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Franz Schubert

Professor Robert Winston looks at the evidence that Schubert contracted syphilis and wrote his greatest works under the shadow of this chronic and, at the time, incurable disease.

Professor Robert Winston continues his exploration into the relationship between the music and the medical conditions of composers who suffered mental and physical illness.

Franz Schubert was often uncomfortable in the polite circles of middle-class Viennese society. Was he hiding a secret? Prof. Winston looks at the evidence that Schubert was lured into an unsavoury clandestine lifestyle and contracted syphilis, which many writers have assumed cast a shadow over both his remaining life and his music.

Producer: Chris Taylor.

30 minutes

Last on

Sat 14 Aug 2010 15:30

Broadcasts

  • Tue 10 Aug 2010 13:30
  • Sat 14 Aug 2010 15:30