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Wednesday - Sarah Walker with Alec Baldwin

With Sarah Walker. Including Five Reasons to Love the Waltz; Music in Time: Webern: Symphony; Artists associated with Vienna: Strauss: An Alpine Symphony.

9am
Sarah presents '5 Reasons to Love... the Waltz'. Throughout the week she enjoys its elegance and expressivity; its high-spirited flirtatiousness; its capacity to conjure up fairytale romance; the Viennese pride expressed in the waltzes of the Strauss family; and the way it can seem to spin out of control, revealing its darker side. Sarah shares waltzes by composers including Weber, Liszt, Johann Strauss II (arr. Webern), Chopin and Prokofiev.

9.30am
Take part in today's challenge. Two pieces of music are played together - can you work out what they are?

10am
Sarah's guest is the Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin. A star of the small screen as well as the silver screen, Alec is known for both his comic and dramatic roles, and has amassed a list of film and TV credits including 30 Rock, The Hunt for Red October and the latest film in the Mission: Impossible series: Rogue Nation. Alec is a passionate classical music fan, whose damascene moment was hearing Mahler's 9th Symphony conducted by Sir Georg Solti whilst driving his car in Los Angeles. Mahler is still his number one love and he even had a special 'Mahler clause' inserted into his contract when filming It's Complicated. Alec also presents concerts for the New York Philharmonic Orchestra - he's said "It's my favourite job that I've ever had." Alec will be sharing a selection of his favourite classical music every day at 10am, including pieces by Sibelius, Rodrigo and Ravel, as well as works by the British composers Vaughan Williams and Frank Bridge.

10.30am
Sarah places Music in Time. She heads to the Modern period to investigate Webern's highly individual conception of serialism in his Symphony, Op 21 - a work of captivating beauty.

11am
In the week of Radio 3's annual broadcast of the long-running New Year's Day Concert from Vienna, Sarah presents four great artists associated with that famously musical city - Concentus Musicus Wien, the Alban Berg Quartet, Friedrich Gulda and the Vienna Philharmonic, in music by Bach, Ravel, Richard Strauss and Beethoven.

Richard Strauss
An Alpine Symphony, Op 64
Vienna Philharmonic
Andr茅 Previn, conductor.

3 hours

Music Played

  • Anton Webern

    III. Sehr lebhaft (5 Movements for String Quartet, Op.5, arr. for string orch.)

    Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Pierre Boulez.
    • DG.
  • 5 REASONS TO LOVE...THE WALTZ

    • Johann Strauss II

      Schatz-Walzer, Op 418

      Music Arranger: Anton Webern. Ensemble: Boston Symphony Chamber Players.
      • DG.
  • Francesco Cavalli

    Salve regina

    Choir: The Sixteen. Conductor: Harry Christophers.
    • CORO.
  • Johann Baptist Vanhal

    Symphony in C 'Sinfonia comista', Bryan C11

    Ensemble: Concerto K枚ln.
    • TELDEC.
  • Samuel Barber

    Summer Music, Op 31

    Ensemble: London Winds.
    • CHANDOS.
  • Franz Schubert

    String Quartet in C minor, D.703 'Quartettsatz'

    Ensemble: Jerusalem Quartet.
    • HARMONIA MUNDI.
  • Benjamin Britten

    'I wonder as I wander'

    Performer: Graham Johnson. Singer: Philip Langridge.
    • DECCA.
  • ALEC BALDWIN'S CHOICE

    • Gustav Mahler

      IV. Adagio (Symphony No.9)

      Orchestra: New York Philharmonic. Conductor: Lorin Maazel.
  • MUSIC IN TIME: MODERN

    • Anton Webern

      Symphony, Op.21

      Orchestra: Staatskapelle Dresden. Conductor: Giuseppe Sinopoli.
      • TELDEC.
  • Fran莽ois Couperin

    La Raphaele (2nd Book of Harpsichord Pieces)

    Performer: Olivier Baumont.
    • WARNER.
  • Fran莽ois Couperin

    Les Folies francoises, ou Les Dominos (3rd Book of Harpsichord Pieces)

    Performer: Olivier Baumont.
    • WARNER.
  • VIENNESE ARTIST: VIENNA PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

    • Richard Strauss

      An Alpine Symphony, Op.64

      Orchestra: Vienna Philharmonic. Conductor: Andr茅 Previn.
      • TELARC.
  • Maurice Ravel

    Alborada del gracioso (Miroirs)

    Performer: Pierre鈥怢aurent Aimard.
    • DG.

Imperfect Harmony

The music played:

Trad arr. Berio
I wonder as I wonder
Cathy Berberian (mezzo-soprano)
Julliard Ensemble
Luciano Berio (conductor)
RCA

Britten
A Ceremony of Carols: Adam lay-i-bounden
Choir of Westminster Cathedral听
Sioned Williams (harp)
David Hill (conductor)
HYPERION

Broadcast

  • Wed 30 Dec 2015 09:00

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