Alle afleveringen
180 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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Sukiyaki (Ue o Muite Arukou)
14 april 2016 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringMemories of a prison camp in the Arizona desert, a tsunami and a plane crash are stirred by the bittersweet Japanese song Sukiyaki, a huge global hit of the 1960s. Lees meer
Originally released in Japan with the title 'Ue o Muite Arukou' ('I Look Up As I Walk'), the song was retitled 'Sukiyaki' (the name for a type of beef stew) for international release. It went to No 1 in the USA, Canada and Australia and placed in the top 10 of the UK singles chart.
With melancholy lyrics set to a bright and unforgettable melody, it has since been covered hundreds of times in countless languages.
California peach farmer Mas Masumoto tells the story of his family's internment in an Arizona relocation camp following the bombing of Pearl Harbor and explains what the song meant to him and many other Japanese-Americans in the years after the Second World War.
Violinist and composer Diana Yukawa plays the song as a way to remember her father, who died in the same plane crash that killed Kyu Sakamoto, the original singer of 'Sukiyaki'.
Michael Bourdaghs, author of 'Sayonara Amerika, Sayonara Nippon', talks about the songwriting team behind the song (Rokusuke Ei, Hachidai Nakamura and Kyu Sakamoto), and the surprising roots of the song in the Japanese protest movement of the early 1960s.
Janice-Marie Johnson of A Taste of Honey talks about writing an English version of the song and how she interpreted the Japanese lyrics. While Gemma Treharne-Foose speaks about her experience of travelling to Japan from her home in the Rhondda Valleys, and what the song came to mean to her.
And we hear the story of how Ue o Muite Arukou became a 'prayer for hope' following the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 from musician Masami Utsunomiya.
Producer: Mair Bosworth
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2016
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Bring Him Home
5 april 2016 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringBring Him Home is a beautiful and moving prayer-in-song that has developed meaning and identity outside of the hit musical, from Les Miserables. Lees meer
What has been its impact?
Celebrated tenor, Alfie Boe has sung it many times in the West End and on Broadway. He discusses what the song means to him.
Herbert Kretzmer talks about the agonising process of writing the lyrics.
The Greater Manchester Police Male Voice Choir recorded a version especially for the programme; one of their members describes singing it at the funeral of PC Dave Phillips in 2015.
The original Cosette, from Les Miserables, Rebecca Caine now sings this song - written for a male voice - regularly as part of international recitals.
And for Becky Douglas it will forever be a reminder of her daughter whose death inspired the foundation of a leprosy charity.
Jeremy Summerly, Director of Music at St Peter's College, Oxford plays through the piece and describes why it moves us emotionally.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2016.
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Fairytale of New York
22 december 2015 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe tragi-comic tale of love gone sour and shattered dreams eloquently depicted in the Christmas classic Fairytale of New York is the focus of this edition of Soul Music. James Fearnley, pianist with The Pogues recounts how the song started off as a transatlantic love story between an Irish seafarer missing his girl at Christmas before becoming the bittersweet reminiscences of the Irish immigrant down on his luck in the Big Apple, attempting to win back the woman he wooed with promises of 'cars big as bars and rivers of gold'. Lees meer
Gaelic footballer Alisha Jordan came to New York to play football aged 17 from County Meath in Ireland. Despite being dazzled by the glamour and pace of New York City, she missed her family and friends and stencilled the words 'Fairytale of New York' on her apartment wall as an affirmation of her determination to make the most of her new life in the city. When she was later attacked on the street by a stranger, the words came to signify her battle to recover and not to
let the horrific facial injuries she suffered defeat her or her ambition to captain her football team.
Rachel Burdett posted the video of the song onto her friend Michelle's social media page to let her know she was thinking of her and praying for her safe return when Michelle went missing suddenly one December. Stories of redemption and of a recognition that Christmas is often not the fairytale we are sold, told through a seasonal favourite.Producer: Maggie Ayre.
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Nimrod
15 december 2015 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringEdward Elgar's incomparable Nimrod, and the part it plays in people's lives, is explored this week: Lees meer
Composed as part of the Enigma Variations in the latter part of the 19th century, Nimrod was inspired by Elgar's friend and music editor, Augustus Jaeger.
In an interview for this programme, Jaeger's granddaughter, Gillian Scully, talks about her grandfather and describes hearing her own granddaughter playing Nimrod at a school concert.
The Right Reverend Nigel McCulloch - National Chaplain to the Royal British Legion - talks about hearing it played at the Festival of Remembrance in the Royal Albert Hall stirring memories of his own father who died in WW2, and serving as a reminder of all those lost or injured in war.
Margaret Evison's son, Lieutenant Mark Evison of the Welsh Guards, was killed in Afghanistan in 2009. Nimrod played an important part in his funeral which was held at The Guard's Chapel in London.
For Lord Victor Adebowale, Chief Executive of the charity Turning Point, Nimrod is a piece that reminds him of his father and the struggles he had as a Nigerian immigrant to the UK.
Composer and conductor, Paul Spicer, plays through Nimrod at the piano exploring why it is a piece that stirs such deep emotions.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2015.
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Mack the Knife
8 december 2015 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe Brecht/Weill song Mack The Knife first appeared in The Threepenny Opera in Berlin in 1928. Lees meer
Sung about the criminal MacHeath, the 'play with music' is based on John Gay's The Beggar's Opera, who was inspired by the real-life English highwayman, Jack Sheppard.
The song became a hit when performed in 1959 by Bobby Darin.
Ella Fitzgerald famously forgot the words when performing live in Berlin in 1960, and her improvised version won a Grammy.
Suzi Quatro talks about how she performed it with her father as a child, playing bongos to accompany him.
Lenny Kaye from the Patti Smith Group recalls how he and Patti did a version of 'Mack The Knife' at their first ever performance together at St Marks Church in New York on 10th February 1971, as it was Brecht's birthday.
Film-maker Malcolm Clark tells the story of the song's first public performer, Kurt Gerron, an actor and director, who took the song into the darkest places of the Third Reich.
Contributors:
Stephen Hinton
Stephen Parker
Jane Tipping
John Bird
Malcolm Clarke
Lenny Kaye
Suzi QuatroSeries about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Sarah Conkey
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2015.
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Nkosi Sikelel iAfrica
1 december 2015 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringNkosi Sikelel iAfrica (Lord Bless Africa) is a song that runs through the very soul of South African life. Lees meer
It was originally composed in 1897 by Enoch Sontonga, a Xhosa clergyman at a Methodist mission school near Johannesburg who is said to have been inspired by the melody of John Parry's 'Aberystwyth', a hymn that would've been shared by Welsh missionary's at that time. It went on to travel the African continent but most significantly it became one of the defining symbols of a united South Africa - a country that still holds this song at its heart.
Having travelled through the country's Christian congregations it soon rang out from meetings and protest rallies throughout the apartheid era eventually becoming the unofficial anthem of the ANC (African National Congress Party). At a time of great hardship and pain, it was a song that offered hope and encouragement to millions of South Africans.
Having being sentenced to life imprisonment, Nkosi Sikelel iAfrica was the song that Nelson Mandela will have heard being sung out by his supporters as he and his fellow ANC members were driven away to Robben Island. Decades later it was the hymn that he would use to unify his country as it was adapted into the South African National Anthem.
Featuring interviews with: Albert Mazibuko of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Lord Joel Joffe, author
Sindiwe Magona, Edward Griffiths - former CEO of South African Rugby during the 1995 World Cup, music journalist Robin Denslow and the Za Foundation's Zakhele Choir.Produced in Bristol by Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2015.
**We’re sorry that due to copyright restrictions, if you are listening abroad, you will not be able to listen to this programme.**
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Mr Blue Sky
24 november 2015 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringMr Blue Sky is the Electric Light Orchestra's brilliantly off-beam classic song. Lees meer
It was released as a single in 1978, having first appeared on the ELO album 'Out of the Blue' in 1977. Written by Jeff Lynne, it was a no.6 hit in the UK, and has endured on the radio airwaves ever since.
Tracey Collinson whose husband, Nigel, loved the track tells of the meaning it has for her.
Musicologist, Allan Moore, discusses the anomolous use of the word 'blue': usually associated with downbeat emotions, this is a peculiar subversion of that cultural norm with the word 'blue' conjuring happiness and good weather.
Tremayne Crossley and his friend, Jo Milne, tell the extraordinary story of how Jo heard music for the first time. This track played an important role in that event.
For Dr. Sam Illingworth, Mr Blue Sky will always take him back to the low-flying research-flights he made over the wetlands, greenlands and seas of the Arctic Circle with the shadow of the BAE146 plane beneath him and clear blue skies above.
The children of King's St. Albans in Worcester sing the track featuring at the end of the programme.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2015.
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The Lord Is My Shepherd
12 mei 2015 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringThis much-loved hymn based on Psalm 23 has been set to music many times, including Brother James' Air and Crimond. Lees meer
The Queen requested the Crimond version at her wedding. Harriet Bowes Lyon's tells the story that her mother, Lady Margaret Colville, (formerly Lady Margaret Egerton) taught the descant to the Queen and Princess Margaret, and was summoned to sing it when, two days before the wedding, the descant music could not be found.
Howard Goodall, who wrote a new setting for 'The Vicar of Dibley' describes how he composed it in a taxi.
Selina Scott says that the Crimond always puts her in mind of her Scottish grandmother.
Contributors:
Howard Goodall
Ian Bradley
Marion Dodd
Emily Badger
Athena Kruger
Esther Sternberg
Selina Scott
Harriet Bowes-Lyon
Adrian GoldbergProducer: Sara Conkey
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2015.
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Scarborough Fair
5 mei 2015 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"Tomorrow we're going in search of a song and in search of a dream of England which has travelled right around the world" - Will Parsons Lees meer
No one can be sure of the true origins of the song Scarborough Fair. It's a melody of mystery, of voices of old, of ancient days. It's travelled through land and time, drawing singers and listeners in where ever they maybe.
For Will Parsons and Guy Hayward it's a song that has inspired a pilgrimage through a landscape that is embodied in the lyrics. Setting off from Whitby Abbey, they journey to Scarborough on foot, sensing the song as they go, learning to sing it, interpreting it in a new way just as thousands of traditional singers have done throughout time.
This too is the landscape of Martin Carthy, the 'father of folk' who has made his home along the Yorkshire coast. It was from this legendary singer that Paul Simon first learnt Scarborough Fair, creating a version that came to represent a generation continuing its journey far and wide, weaving its spell in many different guises, never truly being pinned down.
Decades on Harpist Claire Jones recorded a version of her own. Arranged by her husband, the composer Chris Marshall, hers is a very personal journey through unexpected illness to recovery. Whilst for Mike Masheder it is a song that brings memories of his wife Sally, who approached the journey of life with love and equanimity.
"It can change or stay the same. And the more it changes, the more it stays the same" - Martin Carthy
With expert contribution from Sandra Kerr, musician and lecturer at Newcastle University School of Arts and Culture.
Producer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in May 2015
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First Cut Is the Deepest
28 april 2015 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringLong before it was a worldwide hit for Rod Stewart, the Cat Stevens song 'First Cut is the Deepest' made a name for Ike and Tina Turner's former backing singer, PP Arnold. Lees meer
PP describes the emotional connection she felt to the lyrics, having emerged from an abusive marriage shortly before recording it.
The song's original producer, Mike Hurst describes how he achieved the huge 'wall of sound' production using double drums, a huge string section, and a harp instead of a guitar to play the signature riff at the the start of the track.
There are many personal stories associated with the track: Carsten Knauff recalls a childhood sweetheart - his first true love - and explains why the Cat Stevens' version brings back bitter-sweet memories for him.
Rosemarie Purdy saw PP Arnold give an extraordinary live rendition at a club in Portsmouth in 1967. Never before had she seen such a heartfelt, emotionally charged performance. It's something she's never forgotten.
The Sheryl Crow version reminds Rachel Batson of a very difficult phase in her life; it's a song she says reflects her own faith journey.
And former Radio Caroline DJ, Keith Hampshire, describes the circumstances that led to him having a No.1 hit with the song in Canada. It was the first time 'First Cut' reached No.1 anywhere in the world.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2015.
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Bach Cello Suite No 1 in G Major
21 april 2015 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringJohann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suite No I in G major is one of the most frequently performed and recognisable solo compositions ever written for cello. Lees meer
Yet it was virtually unknown for almost 200 years until the Catalan cellist, Pablo Casals discovered an edition in a thrift shop in Barcelona. Casals became the first to record it and the suites are now cherished by musicians across the globe.
The world renowned cellist, Steven Isserlis describes his relationship with the piece and why it still surprises and excites him.
Fellow cellists Richard Jenkinson and Jane Salmon talk about the challenge of playing it and we hear from the Dominic Martens, a member of the National Youth Orchestra and his teacher, Nick Jones as they explore the piece together.
Garden designer Julie Moir Messervy, describes how Yo-Yo Ma's recording inspired her to design The Toronto Music Garden and doctor Heidi Kimberly explains why she chose the piece for her wedding and why she believes the suite to have healing powers.
While historian and author, Eric Siblin, reveals the extraordinary history of the suites and why some still argue that they was written by Bach's second wife Anna Magdalena.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2015.
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Hallelujah
18 april 2015 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringLeonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah' took him years to write. It originally had as many as 80 verses. Recorded for his 'Various Positions' album, it was almost ignored when first released in 1984. Only Bob Dylan saw its true worth and would play it live. John Cale eventually recorded a version which was heard by an obscure musician called Jeff Buckley. Lees meer
The song has been covered by hundreds of artists including Rufus Wainwright, K.D.Lang and Alexandra Burke.
We hear from those whose relationship with the song is deep and profound: singer Brandi Carlisle listened to it over and over again as a troubled teenager; it became a sound-track to James Talerico falling in love and Jim Kullander made a connection with the song after the death of his wife.
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La Boheme
9 december 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"La Boheme is a work of genius, for me it's the perfect opera. There's not a bar or a word or anything you'd want to alter. It just gets to you" Lees meer
- Opera Director John Copley CBE.
Soul Music ventures back into the Parisian winter of Puccini's beloved 'La Boheme' where legendary Opera Director John Copley CBE reflects on his 40 years of bringing this tale of friendship, love and loss to the stage of London's Royal Opera House.
Alongside his memories of sharing pasta with a young Pavarotti we hear the stories from those whose lives have been touched by - and often reflect - the essence of this most popular of operas.
From the romantic gesture of a probationary constable serenading his soon to be bus conductress wife in 1950's Torquay to the moment that a devoted husband passed away - La Boheme has touched the lives of opera lovers around the world.
Featuring interviews with:
* Author Mavis Cheek
* Opera devotees, Ray Tabb and Nancy RossiProducer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2014.
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There Is a Light That Never Goes Out
2 december 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering'There Is A Light That Never Goes Out' by The Smiths is explored through personal stories. Lees meer
Released in 1986 on 'The Queen Is Dead' album, it's become an anthem of hope, loss and love.
As a teenager, Andy listened to it with his father, as he drove him to work. They had a moment of connection, and when his father died suddenly a few weeks later, the song took on huge significance.
When her young son was ill, Sharon Woolley drew strength from this music as she sat by his bedside in the small hours of the morning.
For comic artist Lucy Knisley, the song got her through a bad break-up with her long-term boyfriend - and it's meaning changed for her when unexpected events unfolded.
Also featuring:
Mike Garry
Teddy Jameison
Mark Gatiss
Simon GoddardProducer: Sara Conkey
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2014.
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Gracias a la Vida
25 november 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringGracias A La Vida - thank you to life - is a song that means a lot to many people around the world. Lees meer
Recorded by artists as diverse as Joan Baez and the magnificent Mercedes Sosa, it reflects the bittersweet nature of life's joys and sadnesses.
To the people of Chile where it was written in 1966 by Violetta Parra, it has become an anthem that brings people together in times of trouble.
One man tortured and imprisoned under the Pinochet regime in 1973 recalls how playing the song on guitar in prison for other inmates helped keep their spirits and hopes alive under the most brutal circumstances.
Australian writer and actor Ailsa Piper recalls being gifted the words to Gracias A La Vida by a fellow walker along one of the holy routes in Spain, and how the song has become a poignant reminder of the fragility of life.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2014.
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Plaisir d'Amour/Can't Help Falling in Love With You
19 november 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringMarianne Faithfull recalls the classical French Love song which went on to inspire a 1960s hit record by Elvis Presley. Lees meer
'Plaisir d'Amour' somehow found its way through 18th century orchestration (Hector Berlioz) and 1960's folk revival, to an unexpected re-invention as Elvis’s 'I Can't' Help Falling in Love with You'.
Written in 1784 by Jean-Paul-Égide Martini, the song muses on the pleasures and pains of love and was inspired by a poem in Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian's novel 'Célestine'.
For 17 year old Marianne Faithfull, it was a song of innocence, recorded in a tiny booth in London’s old Decca studios whilst happily pregnant with her first child.
Meanwhile, author Julia Donaldson and husband Malcolm busked it on the streets of Paris. This was in the summer of 1969 and police hid in alleyways, still fearful of students following the 1968 riots.
Inspired by Elvis, West Point Military Academy Freshman Andrew Scott learnt to pick the tune on guitar – helping him win the heart of his wife.
For Henry and Christine Wallace, it summed everything up "It was what I was looking for, someone to share my life and the words 'take my whole life too was in tune with what I wanted'.
Producer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2014.
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A Shropshire Lad
12 november 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"Into my heart an air that kills
From yon far country blows:
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those?
That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain,
The happy highways where I went
And cannot come again." Lees meerSo wrote the poet AE Housman lamenting the loss of his brother in the Boer war in his epic poem A Shropshire Lad.
It harks back to a simple idyllic rural way of life that is forever changed at the end of the 19th century as hundreds of country boys go off to fight and never return. George Butterworth adapted his words to music in 1913 just before the outbreak of the Great War.
We hear from those whose lives continue to be touched by the loss of so many young men between 1914 and 1918. Broadcaster Sybil Ruscoe recalls visiting her Great Uncle's grave in a military cemetery in France with Butterworth's Rhapsody as the soundtrack to her journey.
A concert at Bromsgrove School in Worcestershire where Housman was a pupil remembers the former schoolboys killed in action, and singer Steve Knightley discusses and performs his adaptation of The Lads In Their Hundreds.
The Bishop of Woolwich connects his love of the countryside and Butterworth's music with his father's battered copy of Housman's poems which comforted him while held captive in Singapore during the Second World War.
Contributors:
James McKelvey
Phillip Bowen
Tish Farrell
Michael Ipgrave
Steve Knightley
Stephen Johnson
Sybil Ruscoe
Sam AdamsonSeries about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2014.
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Adagio in G minor
29 april 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringAlbinoni's Adagio in G Minor, is one of the most popular and moving pieces of music. Lees meer
But, as academic and composer Andrew Gant explains, it wasn't written by Albinoni and is now attributed to 20th century Italian composer, Giazotto.
Award-winning veteran BBC foreign correspondent, Malcolm Brabant recalls the ' cellist of Sarajevo', Vedran Smailovic, playing it everyday for weeks amidst the wreckage of the beautiful city, as Serbian gunfire raged around.
Actress Virginia McKenna explains its importance to her and her late husband, actor Bill Travers, who died in 1994. The piece was played at the beginning and end of his memorial service.
And TV producer, Gareth Gwenlan reveals why it was chosen as the theme for the character played by Wendy Craig, in the BBC’s 1970s TV sitcom, Butterflies.
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2014.
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Myfanwy
22 april 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe hauntingly beautiful Welsh song Myfanwy 'is in the air in Wales' according to singer Cerys Matthews. Lees meer
She along with others discuss what the melodic tale of unrequited love means to them.
They include a Welsh woman living in Sicily for whom the song represents 'hiraeth', a longing or homesickness for Wales and another who believes it expresses the 'wounded soul of the Welsh'.
A man remembers how his late brother and he used to sing it in pubs in North Wales and how the song symbolises the unrequited love he felt for him.
The Ynysowen choir was started after the Aberfan mining disaster as a way of dealing with the emotion. Choir members talk about the song's power, and an ex-soldier recalls digging for survivors with lines from it playing in his head:
"Give me your hand, my sweet Myfanwy".
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2014.
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Something Inside So Strong
15 april 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringLabi Siffre wrote Something Inside So Strong in 1984. Lees meer
Widely believed to have been inspired by seeing film footage from South Africa, of young blacks being shot at by white policeman, the singer-songwriter now reveals that the lyrics were also informed by the oppression he had experienced as as a gay man.
The song has been taken up by individuals and groups around the world who have suffered from discrimination. The Choir With No Name in Birmingham, made up of homeless singers, always close their concerts with the song. Choir members explain why it's so important to them, giving them a sense of pride and dignity.
American singer Suede, talks about the power she finds in the song while South African singer, Lira talks about making a special recording of it for the birthday of Nelson Mandela, as it was one of his favourite pieces.
Also hear how Celtic football fans sing it as an act of solidarity with their beleaguered manager, Neil Lennon.
In his first interview for over a decade, Siffre explains how he still sings the songs as he tries to put his life back together after the death of his partner, Peter.
Contributors:
Labi Siffre
Bill West
Peter Churchill
Neil LennonSeries about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2014.
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Crazy
8 april 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"It's the kind of music that makes you feel like you're just hurting so good" Lees meer
People of different ages reflect on why the pop country classic 'Crazy' made famous by Patsy Cline brings out such strong emotions in them.
Featuring a young woman mourning the loss of a father's love after divorce - and broadcaster Fiona Phillips reflects on losing her father to Alzheimer's disease.
87 year old Wayne Rethford met Patsy Cline in 1961 and two years later happened upon the crash site where she died after her plane came down in a heavy storm in Tennessee.
"That music becomes embedded in your soul" he says.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2014.
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Rhapsody in Blue
1 april 2014 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"I'm convinced it's the best thing ever written and recorded in the history of things written and recorded" - Moby. Lees meer
Rhapsody in Blue was premiered on February 12, 1924, in New York's Aeolian Hall.
Through its use at the opening of Woody Allen's 'Manhattan' it’s become synonymous with the city that inspired its creation.
But for people around the world, George Gershwin's "experiment in modern music" has become imbued with the most personal of memories.
LA based screenwriter Charles Peacock reflects on how this piece has become entwined with his life and how, on an evening at the Hollywood Bowl this music "healed him". When Adela Galasiu was growing up in communist Romania, Rhapsody in Blue represented "life itself, as seen through the eyes of an optimist".
For world speed champion Gina Campbell, the opening of that piece will forever remind her of the roar of the Bluebird's ignition as it flew through the "glass like stillness of the water" and brings back the memories of her father, the legendary Donald Campbell - it was played at his funeral when he was finally laid to rest decades after his fatal record attempt on Coniston Lake.
Featuring interviews with:
Professor of Music, Howard Pollock
Musician, MobyProducer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in April 2014.
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Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
24 december 2013 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe story behind the song, 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'. Lees meer
It was first performed by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me In St Louis', for the now famous scene in which she and her seven year old sister, played by Margaret O'Brien are downcast about the prospect of moving away from their beloved home.
Garland asked the composer, Hugh Martin to modify his original lyric, explaining it to be too depressing for her to sing, or the audience to hear.
Martin's collaborator and friend, John Fricke, explains the importance this song had for the composer and the joy he experienced in hearing it covered by every major artist since, from Frank Sinatra to Chrissie Hynde, Punk band Fear to Cold Play, Rod Stewart to James Taylor.
It's clear that the song's enduring power lies in a beautiful melody with a melancholic feel that sums up our emotional ambivalence to the Christmas season.
We hear from those who have a special connection to the song.
Soul Music is a series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.
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Brahms' German Requiem
17 december 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringHow Brahms' German Requiem has touched and changed people’s lives. Lees meer
It was written as a tribute to his mother and designed to comfort the grieving,
Stuart Perkins describes how the piece arrived at the right time in his life, after the death of his aunt.
Axel Körner, Professor of Modern History at University College London, explains the genesis of the work and how the deaths of Brahms' friends and family contributed to the emotional power of the piece.
Daniel Malis and Danica Buckley recall how the piece enabled them to cope with the trauma of the Boston marathon bombings.
Simon Halsey, Chief Conductor of the Berlin Radio Choir, explores how Brahms' experience as a church musician enabled him to distil hundreds of years of musical history into this dramatic choral work.
For Imani Mosley, the piece helped her through a traumatic time in hospital. Rosemary Sales sought solace in the physical power of Brahms' music after the death of her son. And June Noble recounts how the piece helped her find her voice and make her peace with her parents.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Melvin Rickarby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.
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Can't Take My Eyes Off You
12 december 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringFew songs can claim to be - quite literally - as far reaching as the 1967 classic 'Can't Take My Eyes off You'. Lees meer
Former astronaut Christopher Ferguson heard this song as an early morning wake-up call aboard the space shuttle Endeavour.
Mother of two, Michelle Noakes sang this classic piece to the baby she was told she may never be able to carry.
A honeymoon couple recall how their marriage proposal began with a hundred strong 'flash mob' performance of this track.
Singer Frankie Valli reflects on one of the most moving performances he ever gave when he sang 'Can't Take My Eyes off You' to a crowd of recently returned Vietnam Veterans.
DJ Mark Radcliffe recalls the many artists since Valli who have covered this song (not least his mum who sang along to the Andy Williams version).
Composer Bob Gaudio reveals how this piece of music began life in a room overlooking Central Park, with a melody originally penned for a children's nursery rhyme.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.
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Gymnopédie No 1
3 december 2013 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringPascal Rogé is one of the world's greatest interpreters of French piano music. Lees meer
From the seat of a concert hall piano, he leads us through a personal and musical journey of Erik Satie's Gymnopédies.
You may not immediately know the title but in hearing just the first few notes, you are most likely to know the music.
It's a collection of short, atmospheric pieces of which Gymnopédie No.1 is perhaps the most popular.
Music historian and author Mark Prendergast has studied Satie's work and reveals the complex character of the man who revolutionised the 19th century classical music of Europe.
Melbourne based artist Colin Duncan reflects on the music's 'physical form which takes you into space and time' and for him inspired a body of work created in braille.
Murder Mystery writer Cathy Ace remembers how this meditative music could shut out the noise of the city as she sped around London in her old brown mini.
Mathematician and author Ian Stewart explores the mathematics of this special piece and how music can touch our soul.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in December 2013.
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Strange Fruit
26 november 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering"Southern trees bear a strange fruit, blood on the leaves and blood at the root..." Lees meer
Billie Holiday's famous song expresses the horror and anguish of those communities subjected to a campaign of lynching in the American South.
Soul Music hears the stories of people whose relatives were lynched by white racists and of the various forms of grief, anger and reconciliation that have followed. These include the cousin of teenager Emmett Till, whose killing in 1955 for whistling at a white woman, added powerful impetus to the civil rights movement.Despite its association with the deep south, the song was actually composed in 1930's New York by a Jewish schoolteacher, Abel Meeropol.
Meeropol adopted the children of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg after they were executed in 1953 as Soviet spies. One of those children, Robert, talks of his adopted father's humanity and his belief that the Rosenberg's were killed in a 'state sanctioned lynching by the American government'. For him, Strange Fruit is a comforting reminder of his adopted father's passionate belief in justice and compassion.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in November 2013.
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Elgar's Dream of Gerontius
2 augustus 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringHow the choral work The Dream of Gerontius, by Edward Elgar, has touched and changed people's lives. Lees meer
For Terry Waite, it was the first piece of music he heard as a hostage in the Lebanon, after four years in solitary confinement.
Writer and broadcaster Stephen Johnson describes how Elgar's own fragile emotional state is written into the music, which describes the journey taken by a dying man.
Singer Catherine Wyn-Rogers explains how Elgar's music helped her come to terms with the loss of her parents.
Martin Firth recalls a life-enhancing performance of the piece in Bristol cathedral.
Jude Kelly, artistic director of the South Bank Centre, explains how she experienced the choir in this piece as a 'spiritual army' when she performed it at university.
Martyn Marsh describes how the music brought him to a realisation about how he would like to end his days.
And Robin Self recalls a life-changing performance of this piece, which enabled him to grieve for his son.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Melvin Rickarby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.
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Don't Leave Me This Way
25 juli 2013 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringDon't Leave Me This Way was written in the early 1970s by songwriters Huff, Gamble and Gilbert. Lees meer
They were the composers behind the famous black American Philadelphia Sound.
It was first performed by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, featuring Teddy Pendergrass on lead vocals.
It later became a hit for Thelma Houston and The Communards.
As the title suggests, the song is all about longing, yearning and loss.
Remarkable stories reflect the pain expressed in this soul classic, including one told by Dr Dan Gottlieb, a quadriplegic therapist who befriended Teddy Pendergrass after he became paralysed in a car accident.
Sharon Wachsler recalls dancing to the version made famous by The Communards in 1986 before a devastating illness left her housebound and reliant on her beloved service dog Gadget, who gave her a reason to keep going. When he died, the song was the only way she could express her grief over his loss.
The Reverend Richard Coles, formerly of The Communards, talks about the significance of Don't Leave Me This Way as a dancefloor anthem for young gay men in the 1980s that was later to become associated with the AIDS epidemic that took so many of their lives.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.
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Make Me a Channel of Your Peace
16 juli 2013 · 27 min
Beluister deze aflevering'Make Me a Channel of Your Peace' found its way into weddings, funerals and school assemblies. Lees meer
Discover how this hymn has also embedded itself into the hearts of peace campaigners, charity workers and reformed alcoholics.
Its simplicity often belies the challenges at its heart. Its lyrics call for unconditional love and forgiveness in the toughest situations.
The words are based on a poem which has often been attributed to St Francis of Assisi. However, Franciscan Historian, Dr Christian Renoux, suggests it was most likely to have been written by an anonymous French noble women.
The poem travelled across the globe with translations published during both world wars, subsequently bringing inspiration to public figures ranging from Mother Theresa to President Roosevelt.
In 1967, it caught the eye of South African born musician and 'yogi' Sebastian Temple who put these words to its most famous musical arrangement. His version was played at Princess Diana's funeral and touched the hearts of millions worldwide.
Mathew Neville of children's charity 'World Vision' recalls his encounter with this hymn in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Closer to home, Wendy and Colin Parry share their memories of this music and the role it played in remembering their son Tim, who was killed in the 1993 Warrington Bombings.
In Minnesota, former lawyer Mike Donohue reflects on how this hymn has guided him on a journey through alcohol abuse and dementia.
Sarah Hershberg remembers her good friend Sebastian Temple, who first played this simple hymn in her front room before it went on to travel the world.
Producer: Nicola Humphries
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.
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Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez for Guitar
9 juli 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringWritten by Joaquin Rodrigo in 1939, the Concierto de Aranjuez is a guitar classic. Lees meer
He wrote it amid the chaos of the Spanish Civil War, and in circumstances of poverty and personal tragedy.
How has it touched and changed people's lives?
The composer's daughter Cecilia Rodrigo explains how the blind composer was inspired by the fountains and gardens of the palace of Aranjuez. Nelício Faria de Sales recounts an unforgettable performance deep inside one of Brazil's largest caves.
David B Katague remembers how the piece got him through a difficult period of separation from his family in the Philippines.
Guitarist Craig Ogden explains the magic of the piece for a performer.
Actor Simon Callow recalls how hearing the piece was a formative experience for him during his schooldays, when it turned rural Berkshire into a piece of Spain.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Melvin Rickarby
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.
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Lili Marlene
3 juli 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringStories of love, loss and friendship through the Second World War favourite, Lili Marlene. Lees meer
She was made famous by Marlene Dietrich - with songs sung by soldiers on both sides of the conflict.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Maggie Ayre.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in July 2013.
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Shipbuilding
8 maart 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringWritten by Elvis Costello and Clive Langer for Robert Wyatt, Shipbuilding was recorded in several versions by Elvis Costello himself, Suede, June Tabor, Hue and Cry, Tamsin Archer and The Unthanks. Lees meer
The blend of subtle lyrics and extraordinary music makes this a political song like no other. It transcends the particular circumstances of its writing: the Falklands War and the decline of British heavy industry, especially ship-building.
Clive and Elvis describe how the song was written in 1982 and how legendary jazz trumpeter and flugelhorn player, Chet Baker, came to perform on Costello's version.
Philosopher Richard Ashcroft wants the song, which he sees as a kind of secular hymn, played at his funeral because it gives a perfect expression of how he believes we should think about life. Not being able to feel the emotion of the song would, he feels, be like being morally tone-deaf. If you don't like this song, he'd find it hard to be your friend.
The song's achingly beautiful final couplet about "diving for pearls" makes former MP Alan Johnson cry.
It's also inspired an oral history and migrant integration project in Glasgow. Chris Gourley describes how the participants found a way to overcome their lack of English and communicate through a shared understanding of ship-building practice.Other contributors include Hopi Sen, a political blogger who was an unusually political child, and the Mercury Prize winning folk group The Unthanks. They toured their version to towns with ship-building connections as part of a live performance of a film tracing the history of British ship-building using archive footage.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact
Producer: Natalie Steed
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in March 2013.
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Pergolesi's Stabat Mater
26 februari 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe Stabat Mater's imagines the sufferings of the Virgin Mary at the foot of the cross, and Pergolesi's 18th-century setting remains a choral favourite. Lees meer
Pam Self tells the moving story of how this piece unites her and her friend Helen Vaughan, both during life and after.
Soprano Catherine Bott reflects on the piece's themes.
The Stabat Mater has been reinterpreted many times over the years: Sasha Lazard recalls singing it in the school choir, before later taking the melody and transforming it into a dance version for her album 'The Myth of Red' rechristening it 'Stabat Mater IXXI' in the wake of the September 11th attacks.
Victor Alcantara also sang it as a boy, before returning to the piece as an adult and transforming it into a jazz opus.
Composer and Conductor Paul Spicer examines the musical tensions in the piece, likening its opening to "a heartbeat."
Professor Anthony DelDonna recalls a performance of the Stabat Mater in his hometown of Naples, and reflects on the moment which reaffirmed his his faith.
Producer: Toby Field
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2013.
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She Moved Through The Fair
19 februari 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe Irish traditional song She Moved Through The Fair is well loved and well recorded by many. Lees meer
To some it is a ghost story that tells of unfulfilled longings and of hopes and aspirations cut short.
Sinead O' Connor and other fans talk about the haunting beauty of this ancient song and of why its imagery is carved into their souls.
Featuring:
Sinead O'Connor
Catriona Crowe
Bernie Warren
David Johnston.Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2013.
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Beethoven's Fifth Symphony
12 februari 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringMore than just 'da da da dum! Lees meer
Beethoven's 5th Symphony accompanied Sir Robin Knox-Johnston on the regular Bombay to Basra route he sailed during his early days in the Merchant Navy.
Archaeologist and crime novelist, Dana Cameron, spent many a long day in a dark, lonely basement analysing artefacts from a merchant's house in Salem, Massachusetts. A CD player was often her only companion and Beethoven's 5th buoyed her through these arduous days working towards her PhD
And for conductor, Christopher Gayford, it was the piece which provided a breakthrough in his musical life.
Recalling the time he spent rehearsing it with the Sheffield Youth Orchestra - for a tour in East Germany - he describes the build up to one of the most memorable performances of his career.
Series about pieces of music with a powerful emotional impact.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2013.
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Peggy Lee's Is That All There Is?
8 februari 2013 · 28 min
Beluister deze aflevering‘Is That All There Is?’, a Leiber & Stoller song made famous by Peggy Lee, is based upon a short story by Thomas Mann called 'Disillusionment'. But those who know and love it feel it's inspirational rather than a cynical, world weary musical take on existentialism and the futility of life. Lees meer
‘Soul Music’ uncovers the compelling individual stories behind our collective love of music.
Producer: Maggie Ayre
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2013.
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Bach's St Matthew Passion
9 oktober 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringBach's St Matthew Passion was written in 1727 and was probably first performed as part of the Good Friday Service at Thomaskirche in Leipzig. Lees meer
This programme explores ways in which Bach's St Mattew Passion touches and changes people's lives.
Guitarist Andrew Schulman describes what happened when he was played this music whilst he was in a coma. James Jacobs talks about the St Matthew Passion providing solace in difficult times during childhood.
And singer Emma Kirkby, conductor Paul Spicer and musical historian Simon Heighes explore how the music works and what it's like to perform.
Producer: Rosie Boulton.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2012.
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Brothers in Arms
8 oktober 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringAn exploration into the enduring appeal of the Dire Straits classic, Brothers in Arms. Lees meer
Although thought to have been written by Mark Knopfler in response to the Falklands war in the mid 1980's, it's a piece that people now associate with many other conflicts; military, personal and social.
Bass player, John Illsley explains why it remains such a special piece for Dire Straits.
Marines chaplain, Nigel Beardsley, recalls the important part it's played in the lives of so many soldiers in Iran and Afghanistan and why it's now often heard at military funerals.
Irish playwright, Sam Millar describes why he based a very personal play around the song.
Snuffy Walden, music director of the hit American TV show, The West Wing, talks about how the series writer, Aaron Sorkin insisted on it being used in its entirety during a crucial episode.
Professor Alan Moore of Surrey University explains how it's Knopfler's brilliant use of harmony that gives the song the sense of yearning that has made it into one of the most enduring pop songs of the last century.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2012.
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The Skye Boat Song
8 oktober 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe Skye Boat Song brings back a wealth of childhood memories for many. Lees meer
The words "Speed Bonnie Boat Like a Bird on the Wing" tell the story of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s escape to the Isle of Skye - dressed as a maid - after defeat at the battle of Culloden.
Originally written by Sir Harold Boulton and Anne MacLeod back in the 1870's, we explore the song’s beauty and how it continues to touch people's lives across the world in very different ways.
The Queen's Piper, who has played it in happy and sad times, recalls his rendition outside the Queen's window and leading Princess Margaret's cortege.
A New Zealand artist shares his memories of time spent with his father, and the sound of him whistling the song on their way home as dusk fell. A sailor from the Isle of Skye, describes his connection with the spirituality of piece and the Loch on which he sails.
Acclaimed violinist Tasmin Little shares her own arrangement of the piece and explains why it works so well musically.
An Australian mum, tells how important this song has been in connecting with the two girls she has adopted from China.
Gaelic singer Maggie MacInnes tells the history of the piece.
Featuring music by Julian Lloyd Webber, The Corries and Pete Lashley.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Rachel Matthews
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2012.
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Beethoven's Violin Concerto
8 oktober 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringBeethoven's Violin Concerto in D major Opus 61 was written in 1806, but was not a success at its premiere. Lees meer
200 years on and this Concerto is regarded as one of the greatest pieces ever written for the violin.
Beethoven Violin Concerto has touched and shaped people's lives in many ways.
Writer Kelly Cherry describes her father loving this piece and still remembering it even when he had Alzheimers. Violinist Robert Gupta talks about this piece being the music which cemented his friendship with Nathaniel Ayers - a moment which changed Robert's life.
Joe Quigley remembers hearing the Concerto at a crucial point in his life whilst living in a monastery.
Devorina Gamalova recalls being entranced by this music as a child.
And violinist Christian Tetzlaff talks about what it's like to play the Beethoven Violin Concerto.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Rosie Boulton.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2012.
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Dvorak's New World Symphony
28 augustus 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringFor many, it will be always associated with a certain kind of brown bread. Lees meer
Yet the Largo from Antonín Dvořák's New World Symphony is an enduring a piece that never fails to move and inspire.
Anti- apartheid campaigner Albie Sachs explains that through whistling the theme while in solitary confinement, he was able to make contact with the wider world and kept his spirit and hope alive.
Margaret Caldicott recalls the important role the piece played in her mother's life while in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in June 2012.
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The Hallelujah Chorus
28 februari 2012 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe Hallelujah chorus from Handel's Messiah is stirring, emotional and unmistakable. Lees meer
The Alzheimer's Society runs a group called 'Singing for the Brain'. It's for people with dementia or Alzheimer’s and their carers who come together to sing in a group. As music is tied so closely to emotional memories, often lyrics and music remain firmly fixed in the brain, while other memories have died away.
Julia Burton recalls the power of the Hallelujah Chorus, as performed at a special event by Singing for the Brain groups in Wiltshire and Dorset.
Mrs Vera Fiton, whose late husband - Ted - had dementia talks about how important the weekly singing group was for both of them.
Carol Pemberton, of the Birmingham-based a capella quintet 'Black Voices', took part in the reopening concert of Birmingham Town Hall in 2007. The programme director suggested they sing The Messiah, but not as Handel intended, rather a daring interpretation arranged by Quincy Jones, called the 'Soulful Messiah'. It's a soul/gospel version which has to be heard to be believed! Carol describes performing it as one of the biggest highs of her career to date.
Jennifer Blakeley runs Alphabet Photography, a photo company based in Niagara Falls in Canada. She came up with the idea of staging a Flash Mob to promote her company. The Hallelujah Chorus had long been a favourite piece, and she - along with her local choir - set up a flash-mob in a local shopping mall. The result was emotional, extraordinary... and achieved so much more than the intended aim to boost her business. Even passers-by joined in., while others cried as emotions ran high. And the resulting You Tube video has now attracted over 37 million hits.
Paul Spicer, composer, conductor and organist, describes the historical backdrop to Handel's exhilarating composition.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2012.
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Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien
21 februari 2012 · 27 min
Beluister deze afleveringThe powerful song, Non, je ne regrette rien was made famous by Edith Piaf. Lees meer
Written in 1960 by Charles Dumont, in a fit of despair, he gave the music to lyricist Michel Vaucaire, but was surprised by the words he wrote.
Dumont thought the song should be about war or revolution. Vaucaire explained he wanted to give the song to Edith Piaf. She was living in Paris at the time, having recently finished her 'suicide tour' during which she had collapsed.
At that time, Piaf didn't think much of Charles Dumont and tried to cancel their appointment. But on hearing the song, Piaf told Dumont that with this song, she would sing again.
Contributors include:
* Charles Dumont who lives in Paris at the same apartment, with the same piano on which he wrote the song in 1960. He plays the song on the very same piano.
* Lord Lamont, who became associated with the song when asked by a reporter which he regretted most - talking about the 'green shoots of recovery' or allegedly singing in the bath after the withdrawal of Britain from the Exchange Rate Mechanism. Lamont famously replied 'Je ne regrette rien.'
* Christine Bovill, who tours a one-woman show about Piaf's life.
* Carolyn Birke, biographer of Piaf.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2012.
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Rachmaninov, 2nd Piano Concerto
14 februari 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringRachmaninov's 2nd Piano Concerto - famously featured in David Lean's film "Brief Encounter" - is one of the world's most popular pieces of classical music. Lees meer
Some of its fans describe the way in which it has touched and shaped their lives.
Featuring a pianist from Taiwan whose memories of a repressive childhood were dispelled by the emotions contained within this music.
Plus a story from an acclaimed pianist from Argentina who was told she would never play the piano again after a serious car accident, but who has recently performed this piece in New York.
And finally an account of the place that this piece of passionate and heartfelt music played in the life of John Peel and his family, told by his wife Sheila Ravenscroft.
The concerto is also given historical and musical context by pianists Peter Donohoe and Howard Shelley.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Rosie Boulton.
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in February 2012.
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Gresford, the Miners' Hymn
7 februari 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringAn exploration of the haunting melancholy of Gresford, the Miners' Hymn. Lees meer
Written by a former miner, Robert Saint, to commemorate the Gresford pit disaster in 1934, it has been played at mining events ever since. George Leslie Lister wrote the words in 1970.
With the thoughts of Albert Rowlands who was working in the lamp-room of Gresford colliery when there was a devastating underground explosion. His father was among the men lost.
Plus the composer's grandson, David Saint, organist at St. Chad's Cathedral in Birmingham.
And Cecil Peacock, a former miner who recalls playing Gresford at the funerals of 83 miners who died following the Easington Colliery disaster in 1951.
With thanks to Trevor Sutherland and the Llay Welfare band.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal
Producer: Karen Gregor
First broadcast on Radio 4 in February 2012.
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Baker Street
31 januari 2012 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringBaker Street is Gerry Rafferty's glorious and instantly recognisable hit. Lees meer
It’s arguably the most popular track from his widely respected musical legacy. (Gerry sadly died aged just 63 in 2011)
His daughter Martha Rafferty recalls hearing him develop the melody in the attic of their Glasgow home. His inspiration for the lyrics came from a book by Colin Wilson about the sense of disconnection from the world that artists often feel.
Featuring:
* Musician and founder member of Stealer's Wheel, Rab Noakes.
* Singer-songwriter, Betsy Cook
* Poet, Ian McMillan
* Busker, Gavin Randle
* Guitarist, Hugh BurnsMusic featured:
An acoustic version of Baker Street is played especially for Soul Music by the Hugh Burns.
The original demo of Baker Street, on which Gerry Rafferty plays the famous sax solo on guitar.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Karen Gregor (whose first decision when starting work on this programme was to NOT mention the urban myth about Bob Holness and the saxophone riff!)
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2012
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Let's Face the Music and Dance
13 september 2011 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringIrving Berlin’s enduring classic, Let's Face the Music and Dance is celebrated by those for whom it has a special significance. Lees meer
It was written in 1932 as a dance number for the film ‘Follow the Fleet’ starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
Since then it has taken on a life of its own, being recorded by hundreds of artists including Diane Krall, Shirley Bassey, Frank Sinatra, Vera Lynn, Ella Fitzgerald and Matt Munroe.
For Sir John Mortimer's widow, Penny, it conjures up the very essence of her husband, who loved life, romance and dancing - even though he was no Fred Astaire, a fact he always deeply regretted.
Lawrence Bergreen, Berlin's biographer and academic Morris Dickstein explain why this song has such a unique place in popular culture.
Cabaret singer and composer, Kit Hesketh Harvey explains why the melody continues to haunt us.
We hear from the bride and groom who decided to dance down the aisle to it after their wedding and the redundant welder for whom the song will be forever associated with the demise of our ship building industry.
An insurance executive recalls how the song became central to their advertising campaign, bringing success to the firm and also placing Nat King Cole's version back in the charts nearly 60 years after it was written.
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2011.
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Dear Lord and Father of Mankind
6 september 2011 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringIt’s one of our most-loved hymns. Lees meer
The words of ‘Dear Lord and Father of Mankind’ were taken from the last six verses of John Greenleaf Whittier's poem ‘The Brewing of Soma’, an attack on ostentatious and overt religious practise.
But it wasn't until over 50 years later, that a school teacher at Repton in Derbyshire had the inspiration to pair it with a tune by Sir Hubert Parry, thus confirming it as a favourite for assemblies, funerals and weddings.
Repton’s former music director, John Bowley, explains how this happened, while composer and conductor Bob Chilcott explains why this was a musical marriage made in heaven.
We hear from those for whom the hymn has special significance, including Gloucester MP, Richard Graham; when briefly imprisoned in a Libyan gaol in 1978 he found enormous comfort in the words and tune.
Pipe Major Ross Munro remembers recording the piece in the sweltering heat of Basra with members of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.
Film director Joe Wright recalls how the inclusion of this hymn was central to the power of his famous scene depicting the evacuation of Dunkirk in his film, Atonement.
Contributors:
John Bowley
Richard Graham
Ian Bradley
Bob Chilcott
Joan Lambley
Ross Munro
Richard Hoyes
Joe WrightSeries exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Lucy Lunt
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in September 2011.
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Spiegel im Spiegel
30 augustus 2011 · 28 min
Beluister deze afleveringExploring the impact that Estonian composer Arvo Pärt's Spiegel im Spiegel has had on people's lives. Lees meer
Written in 1978, just prior to his departure from Estonia, Arvo’s piece for piano and violin is musically minimal, yet produces a serene tranquillity.
It's in F major in 6/4 time, with the piano playing rising crotchet triads and the violin playing slow scales, alternately rising and falling, of increasing length, which all end on the note A.
The score of the piece looks deceptively simple, but as violinist, Tasmin Little explains, it's one of the most difficult pieces to perform because the playing has to simply be perfect, or the mood is lost.
"Spiegel im Spiegel" in German literally can mean both "mirror in the mirror" as well as "mirrors in the mirror", referring to the infinity of images produced by parallel plane mirrors.
The music inspired visual artist Mary Husted to produce a set of collages called "Spiegel im Spiegel" which in a roundabout way, led to her being traced by her long lost son.
Contributors:
Doreen Macfarlane
Rhona Smith
Mary Husted
Tasmin Little
Vicky SmithSeries exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.
Producer: Rosie Boulton
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in August 2011.