Programme information Saturday 23 June to Friday 29 June 2018 WEEK 26 THE FULL WORKS CONCERT THE ROYAL AIR FORCE AT 100 Thursday 28 th June, 8pm to 10pm PRESENTED BY CATHERINE BOTT Recently, the Parliament Choir and St Clement Danes Choir joined forces to celebrate 100 years of the Royal Air Force, with a special concert at St Clement Dances on the Strand, the Central Church of the Royal Air Force. Tonight, Catherine Bott gives listeners the opportunity to hear to the concert in full. Highlights include the RAF March Past by Walford David; Ron Goodwin s Those Magnificent Men and Men in their Flying Machines; and a very special commission to mark the centenary of the RAF. Classic FM is available across the UK on 100-102 FM, DAB digital radio and TV, the Classic FM app, at ClassicFM.com and on the Global Player. 1
WEEK 26 SATURDAY 23 JUNE 5pm to 7pm: SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES with ANDREW COLLINS Andrew Collins has an open-door policy for programme ideas and this week, he s taking the lead from Classic FM listeners Stephen in Carlisle and Simon in Sheffield, who have both suggested a spy-themed show. Andrew features scores such as Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by Geoffrey Burgon, The Third Man by Anton Karas and North By Northwest by Bernard Herrmann, in what promises to be two hours of musical intrigue, adventure and mystery! 7pm to 9pm: COWAN S CLASSICS with ROB COWAN This week, Tchaikovsky s Swan Lake is the starting point as Rob leads us Beyond the Hall of Fame. His Artist of the Week, meanwhile, is the soprano Kathleen Battle, and Rob showcases her distinctive vocal range with several performances, including a piece by Handel that also stars the trumpeter Wynton Marsalis. 9pm to 10pm: DAVID MELLOR S LIGHT MUSIC MASTERS In the final show of this series of Light Music Masters, David shines the spotlight on the conductor Ronald Corp, who has been a long-term champion of Light Music over many decades. There will be wonderful recordings of Ketelbey s In a Persian Market and Gounod s Funeral March of a Marionette, which will be familiar to fans of Alfred Hitchcock. David will also feature several other Light Music favourites, so do join him for a fitting finale to the series. 2
SUNDAY 24 JUNE 3pm to 5pm: CHARLOTTE HAWKINS Join Charlotte for two hours of Classic FM favourites and new discoveries. Today s Young Classical Star is the BAFTA-winning multi-instrumentalist and composer Olafur Arnalds, who s been making waves in classical music with his beautiful album Living Room Songs. 9pm to 10pm: EVERYTHING YOU EVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT CLASSICAL MUSIC with CATHERINE BOTT As we re halfway through 2018, Catherine selects some of the finest new recordings released from the first six months of the year, highlighting rising star performers and lesser-known works. Featuring the debut album by cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, a recording of Grieg s unfinished second Piano Concerto and a selection of symphonies by Louise Farrenc, Catherine offers plenty of suggestions for listeners looking to expand their classical music collection. 3
MONDAY 25 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT THE KEY TO TRIUMPH Often, the key that pieces are written in is presented as secondary information for reference rather than anything else but tonight, Rob Cowan brings this detail to the forefront, focussing on the triumphant key of E-flat major. Composers throughout history have used E-flat to demonstrate heroism and triumph in their music, and we ll hear examples of this in one of Beethoven s most celebrated and largest works, his Eroica symphony. For Mozart, E-flat major was associated with Freemasonry. He wrote that E-flat evoked stateliness and an almost religious character. It s clear to hear this coming through in Lang Lang s performance of his Piano Sonata No.4, which closes tonight s concert. Joseph Haydn Trumpet Concerto in E-flat major Trumpet: Maurice Andre Jesus Lopez Cobos conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No.3 in E-flat major Opus 55 ( Eroica ) Daniel Barenboim conducts Staatskapelle Berlin Antonio Vivaldi Violin Concerto in E-flat major RV.251 Violin: Guiliano Carmignola Andrea Marcon conducts the Venice Baroque Orchestra Johann Christian Bach Overture in E-flat major Opus 18 No.5 William Boughton conducts the English Symphony Orchestra Piano Sonata No.4 in E-flat major K.282 Piano: Lang Lang 4
TUESDAY 26 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT CLASSICAL BIRTHDAYS Tonight, Rob Cowan marks what would have been the great maestro Claudio Abbado s 85 th birthday by featuring his recording of Schubert s Unfinished symphony with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, as well as several other birthdays from the world of classical music. Later in the programme, we ll hear Beethoven s Spring violin sonata played Anne- Sophie Mutter, who celebrates her 55 th birthday this Friday, plus a fantastic recording by Esa-Pekka Salonen, who celebrates his 60 th birthday this weekend, of Berlioz s Symphonie Fantastique. To round off the evening, Rob also celebrates Leroy Anderson s 110 th birthday with an old favourite, Plink, Plank, Plunk! Franz Schubert Symphony No.8 in B minor D.759 ( Unfinished ) Claudio Abbado conducts the Chamber Orchestra of Europe Ludwig van Beethoven Violin Sonata No.5 in F major Opus 24 ( Spring ) Violin: Anne-Sophie Mutter Piano: Lambert Orkis Hector Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique Opus 14 Esa-Pekka Salonen conducts the Philharmonic Orchestra Leroy Anderson Plink, Plank, Plunk! Ronald Corp conducts the New London Orchestra 5
WEDNESDAY 27 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT COMPOSER ATHLETICS The British Athletics Championships start this weekend and while we don t know who will be the quickest on the track, we certainly know who and what wins the medal for the fastest classical music. If we had to pick a composer who got through their work quickly, there is no rival to. He composed 626 pieces in 35 years: an average of 17.9 pieces a year, including the years when he was too young to hold a quill! Tonight, we hear his Piano Concerto No.22, featuring Alfred Brendel at the keyboard. Chopin s Minute waltz isn t necessarily the most demanding of pieces for professional pianists, but to squeeze it into the allotted minute is nigh-on impossible. Chopin didn t actually intend for it to be played in under a minute, but that hasn t stopped pianists trying to play it as quickly as possible. We ll also hear other rapid renditions, such as Vivaldi s Summer from The Four Seasons, David Garret s record-breaking Flight of the Bumblebee and Khachaturian s Sabre Dance, alongside music from two other composers who managed to rival Mozart in his sheer volume of symphonies: Joseph Haydn and Franz Schubert. Rob Cowan presents. Frederic Chopin Waltz in D-flat major Opus 64 No.1 Piano: Maurizio Pollini Joseph Haydn Symphony No.82 in C major Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducts the Concentus Musicus Vienna Antonio Vivaldi Four Seasons Opus 8 Concerto No.2 ( Summer ) Violin: Daniel Hope Andre de Ridder conducts the Konzerthaus Chamber Orchestra, Berlin Franz Schubert Rosamunde Ballet Music Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducts the Vienna Symphony Orchestra Aram Khachaturian Sabre Dance Eugene Ormandy conducts the Philadelphia Orchestra Piano Concerto No.22 in E-flat major K.482 Piano: Alfred Brendel Charles Mackerras conducts the Scottish Chamber Orchestra Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov Flight of the Bumblebee Violin: David Garrett 6
THURSDAY 28 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT THE ROYAL AIR FORCE AT 100 A few weeks ago, the Parliament Choir and St Clement Danes Choir joined forces to celebrate 100 years of the Royal Air Force, with a special concert at St Clement Dances on the Strand, the Central Church of the Royal Air Force, recorded exclusively for Classic FM. Tonight, Catherine Bott gives listeners the opportunity to hear to the concert in full. Highlights include the RAF March Past by Walford David, who was the first composer of the RAF; Ron Goodwin s Those Magnificent Men and Men in their Flying Machines; and a very special commission to mark the centenary of the RAF. Hubert Parry I Was Glad Laudate Dominum K.339 Howard Goodall The Lord is my Shepherd Walford Davies God be in my Head Johann Sebastian Bach Jesu, Joy of Man s Desiring Edward Elgar Enigma Variations Nimrod Organ: Nicholas O Neill Gabriel Faure Requiem Libera Me Hubert Parry Jerusalem Johannes Brahms A German Requiem How lovely are Thy dwellings fair Eric Coates Dambusters March Organ: Nicholas O Neill Mass in C minor Sanctus Continued overleaf... 7
THURSDAY 28 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT THE ROYAL AIR FORCE AT 100 Continued... Gregorio Allegri Miserere Paul Leddington Wright Te Deum on Oranges and Lemons Nicholas O Neill High Flight Traditional O when the Saints go marching in (arr. John Rutter) Organ: Nicholas O Neill Simon Over conducts the Parliament Choir, The Choir of St Clement Danes, and Members of Southbank Sinfonia Edward Elgar Introduction & Allegro for Strings Opus 47 Barry Wordsworth conducts the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 8
FRIDAY 29 JUNE 8pm to 10pm: THE FULL WORKS CONCERT NHS AT 70 Next week, the National Health Service celebrates its 70 th anniversary. Tonight, ahead of that landmark moment, Catherine Bott presents an evening of music associated with health and wellbeing. Several studies have proven that the music of Mozart induces short-term improvement on the performance of mental tasks and tonight, we hear his Symphony No.40. According to studies by universities and renowned music therapists such as Mary Priestly, the music of Bach can help relieve pain and anxiety; Johannes Brahms has been known to help relieve stress; meanwhile, the music of Beethoven is often favoured by doctors, nurses and surgeons alike for everything from keeping calm to maintaining a steady hand. Symphony No.40 in G minor K.550 John Eliot Gardiner conducts the English Baroque Soloists Johannes Brahms Violin Concerto in D major Opus 77 Violin: Maxim Vengerov Marios Papadopoulos conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Sonata No.24 in F-sharp major Opus 78 ( A Therese ) Piano: Angela Hewitt Johann Sebastian Bach Orchestral Suite No.4 in D major BWV.1069 Monica Huggett conducts Ensemble Sonnerie 9