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Toby Jones tells how an act of creative destruction freed Sibelius - Finland’s most celebrated artist - from decades of torment, as he tried to finish his doomed Eighth Symphony.

Even in his lifetime, Jean Sibelius was considered Finland’s greatest artist and national hero: the Finnish nation’s musical Shakespeare. The late 1920s saw the composer seemingly at the peak of his powers - in his early sixties, and with seven celebrated symphonies to his name, the entire Finnish nation waited with bated breath for a glorious Eighth - and more. Yet he suddenly fell silent, crushed under a weight of expectation - one that would only be released years later in a dramatic, rageful episode of creative destruction, as he fed his masterpiece into the flames of his fireplace… never to be heard.

In Facing The Music, we experience the human drama behind some of the most extraordinary classical music ever written - told by legendary figures of stage and screen, including Toby Jones, Maxine Peake, Andrew Lincoln and Don Warrington. Ten episodes explore the human frailties, obsessions, emotions and vulnerabilities we all experience - and the composers who confronted them: to create extraordinary music that would stand the test of time. In each episode we hear from creatives, psychologists and other experts to understand what we can all learn from their hopes, their struggles and their music.

This episode is narrated by Toby Jones, and features contributors from dancer Baroness Deborah Bull, and psychologist Dr Linda Papadopoulos. The programme is written and produced by Hannah Dean.

Facing The Music is an Overcoat Media production for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sounds and ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3
The series is written and produced by Hannah Dean, Leonie Thomas, Gareth Ceredig, Katie Hill and Barney Rowntree – with additional production from Melvin Rickarby
Original Music: Peter Gregson
Sound Design and Mixing: Mike Woolley, with additional mixing by John Scott
Executive Producer: Steven Rajam
Production Management: Amy Wheel and Janice Jardine
Commissioner for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3 and ´óÏó´«Ã½ Sounds: Philip Raperport