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Discovering Music

Programme which examines a different piece of music each week, looking at the musical form or the composer's style, and exploring the many things contributing to the overall experience

Radio 3,97 episodes

Episodes

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John Adams: City Noir
John Adams's orchestral paean to post-war Hollywood, and the world of the film noir.
12 Dec 2013,20 mins
Schoenberg: Chamber Symphony No. 1
Stephen Johnson explores Schoenberg's First Chamber Symphony.
04 Dec 2013,20 mins
Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2
Stephen Johnson explores Rachmaninov's Second Symphony.
28 Nov 2013,20 mins
Beethoven: Symphony No. 8
Stephen Johnson explores Beethoven's most playful symphony, the Eighth.
26 Nov 2013,20 mins
Walton: Symphony No.1
Exploring the potent mix of musical and personal influences behind Walton's First Symphony
16 Nov 2013,20 mins
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 'Pathetique'
Stephen Johnson considers Tchaikovsky's final and most personal symphony, the Pathetique.
09 Nov 2013,20 mins
Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 7 'Sinfonia antartica'
How Vaughan Williams created his Symphony No. 7 from his most famous film score.
07 Nov 2013,20 mins
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 'Scottish'
Stephen Johnson explores Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 3 'Scottish'.
01 Nov 2013,20 mins
Nielsen Symphony No. 4
Stephen Johnson explores the structure of Nielsen's Fourth Symphony.
24 Oct 2013,20 mins
Tchaikovsky: Manfred Symphony
Stephen Johnson separates storytelling & autobiography in Tchaikovsky's Manfred Symphony.
17 Oct 2013,20 mins
Reich's The Desert Music
Stephen Johnson explores visions of nuclear armageddon in Steve Reich's The Desert Music.
15 Oct 2013,20 mins
Debussy: Images
Stephen Johnson explores the musical paintings created by Debussy in Images.
10 Oct 2013,20 mins
Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3
Stephen Johnson explores the emotional heart of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 3.
02 Oct 2013,20 mins
Mozart: Requiem
Stephen Johnson explores Robert Levin's recompletion of Mozart's Requiem.
26 Sep 2013,20 mins
Brahms and Berg Piano Sonatas
Stephen Johnson compares the first published works of Brahms and Berg, both piano sonatas.
24 Sep 2013,20 mins
Sound of Cinema: On the Waterfront
Stephen Johnson explores On the Waterfront, Leonard Bernstein's only true film score.
18 Sep 2013,20 mins
Mozart's Clarinet Quintet
Stephen Johnson explores Mozart's Clarinet Quintet in A, K581.
01 Jul 2013,20 mins
Mahler: Symphony No. 5
Stephen Johnson explores what Mahler's songs can tell us about his Symphony No. 5.
28 Jun 2013,20 mins
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9
Stephen Johnson explores themes of triumph and doubt in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9.
27 Jun 2013,20 mins
Sibelius: Symphony No. 7
Stephen Johnson explores Sibelius's Seventh Symphony.
13 Jun 2013,20 mins
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 7
Stephen Johnson explores Prokofiev's seventh and final symphony.
11 Jun 2013,20 mins
Beethoven: String Quartet No. 9 'Razumovsky'
Stephen Johnson explores the musical language of Beethoven's third Razumovsky Quartet.
04 Jun 2013,20 mins
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring
Stephen Johnson explores the unique sounds of Stravinsky's The Right of Spring.
30 May 2013,20 mins
Bizet's Symphony in C
Stephen Johnson explores the colourful world of Bizet's Symphony in C.
15 May 2013,20 mins
Vaughan Williams: Five Tudor Portraits
Stephen Johnson analyses Vaughan Williams's Five Tudor Portraits.
03 May 2013,10 mins
Faure's Piano Quartet No 1
Stephen Johnson explores Faure's Piano Quartet No 1 in C minor.
30 Apr 2013,20 mins
John Adams: Doctor Atomic Symphony
Stephen Johnson explores John Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony.
26 Apr 2013,20 mins
Tippett: Symphony No. 2
Stephen Johnson explores Tippett's Symphony No. 2.
19 Apr 2013,20 mins
Britten's Sinfonia da Requiem
Stephen Johnson explores Britten's Sinfonia da Requiem.
18 Apr 2013,20 mins
Wagner: Tristan und Isolde (Act 3)
Stephen Johnson explores Act 3 of Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde.
11 Apr 2013,20 mins