Friday 17 February, 10pm … in Baroque And Before, programmer Charles Barton treats us to music from the court of Louis XIV. As well as contributions from Marais, Sainte-Colombe and Du Mont, we’ll hear the work of Jean-Baptiste Lully; in particular, his music from Molière’s play Le bourgeois gentilhomme, first performed at Chambord, one of Louis’ grandest country retreats, and the pinnacle of Lully’s collaboration with France’s celebrated 17th century playwright.
Sunday 19 February, 3pm … in Sunday Special, programmer James Nightingale highlights flute music of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In addition to works by the likes of Bizet, Fauré and Cécile Chaminade, this program features an arrangement for flute and piano of Emilie Mayer’s energetic and virtuosic violin sonata.
Wednesday 22 February, 8pm … in At The Opera, programmer Camille Mercep has chosen Antonio Salieri’s Tarare, probably the most daring and experimental opera of its time, and featuring, in the words of The Opera Scribe, “despots dethroned; popular uprisings; anti-clericalism; and cries for liberty, equality, and an end to absolute monarchy”.