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BBC Radio 3 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced Third Programme.

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Essential Classics

Music: Classical

Refresh your morning with a great selection of classical music

Refresh your morning with a great selection of classical music, presented by Georgia Mann.

Essential Classics: Thursday - Sarah Walker with Antony Sher

Tuesday - Sarah Walker with Antony Sher

14/01/2016

Thursday - Sarah Walker with Antony Sher

BBC Radio 3 - Essential Classics, Thursday - Sarah Walker with Antony Sher

Including Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks and Mendelssohn: Symphony No 4.

With Sarah Walker. Including My Favourite Operatic Intermezzos; Music in Time: Strauss: Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks; Artist of the Week: Mendelssohn: Symphony No 4.

9am
My favourite... operatic intermezzos. In this new feature Sarah shares her top operatic intermezzos, highlighting the emotional directness and unforgettable melodies of these orchestral miniatures, tucked inside operas by Puccini, Wolf Ferrari, Offenbach, Leoncavallo and Mascagni.

9.30am
Take part in our daily musical challenge: can you remember the television show that featured this piece of classical music? 

10am 
At the start of the year that marks 400 years since Shakespeare's death, Sarah's guest is the Laurence Olivier Award-winning actor Antony Sher. Antony is a veteran of the Royal Shakespeare Company and has acted many of the Bard's most famous roles, from Richard III to Falstaff. He has written a number of books recording the stages of researching, rehearsing and performing great Shakespearean parts, offering a behind the scenes look at the Royal Shakespeare Company at work. Throughout the week Antony shares a selection of his favourite classical music, talks about bringing Mahler to life on the stage and explains how he is preparing for his starring role in King Lear. 

10.30am 
Sarah places Music in Time with some Romantic storytelling. "Once upon a time there was a roguish jester...": Richard Strauss wrote those words under the opening bars of his tone poem, Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks, and vividly depicts his antics in the wonderfully witty score that follows. 

11am
Sarah's Artists of the Week are the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. When they started out in 1986, this unique period instrument band decided to throw away the orchestral rulebook. They were self-governing, their leaders rotated, and they worked with a range of conductors. Despite their name, they are keen to explore a wide repertoire, from Monteverdi to Mahler and beyond; and their four Principal Artists are Sir Simon Rattle, Ivan Fischer, Sir Mark Elder and Vladimir Jurowski. To celebrate the orchestra's thirtieth anniversary year, Sarah showcases a range of their recordings, demonstrating their diversity, artistry, and the brilliantly incisive, colourful style of playing. 

Mendelssohn 
Symphony No.4, "Italian"
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Charles Mackerras (conductor).

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