BBC RADIO 3 Britten Centenary Weekend 22 – 24 November 2013

Friday 22 November

1630 LIVE In Tune with Sean Rafferty from the Britten Studio, Snape Maltings Live music making, guests and more, including the world premiere of choruses by Tom Rose and Emily Hall sung by Suffolk children’s choirs.

1645 Bridcut’s Britten Suzy Klein talks to the Centenary Weekend’s resident Britten expert John Bridcut about how Britten found inspiration in children, film and the need to win.

1930 LIVE Britten Centenary Concert presented by Tom Service from Snape Maltings Concert Hall, with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Britten Cantata academica, carmen basiliense Britten Four Sea Interludes & Passacaglia Ryan Wigglesworth Locke’s Theatre (Aldeburgh commission, world premiere) Britten Spring Symphony Claire Booth soprano Monica Groop mezzo soprano Robert Murray tenor Christopher Purves baritone Norwich Cathedral Choristers Norwich School Chamber Choir BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus Oliver Knussen conductor

2200 Britten and Shostakovich I (deferred relay, Britten Studio, Snape) Andrew McGregor presents the first of three concerts over the Centenary Weekend in which the Belcea Quartet pair Britten’s string quartets with contemporary works by his friend and ally Shostakovich. Britten Lachrymae ShostakovichQuartet No.3 Britten Quartet No.2 Belcea String Quartet Katya Apekisheva piano

2330 Britten Plus Classsic Britten: Suzy Klein with Britten performances of Schubert and Bach

0000 Britten by Night The first of two unpresented late night, hour-long music sequence which delving into Britten’s preoccupation with the nocturnal, supernatural and creepy.

Saturday 23 November Festival of Britten: a day exploring the

0900 Britten CD Review Andrew McGregor and John Bridcut pick the plums from the bumper year for recordings of Britten’s music, as well as hearing some of the highlights of Britten’s own recorded performances.

1100 LIVE Family Concert Suzy Klein presents a fun concert, including three world premieres by young composers, and Britten’s ever-popular The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra from Snape Maltings Concert Hall. Britten Welcome Ode Short new choral songs by Sean Shepherd, Luke Fitzgerald, Jay Richardson and Anna Meredith Britten Soirées Musicales Britten The Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra Narrator Johnny Pitts BBC Symphony Orchestra Youth Choirs from Suffolk Andrew Gourlay conductor

1215 Singing for Britten Singing for Britten was an unforgettable experience. In this revelatory feature John Bridcut explores why Britten’s creative relationship with his singers, often amateurs drawn from his Suffolk community, was so important to him.

1300 Britten Plus Andrew McGregor talks to Jenni Wake-Walker about the Aldeburgh Festival in the 1970s

1400 Church Parables I: Curlew River Louise Fryer presents the first of Mahogany Opera’s acclaimed production of the three Church Parables recorded in Orford church, the venue for which they were originally written, at the 2013 Summer Aldeburgh Festival Britten Curlew River James Gilchrist tenor Mahogany Opera Roger Vignoles music director Frederic Wake-Walker director

1530 Words and Music Alex Jennings and Diana Quick read verse by the poets who inspired Britten, alongside recordings of some of his best-loved settings, including the Canticles, Les Illuminations and the War Requiem.

1615 Britten Plus Suzy Klein is joined by former manager of the English Chamber Orchestra Ursula Jones to discuss the ECO’s role as the Aldeburgh Festival’s ‘house orchestra’.

1755 LIVE Saint Nicolas From the venue of its premiere, Aldeburgh Parish Church, Sean Rafferty presents Saint Nicolas. Written for the 1948 inaugural Aldeburgh Festival, the dramatic, quirky and entertaining cantata was the first large-scale scale piece Britten conceived for amateur and professional forces. Britten Saint Nicolas Alan Oke tenor Aldeburgh Voices Jubilee Opera Chorus Suffolk Ensemble Ben Parry conductor

1845 LIVE Steuart Bedford conducts an ensemble cast in Britten’s sparkling comic masterpiece which pokes affectionate fun at life in small-town Suffolk and ran in the first two Aldeburgh Festivals. Live from the Barbican in London, presented by Donald Macleod. Britten Albert Herring Lady Billows Christine Brewer Florence Pike Gaynor Keeble Miss Wordsworth Gillian Keith Mr Gedge Roderick Williams Mr Upfold Adrian Thopmson Superintendent Budd Matthew Rose Sid Marcus Farnsworth Albert Andrew Staples Nancy Kitty Whately Mrs Herring Catherine Wyn-Rogers Emmie Eleanor Maloney Cis Emily Jane Thomas Harry Archie Buchanan

2200 Britten and Shostakovich II (deferred relay, Snape Maltings Concert Hall) The Belcea Quartet’s second concert in their series pairing Britten’s string quartets with contemporary Shostakovich focuses on late works from the 1970s by which time the composers had become good friends. Britten Cello Suite No.3 Shostakovich Quartet No.14 Britten Quartet No.3 Belcea String Quartet

2330 Britten Plus Classsic Britten: Tom Service with Haydn conducted by Britten

0000 Britten by Night The second of two unpresented late night, hour-long music sequence which delving into Britten’s preoccupation with the nocturnal, supernatural and creepy.

Sunday 24 November Britten Inspired: a day looking at the musicians and composers who simulated Britten both as performer and composer.

0900 Sunday Morning Britten Suzy Klein and guests with a relaxed morning including Britten biographer Paul Kildea and live music from tenor Ben Johnson and guitarist Sean Shibe.

1100 LIVE Britten and Shostakovich III The final concert in the Belcea Quartets series includes two brilliant works from 1941: Britten’s first String Quartet and Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet. Presented by Andrew McGregor from Snape Maltings Concert Hall. Britten Three Divertimenti Britten Quartet No.1 Shostakovich Piano Quintet Belcea String Quartet Katya Apekisheva piano

1230 Britten Plus Suzy Klein talks to composer Colin Matthews about gamelan, Peter Pears, and , which he helped Britten complete.

1300 Private Passions Michael Berkeley (Britten’s godson) meets Suffolk born-and-bred artist Maggi Hambling on Aldeburgh beach. Beginning beside Hambling’s tribute to Britten, the famously controversial scallop shell sculpture, they discuss the inspiration both of them have found on the Suffolk coast. Then back to her nearby studio to explore her creative and musical passions including Britten, Schubert and her friend, the jazz man George Melly.

1400 Church Parables II: The Burning Fiery Furnace Louise Fryer presents the second of Mahogany Opera’s acclaimed production of the three Church Parables recorded in Orford church, the venue for which they were originally written, at the 2013 Summer Aldeburgh Festival Britten The Burning Fiery Furnace James Gilchrist tenor Mahogany Opera Roger Vignoles music director Frederic Wake-Walker director

1530 LIVE Britten and his Teachers The BBC Singers, who have long been associated with Britten’s music, perform works by Britten, his composition teachers Frank Bridge and John Ireland, and his beloved Purcell. Presented by Sean Rafferty from Southwold Church Britten Hymn to St Cecilia Bridge Music when soft voices die Britten Choral Dances from Gloriana Purcell Jehova quam multi sunt hostes I was glad Britten Prelude and Fugue on a theme of Vittoria (organ solo) Ireland Ex ore innocentium Britten A Shepherd's Carol Britten Rejoice in the Lamb BBC Singers David Hill conductor

1650 Britten Plus Britten Answers: Tom Service answers listeners’ questions about Britten and plays more from those who inspired the composer

1800 LIVE Noye’s Fludde Louise Fryer presents Britten’s great work for amateur and professional performers from the town of his birth, Lowestoft. Britten Noye’s Fludde Andrew Shore Noye Dame Felicity Palmer Mrs Noye Zeb Soames Voice of God Navarra Quartet Young people from Lowestoft schools and choirs Paul Kildea conductor Martin Duncan director

1900 Britten Round-up Suzy Klein, Tom Service and John Bridcut look back over the weekend and its highlights.

***Monday 25 November***

1400 Church Parables III: The Prodigal Son Louise Fryer presents the third Church Parable recorded at the 2013 Aldeburgh Festival Britten The Prodigal Son James Gilchrist tenor Mahogany Opera Roger Vignoles music director Frederic Wake-Walker director