Category: Radio
3; 91Èȱ¬ FOUR;
Factual & Arts
TV
Date: 04.05.2005
Printable version
For the first time, 91Èȱ¬ Radio, Television and Interactive join forces
to present a Beethoven season - the 91Èȱ¬'s largest ever focus on a single
creative artist.
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In an unprecedented event, 91Èȱ¬ Radio 3
will clear its schedule to broadcast The Beethoven Experience
- the complete works of Beethoven in one week - and 91Èȱ¬
Television will mount its biggest retrospective devoted to
the works of one composer, taking viewers on a journey through Beethoven's
dramatic life and greatest music.
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From 5 to 10 June, Radio 3 presents The
Beethoven Experience. Guiding listeners through this
unique opportunity to hear Beethoven's complete works will be world-renowned
pianist Alfred Brendel, conductor Sir Roger
Norrington and violinist Peter Cropper of
The Lindsay Quartet, along with Radio 3 presenters including Sean
Rafferty, Penny Gore, Rob Cowan,
Petroc Trelawny, Verity Sharp and
Fiona Talkington.
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Actor John Hurt will read a selection
of Beethoven's letters, giving an insight into the composer's personality,
and John Suchet will read extracts from his trilogy
on Beethoven's life, The Last Master.
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91Èȱ¬ Television celebrates Beethoven's unique position
in the history of music with 91Èȱ¬ TWO's landmark drama-documentary
series, Beethoven.
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This three-part series, starring Paul Rhys as
the visionary composer and presented by conductor Charles Hazlewood,
charts the composer's troubled life and examines some of his greatest
works.
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Charles Hazlewood also presents and
conducts Beethoven Uncovered
on 91Èȱ¬ FOUR, a musical discovery series which unlocks
the secrets of key works featured in the 91Èȱ¬ TWO series.
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Beethoven's Hair
on 91Èȱ¬ TWO is a film tracing the unlikely journey of a lock of hair
cut from Beethoven's corpse, unravelling the mystery of the composer's
tortured life, deafness and death.
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In Barenboim on Beethoven
(91Èȱ¬ FOUR), celebrated pianist and conductor Daniel Barenboim
takes outstanding young professional pianists through some of Beethoven's
piano sonatas in a compelling masterclass.
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91Èȱ¬ FOUR also screens Beethoven archive classics set
in a new context. Charles Hazlewood, conductor Marin
Alsop and Radio 3's Rob Cowan join forces
to discuss the performances in a complete cycle of the Beethoven
Symphonies, curated from the 91Èȱ¬'s archive and featuring
outstanding interpretations from some of the 20th century's greats
including Klemperer, Stokowski, Haitink
and Rattle.
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Murray Perahia performs all five piano
concertos in Perahia Plays Beethoven,
and there is another chance to see the award-winning film Eroica,
which tells the story behind the first performance of Beethoven's third
symphony.
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Peter Maniura, Head of 91Èȱ¬ Classical Music Television,
says: "Never before has 91Èȱ¬ Television examined the life and work
of a single composer in such depth, with outstanding and innovative
new documentaries and performances complemented by gems from the 91Èȱ¬
archive set in a new context."
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Roger Wright, Controller Radio 3, says: "This
is a unique event in Radio 3's history. Our listeners have huge loyalty,
curiosity - and stamina! - and I'm sure they'll be joined by many others
keen to learn more about Beethoven and his music.
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"We'll follow up this extraordinary week's programming
with a celebration in one day of all the music of Anton Webern,
and a real Christmas treat by exploring the complete works of J
S Bach."
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Notes to Editors
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Radio 3's The Beethoven Experience
will include live music-making from The Lindsay Quartet,
Beethoven symphonies performed by 91Èȱ¬ Philharmonic
and Gianandrea Noseda, Fidelio presented by Scottish
Opera, as well as a special performance of Wellington's Victory,
presented in an appropriate - if unusual - location.
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Broadcast details
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Radio 3
The Beethoven Experience,
continuously Sunday 5 June, 9.00am to Friday 10 June, midnight.
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For more details and full schedule, see bbc.co.uk/radio3/beethoven.
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91Èȱ¬ TWO
Beethoven, Fridays 3, 10,
17 June at 9.00pm
Beethoven's Hair, Tuesday
14 June at 11.20pm (tbc)
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91Èȱ¬ FOUR
Beethoven Uncovered, Fridays
3, 10, 17 June at 10.00pm Barenboim on Beethoven,
Monday 30 May at 7.30pm
Beethoven Archive:
Eroica, Monday 30 May at 9.00pm
Menuhin Violin Concerto,
Wednesday 1 June at 7.00pm Beethoven Symphonies 1-3,
Saturday 4 June at 7.00pm Beethoven Symphonies 4-6,
Saturday 11 June at 7.00pm Beethoven Symphonies 7-9,
Saturday 18 June at 7.00pm
Perahia Plays Beethoven, Saturdays
25 June and 2 July at 7.00pm
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All broadcast details are subject to change.
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Digital viewers
of BeethovenÌýon 91Èȱ¬ TWO
can press red on their remote control at any time during the series
to access full details of the music being played, together with supplementary
information about Beethoven's music and the unfolding drama of the great
composer's extraordinary life.
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Digital viewers of 91Èȱ¬ FOUR's Beethoven
Uncovered can press red to view a map of the music, which depicts the
movements, structure, key changes and subjects as Charles Hazlewood
explores individual pieces. Developed last year for Mozart Uncovered,
this animated guide follows Charles through his exploration of the pieces
and the subsequent full performance, and does not require viewers to
be able to read sheet music.
