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Episode 1
Donald Macleod focuses on Berlioz's struggle against his parents' disapproval of his choice of career and of his wife: an actress, a foreigner, a Protestant - and penniless.
It's a classic tale of the nineteenth century artist ... always at odds with the establishment in his native France, lurching from one disastrous romantic entanglement to the next, never quite knowing whether he would stay afloat financially. Nonetheless, Hector Berlioz swept music into the Romantic age almost single-handedly, redefining the nature of the symphony and inventing the modern orchestra. Donald Macleod explores the life and music of the great innovator, beginning with Berlioz's struggles against his parents' disapproval of his choice of career ("folly") and of his wife, Harriet, who disappointed them on four counts: she was an actress, a foreigner, a Protestant - and penniless to boot.
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Music Played
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Hector Berlioz
Fleurs des landes Op.13
Performer: Anne Sofie von OTTER - Mezzo-soprano Performer: Cord GARBEN - Piano
- DEUTSCHE GRAMMOP.
- 435-860-2.
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Hector Berlioz
Les Francs-juges - opera [fragments] Op.3
Conductor: Colin DAVIS Performer: London S O.
- PHILIPS.
- 416 430-2-.
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Hector Berlioz
Tristia Op.18 for chorus and orchestra
Conductor: John Eliot GARDINER Performer: Monteverdi Choir. Performer: Orchestre Revolutionnaire Et Romantique
- PHILIPS.
- 446-676-2.
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Hector Berlioz
Irlande Op.2
Performer: Cord GARBEN - Piano Performer: John ALER - Tenor
- DEUTSCHE GRAMMOP.
- 435-860-2.
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Hector Berlioz
Symphonie fantastique Op.14
Conductor: Robin TICCIATI Performer: Scottish Chamber Orchestra
- LINN.
- CKD 400.
Broadcasts
- Mon 6 Aug 2012 12:00´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3
- Mon 6 Aug 2012 18:00´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3
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