Composer of the Week Podcast Folgen

Donald Macleod asks conductor Marin Alsop and historian Simon Schama why Beethoven's life and work still matter today.All through 2020, as part of Radio 3's Beethoven Unleashed season, Donald Macleod takes an unprecedented deep dive into the compelling story and extraordinary music of Ludwig van Beethoven. In this uniquely ambitious series, told across 125 episodes of Composer of the Week, Donald puts us inside Beethoven’s world and explores his hopes, struggles and perseverance in all the colourful detail this amazing narrative deserves. Alongside this in-depth biography, Donald will also be meeting and talking to Beethoven enthusiasts and experts from across the world to discover how his music continues to speak to us in the twenty-first century. Through story and sound, the series builds into a vivid new portrait of this composer, born 250 years ago this year, who made art that changed how people saw themselves and understood the world.Music featured: Bagatelle in A minor (Fur Elise), WoO 59 String Quartet No 10, Op 74 (Harp) (3rd movement) Symphony No 3 in E flat major (Eroica) (3rd movement) Grosse Fuge, Op 133 Symphony No 5 in C minor (1st and 2nd movements) Symphony No 8 in F major, Op 93 (2nd movement) Sonata in A major, Op 30 No 1 for violin and piano Leonore Overture No 3 Piano Sonata No 27 in E minor, Op 90 (2nd movement) Piano Concerto No 4 in G major, Op 58 (2nd movement) Piano Sonata No 13 in E flat major, Op 27 No 1 (2nd movement) Symphony No 3 in E flat major (Eroica), Op 55 (2nd movement) The Creatures of Prometheus: Overture Fidelio: Act II finale Symphony No 4 in B flat major, Op 60 (1st movement) Piano Sonata No 14 (Moonlight), Op 27 No 2 (1st movement) String Quartet in F minor, Op 95 (1st movement) Egmont Overture, Op 84 Symphony No 9 in D major (Choral), Op 125 String Quartet in A minor, Op 132 (5th movement) String Quartet in E flat major, Op 127 (1st movement) Bagatelle in E flat major, Op 126 No 6 Mass in D major (Missa Solemnis), Op 123 (Kyrie) Coriolan Overture, Op 62 String Quartet in B flat major, Op 130 (5th movement)Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Martin Williams for BBC WalesFor full tracklistings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Beethoven: Why Beethoven? https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000d7zgAnd you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

Donald Macleod explores the life and music of George Walker, in conversation with his son Gregory. When Rosa King Walker announced to her five-year-old son George that, like it or not, he was going to have piano lessons, she can scarcely have been aware that she was dispatching him on a lifelong journey in music. He made his concerto début at the age of 23 playing Rachmaninov’s 3rd Piano Concerto, with the Philadelphia Orchestra under the great Eugene Ormandy. A stellar career on the concert platform surely beckoned, but in the event, things were not so straightforward. We’ll hear how Walker began to turn his back on the idea of a solo career, gravitating instead towards a life in teaching – and, increasingly, composition. Donald and Gregory discuss Walker’s studies with the formidable Nadia Boulanger, the relief when his commissions started rolling in, and the far reaches of his stylistic ambition. Walker won the epic Pulitzer Prize for music in 1996 for his piece Lilacs, a career-defining moment, which makes what happened next in Walker’s career all the more surprising. “I got probably more publicity nationwide than perhaps any other Pulitzer Prize-winner,” he recalled in 2015. “But not a single orchestra approached me about doing the piece or any piece. It materialized in nothing.” In this emotional look back at the life and work of his father, Gregory discusses identity, representation and perseverance, ending with the story of his swansong, Visions, inspired by the tragedy of the Charleston church massacre. Music featured: Response String Quartet No 1 Lyric for Strings Piano Sonata No 1 Cello Sonata Trombone Concerto The Bereaved Maid Sonata No 1 for violin and piano Spatials Variations for Orchestra Five Fancies for clarinet and piano four hands (Theme and 5 variations) Piano Concerto Music for Brass (Sacred and Profane) Cantata Piano Sonata No 4 Sinfonia No 1 Hey Nonny No (anon) Poème for violin and orchestra In Time of Silver Rain Mother Goose (Circa 2054) Lilacs Modus Icarus in Orbit Piano Sonata No 5 Da Camera, for piano trio, harp, celesta, string orchestra and percussion Violin Concerto Bleu Sinfonia No 5 (‘Visions’)Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Chris Barstow for BBC WalesFor full tracklistings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for George Walker https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000cz2qAnd you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

Donald Macleod delves into the international successes of Arcangelo Corelli.Arcangelo Corelli was something of a European phenomenon not only during his lifetime, but also after his death. His compositional output was not large, but the development of the printing press enabled his music to be widely circulated. Musically, he bridged the gap between the Baroque and the Classical periods, and is seen as pivotal in the development of the sonata and the concerto. Even today, Corelli’s music is held in high esteem, with composers still inspired by his music. As a violinist he was also legendary, and people flocked from all over Europe to not only hear him play, but to also be taught by him. Corelli spent most of his career in Rome, maintained in some luxury by royalty, nobility and the Church. During his career he collaborated with many other composers including Alessandro Scarlatti and Handel. Despite his fame and continued popularity, we still know relatively little about Corelli, and this Composer of the Week series seeks to explore the man and his music through his personal and professional relationships.Music featured: Sonata in G minor, Op 4 No 2 (Corrente) Concerto Grossi, Op 6 No 3 Sonata in G, Op 1 No 9 Handel: La Resurrezione (Ho un non so che nel cor) Sonata in F major, Op 5 No 10 Concerto Grosso in D, Op 6 No 1 Fuga con un soggetto solo Sonata in G minor, Op 5 No 5 Sonata in F, Op 1 No 1 Sonata in A minor, Op 1 No 4 Sonata in B minor, Op 3 No 4 Sonata in F minor, Op 3 No 9 Concerto Grosso in F, Op 6 No 12 Sonata in D Sonata in B major, Op 2 No 5 Sonata in E flat major, Op 2 No 11 Sinfonia to Santa Beatrice d’Este in D minor, WoO1 Concerto in G minor, Op 6 No 8 (Christmas Concerto) Sonata in C, Op 5 No 9 Sonata in A minor, op 4 No 5 Sonata in B minor, op 4 No 12 Sonata in C, Op 2 No 3 Sonata in F major, Op 2 No 7 Handel: Sonata a 5, HWV288 (Violin Concerto in B flat) Sonata in G minor WoO2 Corelli Arr. J. C. Schickhardt: Concerto Grosso Op 6 No 3 Sonata No 2 in D minor, Op 2 No 2 Concerto Grosso in F, Op 6 No 2 Corelli Arr. Geminiani: Concerto Grosso VII in D minor Sonata in D minor, Op 5 No 12 (Follia) Concerto Grosso in F, Op 6 No 9Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Luke Whitlock for BBC WalesFor full tracklistings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Arcangelo Corelli. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000d6y6And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we’ve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z