Player' – you'll find all of the BBC's Radio Player output listed there, including a further link to Radio 3; alternatively you can press the 'Listen Again' button on the Radio 3 Home Page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3. Not only has the player been redesigned to make it easier to navigate, but also we are pleased offer you much more of the Radio 3 live music output. This means that you can hear even more of Radio 3's programmes for a week after transmission, including Performance on 3 as well our Sunday evening Drama on 3. Hopefully, many of you will find this useful in catching up with programmes or listening to them again.
Turning from the past to the future, it is going to be a busy Easter period, in which we are taking up residence at King's College, Cambridge (more about this next time I write).
In the meantime, we head to another part of East Anglia to explore the Red House in Aldeburgh, where Benjamin Britten lived from 1957 until his death. The concert on the evening of Monday February 14th was recorded in the library there, and features the Brodsky Quartet with Mark Padmore and Malcolm Martineau. The programme includes Britten's third and final string quartet, which the composer heard performed by the Amadeus Quartet in the same room – the only occasion on which he heard the piece.
On the evenings of Sunday and Monday, February 20th and 21st, you can hear the semi-finals and then the final of the first BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year competition. Broadcast from the Lowry, Salford, this is a showcase for some of the remarkable amateur choral talent which can be found across the UK. These evenings promise to be an enjoyable and exciting pair of broadcasts, characterised by a high quality of music-making in the three categories for children's, youth and adult choirs.
On Monday 28th February and Wednesday March 2nd, we will be visiting the new home of Welsh National Opera, the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. The first visit is for Berg's Wozzeck with Christopher Purves in the title role, the first new production in WNO's new home; we return two days later for Verdi's La traviata directed by WNO's music director, Carlo Rizzi.
And talking of chief conductors, you may have noticed the appointment of Jirí Belohlávek to the BBC Symphony Orchestra. We are delighted by this news and on March 13th you can hear him with them performing works by Martinu, and the Mozart Requiem.
Radio 3 is working together with the Royal Philharmonic Society on Encore!, a scheme to promote further performances of new works which particularly well received at their premieres. On March 14th it is the turn of James Dillon and his Via Sacra, which has never been heard in the UK. For this performance, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra are conducted by Alexander Lazarev, and the work is paired with Stravinsky's Oedipus Rex.
We have our World Music Day rather later than usual this year, on Sunday March 6th. This special day of broadcasting brings together music from six continents in five musical sequences touching on the common human experiences of Birth, Work, Love, Politics, and Death, expressed in very different ways, from the Bedouins of the Middle East to the a cappella singing of the Polynesian islands. Familiar Radio 3 voices explore some unfamiliar backgrounds to the world's traditional musics and consider the cultural implications of our global mixdown, while across the five hours the story of world music as a genre unfolds. The day culminates in the broadcast of the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music from The Sage, Gateshead (see http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/awards2005/). A day not to be missed if you have an interest in world music!
Listen out on Sunday, February 13th for a new three-part series of Sunday Features: Europe of the Mind. The series explores the changing ways in which Europe sees itself; in the first programme, 'Founded on Faith', historian Mia Rodriquez-Salgado looks back to the Middle Ages to explore how religion has moulded the way Europeans think about their continent. As a prelude we've a European theme to the whole evening. In a special talk, Misha Glenny, who reported on some of the most momentous events in recent European history, reflects on how the European present is shaped by the past. Then Sarah Walker will be introducing music from the European Union's newest recruits, the countries that joined last year. Enjoy a journey through Europe – past and present – from 8.30pm on Sunday February 13th.
Radio 3's year-long focus on Africa is now well under way. You can find out more about our programmes, as well as the largest-ever celebration of African arts and culture in the UK – Africa 2005 – through the Radio 3 website. There's a wealth of programming and events coming up including a week of Night Waves features exploring the stories behind some of the most spectacular African artefacts in the British Museum, and special editions of Late Junction, World Routes and Andy Kershaw. Do take a look at the link from http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/.
Best wishes from all of us here at Radio 3
Roger Wright
Inevitably, none of us is available to listen to everything we would like to at the time of broadcast. However, the new version of the BBC Radio Player may well solve many of your problems; you can access it by visiting http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio and clicking on the link which says, 'Launch BBC Radio Player' – you'll find all of the BBC's Radio Player output listed there, including a further link to Radio 3; alternatively you can press the 'Listen Again' button on the Radio 3 Home Page at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3. Not only has the player been redesigned to make it easier to navigate, but also we are pleased offer you much more of the Radio 3 live music output. This means that you can hear even more of Radio 3's programmes for a week after transmission, including Performance on 3 as well our Sunday evening Drama on 3. Hopefully, many of you will find this useful in catching up with programmes or listening to them again.
Turning from the past to the future, it is going to be a busy Easter period, in which we are taking up residence at King's College, Cambridge (more about this next time I write).
In the meantime, we head to another part of East Anglia to explore the Red House in Aldeburgh, where Benjamin Britten lived from 1957 until his death. The concert on the evening of Monday February 14th was recorded in the library there, and features the Brodsky Quartet with Mark Padmore and Malcolm Martineau. The programme includes Britten's third and final string quartet, which the composer heard performed by the Amadeus Quartet in the same room – the only occasion on which he heard the piece.
On the evenings of Sunday and Monday, February 20th and 21st, you can hear the semi-finals and then the final of the first BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year competition. Broadcast from the Lowry, Salford, this is a showcase for some of the remarkable amateur choral talent which can be found across the UK. These evenings promise to be an enjoyable and exciting pair of broadcasts, characterised by a high quality of music-making in the three categories for children's, youth and adult choirs.
On Monday 28th February and Wednesday March 2nd, we will be visiting the new home of Welsh National Opera, the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff. The first visit is for Berg's Wozzeck with Christopher Purves in the title role, the first new production in WNO's new home; we return two days later for Verdi's La traviata directed by WNO's music director, Carlo Rizzi.
And talking of chief conductors, you may have noticed the appointment of Jirí Belohlávek to the BBC Symphony Orchestra. We are delighted by this news and on March 13th you can hear him with them performing works by Martinu, and the Mozart Requiem.
Radio 3 is working together with the Royal Philharmonic Society on Encore!, a scheme to promote further performances of new works which particularly well received at their premieres. On March 14th it is the turn of James Dillon and his Via Sacra, which has never been heard in the UK. For this performance, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra are conducted by Alexander Lazarev, and the work is paired with Stravinsky's Oedipus Rex.
We have our World Music Day rather later than usual this year, on Sunday March 6th. This special day of broadcasting brings together music from six continents in five musical sequences touching on the common human experiences of Birth, Work, Love, Politics, and Death, expressed in very different ways, from the Bedouins of the Middle East to the a cappella singing of the Polynesian islands. Familiar Radio 3 voices explore some unfamiliar backgrounds to the world's traditional musics and consider the cultural implications of our global mixdown, while across the five hours the story of world music as a genre unfolds. The day culminates in the broadcast of the BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music from The Sage, Gateshead (see http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/awards2005/). A day not to be missed if you have an interest in world music!
Listen out on Sunday, February 13th for a new three-part series of Sunday Features: Europe of the Mind. The series explores the changing ways in which Europe sees itself; in the first programme, 'Founded on Faith', historian Mia Rodriquez-Salgado looks back to the Middle Ages to explore how religion has moulded the way Europeans think about their continent. As a prelude we've a European theme to the whole evening. In a special talk, Misha Glenny, who reported on some of the most momentous events in recent European history, reflects on how the European present is shaped by the past. Then Sarah Walker will be introducing music from the European Union's newest recruits, the countries that joined last year. Enjoy a journey through Europe – past and present – from 8.30pm on Sunday February 13th.
Radio 3's year-long focus on Africa is now well under way. You can find out more about our programmes, as well as the largest-ever celebration of African arts and culture in the UK – Africa 2005 – through the Radio 3 website. There's a wealth of programming and events coming up including a week of Night Waves features exploring the stories behind some of the most spectacular African artefacts in the British Museum, and special editions of Late Junction, World Routes and Andy Kershaw. Do take a look at the link from http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/.
Best wishes from all of us here at Radio 3
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Jan. 2005
Radio 3 waltzed, gavotted and minueted its way into 2005 with our Day of Dance on January 1st. We are looking forward to keeping up the momentum throughout the year! Hopefully, you managed to catch our Day of Dance including the first ever Balloon Debate, which was won by Bach as our panel debated his merits against those of Beethoven, Stravinsky and Wagner! It was fun to read Andrew Marr's opinion that 'the best New Year broadcast entertainment was surely Radio 3's balloon debate on the world's greatest composer… This was modern Britain at its best – a clutch of people, one of them an Australian, another a child of Spanish immigrants, arguing about who among three Germans and a Russian was best.'
Last month I mentioned what we are looking forward to later in the year with our special events broadcasting the complete works of Beethoven, Bach and Webern. More immediately, however, we are focussing on James Macmillan over the weekend of 14th-16th January, with 'Darkness into Light'. This is our celebration of a composer who has been described as 'seizing listeners by the scruff of the neck, drawing them to the edge of their seats, and reaching their hearts'. You will be able to hear a good selection of his music over the weekend, all based around a unique mixture of influences – his Scottish heritage, Catholic faith, social conscience and Celtic folkmusic. And if you are near the Barbican in London, do try and sample a concert in person, as well as putting on your dancing shoes for a late-night Ceildih on the Saturday evening. At least in its first few weeks, this is proving to be the year for dancing!
Full details can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/news/macmillan.shtml.
This month also sees the start of Radio 3's year long celebration and exploration of African culture. Neil MacGregor, Director of The British Museum, will be amongst the contributors discussing some of the oldest of all human artefacts yet discovered, the stone tools found at the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, in the start of a new series 'Made in Africa'. This begins in Twenty Minutes on January 21st. Whilst the Sunday Feature, on February 6th, investigates more contemporary art, both from the African continent and African artists around the world, marking the start of the largest ever exhibition of African Art in Europe, Africa Remix, at the Hayward Gallery in London. Look out for more details of these Africa season programmes and many more to come through the year on a special section of the website to be launched later this month.
This Sunday (Jan 16th) in Drama on 3, Jim Broadbent, Phil Daniels and Harriet Walter lead a stellar cast in Max Frisch's provocative comedy 'The Fire Raisers.' Originally inspired by the rise of fascism in Europe, this modern classic explores issues of personal responsibility and the dangers of being blind to what is happening in front of us. It's also very funny and our new adaptation has been written by one of the country's leading dramatic writers, Charles Wood.
Full cast list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/pip/jgypn/
I understand that the Royal Opera House quickly sold out of seats for its new production of Das Rheingold. If you tried but failed, your disappointment will hopefully be shortlived, since we are broadcasting this production, directed by Antonio Pappano and including Bryn Terfel as Wotan, on the evening of Monday 17th. And the evenings of the same week continue with three concerts given by the Ulster Orchestra in which you can hear Thierry Fischer in a complete Brahms symphony cycle, complemented by concertos and Hungarian Dances. On the Saturday (22nd) we go to the recently restored La Fenice Theatre in Venice to hear the first performance of the new edition of Massenet's rarely heard opera, Le Roi de Lahore.
Radio 3 schedule: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/schedule/index.shtml
Remarkably, on January 26th 2005 the cellist Jacqueline du Pré would only have been celebrating her 60th birthday. Most of her famous recordings were made when she was only in her twenties. On the evening of January 26th Radio 3 will be celebrating her life in music. Andrew McGregor has been talking to those who heard her and worked with her, and the programme will include rare recordings, including live performances of the three great cello concertos for which she was known – Elgar, Dvorak and Schumann. There will be chance to hear her first broadcast at the age of 16 for the BBC Home Service!. Jacqueline du Pré's career may have been tragically short, but this evening will be further proof – if any were needed – that she left us some magnificent music-making.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/dupre.shtml
The previous evening will also delight lovers of the cello and its music, as Raphael Wallfisch plays the complete Beethoven cello music live from the Queen Elizabeth Hall. Looking further ahead, our Sunday Gala on February 6th features a recital by Yo Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott.
Our Composers of the Week in January include J.S. Bach, the distinguished French composer Lili Boulanger and Schubert, but also a week devoted to Minimalists. Donald Macleod looks at the origins of minimalism in composers such as Terry Riley, developing through Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and John Adams. He looks at how 'minimalist' ideas spread throughout the world and influenced composers such as Arvo Part and Brian Eno. I think this promises to be a really engaging exploration of this area of composition, which has had such a significant impact on music over the past few decades.
All best wishes for 2005 – we hope you will find much to enjoy in the company of Radio 3.
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
Last month I mentioned what we are looking forward to later in the year with our special events broadcasting the complete works of Beethoven, Bach and Webern. More immediately, however, we are focussing on James Macmillan over the weekend of 14th-16th January, with 'Darkness into Light'. This is our celebration of a composer who has been described as 'seizing listeners by the scruff of the neck, drawing them to the edge of their seats, and reaching their hearts'. You will be able to hear a good selection of his music over the weekend, all based around a unique mixture of influences – his Scottish heritage, Catholic faith, social conscience and Celtic folkmusic. And if you are near the Barbican in London, do try and sample a concert in person, as well as putting on your dancing shoes for a late-night Ceildih on the Saturday evening. At least in its first few weeks, this is proving to be the year for dancing!
Full details can be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/news/macmillan.shtml.
This month also sees the start of Radio 3's year long celebration and exploration of African culture. Neil MacGregor, Director of The British Museum, will be amongst the contributors discussing some of the oldest of all human artefacts yet discovered, the stone tools found at the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, in the start of a new series 'Made in Africa'. This begins in Twenty Minutes on January 21st. Whilst the Sunday Feature, on February 6th, investigates more contemporary art, both from the African continent and African artists around the world, marking the start of the largest ever exhibition of African Art in Europe, Africa Remix, at the Hayward Gallery in London. Look out for more details of these Africa season programmes and many more to come through the year on a special section of the website to be launched later this month.
This Sunday (Jan 16th) in Drama on 3, Jim Broadbent, Phil Daniels and Harriet Walter lead a stellar cast in Max Frisch's provocative comedy 'The Fire Raisers.' Originally inspired by the rise of fascism in Europe, this modern classic explores issues of personal responsibility and the dangers of being blind to what is happening in front of us. It's also very funny and our new adaptation has been written by one of the country's leading dramatic writers, Charles Wood.
Full cast list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/dramaon3/pip/jgypn/
I understand that the Royal Opera House quickly sold out of seats for its new production of Das Rheingold. If you tried but failed, your disappointment will hopefully be shortlived, since we are broadcasting this production, directed by Antonio Pappano and including Bryn Terfel as Wotan, on the evening of Monday 17th. And the evenings of the same week continue with three concerts given by the Ulster Orchestra in which you can hear Thierry Fischer in a complete Brahms symphony cycle, complemented by concertos and Hungarian Dances. On the Saturday (22nd) we go to the recently restored La Fenice Theatre in Venice to hear the first performance of the new edition of Massenet's rarely heard opera, Le Roi de Lahore.
Radio 3 schedule: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/schedule/index.shtml
Remarkably, on January 26th 2005 the cellist Jacqueline du Pré would only have been celebrating her 60th birthday. Most of her famous recordings were made when she was only in her twenties. On the evening of January 26th Radio 3 will be celebrating her life in music. Andrew McGregor has been talking to those who heard her and worked with her, and the programme will include rare recordings, including live performances of the three great cello concertos for which she was known – Elgar, Dvorak and Schumann. There will be chance to hear her first broadcast at the age of 16 for the BBC Home Service!. Jacqueline du Pré's career may have been tragically short, but this evening will be further proof – if any were needed – that she left us some magnificent music-making.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/dupre.shtml
The previous evening will also delight lovers of the cello and its music, as Raphael Wallfisch plays the complete Beethoven cello music live from the Queen Elizabeth Hall. Looking further ahead, our Sunday Gala on February 6th features a recital by Yo Yo Ma and Kathryn Stott.
Our Composers of the Week in January include J.S. Bach, the distinguished French composer Lili Boulanger and Schubert, but also a week devoted to Minimalists. Donald Macleod looks at the origins of minimalism in composers such as Terry Riley, developing through Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and John Adams. He looks at how 'minimalist' ideas spread throughout the world and influenced composers such as Arvo Part and Brian Eno. I think this promises to be a really engaging exploration of this area of composition, which has had such a significant impact on music over the past few decades.
All best wishes for 2005 – we hope you will find much to enjoy in the company of Radio 3.
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
Controller's Note, Dec. 2004
When I hear Sean Rafferty talking about how much he is looking forward to the In Tune on location Christmas special I am reminded of how close we are to the holiday period. I hope that you enjoyed the special programme from Greenwich this week. Our drivetime presenters and production teams have been overwhelmed by the response to their competitions – there's still time to join in and try to win a digital radio, which looks set to be one of this season's most popular gifts (http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/digitalradio_comp.shtml).
Whatever your mood, I feel confident that Radio 3 has something for you in the rich selection we have prepared for our listeners this Christmas and New Year season. We hope that you find some time to switch on your radio and enjoy our programmes which combine the familiar and seasonal with some surprises. The annual carol service from King's College, Cambridge provides a unique focus to Christmas; as usual it contains some new music, including this year a specially commissioned carol by Judith Bingham, just announced as the next Composer-in-Association to the BBC Singers. You can hear her new carol "God would be born in thee" on Christmas Day at 2pm.
Since Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, we continue our regular CD Review with favourites from 2004, performances by musical families, and an interview with Stephen Cleobury about the Christmas season at King's. Also on Christmas Day, we have an extended edition of one of our longest running programmes, Jazz Record Requests, to mark its 40th birthday. This special edition contains a nostalgic look back over the early years of the programme, with the voices of Charles Fox and Peter Clayton. On Boxing Day, after the Early Music Show on the theme of Food and Drink, you can enjoy Ute Lemper who provides the Sunday Gala performance.
Nothing could be more traditional than our annual King's visit, but Radio 3 also has a strong international flavour at this time of the day. The EBU Christmas Day (starting on Sunday 19th at 12pm) takes us on a journey including the USA with the vocal ensemble Chanticleer, the Orthodox music of Bulgaria, and the strong vocal tradition of Latvia. In addition, the lunchtime concerts during the Christmas Week are taken from this year's Schwarzenburg Festival and includes a recital from Ian Bostridge, the Vienna String Sextet, and Europa Galante.
We have decided to do something different with our New Year's Day celebrations this year. The whole day is devoted to dance, centred around the annual Vienna concert, with its traditional succession of waltzes. Our Day of Dance includes music from Russian ballets, the Australia Brandenburg Orchestra, and concludes with a Broadway concert from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales with Eric Stern. At 1.00pm for serious fun, we have arranged our first Radio 3 Balloon debate, as Germaine Greer argues for Bach; Alan Rusbridger for Beethoven; Michael Portillo for Wagner, and Siobhan Davies for Stravinsky. If you are worried about the fate of the World Music Day, then put March 6th in your diaries now; we have arranged the day to coincide with the 2005 Radio 3 Awards for World Music, making a colourful weekend of music from across the globe.
As I am sure you have noticed, the Metropolitan Opera season has already started, but during the festive season we have Janacek's Katya Kabanova to end the composer's anniversary year (December 25th) and Handel's Rodelinda (January 1st). The summer seems distinctly far away now, but you can relive sunnier days in some of the Proms repeats from Christmas Eve to January 11th: listen out for the Berlin Philharmonic with Rattle on New Year's Eve and Monteverdi's Vespers with the King's Consort on January 2nd. Composer of the Week kicks off the new year with the music of Tippett, commemorating his birth in 1905, and celebrating his music over five programmes. This is just one of a number of programmes we will be broadcasting through 2005 to honour this major figure.
On December 26th we've perfect fireside listening in Drama on 3 with 'Three Japanese Gothic Tales'. Simon Russell Beale, Paul Rhys and Adrian Scarborough star in three adult fairytales for the Christmas season written by Izumi Kyoka, the Japanese Edgar Allen Poe. On January 2nd we are broadcasting 'Earth Mapping', one of three programmes broadcast this week on different BBC services under the title 'Thinking Earth' – a snapshot of the world in sound. Twelve international artists tell the story of a map that is important to them. Some draw on memories; others describe where they are now, and some set out on a new journey. We follow a nightmare journey from Kabul, migrating birds in Greenland, find a bullet-marked lamp-post in Brazil, and come across a man lying on his back in a field in the South of England!
We are also looking forward to 2005, which brings some major special projects on Radio 3. Among other things, we have a complete week of Beethoven, or should I say, the complete Beethoven works in a week. We announced yesterday that we will abandon our regular schedule in order to focus exclusively on Beethoven (24 hours a day!). We will also have a special day on September 15th during which we will broadcast the complete works of Webern on the 60th anniversary of his death. Africa will be a major theme next year as we join in the Africa 2005 Worldwide Year of Africa focus. A little sooner than all that, do make a date with the James MacMillan weekend from the Barbican with the BBC Symphony Orchestra (January 14th – 16th) and enjoy the power and intensity of his music ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/news/macmillan.shtml).
It only remains to wish you all a Happy New Year 2005 in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send you our thanks for your continuing interest and wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful festive season.
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
Whatever your mood, I feel confident that Radio 3 has something for you in the rich selection we have prepared for our listeners this Christmas and New Year season. We hope that you find some time to switch on your radio and enjoy our programmes which combine the familiar and seasonal with some surprises. The annual carol service from King's College, Cambridge provides a unique focus to Christmas; as usual it contains some new music, including this year a specially commissioned carol by Judith Bingham, just announced as the next Composer-in-Association to the BBC Singers. You can hear her new carol "God would be born in thee" on Christmas Day at 2pm.
Since Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, we continue our regular CD Review with favourites from 2004, performances by musical families, and an interview with Stephen Cleobury about the Christmas season at King's. Also on Christmas Day, we have an extended edition of one of our longest running programmes, Jazz Record Requests, to mark its 40th birthday. This special edition contains a nostalgic look back over the early years of the programme, with the voices of Charles Fox and Peter Clayton. On Boxing Day, after the Early Music Show on the theme of Food and Drink, you can enjoy Ute Lemper who provides the Sunday Gala performance.
Nothing could be more traditional than our annual King's visit, but Radio 3 also has a strong international flavour at this time of the day. The EBU Christmas Day (starting on Sunday 19th at 12pm) takes us on a journey including the USA with the vocal ensemble Chanticleer, the Orthodox music of Bulgaria, and the strong vocal tradition of Latvia. In addition, the lunchtime concerts during the Christmas Week are taken from this year's Schwarzenburg Festival and includes a recital from Ian Bostridge, the Vienna String Sextet, and Europa Galante.
We have decided to do something different with our New Year's Day celebrations this year. The whole day is devoted to dance, centred around the annual Vienna concert, with its traditional succession of waltzes. Our Day of Dance includes music from Russian ballets, the Australia Brandenburg Orchestra, and concludes with a Broadway concert from the BBC National Orchestra of Wales with Eric Stern. At 1.00pm for serious fun, we have arranged our first Radio 3 Balloon debate, as Germaine Greer argues for Bach; Alan Rusbridger for Beethoven; Michael Portillo for Wagner, and Siobhan Davies for Stravinsky. If you are worried about the fate of the World Music Day, then put March 6th in your diaries now; we have arranged the day to coincide with the 2005 Radio 3 Awards for World Music, making a colourful weekend of music from across the globe.
As I am sure you have noticed, the Metropolitan Opera season has already started, but during the festive season we have Janacek's Katya Kabanova to end the composer's anniversary year (December 25th) and Handel's Rodelinda (January 1st). The summer seems distinctly far away now, but you can relive sunnier days in some of the Proms repeats from Christmas Eve to January 11th: listen out for the Berlin Philharmonic with Rattle on New Year's Eve and Monteverdi's Vespers with the King's Consort on January 2nd. Composer of the Week kicks off the new year with the music of Tippett, commemorating his birth in 1905, and celebrating his music over five programmes. This is just one of a number of programmes we will be broadcasting through 2005 to honour this major figure.
On December 26th we've perfect fireside listening in Drama on 3 with 'Three Japanese Gothic Tales'. Simon Russell Beale, Paul Rhys and Adrian Scarborough star in three adult fairytales for the Christmas season written by Izumi Kyoka, the Japanese Edgar Allen Poe. On January 2nd we are broadcasting 'Earth Mapping', one of three programmes broadcast this week on different BBC services under the title 'Thinking Earth' – a snapshot of the world in sound. Twelve international artists tell the story of a map that is important to them. Some draw on memories; others describe where they are now, and some set out on a new journey. We follow a nightmare journey from Kabul, migrating birds in Greenland, find a bullet-marked lamp-post in Brazil, and come across a man lying on his back in a field in the South of England!
We are also looking forward to 2005, which brings some major special projects on Radio 3. Among other things, we have a complete week of Beethoven, or should I say, the complete Beethoven works in a week. We announced yesterday that we will abandon our regular schedule in order to focus exclusively on Beethoven (24 hours a day!). We will also have a special day on September 15th during which we will broadcast the complete works of Webern on the 60th anniversary of his death. Africa will be a major theme next year as we join in the Africa 2005 Worldwide Year of Africa focus. A little sooner than all that, do make a date with the James MacMillan weekend from the Barbican with the BBC Symphony Orchestra (January 14th – 16th) and enjoy the power and intensity of his music ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/symphonyorchestra/news/macmillan.shtml).
It only remains to wish you all a Happy New Year 2005 in the company of Radio 3. All of us here send you our thanks for your continuing interest and wishes for an enjoyable and peaceful festive season.
Roger Wright
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
16/12/04 Programme highlights for 2005
A BBC press release has been published today 'BBC Radio 3 clears schedule for Beethoven marathon' giving details of highlights of the Radio 3 schedules for 2005. One thing that can be said about it is that it's designed to attract the attention of a normally blasé press. Quite what they will make of it is another matter. Six consecutive days (and nights!) in early June devoted to Beethoven's entire output will be a challenge for more than the programme makers; a year-long celebration of Michael Tippett in the centenary year of his birth; a Webern Day in which all his works will be played on the sixtieth anniversary of his death; and next Christmas an 'exploration' of the complete works of Bach; these are huge undertakings, and this by no means exhausts all the special classical music events in prospect; tributes to Jacqueline du Pré, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and Leonard Bernstein are also lined up.
Drama on 3 has a David Mamet double bill, of which the second play, Faustus, an independent production, will be given its European premiere, directed by Mamet himself. In January there will be a production of Max Frisch's The Fire Raisers, 're-imagined' by Charles Wood; and contemporary theatre will be represented with a special radio adaptation of David Eldridge's Festen, performed by the West End cast.
One might wonder what lies behind the sudden galvanising of the producers in the classical music department. Whether waves, large and small, of saturation coverage will be favourably received by listeners remains to be seen; views on the Radio 3 messageboard so far are mixed. The motivation behind the concentration on big classical projects can only be guessed at, but this may well be Roger Wright's last chance to equal such Kenyon projects as Fairest Isle and Sounding the Century. In concept there may be some lack of imagination in one or two projects, but there is no questioning the boldness involved in making heavy demands on listeners.
Drama on 3 has a David Mamet double bill, of which the second play, Faustus, an independent production, will be given its European premiere, directed by Mamet himself. In January there will be a production of Max Frisch's The Fire Raisers, 're-imagined' by Charles Wood; and contemporary theatre will be represented with a special radio adaptation of David Eldridge's Festen, performed by the West End cast.
One might wonder what lies behind the sudden galvanising of the producers in the classical music department. Whether waves, large and small, of saturation coverage will be favourably received by listeners remains to be seen; views on the Radio 3 messageboard so far are mixed. The motivation behind the concentration on big classical projects can only be guessed at, but this may well be Roger Wright's last chance to equal such Kenyon projects as Fairest Isle and Sounding the Century. In concept there may be some lack of imagination in one or two projects, but there is no questioning the boldness involved in making heavy demands on listeners.
Controller's Note, Oct. 2004
Dear All
Listen Up! is now well under way, and we trust that you are enjoying this nationwide celebration of the British orchestral scene. Each night we find ourselves taken to sample another venue, and hear one of a wide range of UK orchestras. On Monday evening we are broadcasting the Brighton Philharmonic for the first time, conducted by Barry Wordsworth, and next Thursday we will featuire the Scottish Ensemble from the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. The following week we are going to hear the Manchester Camerata, Viva! and the English Chamber Orchestra. It is a great moment to recognise the diversity of fine music-making across the UK.
If you do not often attend concerts yourself, you might enjoy finding an event local to you using our website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/whatson.shtml. Associated with Listen Up! are broadcast interval features on orchestral music-making in various areas of the UK, as well as related themes, such as 'Endangered Instruments' – we should be encouraging our children or grandchildren to learn the double-bass, viola, horn, oboe, bassoon, tuba and trombone!
As Radio 3 listeners you will appreciate how our work is based around the network's presentation of live music, bringing events to you wherever you happen to be. Most days we have two live or specially recorded events. The BBC benefits from and invests in the active concert life of the UK, ensuring that it reaches as wide an audience as possible. That is why we have joined forces with the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music for the major initiative which is Listen Up! Do listen out for the London Symphony Orchestra this Friday evening (8th), when Pierre Boulez conducts a programme including his own music, and Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring' – that promises to be an unforgettable evening. Our Saturday evening opera programme is also wide-ranging this month, as we visit both English National Opera and Welsh National Opera. On Saturday 9th we shall be travelling further afield to hear the Paris Chatelet production of Rameau's 'Les Paladins'; while on the 23rd we shall be joining the Wexford Opera Festival for one of its annual explorations of lesser-known repertoire in 'La Vestale' by Mercadante.
We were delighted by the success of two Radio 3 productions in the recent Prix Italia competition, one of the most respected international broadcasting awards. We are re-broadcasting our Prix Italia-winning Between the Ears – 'A Pebble in the Pond' – on Saturday November 13th. It's an extraordinary multi-layered meditation on memory, with music by Michael Zev Gordon and words by Eva Hoffman. Our other prize was for drama: Peter Straughan's radio version of the Fritz Lang classic, 'M'. We've more outstanding drama coming up in Drama on 3 with a new play by poet, novelist and playwright Adam Thorpe. 'Himmler's Boy' is set before and during the Second World War, and explores the theme of art, love and idealism in the context of an all too brutal reality. While its central love story is a fiction, many of the play's incidents are inspired by the family memoirs of Adam Thorpe's late father-in-law, and the spoken memories of George's late mother – she survived six years as a Jewess in wartime Poland with her daughter, Renée. 'Himmler's Boy' is our Drama on 3 on Sunday October 24th.
As usual the Radio 3 agenda for this month runs the full gamut from joyful celebration to profound reflection, with live music and new work at its heart. Certainly one of the upbeat moments will be the final concert from Listen Up! which sums up the spirit of the festival: on November 5th the BBC Concert Orchestra will join with the non-professional Kensington Symphony Orchestra for a lively evening of music including the world premiere of 'Speed-Dating: The Symphony' by Errollyn Wallen, another of Radio 3's commissions. It promises to be quite an evening!
As ever I hope you find much to enjoy. On Monday (11th) we welcome back our lunchtime concerts in partnership with Wigmore Hall, beginning with the Florestan Trio in music by Mozart and Dvorak. I think it is a particularly strong line-up this year – as one critic wrote recently this lunchtime series 'represents escapism at its most rarified'!
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Listen Up! is now well under way, and we trust that you are enjoying this nationwide celebration of the British orchestral scene. Each night we find ourselves taken to sample another venue, and hear one of a wide range of UK orchestras. On Monday evening we are broadcasting the Brighton Philharmonic for the first time, conducted by Barry Wordsworth, and next Thursday we will featuire the Scottish Ensemble from the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. The following week we are going to hear the Manchester Camerata, Viva! and the English Chamber Orchestra. It is a great moment to recognise the diversity of fine music-making across the UK.
If you do not often attend concerts yourself, you might enjoy finding an event local to you using our website at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup/whatson.shtml. Associated with Listen Up! are broadcast interval features on orchestral music-making in various areas of the UK, as well as related themes, such as 'Endangered Instruments' – we should be encouraging our children or grandchildren to learn the double-bass, viola, horn, oboe, bassoon, tuba and trombone!
As Radio 3 listeners you will appreciate how our work is based around the network's presentation of live music, bringing events to you wherever you happen to be. Most days we have two live or specially recorded events. The BBC benefits from and invests in the active concert life of the UK, ensuring that it reaches as wide an audience as possible. That is why we have joined forces with the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music for the major initiative which is Listen Up! Do listen out for the London Symphony Orchestra this Friday evening (8th), when Pierre Boulez conducts a programme including his own music, and Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring' – that promises to be an unforgettable evening. Our Saturday evening opera programme is also wide-ranging this month, as we visit both English National Opera and Welsh National Opera. On Saturday 9th we shall be travelling further afield to hear the Paris Chatelet production of Rameau's 'Les Paladins'; while on the 23rd we shall be joining the Wexford Opera Festival for one of its annual explorations of lesser-known repertoire in 'La Vestale' by Mercadante.
We were delighted by the success of two Radio 3 productions in the recent Prix Italia competition, one of the most respected international broadcasting awards. We are re-broadcasting our Prix Italia-winning Between the Ears – 'A Pebble in the Pond' – on Saturday November 13th. It's an extraordinary multi-layered meditation on memory, with music by Michael Zev Gordon and words by Eva Hoffman. Our other prize was for drama: Peter Straughan's radio version of the Fritz Lang classic, 'M'. We've more outstanding drama coming up in Drama on 3 with a new play by poet, novelist and playwright Adam Thorpe. 'Himmler's Boy' is set before and during the Second World War, and explores the theme of art, love and idealism in the context of an all too brutal reality. While its central love story is a fiction, many of the play's incidents are inspired by the family memoirs of Adam Thorpe's late father-in-law, and the spoken memories of George's late mother – she survived six years as a Jewess in wartime Poland with her daughter, Renée. 'Himmler's Boy' is our Drama on 3 on Sunday October 24th.
As usual the Radio 3 agenda for this month runs the full gamut from joyful celebration to profound reflection, with live music and new work at its heart. Certainly one of the upbeat moments will be the final concert from Listen Up! which sums up the spirit of the festival: on November 5th the BBC Concert Orchestra will join with the non-professional Kensington Symphony Orchestra for a lively evening of music including the world premiere of 'Speed-Dating: The Symphony' by Errollyn Wallen, another of Radio 3's commissions. It promises to be quite an evening!
As ever I hope you find much to enjoy. On Monday (11th) we welcome back our lunchtime concerts in partnership with Wigmore Hall, beginning with the Florestan Trio in music by Mozart and Dvorak. I think it is a particularly strong line-up this year – as one critic wrote recently this lunchtime series 'represents escapism at its most rarified'!
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Sep. 2004
Dear All
The Proms came to an end on Saturday with an eclectic concert ranging from a Strauss horn concerto to Vaughan Williams's Five Mystical Songs, Maxwell Davies's Ojai Festival Overture, music from Broadway, and Gilbert and Sullivan – not forgetting the usual items! – and we heard the splendidly restored Albert Hall organ in Barber's Toccata Festiva. Now the singing and cheering has died down, music does not finish for the year – far from it! Radio 3 is heading immediately towards its series of broadcasts from the Edinburgh Festival; and also to look forward to is the launch of the two-month celebration of British orchestral life – both professional and in the community – which is Listen Up!
EDINBURGH
We have already started broadcasting our recordings from Edinburgh. This week features a trio of Weber operas, two of which are rarely heard: tonight we have Der Freischutz, on Wednesday, Oberon; and on Friday, Euryanthe. On the intervening nights, Tuesday and Thursday, we have more music by Weber performed by the Northern Sinfonia under Thomas Zehetmair, and music for two pianos by Philip Moore and Simon Crawford Phillips.
On Saturday (18th) the Opera on 3 is Strauss's Capriccio, also given at Edinburgh, and including Anne Sofie van Otter in the role of Clairon; and the following evening we have Britten's War Requiem with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Ilan Volkov. The Scottish tone of the coming week is intensified as the late-night Composer of the Week is Peter Maxwell Davies. Edinburgh continues – in a less operatic vein – until the 23rd of September, presenting many of the high points of this year's festival.
NEW GENERATION ARTISTS
At lunchtimes we have the chance to hear our Radio 3 New Generation Artists, starting today with a song recital given by Sally Matthews, presenting Mendelssohn, Strauss, and Schubert's Shepherd on the Rock. This is followed by a variety of chamber recitals showing the range of the musicians on the scheme, and including music for cello, wind ensemble, and piano. For full details about these talented musicians who are beginning to make their mark, do look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/newgenerations/.
DOCUMENTARY AND DRAMA
Some of you might have heard yesterday the beginning of a new feature series, Nile Lands, in which Zeinab Badawi travels through four countries of the Nile to explore how the river has shaped their different cultures, as well as helping to form perceptions of Africa in the Western imagination. This is a major initiative full of insights into the life and culture of parts of the world that few of us have the chance to visit. During the autumn we are looking to you for some new, original, entertaining and diverse music dramas for radio: Radio 3's first writers' competition – Broken and Blue – is an ambitious project for writers who would like to extend their body of work. The proposed dramas can be up to ninety minutes long. Please be as inventive as you like in the way you propose working with music. If you have a creative idea for this, do look at the full details of the competition at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/brokenandblue.shtml, where the deadline is December 1st.
LISTEN UP!
Just as the Proms season has dominated the Summer, Listen Up! is going to present a good deal of music from throughout the UK during the autumn. Listen Up! is the first festival of orchestras to take an overview of orchestral life within the UK and to include the work of amateur and professional organisations, both on and off the stage. BBC Radio 3 is joining forces with the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music (which represents amateur music organisations) to celebrate orchestras. The festival highlights the orchestras' contribution to the community and recognises their acknowledged role as guardian of our performing heritage. On Radio 3 each evening until November 5th we shall be broadcasting concerts from venues across the UK, reflecting the lively orchestral scene. And there is much more besides the concerts: various workshops and projects for all ages are taking place in many places, so do look at the website, and see if there is something that you can attend, or take part in, near where you live.
So, I trust you will enjoy Listen-ing Up! and much else in the Radio 3 programmes in the coming month.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
The Proms came to an end on Saturday with an eclectic concert ranging from a Strauss horn concerto to Vaughan Williams's Five Mystical Songs, Maxwell Davies's Ojai Festival Overture, music from Broadway, and Gilbert and Sullivan – not forgetting the usual items! – and we heard the splendidly restored Albert Hall organ in Barber's Toccata Festiva. Now the singing and cheering has died down, music does not finish for the year – far from it! Radio 3 is heading immediately towards its series of broadcasts from the Edinburgh Festival; and also to look forward to is the launch of the two-month celebration of British orchestral life – both professional and in the community – which is Listen Up!
EDINBURGH
We have already started broadcasting our recordings from Edinburgh. This week features a trio of Weber operas, two of which are rarely heard: tonight we have Der Freischutz, on Wednesday, Oberon; and on Friday, Euryanthe. On the intervening nights, Tuesday and Thursday, we have more music by Weber performed by the Northern Sinfonia under Thomas Zehetmair, and music for two pianos by Philip Moore and Simon Crawford Phillips.
On Saturday (18th) the Opera on 3 is Strauss's Capriccio, also given at Edinburgh, and including Anne Sofie van Otter in the role of Clairon; and the following evening we have Britten's War Requiem with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Ilan Volkov. The Scottish tone of the coming week is intensified as the late-night Composer of the Week is Peter Maxwell Davies. Edinburgh continues – in a less operatic vein – until the 23rd of September, presenting many of the high points of this year's festival.
NEW GENERATION ARTISTS
At lunchtimes we have the chance to hear our Radio 3 New Generation Artists, starting today with a song recital given by Sally Matthews, presenting Mendelssohn, Strauss, and Schubert's Shepherd on the Rock. This is followed by a variety of chamber recitals showing the range of the musicians on the scheme, and including music for cello, wind ensemble, and piano. For full details about these talented musicians who are beginning to make their mark, do look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/newgenerations/.
DOCUMENTARY AND DRAMA
Some of you might have heard yesterday the beginning of a new feature series, Nile Lands, in which Zeinab Badawi travels through four countries of the Nile to explore how the river has shaped their different cultures, as well as helping to form perceptions of Africa in the Western imagination. This is a major initiative full of insights into the life and culture of parts of the world that few of us have the chance to visit. During the autumn we are looking to you for some new, original, entertaining and diverse music dramas for radio: Radio 3's first writers' competition – Broken and Blue – is an ambitious project for writers who would like to extend their body of work. The proposed dramas can be up to ninety minutes long. Please be as inventive as you like in the way you propose working with music. If you have a creative idea for this, do look at the full details of the competition at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/speechanddrama/brokenandblue.shtml, where the deadline is December 1st.
LISTEN UP!
Just as the Proms season has dominated the Summer, Listen Up! is going to present a good deal of music from throughout the UK during the autumn. Listen Up! is the first festival of orchestras to take an overview of orchestral life within the UK and to include the work of amateur and professional organisations, both on and off the stage. BBC Radio 3 is joining forces with the Association of British Orchestras and Making Music (which represents amateur music organisations) to celebrate orchestras. The festival highlights the orchestras' contribution to the community and recognises their acknowledged role as guardian of our performing heritage. On Radio 3 each evening until November 5th we shall be broadcasting concerts from venues across the UK, reflecting the lively orchestral scene. And there is much more besides the concerts: various workshops and projects for all ages are taking place in many places, so do look at the website, and see if there is something that you can attend, or take part in, near where you live.
So, I trust you will enjoy Listen-ing Up! and much else in the Radio 3 programmes in the coming month.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
23/8/04: Figuring the figures
Among the facts and figures in the Annual Report 2003/2004 are the hours of output by category. For Radio 3 last year these were (the percentages and average minutes per day have been added):
Music:
This seems to include all music and music-related speech programmes like Music Matters and In Tune; also, probably, Lebrecht Live which replaces Music Matters once a month. It also conceals about 80 hours of news.
Based on the past 12 months, we would estimate that roughly 950 hours of the total is accounted for by the regular non-classical programmes and the non-classical one-offs. This is the equivalent of 156 minutes (2 hours 36 minutes) daily, the overwhelming majority during the waking day (7 am to midnight). As for the hours of 7.30 to midnight (1,647 hours in total last year) an estimated 530 hours were non classical music and 790 were classical. The remainder was speech. These figures do not include substantial additional amounts of non-classical music played as part of programmes categorised as 'classical' (Voices, Private Passions, In Tune, Summer Selection &c).
Live music:
The Radio 3 commitment was that: 'Over 50% of our output will be live or specially recorded music.' There's no indication as to how much 'over' it actually was, but 50% would amount to 4,132 hours in all. Roughly half of that is accounted for at a stroke by the six hours nightly of EBU Through the Night recordings; this is currently 26.57% of the total music output. It puts a slightly different complexion on that 'over 50%' if in reality over half of it was played during the night time (midnight to 6am at the start of the year, now 1am to 7am). The loss of Morning Performance and Sunday Live last autumn seems to have reduced the live music output overall, since they were replaced by the repeat of Composer of the Week, an added half hour on CD Masters and The Cowan Collection – all playing CDs.
News
As last year, the news appears only to include the 1pm news headlines, since 19 hours per annum works out at just over three minutes per day. We may presume that the remaining bulletins are counted in the 'classical music' of Morning on 3 and In Tune. If all bulletins are included, we calculate that there were 95 hours of news, not 19 hours, which means in turn that roughly 76 hours of news are categorised as 'classical music'. This is not far off 1% of the total 'music' output for the year.
Arts
The figure given for arts output – 169 hours – is puzzling. Night Waves is off air during the Proms season and when the religious series Belief is on. It is also sometimes curtailed or dropped for special programmes. Even so, there are usually other non-musical features after the Proms concert (e.g the philosophers series repeated) which should make up the equivalent, at least, of 45 weeks (169 hours) per year. So where are they categorising The Verb, Between the Ears and the Sunday Feature? A very rough guestimate would be that these programmes account for a further 75 hours, presumably included in the 'music'.
Religion
This figure (60 hours) is approximately correct for the weekly Choral Evensong, the seasonal Belief series and the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.
The BBC figures may in reality be calculated extremely accurately but without the necessary definitions of what each includes they look a bit rough and ready in places.
| | Hours | | Average | |
| Music | 8,264 | 94.08% | 22h 35 mins | |
| News and weather | 19 | 0.22% | 3 mins | |
| Drama | 103 | 1.17% | 17 mins | |
| Arts | 169 | 1.92% | 28 mins | |
| Religion | 60 | 0.68% | 10 mins | |
| Schools | 64 | 0.73% | 10 mins | |
| Children's | 50 | 0.57% | 8 mins | |
| Presentation | 55 | 0.63% | 9 mins | |
| Total (366 days) | 8,784 | 100% | 24 hours | |
Music:
This seems to include all music and music-related speech programmes like Music Matters and In Tune; also, probably, Lebrecht Live which replaces Music Matters once a month. It also conceals about 80 hours of news.
Based on the past 12 months, we would estimate that roughly 950 hours of the total is accounted for by the regular non-classical programmes and the non-classical one-offs. This is the equivalent of 156 minutes (2 hours 36 minutes) daily, the overwhelming majority during the waking day (7 am to midnight). As for the hours of 7.30 to midnight (1,647 hours in total last year) an estimated 530 hours were non classical music and 790 were classical. The remainder was speech. These figures do not include substantial additional amounts of non-classical music played as part of programmes categorised as 'classical' (Voices, Private Passions, In Tune, Summer Selection &c).
Live music:
The Radio 3 commitment was that: 'Over 50% of our output will be live or specially recorded music.' There's no indication as to how much 'over' it actually was, but 50% would amount to 4,132 hours in all. Roughly half of that is accounted for at a stroke by the six hours nightly of EBU Through the Night recordings; this is currently 26.57% of the total music output. It puts a slightly different complexion on that 'over 50%' if in reality over half of it was played during the night time (midnight to 6am at the start of the year, now 1am to 7am). The loss of Morning Performance and Sunday Live last autumn seems to have reduced the live music output overall, since they were replaced by the repeat of Composer of the Week, an added half hour on CD Masters and The Cowan Collection – all playing CDs.
News
As last year, the news appears only to include the 1pm news headlines, since 19 hours per annum works out at just over three minutes per day. We may presume that the remaining bulletins are counted in the 'classical music' of Morning on 3 and In Tune. If all bulletins are included, we calculate that there were 95 hours of news, not 19 hours, which means in turn that roughly 76 hours of news are categorised as 'classical music'. This is not far off 1% of the total 'music' output for the year.
Arts
The figure given for arts output – 169 hours – is puzzling. Night Waves is off air during the Proms season and when the religious series Belief is on. It is also sometimes curtailed or dropped for special programmes. Even so, there are usually other non-musical features after the Proms concert (e.g the philosophers series repeated) which should make up the equivalent, at least, of 45 weeks (169 hours) per year. So where are they categorising The Verb, Between the Ears and the Sunday Feature? A very rough guestimate would be that these programmes account for a further 75 hours, presumably included in the 'music'.
Religion
This figure (60 hours) is approximately correct for the weekly Choral Evensong, the seasonal Belief series and the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.
The BBC figures may in reality be calculated extremely accurately but without the necessary definitions of what each includes they look a bit rough and ready in places.
Controller's Note, Aug. 2004
We are now a few weeks into our re-launched Radio 3 website. I do hope that you are enjoying its new streamlined features. With an increasing number of unique users it seems to have attracted a renewed interest. Please do let us have your feedback about our interactive service.
www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
As I write we are not quite half-way through the Proms, and I hope you have already enjoyed some first-class musical performances from the Royal Albert Hall. There are plenty more opportunities still to come to join us for a Proms concert this summer, so I hope you will be able to enjoy many of them. At the end of this week, Yo-Yo Ma will be performing a new work by Bright Sheng with the London Sinfonietta, as part of this year's EAST/WEST theme. By way of contrast on Saturday, the BBC Concert Orchestra perform an evening largely dedicated to operetta, and music by the Strauss family. Sunday August 15th will also a remarkably full and varied day at the Proms, as Yo-Yo Ma is joined by his Musicians of the Silk Road in the afternoon, followed by John Eliot Gardiner with the Monteverdi Choir in Bach's B Minor Mass at 8pm in the evening. Don't forget that if you do miss a concert you have been looking forward to, we have the Proms repeats throughout the season, and the opportunity to hear some of them again online.
www.bbc.co.uk/proms
Aside from the Proms, we are presenting performances from two Scottish festivals at lunchtimes during August. Both Edinburgh and the St Magnus Festival have some riches in store for us. There is the usual wide variety of chamber music from the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh, while St Magnus ranges from the strange dissonances of early Orthodox church music presented by the Russian Patricharal Choir to Jean-Philippe Collard and the haunting sonorities of Fauré. Continuing in the festival spirit, the Glyndebourne Festival Opera performs an rare operatic double-bill of Rakhmaninov, 'The Miserly Knight' and Puccini, 'Gianni Schicchi' (and the 70th anniversary of Glyndebourne is also celebrated on Radio 3 in a short series beginning on Sunday 15th August).
In our speech programming we mark another anniversary, the 150th of Henry David Thoreau's classic book 'Walden' with a documentary on its extraordinary legacy as inspiration to writers, philosophers, ecologists and politicians. That's on Monday August 30th. Coming up in Drama on 3 you can enjoy an outstanding performance from Bill Nighy as The Don in Jeff Young's radical translation of 'Don Quixote' to the North of England. Dreaming of a world more enchanted than this, The Don staggers through pubs, weddings and seedy clubs immersing himself in sentimental song and in pursuit of an imaginary lover. Our production includes original music by Harvey Brough, and is broadcast in Drama on 3 on Sunday September 5th.
Each summer some brave souls follow the hot and dusty mediaeval pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostella in Northern Spain. Catherine Bott took us on the journey during the Early Music Show on Sunday 8th August (if you missed this, you can listen on the Radio Player). This is complemented by a special sequence of choral music from St James, Spanish Place replacing Choral Evensong on Wednesday. On Saturday mornings do listen out for our Summer Selection, with a variety of voices presenting a look ahead to the forthcoming week of Proms; this Saturday you can hear Sheena McDonald making her personal choice of music from Bach to John Tavener, and Mozart to Barber.
For those of you who are taking a break at this time of the year, I hope you are having or will have an enjoyable time.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
www.bbc.co.uk/radio3
As I write we are not quite half-way through the Proms, and I hope you have already enjoyed some first-class musical performances from the Royal Albert Hall. There are plenty more opportunities still to come to join us for a Proms concert this summer, so I hope you will be able to enjoy many of them. At the end of this week, Yo-Yo Ma will be performing a new work by Bright Sheng with the London Sinfonietta, as part of this year's EAST/WEST theme. By way of contrast on Saturday, the BBC Concert Orchestra perform an evening largely dedicated to operetta, and music by the Strauss family. Sunday August 15th will also a remarkably full and varied day at the Proms, as Yo-Yo Ma is joined by his Musicians of the Silk Road in the afternoon, followed by John Eliot Gardiner with the Monteverdi Choir in Bach's B Minor Mass at 8pm in the evening. Don't forget that if you do miss a concert you have been looking forward to, we have the Proms repeats throughout the season, and the opportunity to hear some of them again online.
www.bbc.co.uk/proms
Aside from the Proms, we are presenting performances from two Scottish festivals at lunchtimes during August. Both Edinburgh and the St Magnus Festival have some riches in store for us. There is the usual wide variety of chamber music from the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh, while St Magnus ranges from the strange dissonances of early Orthodox church music presented by the Russian Patricharal Choir to Jean-Philippe Collard and the haunting sonorities of Fauré. Continuing in the festival spirit, the Glyndebourne Festival Opera performs an rare operatic double-bill of Rakhmaninov, 'The Miserly Knight' and Puccini, 'Gianni Schicchi' (and the 70th anniversary of Glyndebourne is also celebrated on Radio 3 in a short series beginning on Sunday 15th August).
In our speech programming we mark another anniversary, the 150th of Henry David Thoreau's classic book 'Walden' with a documentary on its extraordinary legacy as inspiration to writers, philosophers, ecologists and politicians. That's on Monday August 30th. Coming up in Drama on 3 you can enjoy an outstanding performance from Bill Nighy as The Don in Jeff Young's radical translation of 'Don Quixote' to the North of England. Dreaming of a world more enchanted than this, The Don staggers through pubs, weddings and seedy clubs immersing himself in sentimental song and in pursuit of an imaginary lover. Our production includes original music by Harvey Brough, and is broadcast in Drama on 3 on Sunday September 5th.
Each summer some brave souls follow the hot and dusty mediaeval pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostella in Northern Spain. Catherine Bott took us on the journey during the Early Music Show on Sunday 8th August (if you missed this, you can listen on the Radio Player). This is complemented by a special sequence of choral music from St James, Spanish Place replacing Choral Evensong on Wednesday. On Saturday mornings do listen out for our Summer Selection, with a variety of voices presenting a look ahead to the forthcoming week of Proms; this Saturday you can hear Sheena McDonald making her personal choice of music from Bach to John Tavener, and Mozart to Barber.
For those of you who are taking a break at this time of the year, I hope you are having or will have an enjoyable time.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
6/8/04 RealAudio Streaming, BBC Response
Yesterday we posted an article detailing the difficulties overseas listeners were having trying to access R3 broadcasts over the internet. Today we urged a number of listeners to write in to the BBC executives most closely concerned with New Media and Radio, detailing the problems. It's very gratifying to report that within a few hours we got the response below, via the FoR3 website. We deeply appreciate the sentiments expressed and the prompt action, and hope to have good news soon.
'Dear Listener,
'Thank you for bringing to our attention the anomalies you appear to be experiencing in accessing BBC Radio 3 via the Internet. We apologise for this disruption, especially during the Proms season.
'To bring you up to date, this matter has been escalated to our service provider, and diagnosis by our dedicated network engineering team is currently underway.
'Early reports indicate an unusual network condition, however, in order to resolve the situation promptly, we may ask for some of you to assist in our diagnosis.
'If this becomes necessary we will post a request on this board.
'Due to the ever-changing nature of the Internet we rely on dedicated listeners such as you to inform us of this sort of issue. Your patience and understanding is greatly appreciated and we hope to return to our normally high level of service without delay.
'Once the cause has been identified and resolved we will undertake a review to ascertain what we need to do to prevent such a situation reoccurring
'Yours Sincerely
'BBC Radio Streaming'
'Dear Listener,
'Thank you for bringing to our attention the anomalies you appear to be experiencing in accessing BBC Radio 3 via the Internet. We apologise for this disruption, especially during the Proms season.
'To bring you up to date, this matter has been escalated to our service provider, and diagnosis by our dedicated network engineering team is currently underway.
'Early reports indicate an unusual network condition, however, in order to resolve the situation promptly, we may ask for some of you to assist in our diagnosis.
'If this becomes necessary we will post a request on this board.
'Due to the ever-changing nature of the Internet we rely on dedicated listeners such as you to inform us of this sort of issue. Your patience and understanding is greatly appreciated and we hope to return to our normally high level of service without delay.
'Once the cause has been identified and resolved we will undertake a review to ascertain what we need to do to prevent such a situation reoccurring
'Yours Sincerely
'BBC Radio Streaming'
5/8/04 Streaming cold in August
From a North American listener
For the last two weeks or so the Radio 3 RealAudio stream has been either unavailable to many listeners (indeed, it seems, most listeners in North America) and/or of such unacceptably poor quality that it's like overhearing someone else's tinny portable radio underwater.
Those in the know have often made the point on the R3 Message Boards that the target bitrate (the speed at which transmissions leave the BBC servers and hence the quality and depth of the encoding of the sound source) for R3 is low by other international standards.
When the Real stream has been receivable at all, this has – since late July – only been at a rate (less than) a quarter of the previous maximum. The result is warbling, distorted, boxy and spluttering sound quality.
Worse, the very source of the stream (internet link or URI) On Demand and to Listen Live now frequently stalls and errors out before the new, ropy, connection can be made and held for listeners at least as far apart as Japan and the metropolitan areas of the northeastern United States and West Coast.
Several attempts have been made to draw the Message Board hosts (inquiries to BBC Technical Support invariably go unanswered) on what is happening and why. The Real stream is the only way that many tens (hundreds?) of thousands of listeners to Radio 3 at the time of the Proms – 'the World's Greatest Classical Music Festival' – have to listen. These requests for clarification have all been met with silence or a single, apparently ill-informed, sidestepping of any useful or technically-accurate information.
Lack of the R3 internet stream is as unacceptable as is an FM transmitter off the air for a fortnight: senior management at the BBC (Jenny Abramsky, Director of Radio and Music, in a reply to FoR3 on 14th August 2003, for example) have advised that the BBC Radio Player and indeed the standalone RealAudio streaming software are now the way for everyone to time-shift their listening habits so as to make 'classical' music from R3 available to them around the clock. And the RealAudio stream is a potential showcase for the BBC, R3 and the Proms.
One really does hate to grumble about yet another shortcoming of our favourite radio station – but it's hard not to wince at the extraordinarily bad PR this failure in service represents for all of us who care about serious music; especially at this important time of the year. One certainly likes to think this is temporary and presages a major improvement to the service. We shall be happy to report on it if it is and does.
For the last two weeks or so the Radio 3 RealAudio stream has been either unavailable to many listeners (indeed, it seems, most listeners in North America) and/or of such unacceptably poor quality that it's like overhearing someone else's tinny portable radio underwater.
Those in the know have often made the point on the R3 Message Boards that the target bitrate (the speed at which transmissions leave the BBC servers and hence the quality and depth of the encoding of the sound source) for R3 is low by other international standards.
When the Real stream has been receivable at all, this has – since late July – only been at a rate (less than) a quarter of the previous maximum. The result is warbling, distorted, boxy and spluttering sound quality.
Worse, the very source of the stream (internet link or URI) On Demand and to Listen Live now frequently stalls and errors out before the new, ropy, connection can be made and held for listeners at least as far apart as Japan and the metropolitan areas of the northeastern United States and West Coast.
Several attempts have been made to draw the Message Board hosts (inquiries to BBC Technical Support invariably go unanswered) on what is happening and why. The Real stream is the only way that many tens (hundreds?) of thousands of listeners to Radio 3 at the time of the Proms – 'the World's Greatest Classical Music Festival' – have to listen. These requests for clarification have all been met with silence or a single, apparently ill-informed, sidestepping of any useful or technically-accurate information.
Lack of the R3 internet stream is as unacceptable as is an FM transmitter off the air for a fortnight: senior management at the BBC (Jenny Abramsky, Director of Radio and Music, in a reply to FoR3 on 14th August 2003, for example) have advised that the BBC Radio Player and indeed the standalone RealAudio streaming software are now the way for everyone to time-shift their listening habits so as to make 'classical' music from R3 available to them around the clock. And the RealAudio stream is a potential showcase for the BBC, R3 and the Proms.
One really does hate to grumble about yet another shortcoming of our favourite radio station – but it's hard not to wince at the extraordinarily bad PR this failure in service represents for all of us who care about serious music; especially at this important time of the year. One certainly likes to think this is temporary and presages a major improvement to the service. We shall be happy to report on it if it is and does.
28/7/04 State of the Corporation
The BBC Governors' Annual Report for 2003/2004 has now been published and makes for interesting reading. It's a hefty document (about 150 pages in pdf format here). One notable feature is that, under new direction, there is an insistence that this is the Governors' report, not management's. Another is that the new watchwords are responsiveness, openness and accountability. We think this augurs well.
Last January we submitted our views on the recent Radio 3 changes to the Governors, and the submission arrived in the middle of the Hutton debacle. We were, in the circumstances, unsurprised that there was no immediate response. Nevertheless, a response has filtered through in this report with the following comment in the section on Radio 3:
"We are aware some listeners are unhappy with the share of output given to non-classical music on Radio 3 and will remain mindful of this in continuing to assess the network's performance."
If our views were being totally dismissed, there would have been no need to mention this at all, and certainly no need to say the Governors would be watching the situation.
The one bit of 'management speak' that found its way in was the propaganda that Radio 3 had 'record' listening figures last quarter. What record was it? Not share of listening, not average listening hours, not even percentage reach of the population. For the first time, the 'raw' reach had crept above the March 1999 figure (the first complete quarter after Roger Wright took over). Unadjusted for population growth it was 13,000 up on March 1999; adjusted it was almost 22,000 down.
We also intend to respond to the public document Building Public Value, in which the BBC lays out its thoughts on the future direction of the corporation as part of the Charter renewal debate and in the digital age. Again, we feel there are some very encouraging aspects to this too.
Last January we submitted our views on the recent Radio 3 changes to the Governors, and the submission arrived in the middle of the Hutton debacle. We were, in the circumstances, unsurprised that there was no immediate response. Nevertheless, a response has filtered through in this report with the following comment in the section on Radio 3:
"We are aware some listeners are unhappy with the share of output given to non-classical music on Radio 3 and will remain mindful of this in continuing to assess the network's performance."
If our views were being totally dismissed, there would have been no need to mention this at all, and certainly no need to say the Governors would be watching the situation.
The one bit of 'management speak' that found its way in was the propaganda that Radio 3 had 'record' listening figures last quarter. What record was it? Not share of listening, not average listening hours, not even percentage reach of the population. For the first time, the 'raw' reach had crept above the March 1999 figure (the first complete quarter after Roger Wright took over). Unadjusted for population growth it was 13,000 up on March 1999; adjusted it was almost 22,000 down.
We also intend to respond to the public document Building Public Value, in which the BBC lays out its thoughts on the future direction of the corporation as part of the Charter renewal debate and in the digital age. Again, we feel there are some very encouraging aspects to this too.
Controller's Note, Jun. 2004
Dear Radio 3 Listeners,
Writing this on a sunny day here in London, it seems that summer has started, at least judging by the weather. Looking at the Radio 3 schedule confirms this impression. I hope you have enjoyed our broadcasts from the Bath Festival. Many other festivals are beginning across the country and we are pleased to be able to share much of this music-making with you as we offer the best seat in the house at so many of these events. The Proms, of course is only just a month away, and we hope that many of you will be able to join us in the Royal Albert Hall for that series. However, in the meantime, we shall be travelling throughout the country, visiting the Lufthansa Festival, and those in Aldeburgh, Orkney (St Magnus), the City of London, and Cheltenham.
It is difficult to choose between the many events offered, but personally I shall be looking forward very much to Birtwistle's The Story of Io from the Aldeburgh Festival (June 21st); it is another work from Birtwistle on a classical theme, as Io is seduced by Zeus and becomes Queen of Egypt. Also from Aldeburgh, Ian Bostridge performs Schubert, and Hölderlin-based works by Britten and Kurtag (June 24th) and there is a concert of English music from the Britten Sinfonia (June 25th). There is also an all-Tavener programme, including his extraordinary Ultimos Ritos, from the City of London Festival (27th June), in a performance made possible by Radio 3 and in which the BBC Singers perform in St Paul's Cathedral with the City of London Sinfonia directed by Richard Hickox. And on July 2nd, we have a live performance of Death in Venice as the opening event from Cheltenham.
We go much further north, to Orkney, for the St Magnus Festival, and for two concerts from the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ilan Volkov; the second (30th June) contains the Elgar Violin Concerto performed by one of our New Generation Artists, Ilya Gringolts. Staying in a part of the world where the sun never seems to set at this time of year, do listen out for the BBC Symphony Orchestra Finnish Weekend, starting on Friday, and exploring music from that extremely creative musical nation. There will be Sibelius, of course, but also we have music by composers who are less often heard in the UK: Tiensuu, Saariaho, and Raitio – an interesting opportunity to explore this in the company of Jukka-Pekka Saraste:( http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/so/barbican/june.shtml). It's also worth giving you advance notice of our Janácek Day (4th July), during the year which marks the 150th anniversary of his birth; a lot of material for this has been gathered on the spot in the Czech Republic, including a special recording of Jenùfa, so it promises to be a really fascinating day-long exploration.
Midsummer Night Dreams is another special evening of music, drama and commissioned writing celebrating midsummer. It's presented by Fiona Talkington and Ian McMillan, who lead us from Shakespeare and Mendelssohn to Britain's remotest inhabited island, home to thirty people and countless seabirds, to a night with Ian and his brother on his brother's allotment in Barnsley. They look at the stars, remember the Miners' Strike and the miners' suntans twenty years ago, and sit and talk about watching the vegetables grow under a June moon. So listen out for Midsummer madness and magic on June 20th. Drama highlights from the coming weeks include a major new commission by Radio 3 from Colin Teevan. Set against the backdrop of post-Saddam Iraq in 2003, How Many Miles to Basra follows four soldiers, a journalist and their Iraqi translator on an unauthorised journey deep into the Iraqi countryside in a disastrous attempt to make amends for the deaths of some local men at a vehicle checkpoint. It will be broadcast on July 11, and promises to be a challenging insight into the world of warfare.
As usual, then, we hope you find much to enjoy, and much nourishment for your imagination in another wide-ranging Radio 3 month.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
Writing this on a sunny day here in London, it seems that summer has started, at least judging by the weather. Looking at the Radio 3 schedule confirms this impression. I hope you have enjoyed our broadcasts from the Bath Festival. Many other festivals are beginning across the country and we are pleased to be able to share much of this music-making with you as we offer the best seat in the house at so many of these events. The Proms, of course is only just a month away, and we hope that many of you will be able to join us in the Royal Albert Hall for that series. However, in the meantime, we shall be travelling throughout the country, visiting the Lufthansa Festival, and those in Aldeburgh, Orkney (St Magnus), the City of London, and Cheltenham.
It is difficult to choose between the many events offered, but personally I shall be looking forward very much to Birtwistle's The Story of Io from the Aldeburgh Festival (June 21st); it is another work from Birtwistle on a classical theme, as Io is seduced by Zeus and becomes Queen of Egypt. Also from Aldeburgh, Ian Bostridge performs Schubert, and Hölderlin-based works by Britten and Kurtag (June 24th) and there is a concert of English music from the Britten Sinfonia (June 25th). There is also an all-Tavener programme, including his extraordinary Ultimos Ritos, from the City of London Festival (27th June), in a performance made possible by Radio 3 and in which the BBC Singers perform in St Paul's Cathedral with the City of London Sinfonia directed by Richard Hickox. And on July 2nd, we have a live performance of Death in Venice as the opening event from Cheltenham.
We go much further north, to Orkney, for the St Magnus Festival, and for two concerts from the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ilan Volkov; the second (30th June) contains the Elgar Violin Concerto performed by one of our New Generation Artists, Ilya Gringolts. Staying in a part of the world where the sun never seems to set at this time of year, do listen out for the BBC Symphony Orchestra Finnish Weekend, starting on Friday, and exploring music from that extremely creative musical nation. There will be Sibelius, of course, but also we have music by composers who are less often heard in the UK: Tiensuu, Saariaho, and Raitio – an interesting opportunity to explore this in the company of Jukka-Pekka Saraste:( http://www.bbc.co.uk/orchestras/so/barbican/june.shtml). It's also worth giving you advance notice of our Janácek Day (4th July), during the year which marks the 150th anniversary of his birth; a lot of material for this has been gathered on the spot in the Czech Republic, including a special recording of Jenùfa, so it promises to be a really fascinating day-long exploration.
Midsummer Night Dreams is another special evening of music, drama and commissioned writing celebrating midsummer. It's presented by Fiona Talkington and Ian McMillan, who lead us from Shakespeare and Mendelssohn to Britain's remotest inhabited island, home to thirty people and countless seabirds, to a night with Ian and his brother on his brother's allotment in Barnsley. They look at the stars, remember the Miners' Strike and the miners' suntans twenty years ago, and sit and talk about watching the vegetables grow under a June moon. So listen out for Midsummer madness and magic on June 20th. Drama highlights from the coming weeks include a major new commission by Radio 3 from Colin Teevan. Set against the backdrop of post-Saddam Iraq in 2003, How Many Miles to Basra follows four soldiers, a journalist and their Iraqi translator on an unauthorised journey deep into the Iraqi countryside in a disastrous attempt to make amends for the deaths of some local men at a vehicle checkpoint. It will be broadcast on July 11, and promises to be a challenging insight into the world of warfare.
As usual, then, we hope you find much to enjoy, and much nourishment for your imagination in another wide-ranging Radio 3 month.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
Controller's Note, May 2004
Dear All,
We have just finished Music Live, a major celebration of music held in Northern Ireland. Many of Radio 3's programmes actually migrated to Ireland for the occasion giving them a unique Irish flavour: the Early Music Show went in search of the musical history of Ireland; we had an opera gala with the Ulster Orchestra; the BBC Singers performed two concerts; and the lunchtime concerts took us to Londonderry. Sean Rafferty made a triumphant return to his home to present In Tune (in which Karlheinz Stockhausen was one of his guests) and an opera gala. It was a really great atmosphere at these events and I hope that many of you heard and enjoyed the broadcasts. (Sean, after his success earlier this year in being named Radio Broadcaster of the Year by the Broadcasting Press Guild, was also nominated in the recent Voice of the Listener and the Viewer Awards for his significant contribution to radio in the last year – Awards which saw Radio 3 pick up two other honours – Best Radio Programme for our coverage of the Proms and Best New Radio Programme for Kathleen Ferrier Night).
The BBC has just launched our Statements of Programme Policy for the coming year. Though the formal title might make this sound like uninviting reading, this is something we take very seriously – our commitment to you, our listeners, in the coming year. Radio 3 remains committed to its unique coverage of live music, with over 50% of music on the network live or specially recorded. We will continue our investment in the UK cultural life as an active commissioner of new music, and will broadcast at least 300 live or specially recorded concerts. Supporting all this activity, the BBC performing groups lie at the heart of our output and we are also keen to deepen our external partnerships with performing groups and festivals across the UK. This is linked with our commitment to providing insights into the classical repertoire through programmes such as Composer of the Week and Discovering Music. To read the full version of our commitments, you can click on http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/statements2004/docs/radio.pdf.
Even a quick glance at the next month of Performance on 3 alone shows the richness of our live music output which we will continue to present for you in the future. For example, there are three concerts from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment of Bach and Vivaldi (10th/11th), as well as Beethoven and Mozart with Lyubimov as soloist (24th). On 15th May there is a stunning production of 'Rosenkavalier' from the Royal Opera House, and later in the month Opera North presents four operatic double bills, with works ranging from Rossini to Weill (22nd/25th/27th/30th). From our own performing groups, we have the BBC Symphony Orchestra on tour from the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam (21th), the BBC Philharmonic directed by Penderecki from the Manchester International Cello Festival (17th) and presenting Tchaikovsky's 'Queen of Spades' with soloists from the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg (29th). While in the chamber music field you can hear Felicity Lott and Angelika Kirchschlager in a song recital (19th), the Mosaiques Quartet (20th), and Angela Hewitt in Bach and Beethoven (31st). And then, as we enter June, summer begins and we start our festival coverage in earnest, with Bath, Spitalfields and much more to follow including the Proms. We hope that you have now caught up with our BBC Proms plans for this year, and are looking forward to hearing and perhaps attending some of these concerts. If not, then do look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/ where you will find all the details.
Finally, our listening figures for the first three months of this year have just been announced and they are our highest figures ever. I am delighted that so many of you are now tuning in to our new schedule and I hope you enjoy what we have to offer in the coming months. Thanks again for your continuing interest in Radio 3.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
We have just finished Music Live, a major celebration of music held in Northern Ireland. Many of Radio 3's programmes actually migrated to Ireland for the occasion giving them a unique Irish flavour: the Early Music Show went in search of the musical history of Ireland; we had an opera gala with the Ulster Orchestra; the BBC Singers performed two concerts; and the lunchtime concerts took us to Londonderry. Sean Rafferty made a triumphant return to his home to present In Tune (in which Karlheinz Stockhausen was one of his guests) and an opera gala. It was a really great atmosphere at these events and I hope that many of you heard and enjoyed the broadcasts. (Sean, after his success earlier this year in being named Radio Broadcaster of the Year by the Broadcasting Press Guild, was also nominated in the recent Voice of the Listener and the Viewer Awards for his significant contribution to radio in the last year – Awards which saw Radio 3 pick up two other honours – Best Radio Programme for our coverage of the Proms and Best New Radio Programme for Kathleen Ferrier Night).
The BBC has just launched our Statements of Programme Policy for the coming year. Though the formal title might make this sound like uninviting reading, this is something we take very seriously – our commitment to you, our listeners, in the coming year. Radio 3 remains committed to its unique coverage of live music, with over 50% of music on the network live or specially recorded. We will continue our investment in the UK cultural life as an active commissioner of new music, and will broadcast at least 300 live or specially recorded concerts. Supporting all this activity, the BBC performing groups lie at the heart of our output and we are also keen to deepen our external partnerships with performing groups and festivals across the UK. This is linked with our commitment to providing insights into the classical repertoire through programmes such as Composer of the Week and Discovering Music. To read the full version of our commitments, you can click on http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/statements2004/docs/radio.pdf.
Even a quick glance at the next month of Performance on 3 alone shows the richness of our live music output which we will continue to present for you in the future. For example, there are three concerts from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment of Bach and Vivaldi (10th/11th), as well as Beethoven and Mozart with Lyubimov as soloist (24th). On 15th May there is a stunning production of 'Rosenkavalier' from the Royal Opera House, and later in the month Opera North presents four operatic double bills, with works ranging from Rossini to Weill (22nd/25th/27th/30th). From our own performing groups, we have the BBC Symphony Orchestra on tour from the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam (21th), the BBC Philharmonic directed by Penderecki from the Manchester International Cello Festival (17th) and presenting Tchaikovsky's 'Queen of Spades' with soloists from the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg (29th). While in the chamber music field you can hear Felicity Lott and Angelika Kirchschlager in a song recital (19th), the Mosaiques Quartet (20th), and Angela Hewitt in Bach and Beethoven (31st). And then, as we enter June, summer begins and we start our festival coverage in earnest, with Bath, Spitalfields and much more to follow including the Proms. We hope that you have now caught up with our BBC Proms plans for this year, and are looking forward to hearing and perhaps attending some of these concerts. If not, then do look at http://www.bbc.co.uk/proms/ where you will find all the details.
Finally, our listening figures for the first three months of this year have just been announced and they are our highest figures ever. I am delighted that so many of you are now tuning in to our new schedule and I hope you enjoy what we have to offer in the coming months. Thanks again for your continuing interest in Radio 3.
All best wishes
Roger Wright
1/5/04 Current plans for R3
The BBC's Statements of Programme Policy 2004/2005 for television and radio were published on April 29th. The network radio pages can be read (pdf file) here or, in text version only, here. The R3 statement is on page 25.
The policy document this year has jettisoned the phrase 'classical music remains at the heart of the schedule' and the emphasis now is on R3's wide range of music and culture, its learning agenda, engaging its audience in debate, outreach work with community groups, developing mutual awareness and human understanding. There are admittedly references to chamber music and the Proms; but otherwise mention is simply of 'music' (or World music), of 'bringing new audiences an experience of music', 'developing an entry point for a wide range of music', 'stimulating the creative imagination of young people'.
It sounds depressingly like the mission statement of a state primary school…
As far as our complaint about the scheduling is concerned, there is mention here of 'the needs of flexible lifestyles' being met by 'imaginative development of our online on-demand listening facilities'. This seems to mean that they are continuing to insist that the evenings are not especially important to people who are at work during the day since nowadays they can flexibly listen to R3 on their computers while at work; and even if they can't, they can listen On Demand in the evenings to the programmes that they've missed (even though hardly any of the daytime classical programmes are available on demand – unlike the non-classical ones, which are, without exception).
Of course, 'flexible lifestyles' necessitate time-shift listening, also, for those who are doing other things in the evenings: work, hobbies, shopping, evening classes – if you miss your favourite programme you can listen again On Demand at a time of your choice: Late Junction (four times a week), Andy Kershaw, Mixing It, Jazz on 3, Night Waves, The Verb, Drama on 3, The Wire – in fact every single evening programme… except the one classical programme – the concert/opera. 'This Week's Concert' – one concert selected from the week's offerings – is the sole exception. We've heard the reason why it's difficult to provide classical programmes on demand, but for the flexible lifestyle, timeshift classical listener, this is little consolation. This is why the evening scheduling is so important.
In his Sunday Times Radio Waves column of 18 April Paul Donovan described the press party which R3 had just given to publicise its innovatory newness: 'New music, new writing, new ideas.' Well, we're told that £500,000 has been allocated for 'over 50' new music commissions; and, either coincidentally or in response to listener suggestions, limited plans seem to be afoot to give further broadcasts of previous commissions which had thus far been, as is the norm, neglected after their first performance. This is good news for the composers who get the commissions. For listeners the difference is unlikely to be huge though R3's commitment to new music is welcome.
And as for new writing, true enough, we see Radio 3 encouraging 'adventurous new writing' for The Wire and The Verb. Much like, presumably, the controversial 'gay kiss' drama which is coming up this week on The Wire and which sounds a bit like a cross between 'The Roses of Eyam' and 'The Archers' – a 1970-vintage idea (thought up originally by Don Taylor) and a dose of in-the-mix shock-horror.
As now, approaching 60% of the 'arts' programming will be 'debate' – otherwise known as people exchanging views about this and that. In fact, just as classical music has been broadened to become 'music', so the arts have become 'culture'. Classic drama/literature is not mentioned, nor is classic poetry – though R3 is to have a poet-in-residence from the autumn, an announcement which R3 listeners will probably be overjoyed to hear. New writing is all very well but old writing still has a lot to commend it. It should not be sidelined. There is a common assumption that new, contemporary and young are 'good'. Sometimes they are bad, in fact very bad, as R3 has been known to demonstrate.
Philip Hensher writing in The Independent yesterday (on subscription, 'Why does the BBC ignore the arts?') deplores the BBC's poor arts provision, especially compared with sports coverage. 'But,' he said, 'we have to accept that no one at the BBC is going to listen to complaints like this one'.
And in reading this latest policy document, it's hard to see that R3 has listened to any listener complaints over the past few years. The juggernaut of the new cultural agenda lumbers relentlessly on.
The policy document this year has jettisoned the phrase 'classical music remains at the heart of the schedule' and the emphasis now is on R3's wide range of music and culture, its learning agenda, engaging its audience in debate, outreach work with community groups, developing mutual awareness and human understanding. There are admittedly references to chamber music and the Proms; but otherwise mention is simply of 'music' (or World music), of 'bringing new audiences an experience of music', 'developing an entry point for a wide range of music', 'stimulating the creative imagination of young people'.
It sounds depressingly like the mission statement of a state primary school…
As far as our complaint about the scheduling is concerned, there is mention here of 'the needs of flexible lifestyles' being met by 'imaginative development of our online on-demand listening facilities'. This seems to mean that they are continuing to insist that the evenings are not especially important to people who are at work during the day since nowadays they can flexibly listen to R3 on their computers while at work; and even if they can't, they can listen On Demand in the evenings to the programmes that they've missed (even though hardly any of the daytime classical programmes are available on demand – unlike the non-classical ones, which are, without exception).
Of course, 'flexible lifestyles' necessitate time-shift listening, also, for those who are doing other things in the evenings: work, hobbies, shopping, evening classes – if you miss your favourite programme you can listen again On Demand at a time of your choice: Late Junction (four times a week), Andy Kershaw, Mixing It, Jazz on 3, Night Waves, The Verb, Drama on 3, The Wire – in fact every single evening programme… except the one classical programme – the concert/opera. 'This Week's Concert' – one concert selected from the week's offerings – is the sole exception. We've heard the reason why it's difficult to provide classical programmes on demand, but for the flexible lifestyle, timeshift classical listener, this is little consolation. This is why the evening scheduling is so important.
In his Sunday Times Radio Waves column of 18 April Paul Donovan described the press party which R3 had just given to publicise its innovatory newness: 'New music, new writing, new ideas.' Well, we're told that £500,000 has been allocated for 'over 50' new music commissions; and, either coincidentally or in response to listener suggestions, limited plans seem to be afoot to give further broadcasts of previous commissions which had thus far been, as is the norm, neglected after their first performance. This is good news for the composers who get the commissions. For listeners the difference is unlikely to be huge though R3's commitment to new music is welcome.
And as for new writing, true enough, we see Radio 3 encouraging 'adventurous new writing' for The Wire and The Verb. Much like, presumably, the controversial 'gay kiss' drama which is coming up this week on The Wire and which sounds a bit like a cross between 'The Roses of Eyam' and 'The Archers' – a 1970-vintage idea (thought up originally by Don Taylor) and a dose of in-the-mix shock-horror.
As now, approaching 60% of the 'arts' programming will be 'debate' – otherwise known as people exchanging views about this and that. In fact, just as classical music has been broadened to become 'music', so the arts have become 'culture'. Classic drama/literature is not mentioned, nor is classic poetry – though R3 is to have a poet-in-residence from the autumn, an announcement which R3 listeners will probably be overjoyed to hear. New writing is all very well but old writing still has a lot to commend it. It should not be sidelined. There is a common assumption that new, contemporary and young are 'good'. Sometimes they are bad, in fact very bad, as R3 has been known to demonstrate.
Philip Hensher writing in The Independent yesterday (on subscription, 'Why does the BBC ignore the arts?') deplores the BBC's poor arts provision, especially compared with sports coverage. 'But,' he said, 'we have to accept that no one at the BBC is going to listen to complaints like this one'.
And in reading this latest policy document, it's hard to see that R3 has listened to any listener complaints over the past few years. The juggernaut of the new cultural agenda lumbers relentlessly on.
Controller's Note, Apr. 2004
As I write we are just about to start the holiday weekend, and I hope that you will be able to make some appointments with Radio 3 for some of our seasonal programming. Good Friday is a particularly rich day. At 2.00 pm we have a performance of the St Matthew Passion to mark a particularly historic anniversary: the 150th anniversary of the first British performance in English. This comes from the Royal Festival Hall and features the Bach Choir conducted by David Hill.
In the evening we finish our week of 'Belief' programmes, as Joan Bakewell talks to the Irish spiritual writer John O'Donohue. Then we move on to take a more contemporary look at the Passion, in 'A Passion 4 Radio'. This is presented from Jerusalem and London, and uses the four Gospel accounts interleaved with commentary and music from many times and places. Karen Armstrong is one of the leading writers on religion today, with impressive books on the idea of God throughout the ages, and religious fundamentalism. At 09.30 pm she discusses the nature and history of belief, as it affects her life as an ex-nun. On Easter Sunday evening there is a conclusion of the trilogy of plays by Andrew Rissik. This week's double bill deals with a confrontation between the established order and new ideas – the subject of the first ('The Art of Love') is the conflict between Ovid and the Emperor Augustus, which led to Ovid's exile, and the second – Resurrection – that between Jesus and Pilate.!
On the musical front, we have concert performances by distinguished soloists Anne Sofie von Otter (14th April) and John Lill's 60th birthday concert on Sunday 18th April. The Metropolitan Opera season comes to an end on the 17th and 24th with two monumental Wagner operas, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung, both conducted by James Levine. At the end of the month Music Live will take much of the network to Northern Ireland. There will be plenty to enjoy on air, but if you live there, do go to the website and find out which events you might be able to attend. In Tune, Kershaw, The Early Music Show, Jazz Line Up, Mixing It and Hear and Now will also come from Northern Ireland, as will a number of evening concerts, and a festival of world music from the Laganside Floating Stage, Belfast. We hope to see some of you there.
We have rather emphasised our speech programmes in this month's note. It's very much on my mind, since we have just announced some new initiatives which underline our commitment to new writing. In the summer we shall be running a national competition inviting writers to create an original music drama for radio; we have the first in a series of writers' residencies, as poet Mario Petrucci will work with the network on air, online and at public events; and we have an extraordinary range of new writing to offer in the coming months in our Sunday dramas, The Wire, and The Verb. Watch this space!
In addition to this new writing emphasis, we have also just announced that we are spending more on new music than ever before – around £500,000 this year invested in commissioning composers. Radio 3 is committed to remaining the natural home of new, original work across all the arts, strongly involved with creative talent across the UK and beyond.
Finally, congratulations to Sean Rafferty, our In Tune presenter, who has just been announced as the Radio Broadcaster of the Year in the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards. This is a major honour in a hugely competitive field. Many of you have already sent congratulations to Sean. It is an award that is richly deserved.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
In the evening we finish our week of 'Belief' programmes, as Joan Bakewell talks to the Irish spiritual writer John O'Donohue. Then we move on to take a more contemporary look at the Passion, in 'A Passion 4 Radio'. This is presented from Jerusalem and London, and uses the four Gospel accounts interleaved with commentary and music from many times and places. Karen Armstrong is one of the leading writers on religion today, with impressive books on the idea of God throughout the ages, and religious fundamentalism. At 09.30 pm she discusses the nature and history of belief, as it affects her life as an ex-nun. On Easter Sunday evening there is a conclusion of the trilogy of plays by Andrew Rissik. This week's double bill deals with a confrontation between the established order and new ideas – the subject of the first ('The Art of Love') is the conflict between Ovid and the Emperor Augustus, which led to Ovid's exile, and the second – Resurrection – that between Jesus and Pilate.!
On the musical front, we have concert performances by distinguished soloists Anne Sofie von Otter (14th April) and John Lill's 60th birthday concert on Sunday 18th April. The Metropolitan Opera season comes to an end on the 17th and 24th with two monumental Wagner operas, Siegfried and Götterdämmerung, both conducted by James Levine. At the end of the month Music Live will take much of the network to Northern Ireland. There will be plenty to enjoy on air, but if you live there, do go to the website and find out which events you might be able to attend. In Tune, Kershaw, The Early Music Show, Jazz Line Up, Mixing It and Hear and Now will also come from Northern Ireland, as will a number of evening concerts, and a festival of world music from the Laganside Floating Stage, Belfast. We hope to see some of you there.
We have rather emphasised our speech programmes in this month's note. It's very much on my mind, since we have just announced some new initiatives which underline our commitment to new writing. In the summer we shall be running a national competition inviting writers to create an original music drama for radio; we have the first in a series of writers' residencies, as poet Mario Petrucci will work with the network on air, online and at public events; and we have an extraordinary range of new writing to offer in the coming months in our Sunday dramas, The Wire, and The Verb. Watch this space!
In addition to this new writing emphasis, we have also just announced that we are spending more on new music than ever before – around £500,000 this year invested in commissioning composers. Radio 3 is committed to remaining the natural home of new, original work across all the arts, strongly involved with creative talent across the UK and beyond.
Finally, congratulations to Sean Rafferty, our In Tune presenter, who has just been announced as the Radio Broadcaster of the Year in the Broadcasting Press Guild Awards. This is a major honour in a hugely competitive field. Many of you have already sent congratulations to Sean. It is an award that is richly deserved.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
4/4/2004 Dr Gradus ad Parnassum?
The appointment of Michael Grade as the new chairman of the BBC Governors has been greeted with widespread satisfaction, bordering, even, on ecstasy in some quarters. It's a break with tradition to have a chairman with his depth of experience, both in broadcasting and within the BBC. Intriguing times ahead, not least over the question of who will be steered into the post of Director-General under his guidance.
In his acceptance statement Grade said: "… I can make clear the fundamental principles which underpinned my candidacy and which will guide my policies: first: I remain committed to the licence fee as the best means of funding the BBC for the foreseeable future; second: the regulatory role of the Board of Governors is in urgent need of clarification, if not repair. In practice, this means a greater separation between the executive and the Governors; and, third: the editorial independence of the BBC is paramount in maintaining the support of the viewers and listeners. Without it, there is no point to the BBC."
You can read the whole statement here.
And for Radio 3 listeners another interesting indicator is his choice of Desert Island Discs:
1. Max Miller. 2 Tosca, with Maria Callas. 3 Mahler, Symphony No 2. 4 Billy Cotton and His Band – Red Red Robin (signature tune of Charlton Athletic). 5 Elgar, Violin Concerto, played by Yehudi Menuhin. 6 Mozart, Don Giovanni, with Thomas Allen (Grade's favourite opera). 7 Beethoven, Eroica symphony. 8 Richard Strauss, Four Last Songs, sung by Jessye Norman, the one disc he would choose above all the others.
All in all, there's a very fair chance Dr Gradus will be able to administer just the right medicine to the Beeb; and, with the Charter Review now in the offing, he will surely be a robust defender of the Corporation's independence: we wish him luck.
In his acceptance statement Grade said: "… I can make clear the fundamental principles which underpinned my candidacy and which will guide my policies: first: I remain committed to the licence fee as the best means of funding the BBC for the foreseeable future; second: the regulatory role of the Board of Governors is in urgent need of clarification, if not repair. In practice, this means a greater separation between the executive and the Governors; and, third: the editorial independence of the BBC is paramount in maintaining the support of the viewers and listeners. Without it, there is no point to the BBC."
You can read the whole statement here.
And for Radio 3 listeners another interesting indicator is his choice of Desert Island Discs:
1. Max Miller. 2 Tosca, with Maria Callas. 3 Mahler, Symphony No 2. 4 Billy Cotton and His Band – Red Red Robin (signature tune of Charlton Athletic). 5 Elgar, Violin Concerto, played by Yehudi Menuhin. 6 Mozart, Don Giovanni, with Thomas Allen (Grade's favourite opera). 7 Beethoven, Eroica symphony. 8 Richard Strauss, Four Last Songs, sung by Jessye Norman, the one disc he would choose above all the others.
All in all, there's a very fair chance Dr Gradus will be able to administer just the right medicine to the Beeb; and, with the Charter Review now in the offing, he will surely be a robust defender of the Corporation's independence: we wish him luck.
Controller's Note, Mar. 2004
Another eventful month is just starting, and as always it's a pleasure to have the chance to share it with you. Thank you for your continuing interest in what Radio 3 offers. Perhaps you will find time to tune in tonight to hear the celebrated pianist Maurizio Pollini, playing at the Royal Festival Hall, London, in a recital of music by Chopin and Beethoven; Performance on 3 begins at 7.30.
Performance on 3 next week features our short East Meets West Season, in which the BBC orchestras each present a concert based on their work with musicians from other, non-western, cultures. The different orchestras have teamed up with musicians from the Indian, Chinese, Jewish, Javanese and Eastern European folk traditions. Each concert has also been linked to an educational project, celebrating the richness of music-making across the UK. The series contains music by Messiaen, John Adams, Ravel, Bartok and Ligeti, as well as a recent gamelan and orchestra piece by Geoffrey Poole.
As an introduction to East Meets West, Stephen Johnson presents a special Discovering Music programme which explores some aspects of Chinese music on Saturday 6th March at 3.00pm. He is joined by American-Chinese composer Chen Yi to discuss the themes and ideas behind her Chinese Myths Cantata, a work which fuses Eastern and Western musical traditions. The following Saturday, rounding off the short series, Discovering Music turns to the Indian tradition, as sitar virtuoso Nishat Khan demonstrates the unique sound of Indian classical music in an audience workshop. A recording of Discovering Music on the composer Haydn is taking place at the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building, St Hilda's College, Oxford on Monday 8 March, 2004 at 7.30pm; if you would like to attend please email jdp@st-hildas.ox.ac.uk
Another Radio 3 programme – Making Tracks – recently went out on the road, when the BBC Singers performed with 500 children live in Hackney. The next one of these special Making Tracks recordings will take place with the BBC Philharmonic at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester on Saturday 17th of April 2004. So if you want to attend, with your children or grandchildren, just call the box office on 0161 907 9000. They (and you) will be guaranteed a memorable musical experience, and THEY might even be asked to conduct the orchestra! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/makingtracks/index.shtml.
For the second year running, Radio 3 teams up with the Royal Philharmonic Society's Music Awards, giving you the chance to vote for your favourite classical artist in the BBC Radio 3 Listeners Award. You have until the 14th March to cast your vote, and you might win tickets for the awards ceremony at London's Dorchester Hotel on Wednesday 5 May, 2004. So do visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/artistyear.shtml and play your part in the decision.
The Radio 3 Awards for World Music also reaches its climax next week. The poll winners concert takes place on 9th March at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, and will be broadcast on the following Saturday, 13th March at 3pm. This has rapidly established itself as the global award for world music, and it will be heard in 15 countries across Europe. Lucy Duran presents the Poll Winners' Concert, hosted by Mary Ann Kennedy and Benjamin Zephaniah. Performers include Rokia Traore from Mali, Kadim al Sahir from Iraq, veteran star of the Buena Vista Social Club, Ibrahim Ferrer, and the Warsaw Village Band.
On Wednesday, 17th March, we have another of our special evenings, Over the Rainbow, focussing on South Africa. Live from Cape Town, this evening of features, live discussions and music is an examination of the Rainbow Nation just ahead of the tenth anniversary of its first multi-racial elections. Presented by Fergal Keane, Over The Rainbow gauges the cultural undercurrents that are shaping this fledgling democracy. In April 1994 South Africa held its first democratic elections, covered for the BBC by Southern Africa correspondent Keane. He returns to South Africa, viewing the Rainbow Nation through the prism of its artists and thinkers. Live music is performed by legendary pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim. Other guests include John Kani, award-winning actor, playwright and director of the Market Theatre of Johannesburg, and internationally acclaimed storyteller and writer Gcina Mhlophe.
As always, I hope you find much to enjoy during another extremely full month on BBC Radio 3.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Performance on 3 next week features our short East Meets West Season, in which the BBC orchestras each present a concert based on their work with musicians from other, non-western, cultures. The different orchestras have teamed up with musicians from the Indian, Chinese, Jewish, Javanese and Eastern European folk traditions. Each concert has also been linked to an educational project, celebrating the richness of music-making across the UK. The series contains music by Messiaen, John Adams, Ravel, Bartok and Ligeti, as well as a recent gamelan and orchestra piece by Geoffrey Poole.
As an introduction to East Meets West, Stephen Johnson presents a special Discovering Music programme which explores some aspects of Chinese music on Saturday 6th March at 3.00pm. He is joined by American-Chinese composer Chen Yi to discuss the themes and ideas behind her Chinese Myths Cantata, a work which fuses Eastern and Western musical traditions. The following Saturday, rounding off the short series, Discovering Music turns to the Indian tradition, as sitar virtuoso Nishat Khan demonstrates the unique sound of Indian classical music in an audience workshop. A recording of Discovering Music on the composer Haydn is taking place at the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building, St Hilda's College, Oxford on Monday 8 March, 2004 at 7.30pm; if you would like to attend please email jdp@st-hildas.ox.ac.uk
Another Radio 3 programme – Making Tracks – recently went out on the road, when the BBC Singers performed with 500 children live in Hackney. The next one of these special Making Tracks recordings will take place with the BBC Philharmonic at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester on Saturday 17th of April 2004. So if you want to attend, with your children or grandchildren, just call the box office on 0161 907 9000. They (and you) will be guaranteed a memorable musical experience, and THEY might even be asked to conduct the orchestra! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/makingtracks/index.shtml.
For the second year running, Radio 3 teams up with the Royal Philharmonic Society's Music Awards, giving you the chance to vote for your favourite classical artist in the BBC Radio 3 Listeners Award. You have until the 14th March to cast your vote, and you might win tickets for the awards ceremony at London's Dorchester Hotel on Wednesday 5 May, 2004. So do visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/artistyear.shtml and play your part in the decision.
The Radio 3 Awards for World Music also reaches its climax next week. The poll winners concert takes place on 9th March at the Usher Hall in Edinburgh, and will be broadcast on the following Saturday, 13th March at 3pm. This has rapidly established itself as the global award for world music, and it will be heard in 15 countries across Europe. Lucy Duran presents the Poll Winners' Concert, hosted by Mary Ann Kennedy and Benjamin Zephaniah. Performers include Rokia Traore from Mali, Kadim al Sahir from Iraq, veteran star of the Buena Vista Social Club, Ibrahim Ferrer, and the Warsaw Village Band.
On Wednesday, 17th March, we have another of our special evenings, Over the Rainbow, focussing on South Africa. Live from Cape Town, this evening of features, live discussions and music is an examination of the Rainbow Nation just ahead of the tenth anniversary of its first multi-racial elections. Presented by Fergal Keane, Over The Rainbow gauges the cultural undercurrents that are shaping this fledgling democracy. In April 1994 South Africa held its first democratic elections, covered for the BBC by Southern Africa correspondent Keane. He returns to South Africa, viewing the Rainbow Nation through the prism of its artists and thinkers. Live music is performed by legendary pianist and composer Abdullah Ibrahim. Other guests include John Kani, award-winning actor, playwright and director of the Market Theatre of Johannesburg, and internationally acclaimed storyteller and writer Gcina Mhlophe.
As always, I hope you find much to enjoy during another extremely full month on BBC Radio 3.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Feb. 2004
We have started 2004 with a busy, eventful month, and I hope you have been able to enjoy many of the events with which we have been involved. We celebrated the extraordinary legacy of John Cage with a weekend from the Barbican led by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, in which media across the world latched on to the story that we were going to be broadcasting Cage's notorious "silent" work 4'33". We also focussed on Peter Maxwell Davies for an evening in celebration of his 70th birthday year. Our speech programming has also seen some particular highlights recently. Radio 3's Arabian Night presented by Zeinab Bedawi, was, according to one of so many of our listeners that wrote to us in response to the programme, "a wonderful mix of politics, art, literature, poetry, music and polemics that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.
We are pleased that our latest listening figures seem to show that many of you have found that the new season with its schedule changes is proving to be an improved experience. Listening hours are up quite substantially: we have increased our number of listeners compared to last year and we have our largest share of listening for around four years. Please continue to send us your feedback, which we really welcome.
The other weekend we announced the winners of this year's Radio 3 Awards for World Music in a special edition of World Routes with live music at Ronnie Scott's. The Warsaw Village Band, winners of the Newcomer Category, performed for the occasion, and provided a taster of the prize-winners' concert which will be held in Edinburgh on March 9th, and broadcast on Radio 3 on the 13th, the following Saturday. Last year the event was heard by about five million people across the world, making this a true global celebration of the world's musics.
We are currently working on other major initiatives, and hope that many listeners might find a way of becoming involved. The first is a month-long celebration of the orchestral scene in the UK called Listen Up! This will involve professional as well as amateur and community orchestras. Between 23rd September and 5th November, villages, towns and cities throughout the length and breadth of the British Isles will be awash with concerts, workshops, open rehearsals, education, community and outreach events, all rejoicing in orchestral music. At the heart of the festival are live concerts in your community performed by professional, amateur and youth orchestras. So if you are personally involved in music-making, look for further details on the Radio 3 website as it develops – www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup. This invitation to get involved also applies to the Radio 3 Choir of the Year award. You may be eligible to participate in this later in the year; for details of that see! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/r3coty1.shtml. On this site you can find details of how to enter; there are categories for all ages.
On February 22nd the feature, The Day Carlos Died, is a deeply moving exploration of art in a violent culture – can art matter when there is a bitter war going on on the streets? While the following Sunday, we present urban story-telling in a new work inspired by James Baldwin's 'Another Country', a journey through the landscape of one of London's most famous landmarks at the beginning of the 21st Century. In the Drama on 3 presentation, Facing Leicester Square, seven of the best UK-based contemporary poets, novelists and playwrights respond with their own take on the story.
Broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera season continue on Saturday evenings, with the varied diet of Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades; a Stravinsky triple bill, including Oedipus Rex; and Rossini's The Italian Girl in Algiers. And on February 18th we also bring you, live from Covent Garden, a new work specially commissioned by The Royal Opera: The Tempest, based on the Shakespeare play. The music is by Thomas Adés, a young British composer who established his international reputation through the huge success of his chamber opera Powder her Face. You can also listen out for the continuation of the Ulster Orchestra Beethoven symphony cycle (27th Feb, 2nd and 5th March), and more Beethoven – late piano sonatas – with Artur Pizarro at St John's Smith Square on the 20th February. The Early Music Show at the weekends, as well as Composer of the Week, will be marking the 300th anniversary of the great French composer, Charpentier, with a feast of music from the time of Louis XIV.
As always, we hope you find much to enjoy.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
We are pleased that our latest listening figures seem to show that many of you have found that the new season with its schedule changes is proving to be an improved experience. Listening hours are up quite substantially: we have increased our number of listeners compared to last year and we have our largest share of listening for around four years. Please continue to send us your feedback, which we really welcome.
The other weekend we announced the winners of this year's Radio 3 Awards for World Music in a special edition of World Routes with live music at Ronnie Scott's. The Warsaw Village Band, winners of the Newcomer Category, performed for the occasion, and provided a taster of the prize-winners' concert which will be held in Edinburgh on March 9th, and broadcast on Radio 3 on the 13th, the following Saturday. Last year the event was heard by about five million people across the world, making this a true global celebration of the world's musics.
We are currently working on other major initiatives, and hope that many listeners might find a way of becoming involved. The first is a month-long celebration of the orchestral scene in the UK called Listen Up! This will involve professional as well as amateur and community orchestras. Between 23rd September and 5th November, villages, towns and cities throughout the length and breadth of the British Isles will be awash with concerts, workshops, open rehearsals, education, community and outreach events, all rejoicing in orchestral music. At the heart of the festival are live concerts in your community performed by professional, amateur and youth orchestras. So if you are personally involved in music-making, look for further details on the Radio 3 website as it develops – www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/listenup. This invitation to get involved also applies to the Radio 3 Choir of the Year award. You may be eligible to participate in this later in the year; for details of that see! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/r3coty1.shtml. On this site you can find details of how to enter; there are categories for all ages.
On February 22nd the feature, The Day Carlos Died, is a deeply moving exploration of art in a violent culture – can art matter when there is a bitter war going on on the streets? While the following Sunday, we present urban story-telling in a new work inspired by James Baldwin's 'Another Country', a journey through the landscape of one of London's most famous landmarks at the beginning of the 21st Century. In the Drama on 3 presentation, Facing Leicester Square, seven of the best UK-based contemporary poets, novelists and playwrights respond with their own take on the story.
Broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera season continue on Saturday evenings, with the varied diet of Tchaikovsky's Queen of Spades; a Stravinsky triple bill, including Oedipus Rex; and Rossini's The Italian Girl in Algiers. And on February 18th we also bring you, live from Covent Garden, a new work specially commissioned by The Royal Opera: The Tempest, based on the Shakespeare play. The music is by Thomas Adés, a young British composer who established his international reputation through the huge success of his chamber opera Powder her Face. You can also listen out for the continuation of the Ulster Orchestra Beethoven symphony cycle (27th Feb, 2nd and 5th March), and more Beethoven – late piano sonatas – with Artur Pizarro at St John's Smith Square on the 20th February. The Early Music Show at the weekends, as well as Composer of the Week, will be marking the 300th anniversary of the great French composer, Charpentier, with a feast of music from the time of Louis XIV.
As always, we hope you find much to enjoy.
Best wishes
Roger Wright
29/1/04: December listening figures
The new RAJAR listening figures will be good news for R3 management. Reach is only down 22,000 on last quarter, which is good, given that last quarter was the strong Proms quarter. Slightly disturbingly this does correspond with an increase of almost 1% in the percentage of non classical music being played over that period, but we don't have the detailed figures to know if there's a correlation. What is the percentage of new non-classical listeners tuning in as against classical listeners switching off?
These figures don't affect FoR3's statistical case, particularly since in the Governors' submission we quoted last quarter's high figure (63,000 down on March 1999): reach is now 85,000 down over the five years, in spite of several identified 'new' audiences.
Surprisingly, average listening hours have leapt from lowest ever to highest ever* and total listening hours are also highest ever*. This is doubly unexpected since i) the increase is against a clear falling trend (4 quarters in a row) and ii) the effects of any changes in schedules normally take several quarters to show. Cautiously, one could say these are the result of the New Season changes (e.g. Morning on 3 listeners listening until 10am or longer), but at least two more quarters' figures are needed to see whether the increase has been sustained.
* that is, highest since Quarter 1, 1999. Figures before this are not comparable.
Quarter 4 figures (Quarter 3 figures in brackets):
Reach (listeners): 2.192 million (2.214 million)
Percentage of listening population: 4.53% (4.58%)
Weekly listening hours: 14,635 (12,325)
Share of listening hours: 1.36% (1.16%)
Average weekly listening hours: 6.7 (5.6)
These figures don't affect FoR3's statistical case, particularly since in the Governors' submission we quoted last quarter's high figure (63,000 down on March 1999): reach is now 85,000 down over the five years, in spite of several identified 'new' audiences.
Surprisingly, average listening hours have leapt from lowest ever to highest ever* and total listening hours are also highest ever*. This is doubly unexpected since i) the increase is against a clear falling trend (4 quarters in a row) and ii) the effects of any changes in schedules normally take several quarters to show. Cautiously, one could say these are the result of the New Season changes (e.g. Morning on 3 listeners listening until 10am or longer), but at least two more quarters' figures are needed to see whether the increase has been sustained.
* that is, highest since Quarter 1, 1999. Figures before this are not comparable.
Quarter 4 figures (Quarter 3 figures in brackets):
Reach (listeners): 2.192 million (2.214 million)
Percentage of listening population: 4.53% (4.58%)
Weekly listening hours: 14,635 (12,325)
Share of listening hours: 1.36% (1.16%)
Average weekly listening hours: 6.7 (5.6)
13/11/03 The Third Way?
The programming announced in the latest newsletter has some exciting radio in prospect. An entire day devoted to Berlioz and his music seems an enterprise of astonishing hardihood, a challenge for those who don't include Berlioz among their favourite composers. December 7 will be a Sunday for thoroughly absorbing the history, drama, and music, with top flight performers like Simon Russell Beale, Fiona Shaw, and crowning it all, Colin Davis and the LSO with the Damnation of Faust. It sounds ambitious and imaginative. Good stuff.
The Drama on 3 slot also has some interesting offerings too – a modern version of Hogg's 'Confessions of a Justified Sinner' and the Arden double-bill, including a new R3 commission. A play about the AIDS crisis in South Africa may have an uphill task if earlier plays about disability and chromosome deficiency are anything to go by. Worthy subjects don't always result in good drama.
And a series of Sunday Features on great thinkers should be stimulating, with a fascinating take on individual philosophers: turning points in their thought being linked to particular places. Curious how very Third Programme it all sounds. Will they make it work and show that there are enduring subjects which have a relevance to our own times, which can benefit from new techniques and the attention of fresh minds and which will succeed through the excellence of performances? Let's hope so. This really is radio to look forward to.
The Drama on 3 slot also has some interesting offerings too – a modern version of Hogg's 'Confessions of a Justified Sinner' and the Arden double-bill, including a new R3 commission. A play about the AIDS crisis in South Africa may have an uphill task if earlier plays about disability and chromosome deficiency are anything to go by. Worthy subjects don't always result in good drama.
And a series of Sunday Features on great thinkers should be stimulating, with a fascinating take on individual philosophers: turning points in their thought being linked to particular places. Curious how very Third Programme it all sounds. Will they make it work and show that there are enduring subjects which have a relevance to our own times, which can benefit from new techniques and the attention of fresh minds and which will succeed through the excellence of performances? Let's hope so. This really is radio to look forward to.
Controller's Note, Nov. 2003
Dear Radio 3 Listeners
We hope you are enjoying the new season, the new voices, and the many opportunities to hear world class performance which we have enjoyed over the last months. We are pleased that many of you have found time to contact us and take part in various initiatives. We are also delighted that Radio 3 had record listening figures for the summer quarter. In fact, these are the highest listening figures we have had for four and a half years. Of course listening figures are only one measure of success but I am glad that so many of you are enjoying Radio 3.
We are keen to have your input for the forthcoming archive week at the beginning of December. Following the success of last year's Archive Week, there is another chance to choose the BBC Archive recordings you would most like to hear. We've assembled a list of ten options - all recorded at public concerts - and we would welcome your votes before Thursday 13th at midday at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/archivewk.shtml. There is an extremely rich selection of performers to choose from: Beecham, Britten, Rubinstein, Dame Janet Baker, Victoria de los Angeles, Menuhin, Horszowski and Segovia are all featured, showing the archival riches we can draw upon.
And if you miss that, don't forget that you can always contact Brian Kay's 3 for All to share your musical taste with us, and there's the added possibility of winning a DAB walkman to hear us in digital quality! See http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/3forall.shtml. A major feature on air during November is the London Jazz Festival, for which Radio 3 is the media partner. Many of the concerts and events will be heard on Radio 3, and some of our regular programmes will be taking to the road and picking up the unique festival atmosphere. Sean will be taking In Tune to the South Bank on November 14th and 21, and the Pizza Express Freestage will be extremely busy over the weekends of the 15th and 22nd November. So if you are in the London area, do call in and see us, and meet some of our presenters. The London Jazz Festival covers a wide range of music, and so even if you do not see yourself as a big jazz fan, you might well find something that will surprise and engage you! For full details see http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzfest2003/
Leaving aside the varied sounds of jazz, Radio 3 is going to celebrate a composer who certainly understood how to draw varied sounds from an orchestra. In the year which marks the 200th anniversary of his birth, Dennis Marks is presenting a day dedicated to Berlioz on Sunday 7th December. His life is probably the most eventful of any great Romantic composer. The presenter Dennis Marks takes us on a journey through Berlioz's life, visiting the key locations, picking up on the seminal influences on his life and music. The day includes extracts from all the major works, from the early 'Messe Solennelle' to his last opera 'Beatrice and Benedict', in recordings by the great Berlioz interpreters. Punctuating the day will be a mini-drama (written by Hattie Naylor) centred round the great love of Berlioz's life, the Irish actress Harriet Smithson (played by Fiona Shaw), and two features: the first looking at Berlioz and France, and the second focusing on Berlioz's place in the musical pantheon. Berlioz himself will join us through readings (by acclaimed National Theatre actor Simon Russell Beale) from his compelling memoirs and letters. The day climaxes with a broadcast of The Damnation of Faust in a performance recorded live at the Barbican by the LSO and Colin Davis.
Our drama output is as varied as ever over the next few weeks. Scotland's bestselling crime novelist Alexander McCall Smith and Edinburgh's former Bishop Richard Holloway have improvised parts in a radical new adapation for radio of James Hogg's classic 'Confessions of a Justified Sinner'. The adaptation is set in modern times, and the portrait of a weak man under the influence of religious fundamentalism is chilling. That's our Drama on 3 on November 16th. At the end of the month (on November 30th) we've a poignant insight into South Africa's AIDS crisis with 'A Man Called Rejoice', recorded with an outstanding South African cast, and coming up in December a John Arden double bill. Iain Glen stars in a new production of the British stage classic, 'Serjeant Musgrave's Dance' whilst the following week we broadcast a new Radio 3 commission from John Arden Poor Tom, 'Thy Horns Dry' (Drama on 3, December 14/21).
And as I mentioned in my last letter, Sunday November 16th sees the start of our new philosophy series 'Journeys in Thought' in which Jonathan Ree explores turning points in the lives of great thinkers. Each programme focuses on a place visited by the philosopher during a crucial period in the development of their thought. In the first we go to Ireland in the footsteps of Ludwig Wittgenstein when he fled from academic life in Cambridge desperate to finish his masterpiece. After Wittgenstein the series is off to Jerusalem in the footsteps of Hannah Arendt and then to Berlin after Kierkegaard. And listen out for Between the Ears returning to Saturday nights, after The Verb, on November 29th - radio at its most challenging and adventurous...
We hope you can join us for these major events and for much else besides here on Radio 3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
We hope you are enjoying the new season, the new voices, and the many opportunities to hear world class performance which we have enjoyed over the last months. We are pleased that many of you have found time to contact us and take part in various initiatives. We are also delighted that Radio 3 had record listening figures for the summer quarter. In fact, these are the highest listening figures we have had for four and a half years. Of course listening figures are only one measure of success but I am glad that so many of you are enjoying Radio 3.
We are keen to have your input for the forthcoming archive week at the beginning of December. Following the success of last year's Archive Week, there is another chance to choose the BBC Archive recordings you would most like to hear. We've assembled a list of ten options - all recorded at public concerts - and we would welcome your votes before Thursday 13th at midday at http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/archivewk.shtml. There is an extremely rich selection of performers to choose from: Beecham, Britten, Rubinstein, Dame Janet Baker, Victoria de los Angeles, Menuhin, Horszowski and Segovia are all featured, showing the archival riches we can draw upon.
And if you miss that, don't forget that you can always contact Brian Kay's 3 for All to share your musical taste with us, and there's the added possibility of winning a DAB walkman to hear us in digital quality! See http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/3forall.shtml. A major feature on air during November is the London Jazz Festival, for which Radio 3 is the media partner. Many of the concerts and events will be heard on Radio 3, and some of our regular programmes will be taking to the road and picking up the unique festival atmosphere. Sean will be taking In Tune to the South Bank on November 14th and 21, and the Pizza Express Freestage will be extremely busy over the weekends of the 15th and 22nd November. So if you are in the London area, do call in and see us, and meet some of our presenters. The London Jazz Festival covers a wide range of music, and so even if you do not see yourself as a big jazz fan, you might well find something that will surprise and engage you! For full details see http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazzfest2003/
Leaving aside the varied sounds of jazz, Radio 3 is going to celebrate a composer who certainly understood how to draw varied sounds from an orchestra. In the year which marks the 200th anniversary of his birth, Dennis Marks is presenting a day dedicated to Berlioz on Sunday 7th December. His life is probably the most eventful of any great Romantic composer. The presenter Dennis Marks takes us on a journey through Berlioz's life, visiting the key locations, picking up on the seminal influences on his life and music. The day includes extracts from all the major works, from the early 'Messe Solennelle' to his last opera 'Beatrice and Benedict', in recordings by the great Berlioz interpreters. Punctuating the day will be a mini-drama (written by Hattie Naylor) centred round the great love of Berlioz's life, the Irish actress Harriet Smithson (played by Fiona Shaw), and two features: the first looking at Berlioz and France, and the second focusing on Berlioz's place in the musical pantheon. Berlioz himself will join us through readings (by acclaimed National Theatre actor Simon Russell Beale) from his compelling memoirs and letters. The day climaxes with a broadcast of The Damnation of Faust in a performance recorded live at the Barbican by the LSO and Colin Davis.
Our drama output is as varied as ever over the next few weeks. Scotland's bestselling crime novelist Alexander McCall Smith and Edinburgh's former Bishop Richard Holloway have improvised parts in a radical new adapation for radio of James Hogg's classic 'Confessions of a Justified Sinner'. The adaptation is set in modern times, and the portrait of a weak man under the influence of religious fundamentalism is chilling. That's our Drama on 3 on November 16th. At the end of the month (on November 30th) we've a poignant insight into South Africa's AIDS crisis with 'A Man Called Rejoice', recorded with an outstanding South African cast, and coming up in December a John Arden double bill. Iain Glen stars in a new production of the British stage classic, 'Serjeant Musgrave's Dance' whilst the following week we broadcast a new Radio 3 commission from John Arden Poor Tom, 'Thy Horns Dry' (Drama on 3, December 14/21).
And as I mentioned in my last letter, Sunday November 16th sees the start of our new philosophy series 'Journeys in Thought' in which Jonathan Ree explores turning points in the lives of great thinkers. Each programme focuses on a place visited by the philosopher during a crucial period in the development of their thought. In the first we go to Ireland in the footsteps of Ludwig Wittgenstein when he fled from academic life in Cambridge desperate to finish his masterpiece. After Wittgenstein the series is off to Jerusalem in the footsteps of Hannah Arendt and then to Berlin after Kierkegaard. And listen out for Between the Ears returning to Saturday nights, after The Verb, on November 29th - radio at its most challenging and adventurous...
We hope you can join us for these major events and for much else besides here on Radio 3.
With best wishes
Roger Wright
Controller's Note, Oct. 2003
The Radio 3 new season is now well under way. I am delighted to have had feedback from so many listeners about our new programmes, as well as the usual lively debate on messageboards. Though we cannot answer every email in detail, rest assured that we do read them and that your feedback is always appreciated. If we were able to respond individually, we would never have time to run the station!
I am delighted that so many of our listeners enjoyed the broadcast of Wagner's complete Ring cycle as well as other broadcasts from the Edinburgh Festival. The Leeds International Piano Competition also brought a very positive response.
There has also been some debate in a couple of broadsheet newspapers about the range of output on Radio 3. Unfortunately, not all of it has been accurate. One paper implied that Radio 3 has only just got around to playing complete works. I hope the journalist in question was listening when the Ring cycle was transmitted!.
Looking forwards – there is more great live music to be heard on the network – for example – Musorgsky's Boris Godunov from the Royal Opera House, Let the Peoples Sing choir competition, Honegger's Le Roi David, Elgar's The Apostles and Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde – and that's just some of next week's Performance on 3 offerings! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/index.shtml
There's also a rich mix of features coming up on Sunday evenings.
In October we explore the story of Blues from two different perspectives. In the first programme (October 12th) Marybeth Hamilton brings a reassessment of how the Blues, as we know it, was created – not in the cotton fields of the Delta but in the minds of a passionate group of white collectors. The following Sunday Harry Allen reflects on the decline of the Blues and features extraordinary interviews with ancient bluesmen RL Burnside, T Model Ford and Willie King. Looking further ahead, John Mortimer explores an historic trial in The Brancusi Trial, reassessing the issues associated with a defining moment in art history when the legal profession tried to answer that elusive question 'what is a work of art?' That's on Sunday November 9th. The following week sees the start of a new philosophy series on the relationship between the lives and ideas of great thinkers – Journeys in Thought. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazz/index.shtml
Journeys of a different nature feature the distinctive new drama 'The Loneliest Road' evoking life along one of America's most desolate highways. Written and directed by the award-winning radiomaker Gregory Whitehead, it offers a mesmerising acoustic journey into the spirit of America 2003 with its stubborn idealism, decadence, spirituality, violence and melancholy – "Nobody to talk to, nobody to squeeze, floating through the air like a viral disease, it's the loneliest road in the USA." – a real adventure in radio drama on Sunday October 19th. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/drama/dramaon3.shtml
Hope you enjoy those programmes and the rest of our new season programming. Don't miss Ferrier Night on Wednesday – a chance to hear a real rarity – a recording of Kathleen Ferrier singing Berkeley's Four Poems of St. Teresa of Avila. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/music/features/ferrier.shtml
In November, we have the London Jazz Festival to look forward to, but I will share details of that next time.
Best wishes,
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
I am delighted that so many of our listeners enjoyed the broadcast of Wagner's complete Ring cycle as well as other broadcasts from the Edinburgh Festival. The Leeds International Piano Competition also brought a very positive response.
There has also been some debate in a couple of broadsheet newspapers about the range of output on Radio 3. Unfortunately, not all of it has been accurate. One paper implied that Radio 3 has only just got around to playing complete works. I hope the journalist in question was listening when the Ring cycle was transmitted!.
Looking forwards – there is more great live music to be heard on the network – for example – Musorgsky's Boris Godunov from the Royal Opera House, Let the Peoples Sing choir competition, Honegger's Le Roi David, Elgar's The Apostles and Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde – and that's just some of next week's Performance on 3 offerings! http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/index.shtml
There's also a rich mix of features coming up on Sunday evenings.
In October we explore the story of Blues from two different perspectives. In the first programme (October 12th) Marybeth Hamilton brings a reassessment of how the Blues, as we know it, was created – not in the cotton fields of the Delta but in the minds of a passionate group of white collectors. The following Sunday Harry Allen reflects on the decline of the Blues and features extraordinary interviews with ancient bluesmen RL Burnside, T Model Ford and Willie King. Looking further ahead, John Mortimer explores an historic trial in The Brancusi Trial, reassessing the issues associated with a defining moment in art history when the legal profession tried to answer that elusive question 'what is a work of art?' That's on Sunday November 9th. The following week sees the start of a new philosophy series on the relationship between the lives and ideas of great thinkers – Journeys in Thought. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/jazz/index.shtml
Journeys of a different nature feature the distinctive new drama 'The Loneliest Road' evoking life along one of America's most desolate highways. Written and directed by the award-winning radiomaker Gregory Whitehead, it offers a mesmerising acoustic journey into the spirit of America 2003 with its stubborn idealism, decadence, spirituality, violence and melancholy – "Nobody to talk to, nobody to squeeze, floating through the air like a viral disease, it's the loneliest road in the USA." – a real adventure in radio drama on Sunday October 19th. http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/drama/dramaon3.shtml
Hope you enjoy those programmes and the rest of our new season programming. Don't miss Ferrier Night on Wednesday – a chance to hear a real rarity – a recording of Kathleen Ferrier singing Berkeley's Four Poems of St. Teresa of Avila. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/music/features/ferrier.shtml
In November, we have the London Jazz Festival to look forward to, but I will share details of that next time.
Best wishes,
Roger Wright
Controller, BBC Radio 3
19/7/03: Not much news: BBC Annual Report 2002/2003
These calculations have been done very quickly and come with an E&OE. If there are serious mistakes they will be corrected as soon as they've been noticed. Apologies in advance for all false assumptions based on my poor arithmetic
The BBC's Annual Report for 2002/2003 has now been published and makes for interesting reading. It reinforces the opinion we already held: that the management view of matters differs rather from that of the listeners. Here are some dry figures: if they bore you, stop here.
Page 128, Table 9 is entitled: Network radio hours of output.
For Radio 3 the year's 8,760 hours (24 x 365) output is:
The first point to notice is that, second only to music, is Schools etc. The nighttime programming is normally 2 hours a night, 4 nights a week for about 26 weeks: total 208 hours.
We note that the Schools programme is to move in the autumn to R4 digital and R3 will presumably broadcast an uninterrupted Through The Night programme – like the other participating European (EBU) members.
As a result, the music hours will increase (good); they will be classical music hours (good). But let's not lose sight of the fact that the 'extra' music will be going out between 3am and 5am, not, therefore addressing our complaint of shortage of prime listening time.
The second point is a curious one for Morning on 3 listeners: News and weather 18 hours? This is the equivalent of 3 minutes per day, 21 minutes per week. Eh? But haven't we been complaining for ages about the regular (increased) morning news bulletins which interrupt the music? A total of five breaks during the weekday programme (two very short ones), three at weekends? At 3 minutes for a standard news break, 1 minute for the half-hourly one, that totals 73 minutes a week. And In Tune has two news breaks, 6 minutes a day, 5 days a week, 30 minutes. That makes 103 minutes. Oh, and the 1 pm news, every day, 21 minutes per week. Grand total, 124 minutes or over two hours per week. Not 21 minutes. And 107 hours per year, not 18.
Ah, but wait. Got it. Only the 1 pm news counts, because it's at 1 pm and isn't included in with the Lunchtime Concert programme which follows. All the other news is either part of Morning on 3 or In Tune. So that's roughly 1.75 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, 91 hours, which are included in the (classical) music hours.
This strengthens our argument that the evenings are 'prime' (or 'quality') listening time: a time when you can pay attention to the music without being bombarded with news, time checks and trailers as we are with Morning on 3. We'd like to see the non-classical music get a considerably smaller chunk of that prime listening time. For musics which only make up less than 6% of the output, nigh on 50% of the weekday evening music output in an average week seems a trifle generous.
Presentations and trailing take up 59 hours a year: at 9.7 minutes per day, this appears to be specifically programme trails and announcements e.g. to buy digital equipment, not normal continuity links. This is also predominantly during the 'classical' day. How accurately calculated is it, by the way? Not, surely, just a rough stab – about 10 minutes, say?
Arts coverage, at 204 hours, seems to be about right for Night Waves (prime listening time), given the break during the Proms season, and The Verb (prime listening time). What about the Sunday Feature (prime listening time)? Music Matters, though a speech programme, is clearly being classed as music. This 204 hours seems a bit of an underestimate, doesn't it? If that doesn't seem a lot for the premier arts programme, just bear in mind that if you call for more arts coverage there will be less classical music – airtime for non-classical music being considered sacred.
Drama at 106 hours (compared with R4's 1,079 hours) is the weekly Drama on 3 (prime listening time), plus The Wire (prime listening time). It's my impression that there is a strong emphasis on the new/young, the regional, the culturally diverse here, not always very good. Certainly not in the R4 mould, and rightly so.
This only leaves 56 hours of "Religion" – this presumably being Choral Evensong and a bit more, perhaps at Christmas?
I may return to this subject, because I find it interesting. Others don't have to look.
The BBC's Annual Report for 2002/2003 has now been published and makes for interesting reading. It reinforces the opinion we already held: that the management view of matters differs rather from that of the listeners. Here are some dry figures: if they bore you, stop here.
Page 128, Table 9 is entitled: Network radio hours of output.
For Radio 3 the year's 8,760 hours (24 x 365) output is:
- Music 8,109
- News and weather 18
- Drama 106
- Arts 204
- Religion 56
- Schools/continuing education 208
- Presentations and trailing 59
The first point to notice is that, second only to music, is Schools etc. The nighttime programming is normally 2 hours a night, 4 nights a week for about 26 weeks: total 208 hours.
We note that the Schools programme is to move in the autumn to R4 digital and R3 will presumably broadcast an uninterrupted Through The Night programme – like the other participating European (EBU) members.
As a result, the music hours will increase (good); they will be classical music hours (good). But let's not lose sight of the fact that the 'extra' music will be going out between 3am and 5am, not, therefore addressing our complaint of shortage of prime listening time.
The second point is a curious one for Morning on 3 listeners: News and weather 18 hours? This is the equivalent of 3 minutes per day, 21 minutes per week. Eh? But haven't we been complaining for ages about the regular (increased) morning news bulletins which interrupt the music? A total of five breaks during the weekday programme (two very short ones), three at weekends? At 3 minutes for a standard news break, 1 minute for the half-hourly one, that totals 73 minutes a week. And In Tune has two news breaks, 6 minutes a day, 5 days a week, 30 minutes. That makes 103 minutes. Oh, and the 1 pm news, every day, 21 minutes per week. Grand total, 124 minutes or over two hours per week. Not 21 minutes. And 107 hours per year, not 18.
Ah, but wait. Got it. Only the 1 pm news counts, because it's at 1 pm and isn't included in with the Lunchtime Concert programme which follows. All the other news is either part of Morning on 3 or In Tune. So that's roughly 1.75 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, 91 hours, which are included in the (classical) music hours.
This strengthens our argument that the evenings are 'prime' (or 'quality') listening time: a time when you can pay attention to the music without being bombarded with news, time checks and trailers as we are with Morning on 3. We'd like to see the non-classical music get a considerably smaller chunk of that prime listening time. For musics which only make up less than 6% of the output, nigh on 50% of the weekday evening music output in an average week seems a trifle generous.
Presentations and trailing take up 59 hours a year: at 9.7 minutes per day, this appears to be specifically programme trails and announcements e.g. to buy digital equipment, not normal continuity links. This is also predominantly during the 'classical' day. How accurately calculated is it, by the way? Not, surely, just a rough stab – about 10 minutes, say?
Arts coverage, at 204 hours, seems to be about right for Night Waves (prime listening time), given the break during the Proms season, and The Verb (prime listening time). What about the Sunday Feature (prime listening time)? Music Matters, though a speech programme, is clearly being classed as music. This 204 hours seems a bit of an underestimate, doesn't it? If that doesn't seem a lot for the premier arts programme, just bear in mind that if you call for more arts coverage there will be less classical music – airtime for non-classical music being considered sacred.
Drama at 106 hours (compared with R4's 1,079 hours) is the weekly Drama on 3 (prime listening time), plus The Wire (prime listening time). It's my impression that there is a strong emphasis on the new/young, the regional, the culturally diverse here, not always very good. Certainly not in the R4 mould, and rightly so.
This only leaves 56 hours of "Religion" – this presumably being Choral Evensong and a bit more, perhaps at Christmas?
I may return to this subject, because I find it interesting. Others don't have to look.
Controller's Note, Jun. 2003