Composer of the Week: Mendelssohn

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Composer of the Week

Music: Classical

An informative guide to composers' lives and their music.

An informative and accessible guide to composers' lives and their music.

Composer of the Week: Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): London Debut

London Debut

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)

BBC Radio 3 - Composer of the Week, Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847), London Debut

Mendelssohn's first visit to London and the beginnings of his relationship with Britain.

Mendelssohn’s first impressions of London were of an ‘awful mass’, but he settled in quickly, making friends and professional contacts that would last throughout his lifetime.

Donald Macleod explores Mendelssohn’s first visit to London aged 20, when he established a relationship with Britain that would continue throughout his life.

Mendelssohn’s relationship with Britain began when he was 20 years old, when London became the first stop of his Grand Tour.  This week Donald Macleod explores the composer's experiences in Britain, considering the mark he left on musical life in these islands, the works he wrote here, and what he got up to in the course of the ten visits he made across his lifetime.  Mendelssohn took inspiration from the scenery, but he also got his first professional engagements in Britain, and in return, by the end of his life, Britain lionized him.

Mendelssohn’s first impressions of London in April 1829 were of an ‘awful mass’ but he settled in quickly.  His mission was to escape Berlin and establish an international career, and Britain helped him on his way.  The English found his accent charming, he took up lodgings in the centre of the city, and made friends and professional contacts that would last throughout his life. 


Songs Without Words op 19b No 1		
Glenn Gould, piano

Symphony No 1 in C minor (Mvt 1) 					
Chamber Orchestra of Europe
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor

12 Lieder op 9: III – Wartend								
Sophie Danemann, soprano
Eugene Asti, piano

Octet in E flat major (Mvt 3)					
Amsterdam Sinfonietta
Lev Markiz, conductor 

Concerto in E major for Two pianos (Mvt 2 & 3)	
Alessandra Ammara, piano 
Roberto Prosseda, piano
Residentie Orkest 
Jan Willem de Vriend, conductor

Composer of the Week: Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)

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.

Donald Macleod explores German composer Felix Mendelssohn's experiences in Britain.

This week Donald Macleod explores German composer Felix Mendelssohn's experiences in Britain, considering the mark he left on musical life in these islands.

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