Stravinsky: Petrouchka

When the great pianist and composer Frederic Chopin decided to write a piano sonata in 1837, fashions had turned against the genre itself. Perhaps it was a feeling that Beethoven had essentially "finished" the genre, or perhaps it was a sense that a non-Germanic composer couldn't ...  Show more

As I've often said, I love doing Patreon-sponsored episodes in part because they allow me to discover music I might never have encountered otherwise. Today's episode is one of those, because the truth is that before I made it, I had heard of Finzi, but that was about it. I knew n ...  Show more

Episode two HOT OFF THE PODCAST PRESS. Featuring the life and times of Stravinsky and Debussy in 60 seconds or less (or more) and a song which is legitimately about a man with a bag of fleas. ENJOY! Music featured in this episode: "Clair de Lune" by Claude Debussy "Chansons de Bi ...  Show more

Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake is based on a children's show he wrote for his nephews and nieces. Discover the story behind the famous ballet And what is the impact on those who hear it and dance to it? Featuring: Dr. Elena Denzhkina-Campbell Dr. Margaret Reynolds Tom Conlon John Warrac ...  Show more

Dame Alicia Markova was born Lilian Alice Marks in December 1910, in a two-bedroom flat in Finsbury Park, London. She began ballet classes because she was flat footed and knock kneed. Her natural talent, when she was ten, was spotted by Diaghilev, the Russian artistic impresario ...  Show more

Ballet: You may think it’s all tutus and tippy toes, but there’s a world of wild, daring and downright bizarre stories behind this dainty dance. Join David Walliams as he journeys around the globe to give us a peek into the highly competitive, and fantastically strange world of b ...  Show more