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A party-time playlist of music by Bix Beiderbecke, Johann Strauss, Noel Coward, Anna Clyne and Handel and readings from Virginia Woolf, Sam Selvon, Kingsley Amis and WM Thackeray.

Invitation to the dance by Weber and Rosamund Lehman's novel Invitation to the Waltz help us set the scene for our programme inspired by parties. Virginia Woolf's heroine Clarissa Dalloway prepares for her guests, the West Side story cast 'feel pretty' as they prepare for a night on the town, Hilaire Belloc writes about a garden party and Handel composes Music for the Royal Fireworks. But parties can also produce hangovers and displeasure: Becky Sharp humilates poor little Amelia, Lesley Gore cries at hers, and Jeeves prepares a tonic to counteract too much drink, before Willie Nelson tells us 'the party is over.' We also hear Don Warrington reading from Sam Selvon’s The Lonely Londoners, John Betjeman’s Indoor Games Near Newbury and Noel Coward. For New Year's Eve Words and Music brings us a party playlist of readings and music.

Readers: Dominic West and Holliday Grainger.
Producer: Jessica Treen

READINGS:
William Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet
Rosamund Lehman: Invitation to the Waltz
Charles Perrault: Cinderella
Virginia Woolf: Mrs Dalloway
John Williams: Stoner
Lavinia Greenlaw: The Importance of Music to Girls
The Garden Party: Hilaire Belloc
WM Thackery: Vanity Fair
F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Great Gatsby
Huma Qureshi: Things We Do Not Tell The People We Love
Ian Hamilton Finlay: The Dancers Inherit the Party
Pamela Des Barres: I’m with the Band
Isabella Beeton: Mrs Beeton’s Book of Household Management
Sam Selvon: The Lonely Londoners - Read by Don Warrington
Dorothy Parker: Parties: A Hymn of Hate
Kingsley Amis: Lucky Jim
PG Wodehouse: Jeeves Takes Charge
Claire Pollard: Thirtieth (from Changeling)
Evelyn Waugh: Vile Bodies

1 hour, 14 minutes

Last on

Wed 31 Dec 202517:00
BBC Radio 3

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Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:00

    Johann Strauss II

    Die Fledermaus, Act 2

    Orchestra: Vienna Philharmonic.
    • DECCA.
    • 421-0462.

  • William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet read by Dominic West

  • 00:03

    Carl Maria von Weber

    Invitation to the dance

    Performer: Melvyn Tan.
    • Onyx.
    • 4194.

  • Rosamund Lehman, Invitation to the Waltz read by Holliday Grainger

  • Charles Perrault, Cinderella read by Dominic West

  • 00:10

    Leonard Bernstein

    I Feel Pretty

    Performer: Original Cast.
    • CBS.
    • CBS-OC70006.
  • 00:13

    Hector Berlioz

    Symphonie Fantastique

    Orchestra: Berliner Philharmoniker. Conductor: Daniel Barenboim.
    • CBS Masterworks.
    • MK39859.

  • Virginia Woolf, Mrs Dalloway read by Holliday Grainger

  • John Williams, Stoner read by Dominic West

  • 00:20

    Arturo Márquez

    CONGA DEL FUEGO

    Conductor: Gustavo Dudamel. Performer: Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.
    • DG.
    • 479 0350.

  • Lavinia Greenlaw, The Importance of Music to Girls read by Holliday Grainger

  • 00:26

    Giuseppe Verdi

    Libiamo (La Traviata)

    Singer: Roberto Alagna. Conductor: Claudio Abbado.
    • EMI.
    • 5 566-56 2.
  • 00:29

    JIM PARKER

    Indoor Games near Newbury

    Composer: John Betjeman. Performer: Sir John Betjeman.
    • Virgin.
    • VCCD19-724384056926.
  • 00:34

    Claude Debussy

    Nocturnes for Orchestra, No 2 Fetes

    Performer: Cleveland Orchestra Choir.
    • Deutsche Grammonphon.
    • 4790333.

  • Hilaire Belloc, The Garden Party read by Dominic West

  • WM Thackery, Vanity Fair read by Holliday Grainger

  • 00:38

    Lesley Gore

    It's My Party

    • Island Mercury.
    • USPR36205231.
  • 00:39

    Noël Coward

    I went to a Marvellous Party

    Performer: Noël Coward.
    • Supreme Media.
    • US6R21362417.
  • 00:42

    Woody Herman

    AT THE WOODCHOPPERS BALL

    Music Arranger: N/A. Performer: Woody Herman. Performer: Woody Herman's Orchestra.
    • Sunflower Records.
    • 2132.

  • F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby read by Dominic West

  • 00:47

    Henry Purcell

    The Fairy Queen Symphony to Act 4

    Performer: Orchestra of The Sixteen.
    • Coro.
    • COR16005.

  • Huma Qureshi, Things We Do Not Tell The People We Love read by Holliday Grainger

  • Ian Hamilton Finlay, The Dancers Inherit the Party read by Dominic West

  • 00:53

    Clay Cole

    Twist around the clock

    Performer: Clay Cole.
    • Delta Records.
    • USBT21623395.

  • Pamela Des Barres, I'm With The Band read by Holliday Grainger

  • 00:55

    Jacques Offenbach

    Can-Can from Orpheus in the Underworld

    Orchestra: Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra.
    • Naxos.
    • N/A-8.550924.

  • Isabella Beeton, Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management read by Dominic West

  • 01:01

    Dizzy Gillespie

    Harlem Samba

    Performer: Dizzy Gillespie.
    • Original Jazz Classics.
    • USFI87700443.
  • 01:04

    Oliver Knussen

    Flourish

    Orchestra: London Sinfonietta. Conductor: Oliver Knussen.
    • DG.
    • 449 572-2.

  • Sam Selvon, Extract from The Lonely Londoners read by Don Warrington

  • Dorothy Parker, Parties: A Hymn of Hate read by Holliday Grainger

  • 01:10

    Arthur Johnston, Sam Coslow

    COCKTAILS FOR TWO

    Music Arranger: N/A. Performer: Spike Jones and His City Slickers.
    • RCA.
    • 743211-35762.
  • 01:11

    Anna Clyne

    Masquarde

    Performer: BBC Symphony Orchestra.
    • AVIE.
    • AV2434.

  • Kingsley Amis, Lucky Jim read by Dominic West

  • 01:17

    Francis Poulenc

    Hotel

    Performer: Alice Coote.
    • HYPERION.
    • CDA 67962.
  • 01:19

    Maurice Ravel

    Lever du Jour (Daphnis et Chloe Suite No.2) - extract

    Performer: Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. Performer: Yannick Nézet‐Séguin.
    • EMI Classics.
    • 9-66342 2.

  • PG Wodehouse, Jeeves Takes Charge read by Dominic West

  • Claire Pollard, Thirtieth (from Changeling) read by Holliday Grainger

  • Evelyn Waugh, Vile Bodies read by Dominic West

  • 01:28

    Willie Nelson

    The Party's Over

    Performer: Willie Nelson.
    • Diamond.
    • /cd-90116.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 30 Jun 202418:00
    BBC Radio 3
  • Wed 31 Dec 202517:00
    BBC Radio 3

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