Words and Music

Other

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

BBC Radio 3

Radio 3

Drama

Music: Classical

A journey of discovery, weaving music with poetry and prose read by leading actors.

A weekly journey of discovery, weaving together a range of music with poetry and prose read by leading actors.

Words and Music: Encounters with Egypt

Encounters with Egypt

BBC Radio 3 - Words and Music, Encounters with Egypt

From soprano Fatma Said to Verdi's Aida, Agatha Christie to Ahmad Shawki and Adhaf Soueif.

Pyramids, pharaohs, the Nile - inspiration for composers from Verdi to Philip Glass, and writers from Shakespeare to Sabrina Mafhouz, read by Nadi Kemp-Sayfi and Samuel West.

The pyramids, gods, and pharaohs of Ancient Egypt have inspired writers and composers for centuries – we hear from Philip Glass’s Akhnaten, Mozart’s The Magic Flute and, the pinnacle 19th Orientalism, Verdi’s Aida, commissioned to inaugurate Cairo’s opera house in 1871. Egypt's river Nile provided a sinister backdrop to one of Agatha Christie's greatest murder mysteries, and the setting of Ancient Egyptian queen Cleopatra's legendary barge journey, the source of inspiration for countless works from Shakespeare to contemporary composer Fazil Say.  November 4th 1922 was when Tutankhamun's tomb was uncovered by Howard Carter. 

We also explore Egypt’s more recent history and culture, including the British occupation and revolution of 1952. There are Egyptian readings in Arabic from Radio 3 New Generation Thinker Islam Issa, who has helped curate and translate, and you’ll hear some of Egypt’s greatest musical talent, including soprano Fatma Said and famous singers of the past Oum Koulthoum and Dalida. Our readers are Samuel West and Nadi Kemp-Sayfi. You can also hear Islam talking about his book Alexandria on an episode of Free Thinking. 

Readings:
Bayram al-Tunisi: The Sun of Dusk
Max Rodenbeck: Cairo - The City Victorious
Ahdaf Soueif: The Map of Love
Agatha Christie: Death on the Nile
abdel-Rahman al-Abnudi: Yunus
CP Cavafy: The God Abandons Antony
Shaksepeare: Antony and Cleopatra
Ahmad Shawqi: The Death of Cleopatra
Sabrina Mafhouz: A History of Water in the Middle East
EM Forster: Alexandria - A History and a Guide
Elena Favilli and Francesca Cavallo: Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls
Philip Gross: The Garden of Nebamun
Raphael Cormack: Midnight in Cairo
Naguib Mahfouz: Miramar
Christopher Hampton: White Chameleon
Penelope Lively: Moon Tiger
Mustafa Kamil: Loving Egypt and Reviving Her

Producer: Graham Rogers

Live music and the arts: broadcasts more live music than any other radio network. Classical music is its core. Genres include world and new music, jazz, speech and drama.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Words and Music

Encounters with Egypt

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 3

About BBC Radio 3