Composer Of The Week

Donald Macleod attempts to unravel the enigmatic, remarkable story of Julius Eastman and his music. When this week’s composer died homeless and alone in 1990, almost no one knew, not even his friends, and his work threatened to disappear with him. Julius Eastman had lit up America’s contemporary music scene as a spellbinding performer and a visionary composer whose music is difficult to pigeonhole. A gay, black man in the predominantly white world of new music, Eastman was often misunderstood. His musical voice fused minimalism with pop and the avant-garde, and was inextricable from his identity politics - a sound that was provocative then and remains so today. He collaborated with luminaries such as Pierre Boulez, Peter Maxwell Davies and Meredith Monk but also faced many struggles, leading to his premature and tragic decline. This week, Donald Macleod shares his long-overdue story, with insights from American baritone Davone Tines, a performer and champion of Eastman’s music.Music Featured:Stay On It (excer

Donald Macleod follows Wagner's journey towards building the Bayreuth Festival.This week, Donald Macleod follows Wagner on his decades-long journey to realise his dream of building his own music theatre, and establishing a festival there dedicated to his music. We see how Wagner’s revolutionary ideas and vaulting ambition struggled against the reality of securing supporters, raising finances, and inspiring audiences.Music Featured: Das Rheingold, Scene 1: “Lugt, Schwestern! Die Weckerin lach in den Grund” Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg Tannhäuser: Act 3 Scene 1: “Allmächt’ge Jungfrau, hör mein Flehen!” and Scene 2 “O du, mein holder, Abendstern” Lohengrin: Prelude to Act III Tristan and Isolde: Prelude and Liebestod Das Rheingold: End of Scene 3 “Ohe! Ohe! Schreckliche Schlange…“ Die Walküre: Act 2, “Hinweg! Hinweg! Flieh die Entwihte!...” Tannhauser: Act 2 Finale Lohengrin: Act 3, “In fernem Land” Das Rheingold, Scene 4, Finale (Entry of the Gods into Valhalla) Lohengrin: Act 3, “Treulich geführt

Donald Macleod explores the life and work of Béla Bartók.Music Featured: For Children Piano Concerto No 3 Contrasts Hungarian Sketches Kossuth 14 Bagatelles, Nos 4 & 5 Piros Alma / Red Apple 44 Duos for Two Violins (No 44, Transylvanian Song) Allegro Barbaro Romanian Folk Dances for Orchestra Transylvanian Dance String Quartet No 2 (i Moderato; ii Allegro molto capriccioso) Orchestral Suite No 2 (ii Allegro scherzando) Three Hungarian Folk Tunes The Miraculous Mandarin Suite Village Scenes (i Wedding; ii Lullaby) Dance Suite Two Portraits (ii One grotesque – Presto) Out of Doors (iii Musettes; iv The Night's Music; v The Chase) Piano Concerto (i Allegro moderato; ii Andante) Cantata Profana Mikrokosmos Bulgarian Rhythm No 1 (Vol 4, No 113) Study in Chords (Vol 3, no 69) Perpetuum Mobile (Vol 5, No 135) Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion Sixth String Quartet (iii Mesto – Burletta – moderato; iv Mesto) Sonata for Solo Violin (i Tempo di ciaccona) Concerto for Orchestra (v Finale)Presented by Donald Macleo

Donald Macleod explores some of the challenges Telemann faced as he struggled for successGeorg Philipp Telemann was one of the most celebrated musicians of the 18th century. In Europe, his fame eclipsed that of his close contemporaries Handel and Bach and he left behind him a vast legacy of works. This week, Donald Macleod turns the spotlight on this often forgotten musical superstar, exploring the many challenges he met, the influence of his family and friends and the composer’s involvement in promoting his own music.Music Featured: Concerto in E minor for recorder, flute, strings and continuo, TWV52:e1 (Presto) Sonata for violin and basso continuo in G, TWV 41:G1 (Allegro & Adagio) Ouverture Suite in A minor, TWV 55:a2 Die Auferstehung und Himmelfahrt Jesu, TWV 6:6 (Tod! Wo ist dein Stachel?) Seig der Schönheit, TWV 21:10 (excerpt) Trumpet Concert, TWV 51:D7 (Adagio) Germanicus (Rimembranza crudel) Concerto for 2 violins in G, TWV 52:G2 Concerto in G major, TWV 51:G2 (excerpt) Brockes Passion, TWV 5:1 (

Donald Macleod turns his attention to Rachmaninov’s great choral worksRachmaninov has been seen as the last great champion of Russian Late Romanticism. He was a celebrated pianist and conductor, as well as a composer, and his musical legacy includes his hugely popular piano concertos. This week, Donald Macleod turns his attention to Rachmaninov’s great choral works and his story during the periods in which they were composed. These choral masterpieces are both sacred and secular, and include the cantata Spring, the choral symphony The Bells, Three Russian Songs, the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom, and the iconic All-night Vigil. Donald explores what inspired Rachmaninov while he was writing this music, including creative collaborations, beautiful poetry, and places in Russia and abroad.Music Featured: How Fair this Spot, Op 21, No 7 Piano Concerto No 2 in C minor, Op 18 (Adagio sostenuto) Suite No 2 for two pianos, Op 17 Spring, Op 20 Before my window, Op 26, No 10 Piano Concerto No 3 in D minor, Op 30 (Alleg

Donald Macleod and Andrew Graham-Dixon build a picture of music and art in Josquin's timeThe humanist Cosimo Bartoli described Josquin as the Michelangelo of Music. A master of polyphonic choral writing, Josquin was as widely admired in his own lifetime as posthumously. While Josquin was a dominant force in music, the Franco-Flemish area with which he’s associated, also produced some remarkable painters, who, like Josquin and his fellow composers, exported their style, technical accomplishments and influence across Europe. This week, to mark the 500th anniversary of Josquin’s death, Donald Macleod visits the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square with art historian Andrew Graham-Dixon, to build a picture of Josquin’s music and the places he lived and worked, which also stimulated painters to produce equally outstanding Art. To accompany the series the paintings they discuss can be viewed on the Radio 3 website.Considering his standing, it’s surprisingly difficult to map Josquin’s life. His birthdate was possib

Donald Macleod explores the life and work of Antonín Dvořák.In an era overloaded with brooding and overwrought, Romantic sensibilities, Antonín Dvořák’s music shone with grace and joy and humanity. Audiences were enchanted and adopted Dvořák as one of the 19th century’s most beloved composers. He was especially in demand in Britain and the USA, and enjoyed successful visits both countries. Dvořák was never happier, though, than at home in his native Bohemia, listening to the birds singing, feeding his pigeons, and indulging in a bit of train spotting, too.Music Featured:Cigánské melodie, Op 55 No 4 (Songs my mother taught me) Slavonic Dances Op 46 (excerpt) Hussite Overture, Op 67 Violin Concerto in A minor, Op 53 (Finale) Symphony No 6 in D, Op 60 (Scherzo) Stabat Mater, Op 58 (excerpt) Symphony No 7 in D minor, Op 70 (excerpt) Terzetto, Op 74 (Tema con variazioni) Slavonic Dances, Op 72 No 2 (Dumka) Piano Quintet in A major, Op 81 (excerpt) Symphony No 8 in G major, Op 88 (excerpt) Carnival Overture, Op 92

Donald Macleod in conversation with award winning American composer Jennifer Higdon.If you were to ask Jennifer Higdon what her biggest musical influence might be, she’s more likely to cite Lennon and McCartney than Bach or Beethoven. Born in 1962 in New York, the soundtrack of her childhood was the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel and Peter Paul and Mary, the Rolling Stones, and reggae. A move to Atlanta, Georgia, and then to a farmhouse in rural Tennessee, added bluegrass and country music. It wasn’t until Higdon was in her teens that her musical curiosity directed her towards classical music. Formal studies followed, and she began to compose when she was 21 years old. Coming to classical music later on, has been, according to Higdon, a significant factor in her own musical language. She’s now one of the most performed living American composers. Having just completed her second opera and a concerto in the past year, Higdon is much in demand, with commissions on her books that take her right up to 2024.Recorde

Donald Macleod explores the life and work of Manuel de FallaManuel de Falla was not well suited to the role of national musical icon. He was at his happiest, living a simple, monkish existence in his spartan Granada villa; fussing over his music in pleasant isolation or enjoying the company of a few close friends. He was generous but withdrawn, quietly and devotedly religious, and had a horror of being dragged into the violent political conflicts that wracked Spain during the first half of the twentieth century. Falla’s enormous talent and unique musical voice meant he was thrust into the very centre of cultural life, despite himself. He was compelled to navigate his way alongside some of music’s most colourful and potent characters, and through momentous historical events.Music Featured: La Vida breve (Intermezzo from Act 1) Allegro de concierto Siete canciones populares Españolas No 7 Polo La Vida Breve (Act 2) Nancy Fabiola Herrera, mezzo-soprano (Salud) Cristina Faus, mezzo-soprano (La Abuela) Aquiles Mac

Donald Macleod pulls back the curtain on Berlioz’s greatest obsessionDonald Macleod explores the women who shaped Hector Berlioz’s life and workHector Berlioz was one the most innovative and rebellious musicians of 19th century France. He was a man of unwaveringly high expectations, in his wider life as well as his music. As the quintessential Romantic, one friend said that love was the “alpha and omega of his existence”. This week Donald Macleod looks at Berlioz through the passions and relationships that shaped who he was and what he created, exploring the romantic obsessions of an especially obsessive man. We’ll also hear a movement of his Symphonie Fantastique each day – Berlioz’s best known work, and the musical embodiment of his most powerful infatuation.Music Featured: Marche Funèbre pour la dernière scène d‘Hamlet (Tristia, Op 18) Irlande (La belle voyageuse) Romeo et Juliette – Scène d’amour Lelio – Choeur d’ombres Symphonie Fantastique (1st movement – Reveries – Passions) Fleuve du Tage Tempest Fant

Donald Macleod explores the musical life of Benjamin BrittenMusic Featured:Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge (Nos 7 & 8) Phantasy Quartet Nocturne (On This Island) Ballad of Heroes (2nd mvt) Suite for Violin and Piano (Lullaby; Waltz) Hymn to St Cecilia Calypso Young Apollo for Piano and Strings Violin Concerto in D minor (1st & 2nd mvt) An American Overture Ceremony of Carols (Nos 7 & 8) Peter Grimes, Prologue Peter Grimes, “Old Joe has gone fishing” Four Sea Interludes, Op 33a Dark Tower (extract) Oliver Cromwell (Folk Song Arrangements) The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Peter Grimes, “Embroidery in Childhood” Albert Herring, “Albert the Good” Saint Nicolas (excerpt) Noye’s Fludde, “It is good for to be still” Lachrymae (reflections on a song by John Dowland) Canticle ii: Abraham and Isaac Nocturnal after John Dowland (Passacaglia) War Requiem, Requiem aeternam War Requiem, Sanctus Symphony for cello and orchestra (2nd mvt) Third Suite for Cello(Passacaglia) Death in Venice (excerpt)

This week, Donald Macleod explores Purcell’s work during his short life in the context of the turbulent times in which he lived. This was a period of intense political and social change, encompassing three different monarchies, the plague, the great fire of London, and the arrival of another deadly pandemic.Music featured:Blow up the trumpet in Sion, Z10 Welcome, vicegerent of the mighty king, Z340 Jehova, quam multi sunt hostes mei, Z135 Sonata a 4 No 4 in D minor, Z805 Theodosius, or The Force of Love, Z606 Morning Service in D, Z232: Te Deum Rejoice in the Lord alway, Z49 “Bell Anthem” Lord, What is Man? Z192, "A Divine Hymn" Thou wakeful shepherd, Z98 "A Morning Hymn" Now that the sun hath veiled his light, Z193, "An Evening Hymn on a Ground" Morning Service in D, Z232: Jubilate Deo I was glad when they said unto me, Z19 Now does the glorious day appear Z332 (opening chorus) Love’s goddess sure was blind, Z331 (excerpts) From hardy Climes and dangerous Toils of War Z325 (excerpts) March and Canzona in C m

Donald Macleod explores the life and music of the 19th-century French singer, pianist, composer and influential society figure, Pauline Viardot. “When I want to do something, I do it in spite of water, fire, society, the whole world”, an indicator if ever there was one, of the inner steel of this week’s composer.Born in 1821, Pauline Viardot possessed an array of exceptional qualities. As one of the opera stars of her age, she was admired from Paris to St Petersburg as a sublime interpreter of Rossini, Bellini, Handel and Gluck. Beyond her incomparable voice, her twice weekly artistic salons were a high point in Parisian cultural life. She knew, and was admired by Chopin, George Sand, Delacroix, Liszt, Fauré, Tchaikovsky, and Saint-Saëns to name but a few. While having, according to Saint-Saëns, an unnecessarily modest view of her talent, she was also an accomplished composer. A talented linguist with five languages at her command, her compositions include a substantial body of songs, one or two instrumental

Robert Simpson - once described as "Britain's most important composer since Vaughan Williams", and "one of the century's most powerful and original symphonists" - was a man of integrity, a champion of lesser-known composers, and a man who lived his own life by strict principles: pacifism, socialism and what he called "anti-pessimism". This week, in Simpson's centenary year, Donald Macleod looks back at the life and work of Robert Simpson - from his childhood in the Salvation Army, to his experiences as a conscientious objector during the Second World War. He explores Simpson's writings on music and on life, and his time working at the BBC, before his break from the Corporation and from this country. Along the way we'll hear from Simpson's considerable body of work, which included no fewer than 11 Symphonies and 15 String Quartets.Music Featured:Symphony No 4 (II. Presto) In Media Morte in Vita Sumus Energy (IV. Allegro molto; V. Presto vivo) Symphony No 6 (excerpt) Canzona for Brass Symphony No 1 (excerpt) S

Donald Macleod explores some of the many turning points in Fauré’s careerGabriel Fauré’s story begins during the second half of the 19th century, when the musical world was dominated by the heavily romantic voices of composers like Wagner, Brahms and Liszt. Fauré became a key protagonist in a musical revolution that opened audiences ears to new modes of expression - modern, refined and utterly French. As a composer, and as a teacher at the Paris Conservatoire, he left a huge legacy on the music of the twentieth century. This week Donald Macleod explores some of the many turning points in Fauré’s career, and how those events affected his life and his art.Music Featured: Tarentelle, “Aux cieux la lune monte et luit” Op 10, No 2 Violin Sonata No 1 in A, Op 13 Élégie in C minor, Op 24 Berceuse, Op 16 Après un rêve, Op 7, No 1 Automne, Op 18 No 3 Poème d’un jour, Op 21 No 1-3 Souvenirs de Bayreuth Piano Quartet No 1 in C minor, Op 15 Ballade in F sharp, Op 19 Les roses d’lspahan, Op 39, No 4 Papillon, Op 77 Pavane

Robert Schumann’s early training was focused towards his ambition to become a celebrated concert pianist, but a hand injury quickly put that career option out of reach. Schumann turned instead to composition and put all that piano study to good use, writing many important works for his own instrument. This week, Composer of the Week unpacks the moments in Schumann’s life when he was creating some of his most famous and notable piano works, including one of the most iconic Romantic pianos concertos of all time.Music Featured: So wahr die Sonne scheinet, Op 37 No 12 (from Zwölf Gedichte aus Liebesfrüling) Symphony in G minor, WoO 29 (Zwickau) Allegro in B minor, Op 8 Carnaval, Op 9 Kreisleriana, Op 16 No 8 (Schnell und spielend) Fantasy in C, Op 17 No 1 Drei Gesänge, Op 31 Kinderszenen, Op 15 Myrthen, Op 25 No 1 (Widmung) Symphony No 1 in B flat, Op 38 (Spring) (excerpt) Faschingsschwank aus Wien, Op 26 No 5 (Finale) Piano Quintet in E flat, Op 44 The Merry Peasant, Op 68 No 10 (from Album für die Jugend) Piano

This week, Donald Macleod explores Aaron Copland’s most productive decade, and features some of his best loved works in full. During this time Copland hit his prime. He became recognised as America’s leading composer, winning the Pulitzer Prize in Music and an Academy Award for his work in Hollywood.He toured Europe and South America, absorbing diverse influences from each, and composed key works including his Symphony No.3, Appalachian Spring, Lincoln Portrait, Fanfare for the Common Man and Rodeo.We get a sense of how Copland’s personal and professional interests developed over the 1940s and learn about his friendships and challenges during and in the aftermath of World War II.Music Featured: John Henry: A Railroad Ballet for Orchestra Quiet City Piano Sonata Our Town Music for Movies Lincoln Portrait Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes Danzón Cubano - (version for 2 pianos) Las Agachadas (The Shake-Down Song) Sonata for violin and piano Fanfare for the Common Man Appalachian Spring Suite (version for 13 instruments

Donald Macleod explores five aspects of Satie This week, Donald Macleod looks at Satie as a trailblazer and humourist as well as his penchant for composing in threes, his copious, playful and highly idiosyncratic writings and his serious side.Music featured:Trois Gymnopédies (No 1, Lent et douloureux) Trois Sarabandes (No 2) uspud – ballet chrétien (3rd act) Le piège de Méduse Relâche – ballet instantanéiste Vexations (très lent) Embryons desséchés (No 1, ‘d’Holothurie’ – Allez un peu) Parade (ballet réaliste) Sports et divertissements La Belle Excentrique – fantaisie sérieuse Cinéma – entr’acte symphonique de Relâche (reduction for piano duet by Darius Milhaud) Les trois valses distinguées du précieux dégoûté Pièces froides Choses vues à droite et à gauche {sans lunettes} Trois Gnossiennes Trois mélodies Trois Morceaux en forme de poire, for piano 4 hands Première pensée Rose+Croix Messe des pauvres (Kyrie eleison) Quatre Ogives The Dreamy Fish Avant-dernières pensées Sonatine bureaucratique Mercure – ‘Poses

Donald Macleod explores Chopin’s time in BritainChopin made just two trips to Britain, both in later life. These visits are often portrayed as a disaster - a calamitous mistake of no worth to Chopin which hastened the composer’s death. This week, Donald Macleod explores these two trips in depth, during which the virtuoso pianist gave six of the thirty public concerts he gave during the whole of his life, and also made many private appearances meeting the great and the good of British society.Music Featured:Mazurka No 47 in A minor, Op 68 No 2 Etude in C sharp minor, Op 10, No.4 “Torrent” Etudes, Op 25 (Nos 3, 10 & 12) Variations on “La Ci Darem la mano”, Op 2 (version for piano and orchestra) Impromptu No 1 in A flat, Op 29 Scherzo No 2 in B-flat minor, Op 31 Mazurka in F minor, Op posth. 68, No 4 (Andantino) Barcarolle, Op 60 Andante Spianato & Grande Polonaise Mazurka No 16 in A flat major, Op 24, No 3 Mazurka No 18 in C minor, Op 30, No 1 Mazurka No 19 in B minor, Op 30, No 2 Mazurka No 31 in A fl

Donald Macleod surveys the string quartets of Joseph Haydn.From his opus 0 and opus 1 of the 1750s to his unfinished opus 103 of 1803, Haydn’s 68 string quartets span the major part of his compositional life. While he wasn’t the inventor of the form, he’s fully deserving of the epithet, the “father of the string quartet” as he elevated the form to new heights. It’s his ideas that take the quartet from its 18th century antecedents to the conventions that are rather more familiar to us today. The conversational textures he created redefined the relationship between the four instruments. Always aware of his surroundings, and other musical influences, he used ideas and rhythms from folk music, dance, opera, the instrumental concerto and other genres for larger forces. He established a sequence of movements, and within them, adapted sonata form, as well as making use of the minuet-trio, the variation, the rondo and fugue forms. Original, serious, yet with his trademark, irresistible humour never too far away, Hayd