The Gift
Readers Kenneth Cranham and Nadine Marshall explore the excitement, and occasional disappointment, of giving and receiving presents.
Readers Kenneth Cranham and Nadine Marshall explore the excitement, and occasional disappointment, of giving and receiving. From the beleaguered sisters in Little Women, contemplating Christmas without presents, to the court of the Ottoman emperor in the 16th century, where Elizabeth I's envoys are presenting an extravagant musical gift. The gift of love and sex is explored by Shakespeare, John Donne and Andrew McMillan, and Sue Townsend's Adrian Mole reminds us how important totally useless gifts can be at Christmastime. The mildly festive musical gift wrap for this edition ranges from Nina Simone's Little Girl Blue to Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty and Poveri fiori from Francesco Cil猫a's opera Adriana Lecouvreur, where the tragic Adriana has just opened a mysterious birthday present containing the wilted remains of the violets she once gave her beloved Maurizio.
Producer: Georgia Mann-Smith
Last on
Music Played
Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes
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00:01
Nina Simone
Little Girl Blue
Performer: Nina Simone.- From Desktop Jukebox.
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Louisa M. Allcott
Extract from Little Women read by Nadine Marshall
00:06Grace Williams
Extract from Fantasia on Welsh nursery tunes
Performer: Royal Ballet Sinfonia / Andrew Penny.- MARCO POLO 8225048.
Robert Frost
The Gift Outright read by Robert Frost
00:09Aaron Copland
Appalachian spring - Thema and variations ('The Gift to be Simple')
Performer: Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra / Hugh Wolff.- Teldec 398428169-2.
00:13Johnny Cash
Christmas As I Knew It
Performer: Johnny Cash.- From Desktop Jukeox.
Harper Lee
Extract from To Kill A Mockingbird read by Nadine Marshall
00:18Claude Debussy
Children's corner for piano, Serenade for the doll
Performer: Noriko Ogawa.- BIS CD1205.
Sue Townsend
Extract from The Diary of Adrian Mole read by Kenneth Cranham
00:22Michael Carr, Tommie Connor and Jimmy Leach
The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot
Performer: Nat King Cole.- From Desktop Jukebox.
00:24Terje Isungset and Sidsel Endresen
Igloo - extract
Performer: Terje Isungset and.- All Ice Records聽?聳 All Ice 0601.
- 1.
Simon Armitage
The Present read by Nadine Marshall
00:26Max Richter arrangement of Vivaldi
Vivaldi Recomposed: Winter 1聽
Performer: Daniel Hope (violin), Konzerthaus Kammerorchester Berlin / Andre de Ridder.- DG 4810044.
00:29John Dowland
Queene Elizabeth, her galliard (K Darcies galliard) P.41 for lute
Performer: Ian Watt (lute).- NIMBUS NI6226.
Shakespeare
Sonnet 122 read by Kenneth Cranham
00:32Orlando Gibbons
Fantasia a 4
Performer: Parley of Instruments.- HYPERION CDA66395.
Andrew McMillan
A Gift read by Kenneth Cranham
Amy Lowell
A Gift read by Nadine Marshall
00:38Cilea
Adriana Lecouvreur, Act 4: "Poveri fiori" (Adriana Lecouvreur)
Performer: Maria Callas (soprano), Philharmonia Orchestra / Tullio Serafin.- Warner from Callas sings Operatic Arias - Callas Remastered.
Hillaire Belloc
On the Gift of a Book to a Child read by Kenneth Cranham
00:43Ravel
Ma mere l'oye - suite vers. for orchestra, Le Jardin feerique
Performer: Los Angeles Philharmonic / Carlo Maria Giulini.- DG 4778840.
00:45罢谤盲诲
Raag Pahadi
Performer: Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (sitar), Hariprasad Chaurasia (flute), Brij Bhushan Kabra (guitar), Manikrao Popatkar (table).- HEMISPHERE, CDEMC3707.
Rabindranath Tagore
The Gift read by Nadine Marshall
00:49Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
The Sleeping beauty - suite (Op.66a), Introduction (The lilac fairy)
Performer: Berlin Philharmonic / Mstislav Rostropovich.- DG 4779191.
Alexandre Perrault translated by
Extract from The Sleeping Beauty read by Kenneth Cranham
Helen Fielding
Extract from Bridget Jones聮 Diary read by Nadine Marshall
00:56Vince Guaraldi Trio
O Tannenbaum
Performer: Vince Guaraldi Trio.- From Desktop Jukebox.
Thomas Dallam
Extract from the Diaries of Thomas Dallam read by Kenneth Cranham
01:03ANON
A Solis Ortus, Verse IV
Performer: Carl Smith (organ).- NAXOS, 8.570142.
01:04Leopold Mozart
Symphony in C major "Toy": 1st movement; Allegro
Performer: Orchestra of St John's / John Lubbock.- Sanctuary CD RSN3072.
Carol Ann Duffy
December read by Nadine Marshall
01:09Leigh Harline
When You Wish Upon a Star
Performer: The Dave Brubeck Quartet.- From Desktop Jukebox.
Broadcasts
- Sun 2 Dec 2018 17:3091热爆 Radio 3
- Boxing Day 2023 17:0091热爆 Radio 3