Podcast appearances and mentions of catherine bott

Det brittiska 1600-talssnillet Henry Purcell skapade odödliga och tidlösa hits under sitt korta liv. En kungens och kyrkans man som inspirerar än idag. Lyssna på alla avsnitt i Sveriges Radio Play. Låtlista: Funeral March - David Hill Baroque Brass Of London Music For The Funeral Of Queen Mary: Nr 1, Marsch (Arr) - Wendy Carlos Bonduca (Z 574): Nr 14, "Divine Andate", Nr 15B, "To Arms Your Ensigns Straight Display" & Nr 16B, "Britons Strike Home" - James Bowman, Martyn Hill, Christopher Keyte, Christopher Hogwood, The Taverner Choir, The Academy Of Ancient Music King Arthur, Cold Song - Patrick Cohen-Akenine Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds - John Harle, Keith Thompson, Andrew Findon, Steve Sounders, Alexander Balanescu, Elisabeth Perry, Malcolm Bennet, Barry Guy, Ian Mitchel, Michael Nyman King Arthur: Nr 19B, Akt 3, "What Ho Thou Genious Of This Isle" - Nancy Argenta, John Eliot Gardiner, English Baroque Soloists From Silent Shades And The Elysian Groves (Z 370) - Catherine Bott, David Robbin Weep You No More Sad Fountains - Sting, Edin Karamazov I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me (Z 19) - Westminster Abbey Choir, Simon Preston, Harry Bicket Hear My Prayer O Lord (Z 15) - Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier, Masato Suzuki Dido And Aeneas - Nicholas Mcgegan, Lorraine Hunt, Lisa Saffer, Donna Deam, Christine Brandes, Ruth Rainero, Ellen Rabiner, Michael Dean, Paul Elliott, Clare College Choir, Timothy Brown, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra

Det brittiska 1600-talssnillet Henry Purcell skapade odödliga och tidlösa hits under sitt korta liv. En kungens och kyrkans man som inspirerar än idag. Låtlista: Funeral March - David Hill Baroque Brass Of London Music For The Funeral Of Queen Mary: Nr 1, Marsch (Arr) - Wendy Carlos Bonduca (Z 574): Nr 14, "Divine Andate", Nr 15B, "To Arms Your Ensigns Straight Display" & Nr 16B, "Britons Strike Home" - James Bowman, Martyn Hill, Christopher Keyte, Christopher Hogwood, The Taverner Choir, The Academy Of Ancient Music King Arthur, Cold Song - Patrick Cohen-Akenine Chasing Sheep Is Best Left To Shepherds - John Harle, Keith Thompson, Andrew Findon, Steve Sounders, Alexander Balanescu, Elisabeth Perry, Malcolm Bennet, Barry Guy, Ian Mitchel, Michael Nyman King Arthur: Nr 19B, Akt 3, "What Ho Thou Genious Of This Isle" - Nancy Argenta, John Eliot Gardiner, English Baroque Soloists From Silent Shades And The Elysian Groves (Z 370) - Catherine Bott, David Robbin Weep You No More Sad Fountains - Sting, Edin Karamazov I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me (Z 19) - Westminster Abbey Choir, Simon Preston, Harry Bicket Hear My Prayer O Lord (Z 15) - Vox Luminis, Lionel Meunier, Masato Suzuki Dido And Aeneas - Nicholas Mcgegan, Lorraine Hunt, Lisa Saffer, Donna Deam, Christine Brandes, Ruth Rainero, Ellen Rabiner, Michael Dean, Paul Elliott, Clare College Choir, Timothy Brown, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra

The wettest February on record (possibly) so settle down to the warming glow of a cathode ray tube and listen to Les Amazones d'Afrique, Television, Naomi Bedford, a haunting piece of music by Latvian composer, Ēriks Ešenvalds or revel in cosy nostalgia with Fleetwood Mac, Caravan, Captain Beefheart or Rod Stewart. Let Jade, Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal or Catherine Bott smooth your troubled brow. Whatever your taste in music, I'm sure that there's something here to irritate you. And that's not all.

The wettest February on record (possibly) so settle down to the warming glow of a cathode ray tube and listen to Les Amazones d'Afrique, Television, Naomi Bedford, a haunting piece of music by Latvian composer, Ēriks Ešenvalds or revel in cosy nostalgia with Fleetwood Mac, Caravan, Captain Beefheart or Rod Stewart. Let Jade, Ballaké Sissoko & Vincent Segal or Catherine Bott smooth your troubled brow. Whatever your taste in music, I'm sure that there's something here to irritate you. And that's not all.

Join John Suchet as he delves into the fascinating stories behind some of the greatest pieces in our annual poll of the nation’s favourite music. In this episode John meets soprano and Classic FM presenter Catherine Bott to discuss the Operas featured in The Classic Hall of Fame. This episode features music courtesy of Warner Classics. For more information, please visit: https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8260979--wagner-gotterdammerung https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/8028696--mozart-le-nozze-di-figaro-k492 https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/products/7946401--puccini-la-boheme

Trevor Barnes finishes his short series on stained glass by talking to Peter Cormack on how glass artists transformed the aesthetics and production of stained glass in Britain and America during the Arts and Crafts period. The Charity Commission have published a critical report into how the Jehovah's Witnesses managed allegations of child sex abuse at the Manchester New Moston congregation. Kathleen Hallisey a lawyer for survivors and Harvey Grenville, Head of Investigations and Enforcement at the Charity Commission discuss the issues with Edward. Whether we worry about what to eat, how to love, or simply how to be happy, we are worrying about how to lead a good life. Philosophy Professor and author of "How To Be a Stoic" Massimo Pigliucci talks to Edward about why Stoicism as the best way to embrace life. Kevin Bocquet reports on the organisation Hope for Justice which helps rescue the victims of people traffickers and discovers the scale of the problem here in the UK. Catherine Bott's guide to Monteverdi's Vespers which is being performed at the BBC Proms on Monday 31st July 2017 to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the composer's birth. Producers: Carmel Lonergan and Louise Clarke-Rowbotham Editor: Amanda Hancox.

In a special edition of the programme from Hampton Court Palace, Edward Stourton goes back to Christmas 1516 to explore the religious, political and social climate of the time. Tracy Borman, joint Chief-Curator with Historic Royal Palaces tells Edward that 1516 was a good year for Henry VIII. His first child, Mary, had been born and the Christmas celebrations he hosted were described as the most extravagant ever seen. But England and large parts of mainland Europe were about to change forever as the Protestant Reformation that was to begin in Germany in 1517 spread. Trevor Barnes reports how the printing press acted as a catalyst, enabling the distribution of newly translated versions of the New Testament undermining the authority of the Pope and the Catholic church. Fr Anthony Howe, Chaplain to the Chapel Royal at Hampton Court shows Edward his copy of a 1515 Sarum Missal with the name of the Pope scribbled out, demonstrating how liturgy changed in England following the split from Rome. The broadcaster and early music expert Catherine Bott explores Henry's musical tastes and discusses some of the carols that would have been heard at the time. Edward gets a taste of a traditional Christmas dish, Plum Possett and discovers what else would have been on the table for people to feast on with food historian Ivan Day. Dr Matthew Champion from Birkbeck, University of London explores how the religious calendar shaped peoples' lives and then discusses with Tracy Borman some of the key factors which led to the reformation in England. Producer: David Cook Series Producer: Amanda Hancox The Boar's Head Carol, In dulci jubilo & Lulling My Liking were performed by St Martin's Voices directed by Andrew Earis. Photo: Nick Wilkinson/newsteam.co.uk.

A special repeat of Catherine Bott's interview with the distinguished conductor, keyboardist and musicologist, Christopher Hogwood, who died earlier this year. Catherine chats to him about his career as one of the major proponents of the early music movement, including Christopher's early work with David Munrow in the Early Music Consort of London and the orchestra he founded in 1973 - The Academy of Ancient Music. The music on the programme comes from his choice of some of his own favourite recordings, including a work from Byrd's My Ladye Nevells Booke, vocal music by Purcell, a keyboard fantasia by CPE Bach and part of Handel's opera Rinaldo.

Catherine Bott presents a profile of Bach's eldest son, Wilhelm Friedemann, who despite being renowned as an organist and composer during his lifetime, died in poverty.

In 1702, the 19-year-old Philip V of Spain came from his native France to Naples for a month. For this occasion, the Neopolitan based composer Alessandro Scarlatti was joined by the other great Italian composer of the day, Arcangelo Corelli, with mixed results! On the 350th anniversary of Scarlatti's birth, Catherine Bott explores the stories that surround the music and entertainments put on for this occasion.

Catherine Bott visits Bath to mark the bicentenary of the death of one of its most famous adopted sons - the celebrated 18th century singer, teacher and composer, Venanzio Rauzzini. Rauzzini was born near Rome, and spent the early part of his career wowing audiences in Venice, Munich and Vienna. When the 16-year old Mozart heard Rauzzini sing for the first time, he was so dazzled by its beauty and by his acting ability that he decided to write the lead role in his new opera for him. Rauzzini gave the premiere of Lucio Silla in Milan in 1772, and took the audiences there by storm - so much so, that Mozart wrote his now famous Exsultate Jubilate for him as a thankyou gift. After several successful seasons at the King's Theatre in London, Rauzzini settled in Bath, where he remained for the last 30 years of his life, running the city's musical life, virtually single-handed. Rauzzini was incredibly good-looking and charming - in fact he was quite a hit with the ladies, especially those of the nobility. It's said that one Lady Gooch offered him a vast some of money to go off with her...which, incidentally, he declined! The bass-baritone Raimund Herincx, who is something of a Rauzzini expert, believes that Rauzzini's prowess in the bedroom might suggest that he wasn't actually a castrato at all, but a natural male soprano - rather like Radu Marian and Michael Maniaci, whose voices both feature in the programme. Catherine and Raimund visit Bath Abbey - the site of Rauzzini's grave and memorial plaque - and his beautiful house in the suburb of Widcombe, where Joseph Haydn visited him in 1794.

Catherine Bott looks at the vocal and choral music of Domenico Scarlatti, best known today for his 555 keyboard sonatas. Having grown up in Italy with a rather domineering opera composer as a father, it was inevitable that Scarlatti should have picked up some of his musical influences from the stage, and from the church. By the time Scarlatti settled in Lisbon in the 1720s to work for the Portuguese royal family, he was already one of the best-known opera composers in Europe and had a reputation for his sacred works, approved by the Vatican. Now, most of his vocal and choral music is lost (a good deal of it in the disastrous earthquake which hit Lisbon in 1755), and his reputation rests on the more than five hundred keyboard sonatas he wrote for his famous pupil, Princess Maria Barbara of Portugal. This programme includes excerpts from Scarlatti's operas "La Dirindina" and "La Constesa delle Stagione", and from his Stabat Mater, Salve Regina and Te Deum.

As part of the Sound of Cinema season, Catherine Bott looks at the story and the soundtrack of the 1994 film "Farinelli" - a biopic of the great 18th century castrato and his colourful relationships with women, with his older brother and with the composers Handel and Porpora. It's been a long time since we had a real life castrato singer in our midst, and the only recording we have of one is Alessandro Moreschi, who died in 1922 and was already at the end of his performing career when the rather primitive recordings were made. No-one today really possesses the vocal range of a castrato ? which could be as much as three and a half octaves, so, when Belgian film director Gerard Corbiau decided to turn Farinelli's colourful life into a full-length biopic, he charged music director Christophe Rousset with coming up with a way to create as near to the castrato sound as he could. The solution was to combine the voices of Polish soprano Ewa Mallas-Godlewska and American countertenor Derek Lee Ragin, so that Derek would sing the lower passages and Ewa the highest. During the precision editing, the voices of the two singers were relayed, from the notes to the highest, in order to cover the tessitura and also demonstrate the castrato's virtuosity. The resulting tape included nearly 3000 editing points. It was then necessary to "homogenise" the two singers' timbres in order to give Farinelli his own voice, both new and, at the same time, respectful of the original voices. The film soundtrack includes performances by the "combined" voices with Christophe Rousset's own ensemble Les Talens Lyriques, in glorious music by Handel, Porpora, Hasse, Pergolesi and Farinelli's own older brother (and protagonist of the film), Riccardo Broschi.

Catherine Bott gives us a whistle-stop A-Z tour of how early music has been featured in mainstream films to both poignant and ironic effect; from Allegri and Albinoni to Zadok and Zoolander. #BBCSoundofCinema.

The infamous life of the Renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo is full of drama, intrigue and death. Among accusations of a double murder, witchcraft and masochism stands an extraordinary body of music with its own tortured chromatic sound world. To mark the 400th anniversary of the composer's death, Catherine Bott talks with renowned Gesualdo expert Professor Glenn Watkins to explore whether an understanding of the time in which the isolated Prince lived can cast any further light on his seemingly bizarre life.

The singer Donald Greig has established a long career performing with groups such as the Tallis Scholars and the Orlando Consort, of which he is a founder member. Last year he wrote his first novel - Time Will Tell - which recently came out in paperback. It tells parallel stories set in the 1990s world of modern early music performance, and in the 16th century world of Franco-Flemish composers and musicians including Josquin and Ockeghem. Donald Greig talks to Catherine Bott about his novel and selects music featured in the story.

Catherine Bott presents a profile of the German composer and organist Matthias Weckmann, who flourished in Dresden and Hamburg during the 17th century. Weckmann was a pupil of Henirich Schütz, and the organist and composer Praetorius, and who made a major contribution to the musical life in Protestant Germany. Although few compositions survive, Weckmann wrote some exceptional music, including several beautiful sacred vocal concertos, settings of devotional texts for voices and instruments: Catherine Bott plays a recording by the Ricercar Consort of a couple of these concertos, in addition to a selection of other organ and ensemble works.

To celebrate the 850th anniversary of the first stone of Notre Dame de Paris being laid, Catherine Bott explores the beginnings of music in the great cathedral.

Catherine Bott presents a programme of music by the 17th century Italian composer and virtuoso violinist, Giuseppe Torelli. Most famous for his trumpet concertos, Torelli also wrote many wonderful pieces for his own instrument and was at the forefront of the early development of the Concerto Grosso.

As part of Radio 3 Celebrating British Music, Catherine Bott presents a comprehensive profile of the composer William Byrd and some of his most glorious music, in conversation with conductor Andrew Carwood.

The Villa d'Este's gardens are a triumph of Baroque architecture and design. Catherine Bott travels to Tivoli to explore the many fountains there and the music connected with the gardens and the man who commissioned them: Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este, patron of many composers, among them a no lesser figure than Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. First broadcast in March 2009.

On today's Early Music Show Catherine Bott talks to David Wulstan, a pioneering figure in the understanding and interpretation of early music in general, and of music of the Tudor period in particular. In the 1960s and 1970s David Wulstan created The Clerkes of Oxenford. With this group of singers he worked tirelessly to produce revelatory recordings of the music of Tallis, Sheppard, Gibbons, Tye, White, and others, which revolutionized the way it was interpreted, and the way we now hear it today. The debt owed to David Wulstan by many of today's performers and practitioners of early music is immense, and many important figures, such as Harry Christophers, began their careers studying or performing with him. One of those people joins in today's conversation: Sally Dunkley, the singer and scholar who first encountered David Wulstan at a University of Oxford entrance interview, studied with him, and has continued to work with him and share his friendship until today. David Wulstan is a fascinating, erudite and colourful contributor to the appreciation of early music. When the word musicologist is mentioned, he threatens to make use of his martial arts skills. How will Catherine Bott fare...? (photography of David Wulstan by Lyndon Jones)

Catherine Bott presents a profile of Andre Campra - a musical innovator, and something of a rebel at the turn of the 18th Century. His stint as Music Director of Notre Dame Cathedral was wracked with controversy, thanks to Campra's wishes to branch out into music for the theatre...a pastime which was abhorred by the ecclesiastical authorities. When Campra produced the first ever opera-ballet in 1697, he did so under a thinly-disguised pseudonym, but the acclaim he received as a result of the success of "L'Europe Galante" catapulted him into Parisian celebrity and set him up for a glittering operatic career which lasted for another 40 years. Recordings of Campra's motets and operatic dances are played from Paul Agnew, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, William Christie and Les Arts Florissants.

Catherine Bott looks at music marking the ceremonial signing of the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713, with celebration pieces by Handel and William Croft. Handel's "Utrecht Te Deum and Jubilate" was written to celebrate the Treaty of Utrecht, which established the Peace of Utrecht in 1713, ending the War of the Spanish Succession. The treaties between several European states, including Spain, Great Britain, France, Portugal, Savoy and the Dutch Republic, helped end the war. The treaties were concluded between the representatives of Louis XIV of France and Philip V of Spain on the one hand, and representatives of Anne, Queen of Great Britain, the Duke of Savoy, the King of Portugal and the United Provinces on the other.

Catherine Bott explores the diverse music associated with the Medieval texts of the Carmina Burana. She talks about the difficulty of turning the original manuscript into music and the variety of interpretations that have ensued. Although commonly associated with drinking and bawdiness the Carmina Burana also contains religious texts. Marcel Peres's extensive research into these has resulted in some deeply emotive music that is not to be missed.

In today's edition of the Early Music Show, and as part of Radio 3's Baroque Spring season, Catherine Bott goes in search of the unknown baroque. Vivaldi, Handel, Bach and the Scarlattis are familiar names to us, composers synonymous with one of the richest periods in musical history. But Venice, Leipzig, and London weren't the only places experiencing the ear-shock of baroque music - Prague, Warsaw, and Ljubljana were home to composers whose names haven't had quite the same impact on posterity, but who were also playing a key part in shaping this musical revolution. So today familiar names give way to others such as Erlebach, Pekiel, Posch and Zarewutius, as Catherine Bott looks to eastern Europe in search some of the baroque's hidden musical riches. The programme includes an interview with Eamonn Dougan, Associate Conductor of the Sixteen, about the choir's new disc featuring the music of Bartlomiej Pekiel.

Catherine Bott explores the idea of Telemann the Everyman: how he absorbed and excelled at so many musical styles, and purposely made his music available and appealing to the widest possible audience. She's joined by musicologist, flautist and all-round Telemann expert Steven Zohn.

Catherine Bott visits the Handel House in London where Ruth Smith has curated an imaginative exhibition on the life of Handel's librettist, Charles Jennens. It was Jennens who created the libretto for Handel's Messiah, he might even have suggested the idea to Handel, and he also furnished the composer with words for several other of his oratorios including Saul, Belshazzar, L'Allegro and perhaps Israel in Egypt. As such, Jennens often features as a footnote in Handel's biography, but the academic and author Ruth Smith believes more credit should be given to Jennens for the contribution he made to 18th century artistic life in this country. Not only did he provide Handel with libretti, he was also one of the first to faithfully edit the works of Shakespeare. Ruth Smith has curated an exhibition about Jennens at the Handel House in London and Catherine Bott visits and Dr Smith to find out more about the man and his achievements.

The Baroque era saw some of the most significant developments in the history of western musical instruments, not least the appearance of the modern violin family which superseded the viols as the dominant string group. Not all the developments were as long lasting as the violin though. Catherine Bott looks back on the story and the music of the viola d'amore - or the "love viol" - an instrument much loved in the baroque for its distinctive tonal colours.

Catherine Bott talks about some of the composers who worked at the court of the colourful Christian IV of Denmark. The music includes works by imports to the court including Dowland, Bertolusi and Schutz, but also homegrown composers such as Hans Nielsen, Mogens Pederson and Soren Terkelsen.

Catherine Bott is in Cambridge for a look at the Trinity Carol Roll, one of the earliest sources of English polyphonic carols. She visits the Wren Library where the manuscript is kept and talks about the music and the significance of the collection with David Skinner who has recently recorded it all with his group Alamire. The thirteen works preserved in this manuscript include the patriotic 'Agincourt' carol, celebrating Henry V's victory over the French in 1415, and the most famous of all early English carols 'Ther is no rose'.

Catherine Bott explores the life and musical settings of the work of the Italian poet Torquato Tasso, who was one of the most widely read writers in 16th Century Europe. His words were set by the great composers of the day and for many centuries after his death, but he was a troubled man who suffered from mental illness and died just days before he was due to be crowned as the king of poets by the Pope. Featuring Tasso settings from Monteverdi, Gesualdo and Handel among others.

On the first Sunday of Advent, Catherine Bott introduces a selection of early music for the Advent season. Including music from Bach, Charpentier and Praetorius and lesser known composers Vaclav Karel Holan Rovensky and Thomas Stoltzer.

Catherine Bott talks to the vocalist, harpist and scholar, Benjamin Bagby, about his career that has spanned more than 30 years. He founded the ensemble Sequentia with the late Barbara Thornton in 1977, a versatile group specialising in the performance and recording of Western European music from the period before 1300. They discuss his many projects with the ensemble and play music from his recordings including Hildegard of Bingen, Philippe le Chancelier and the 'Lost Songs' project - a collection of anonymous Latin and German songs copied into a manuscript a thousand years ago.

The Muiderkring or Muider Circle was a group of contributors to the arts and sciences in the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century, when Dutch trade, science and art was among the most important in the world. Chief among this group was the historian, poet and playwright Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, who was appointed as Sheriff and Bailiff for the Gooiland, the area around Hilversum, in 1609, and was given a medieval moated castle to live in, the Muiderslot. Over the next four decades, he spent his summers there, entertaining house parties of distinguished friends from the worlds of art, music and philosophy. They discussed current affairs, read their poetry to each other, debated philosophical and moral issues and of course, made music. Hooft seems to have had impeccable taste and his guestlist reads like a who's who of the Dutch cultural elite: with the poets Caspar Barlaeus and Hooft's great friend Joost van den Vondel, the wealthy merchant and poet Pieter Roemers Visscher and Constantijn Huygens among the castlist. In today's Early Music Show, Catherine Bott investigates this mysterious cultural group.

Catherine Bott chats to Fiona Maddocks about the remarkable life of the German abbess, visionary, poet and composer Hildegard of Bingen who died on 17th September 1179. Hildegard wrote that she experienced visions from an early age and as a child entered the monastery at Disibodenberg on the Rhine; Hildegard was later to found monasteries in Rupertsburg and later in Eibingen. Throughout her life, Hildegard continued to have visions and later began to record what she experienced, 'Scivias', which contains 14 lyric texts that appeared with music. Hildegard extensive musical settings of her own poetry dated back at least to the 1140's, and totals over 70 songs, antiphons, responses, sequences, and her 'Ordo virtutum', possibly the oldest surviving morality play. Catherine Bott and writer Fiona Maddocks discuss this fascinating character, whose Saint's Day falls on September 17th.

Catherine Bott presents a portrait of the intriguing Spanish monk and composer, Padre Antonio Soler. A disciple of Domenico Scarlatti, Soler entered the monastery at El Escorial, near Madrid, in 1752, where he remained for the last 31 years of his life, composing keyboard sonatas, chamber music and choral works.

Catherine Bott profiles harpsichordist & conductor Harry Bicket - regular at Glyndebourne & the New York Metropolitan Opera, and current musical director of The English Concert - about his career and his recordings. Music includes works by Handel, Bach, Pergolesi and Gluck in performances by Renée Fleming, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, Susan Graham, Andreas Scholl and Elizabeth Watts.

Catherine Bott explores the life and music of the once celebrated but now forgotten 18th Century Venetian composer Baldassare Galuppi, with the help of writer, critic and self-confessed Galuppi enthusiast Jonathan Keates.

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.

"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 the 300th anniversary of his birth.

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 six claimants to the Portuguese monarchy, the most powerful was Philip II of Spain, whose invading army conquered the country in 1581. Neither Philip nor his two successors acknowledged Portugal's cultural or ethnic independence and treated her as nothing more than a province of Spain. Portugal's considerable foreign revenue enriched the Spanish treasury, while her dominance in trade and sea power was successfully challenged by the English and the Dutch, thus loosening her grip on her colonies in Africa, Asia and South America. This period of external domination and subsequent economic decline lasted for nearly 60 years until the Portuguese nobility reached the end of its tether and led a revolt against their oppressors in 1640, as a result of which, the Duke of Braganza was declared the new and rightful king of Portugal and the Algarves. One of King Joao IV's first actions was to lead his countrymen in a protracted war of restoration against the Spanish, whose armies were finally driven out of Portuguese lands after four more years of fierce fighting. Joao o Restaurador - John the Restorer - was not just a successful troop-leader, though. He was also a generous supporter of the arts, and a considerably talented musician and composer himself. And, by the time of his death in 1656 he had amassed the biggest music library in the world.

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 the early days of Alfred's Deller Consort, one of his most important contributions to the early music movement. Catherine and Mark also chat about Stour Music, the Festival which Alfred founded and which celebrates its 50th anniversary this June. Music in the programme includes lute songs by Dowland and Campion, a scene from Handel's opera Orlando, and the 50 year old recording of father and son, Alfred and Mark, singing Purcell's Sound the Trumpet.

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 language which predominates in his vocal output is French.

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 portraits tell us about the role of music in the late 18th Century. The programme includes comment about Gainsborough's portraits of Karl Friedrich Abel; Johann Christian Bach; and the Linley family, as well as paintings of some notable amateurs from the English gentry such as William Wollaston and the redoubtable Anne Ford.

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 offsprings, including music by Monterverdi, Schütz and and Sigismondo d'India. Handel's "Il Pastor Fido" is one of the featured works at this year's London Handel Festival which runs from 15th March to 24th April.

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.

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.

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.

Catherine Bott visits Lincoln to explore what it would have been like to be in a cathedral choir in the days of the "Father of English Music" William Byrd. Was the life of a 16th-century chorister so different to that of a 21st-century one?

Upon his death, the great English composer William Byrd was acclaimed as the "father of Musick". But what was his musical legacy? Catherine Bott explores the lives and music of some of the great composer's students, featuring music from Thomas Tomkins, Peter Philips, Thomas Morley and John Bull.

Guillaume de Machaut was one of the greatest composers and poets of the Middle Ages and Le Voir Dit is one of his most extraordinary works. Containing 9,094 lines of verse and 8 musical settings, it tells the tale of a blossoming love between the elderly Machaut and a young admirer: Péronne d' Armentières. Catherine Bott explores Machaut's "The True Story".

A profile of Maria Bárbara, the Portuguese Infanta and Spanish Queen, and the muse of Domenico Scarlatti, on the 300th anniversary of her birth. Catherine Bott looks back on the life of one Europe's most musically talented royal figures, the inspirational Maria Madalena Bárbara Xavier Leonor Teresa Antónia Josefa (4 December 1711 - 27 August 1758), whose gifts as a keyboard player and great love for music inspired Domenico Scarlatti to devote the best part of his life serving her and prompted him to compose at least 550 sonatas for her to play. Maria Bárbara's name often appears alongside Scarlatti's when talking about his music, but little is usually said about her, her court and her times. Catherine Bott takes the three hundredth anniversary of her birth to review the Scarlatti story from a different perspective.

Lucie Skeaping presents a programme about the 18thC Scottish composer James Oswald, who rose from humble beginnings in Fife to be the official chamber music composer to George III. The programme includes recordings by Concerto Caledonia, soprano Catherine Bott, tenor Iain Paton, the Broadside Band and guitarist Rob MacKillop.

As part of Radio 3's month long celebration of Symphony, the Early Music Show traces the early history. Catherine Bott reflects on the trail-blazing work of the pioneering symphonists of the 18th century such as Sammartini, the Stamitz family, Holzbauer, JC Bach, Monn and Wagenseil. The 18th century saw a creative explosion in the development of instrumental music and in particular, one of the great innovations of the century was the orchestral symphony. Many of its origins can be traced to Italy but it quickly became a pan European phenomenon with every major cultural centre boasting its own symphonist or "school" of symphony composers, each of which was bursting with its own creative reponses to this new and exciting kind of music. As part of the BBC "Symphony" season, Catherine Bott reflects on some of the major pioneering figures in the development of the symphony, casting her net across many of Europe's major cities - from Milan to Mannheim, Hamburg and Dresden, Paris, Berlin, London and Vienna. The programme considers some of the novel innovations that were introduced into the symphony as the century progressed and by dwelling on some of the music of lesser known composers it provides a context for the musical world that we've come to associate with Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Many of the symphonists featured in this programme can also be heard in complete performances across the following week on Radio 3's Afternoon on 3.

Catherine Bott talks to scholar, musicologist and conductor Andrew Parrott about the complex process of reconstructions, including his most recent project: the reconstruction of JS Bach's Trauer-Music (Funeral Music). This work was composed in 1728 when Bach's patron, Prince Leopold of Cöthen, suddenly died at the age of 33, but the score has almost completely disappeared. Andrew talks to Catherine about how he reconstructed this work through various clues in other of Bach's works, and plays music from his new recording with his Taverner Consort and Players.

Catherine Bott explores the musical legacy of King Dinis I of Portugal. He was a remarkable man, born in the year 1261, and ruled Portugal for 46 years during which time he consolidated both his country's economy and its frontiers, limiting the powers of the aristocracy and resolving conflicts in the church. He was known for his wisdom, prudence and passion for justice, and not only was his court a refuge for poets and minstrels from all over the Iberian peninsula and beyond, he also joined them with his own poetry and music.

Catherine Bott takes a look at the Wode Psalter, a hugely significant collection of part books that give a fascinating insight into Scottish music-making in the 16th Century. The collection was initially the work of Thomas Wode, a monk and cleric from St Andrews, who was commissioned to produce a series of harmonisations of psalm tunes for a protestant Scottish Psalter. Wode was more ambitious however, and he took it upon himself to gather as much of the music he then heard being played in Scotland, in the fear that otherwise music from the nation might be lost to us for ever. The highly decorative series of part books, which make up the Wode Collection, has been scattered across the world for centuries, but the books have recently been brought back together for a special exhibition at Edinburgh University. Catherine Bott visits the exhibition and is shown around by curator Dr Noel O'Regan. Music for the programme is taken from a recent recording of items from the Wode Collection by the Dunedin Consort.

King George III is now often remembered only as "the mad King", but he and his Queen Consort were passionate supporters of the arts and both loved music. In the second of two programmes, Catherine Bott continues her virtual tour of London, tracing the legacy of George's artistic patronage through his reign. Featuring music from Handel, Purcell and Steffani.

King George III is widely remembered as the British monarch who suffered a temporary, debilitating period of "madness" as depicted in the play and film by Alan Bennett, "The Madness of King George", but he was also a highly cultured man; he and his Queen Consort were passionate supporters of the arts and both loved music. In the first of two programmes, Catherine Bott begins a virtual tour of London to trace the legacy of George's artistic patronage through his reign. Featuring music from Handel, JC Bach and Mozart.

Catherine Bott in conversation with the late Gustav Leonhardt: keyboardist, conductor, musicologist and teacher, who was one of the great pioneers of Early music. With great sadness, we learn of the death of Gustav Leonhardt on 16th January. In a change to the schedule, we repeat an interview that Catherine Bott recorded with him last year about his life in music, his great love of Bach and about a variety of Early music issues whilst featuring some of his many recordings, including music by JS Bach, Louis Couperin, and Sweelinck. This is the last interview that Gustav Leonhardt gave to the BBC.

Catherine Bott explores the history of the Collegium Musicum, the amateur music ensembles whose performances in Germany under such illustrious directors as Telemann and Bach paved the way for public concert series. First broadcast in August 2011.

On 14 May 1610, France fell into a month and a half of mourning. Le bon roi Henri, King Henri IV of France was dead. Catherine Bott explores the life of the King they called the Green Gallant and the music which accompanied both his life and his death.

Catherine Bott presents a profile of the great Spanish composer, Tomás Luis de Victoria, who died in 1611. He dedicated his musical life to the Church, working both in his native Spain and in Italy; all his compositions are vocal, sacred and in Latin. Although he was not as prolific a composer as some of his contemporaries, Victoria is now generally regarded as one of the greatest of Renaissance composers, his music characterised by its emotional intensity. Catherine Bott celebrates the genius of his music, and plays recordings of some of Victoria's powerfully moving music, including settings of Marian antiphons and Mass settings.

Catherine Bott talks to Tony Wheeler, co-founder of Lonely Planet about the extraordinary travels of Thomas Coryate. Coryate was an English eccentric who as well as being credited with introducing the table fork and the umbrella to England, journeyed to Venice and back mainly on foot, and whose travel writings provide music historians with invaluable details of the activities of the Venetian school. First broadcast in July 2011.