The Early Music Show

Primarily remembered today as the teacher of Handel, the German musician FW Zachow was a renowned composer in his own right. In the first of a weekend of early music shows exploring some of his music, Lucie Skeaping explores his life and influence on Handel's music alongside a variety of Zachow's works.

Lucie Skeaping presents a programme featuring music by one of the most engaging and important Venetian composers, Giovanni Gabrieli, who died in August 400 years ago in 1612. Gabrieli spent his life working in Venice and held the esteemed position of organist at both St. Marks and San Rocco, so some of the musicians and singers must have worked in both establishments too. It is unclear exactly wha...

A journey through the multi-faceted solo keyboard music that the 18th Century Jean-Philippe Rameau composed in his long career, introduced by Lucie Skeaping. Rameau's first compositions were for the harpsichord and throughout his life he produced a rich and varied collection of short works for the instrument, many of which represent some of the greatest solo keyboard music of the French Baroque. S...

Catherine Bott looks at the tradition of music making pre-1700 in Wales with a feature on the 17th century Robert ap Huw manuscript - one of the most important collections of Welsh early music. With contributions from Bangor University's Sally Harper, and harpists Bill Taylor and Paul Dooley.

Lucie Skeaping explores the Abbey of St Gall, its role in the development of medieval chant, and how one of the Abbey's most famous sons - a young monk named "Notker the Stammerer" - came to write a revolutionary kind of music there.

Lucie Skeaping presents a profile of the 16th Century German composer Michael Praetorius, most famous for his many Lutheran chorales and song arrangements, and for his compendium of more than 300 instrumental dances: "Terpsichore". Music includes recordings by David Munrow's Early Music Consort of London, Paul van Nevel's Huelgas Ensemble and Philip Pickett's New London Consort. First broadcast in...

"Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains" - words made famous by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. But Rousseau was more than just a writer of philosophy. He was also a keen composer and musician; amongst his musical output are seven operas. He also wrote about music and at times earned his living as a music copyist. Catherine Bott explores his intriguing musical life in the week of...

Catherine Bott talks to Owen Rees about the musical legacy of King Joao IV of Portugal and the so-called Golden Age of Portuguese polyphony. In 1578, the young king of Portugal, Sebastian led an ill-considered crusade against the Moors of Morocco. He was routed at the battle of Alcazar-Quivir and disappeared without trace, leaving his succession and the fate of his nation on a knife-edge. Of the s...

Lucie Skeaping presents a programme exploring JS Bach's musical ancestors. Music by some of JS Bach's sons is often heard these days, but today, Lucie traces the Bach family tree back to his great-great grandfather, Veit Bach, who was a baker in Wechmar and whose son Johann in turn produced 3 musical sons. The programme includes motets and instrumental music by some of the composers in this great...

When Queen Elizabeth came to the throne in 1952 it sparked a wave of creative interest in the first Queen Elizabeth and her times. Catherine Bott looks at how this coincided with the work of the early music movement in this country. In particular she looks at the work of some of the great early music pioneers of the time such as Thurston Dart, Robert Donington and Walter Bergmann.

Catherine Bott presents a programme to celebrate the centenary of the birth of the pioneering countertenor, Alfred Deller, who was born May 31st 1912. Catherine is joined in the studio by 3 countertenors, James Bowman, Robin Blaze and Alfred's son Mark, to discuss some of the many facets of Alfred's art. They play a selection of Alfred's many recordings dating from the 1950s, including some from t...

Lucie Skeaping presents a focus on the "stylus fantasticus" genre of programmatic music which flourished in Bohemia during the 17th Century. It was the style favoured by the Bishop of Olomouc-Kromeriz, in what's now the Czech Republic. An enormously sociable fellow - and also a Prince - he spent his summers entertaining friends and relations in the fabulous Kromeriz Castle where he laid on for the...

In the month of 450th anniversary of the composer's birth, Catherine Bott explores the extensive vocal compositions of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, known as the "Orpheus of Amsterdam". Although perhaps best known for his keyboard works, Sweelinck wrote over 250 vocal works and, surprisingly for a composer so associated with his homeland, none of these settings are in his native tongue. Instead, the...

Thomas Gainsborough had a deep love of music and many of his portraits include musical themes. He was himself a keen amateur player of the gamba and he had many musicians as friends, and feautured them as subjects for his portraits. Catherine Bott meets art historian and author of several books on the artist, Michael Rosenthal of Warwick University, for an exploration of what the Gainsborough port...

Lucie Skeaping presents a profile of music in Prague - a political, cultural and economic focus of central Europe for more than 1100 years, and home to composers such as Brixi, Regnart, Myslivecek and Brentner; as well as many famous musical visitors like Machaut, Mozart and Gluck. First broadcast in April 2012.

Lucie Skeaping presents a profile of the Renaissance wind ensemble Piffaro, based in Philadelphia. This wonderfully colourful, virtuosic ensemble have been together for over 25 years. During the programme Lucie talks to the two artistic directors, Joan Kimball and Robert Wiemken about their work. The music in the programme is from the ensemble's many recordings, using a wide variety of instruments...

Giovanni Battista Guarini's Il Pastor Fido was one of the most famous plays of the 17th Century and 300 years ago London saw the premiere of Handel's Opera based on Guarini's text. However, Handel was far from the first to use this play as inspiration for his music. Il Pastor Fido had already sparked the imaginations of numerous composers. Catherine Bott explores the play and some of it's musical...

Concluding the Early Music Show’s journey through the musical alphabet with the letters N-Z. Presented by Lucie Skeaping, Catherine Bott and Andrew Manze. This podcast contains lewd lyrics and bawdy ballads.

A whistle-stop tour of the alphabet according to Early Music, presented by Lucie Skeaping, Andrew Manze and Catherine Bott. In Part 1, the letters A-M.

After his time working for Prince Leopold of Anhalt in Cöthen, Johann Sebastian Bach took a substantial drop in salary and public standing to work as Cantor in Leipzig. The role primarily involved teaching at St Thomas School, but also meant that Bach was responsible for the music in the German town's four churches. Lucie Skeaping takes a closer look at Bach's time in the German town, where Bach r...

Catherine Bott talks to harpist Andrew-Lawrence King about Catalan soprano and early music specialist Montserrat Figueras, who passed away late last year. Featuring some of the best of her many recordings.

Lucie Skeaping traces the history and development of the dance-based form, from its origins in Iberian street music to the great organ works by Bach. The word passacaglia derives from the Spanish 'pasar' and 'calle' - meaning 'to walk' and 'street'. The musical form probably originated as music performed whilst promenading, most likely with a guitar. With the rise in popularity of the 5 string Spa...

Lucie Skeaping presents the first of two programmes this weekend, looking at the "Golden Age" of Polish music. The programme includes sacred works and lute miniatures by composers including Bartłomej Pękiel, Franciszek Lilius, Mikołaj Zieleński & Wojciech Długoraj as well as music by some of the Italian masters brought to Poland in the 17th Century by King Sigismund Augustus II. In tomorrow's...

Catherine Bott explores the life and music of the Spanish prodigy Francisco Guerrero, who worked in Spain and Portugal, and had a series of eventful trips abroad, including a journey to the Holy Land. He became one of the most renowned composers of the Spanish "Golden Age of Polyphony" alongside Victoria and Morales and his music remained popular for hundreds of years.

Catherine Bott explores the history of the Hanseatic League and the impact that it had for music from the 13th to the 18th centuries among the towns and ports around the Baltic. This programme provides the background to one of the main themes of this year's Lufthansa Festival of Baroque Music, highlights from which will feature in the Early Music Show over the next two weeks.