Composers And Their Dogs

A new series of essays by the very popular Fiona Stafford, Professor of Literature at Somerville College, Oxford, following her much praised series of essays The Meaning of Trees and The Meaning of Flowers, Fiona explores famous composers and their devotion to certain dog breeds.

Through surprising and insightful stories and discoveries about both the composers and their dogs, the essays provide new insights into the type of people the composers were, their lives and the features of their chosen dog breeds that brought such devotion.

Composer Richard Wagner loved this huge, gentle, shaggy Canadian dog breed, having many in his lifetime. The essay includes the rollercoaster tale of Wagner's daring escape across international borders, dragging his massive Newfoundland, Robber, with him. On arrival in Paris, Robber became a bigger celebrity than Wagner before fame finally came to the composer. The journey inspired Wagner's The Flying Dutchman. Lord Byron was devoted to his Newfoundlands. His first, Boatswain, resulted in portraits, an elegy and a grand tomb and his last Newfoundland probably caused Byron's death. Newfoundlands have webbed feet, are great swimmers and have rescued many people from drowning; still being used today by sea rescue services, these fearless dogs leap from helicopters into the water to rescue people.

Producer - Turan Ali

A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 3

Famous composers devoted to certain dog breeds. Wagner's turbulent life with Newfoundlands

A new series of essays by the very popular Fiona Stafford, Professor of Literature at Somerville College, Oxford, following her much praised series of essays The Meaning of Trees and The Meaning of Flowers, Fiona explores famous composers and their devotion to certain dog breeds.

Through surprising and insightful stories and discoveries about both the composers and their dogs, the essays provide new insights into the type of people the composers were, their lives and the features of their chosen dog breeds that brought such devotion.

Composer, eccentric and suffragette Dame Ethel Smyth, the first woman to have an Opera put on at the Met, had five Old English Sheepdogs in succession, all called 'Pan'. She was so obsessed with her dogs that she considered them almost like husbands and wrote a book about the depth of feeling and the need for composers to have canine companionship, called `Inordinate (?) Affection` with the question mark showing she knew others found her obsession odd. Her famous friends and lovers included Emmeline Pankhurst and Virginia Woolf, These sturdy dogs were used as herding dogs whose tails were docked for centuries to avoid taxes and only started being bred with long tails again from 2006. Other musical devotees include Paul McCartney, whose first of many Old English sheepdogs inspired the Beatles song `Martha My Dear`.

Producer - Turan Ali

A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 3

Famous composers devoted to dogs. Dame Ethel Smyth's obsession with Old English sheepdogs.

A new series of essays by the very popular Fiona Stafford, Professor of Literature at Somerville College, Oxford, following her much praised series of essays The Meaning of Trees and The Meaning of Flowers, Fiona explores famous composers and their devotion to certain dog breeds.

Through surprising and insightful stories and discoveries about both the composers and their dogs, the essays provide new insights into the type of people the composers were, their lives and the features of their chosen dog breeds that brought such devotion.

As an older man, Joseph Haydn was very comfortably off, living in the Esterhazy court in eastern Austria. An unlikely flirtation developed between him and a young woman who inadvertently offended him, when an incredible tale about her lover's poodle prompted her to beg Haydn to set the tale to music. The story uncovers the depth of his loneliness and the fragility of his ego. Fr退d退ric Chopin is famously reported as having been besotted with his lover, Georges Sand's toy poodle, who was the inspiration for his Minute Waltz due to its pirouetting. However, our research shows this not to be the case - not only was the white fluffy dog in question probably not a toy poodle, but the name of the waltz has much less to do with sixty seconds and far more to do with dog sizes. Poodles in the 1960s were seen as glamour dogs, the choice of Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Walt Disney and surprisingly also Elvis Presley who gave them as gifts to women he courted. There's been a resurgence in recent decades for cross-breeding poodles as their coats are non-allergic for humans. Plus, poodle tales involving Beethoven, and Rodgers and Hammerstein.

Producer - Turan Ali ; A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 3

Composers' links to certain dog breeds. Haydn's poodle tale and Chopin's poodle myth.

A new series of essays by the very popular Fiona Stafford, Professor of Literature at Somerville College, Oxford, following her much praised series of essays The Meaning of Trees and The Meaning of Flowers, Fiona explores famous composers and their devotion to certain dog breeds.

Through surprising and insightful stories and discoveries about both the composers and their dogs, the essays provide new insights into the type of people the composers were, their lives and the features of their chosen dog breeds that brought such devotion.

Composers Benjamin Britten and Leonard Bernstein were both dachshund aficionados, with stories galore about both. Benjamin Britten was almost inseparable from his dachshunds, taking them to rehearsals and concerts. He was often to be seen walking along the Suffolk coast with his dachshunds and the famous Red House in Aldeburgh has signs in many languages (many from other famous composers and musicians) warning people to beware of the fierce dogs. This was not as fanciful as it might appear. These ‘sausage dogs' are figures of fun, but they were bred and trained to flush out rabbits or badgers, often known as badger hounds and are fearless fighters. Research marks dachshunds out as amongst the most aggressive breeds, fiercely defending their owners. Leonard Bernstein had a succession of very badly behaved dachshunds, all named Henry. When he was abroad on tour, if he had not taken one of his dachshunds with him, he would often commandeer other peoples' dachshunds and got a reputation for being a serial dog kidnapper ; but who was going to say `No` to the famous composer? Artists also devoted to dachshunds included Picasso.

Producer - Turan Ali

A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 3

Famous composers' devotion to dogs. Britten and Bernstein were obsessed with dachshunds.

A new series of essays by the very popular Fiona Stafford, Professor of Literature at Somerville College, Oxford, following her much praised series of essays The Meaning of Trees and The Meaning of Flowers, Fiona explores famous composers and their devotion to certain dog breeds.

Through surprising and insightful stories and discoveries about both the composers and their dogs, the essays provide new insights into the type of people the composers were, their lives and the features of their chosen dog breeds that brought such devotion.

Elton John was so devoted to his cocker spaniel, Arthur, that not only did the dog get given Elton's original surname, Dwight, but he was also the best man at his owner's wedding to David Furnish. Sir Edward Elgar was not allowed dogs by his wife during their decades-long marriage. When she died, he had dogs for the rest of his life, his favourite being his spaniel Marco. He would address Marco from live radio broadcasts, and the dog would react on hearing his master's voice say his name. Poet Elizabeth Barrett idolised her cocker spaniel, Flush, who bit husband-to-be Robert Browning, was stolen, recovered, eloped with them and was the subject of a biography by Virginia Woolf. Other surprises include cocker spaniels being the first dog breed to detect cancer by smell.

Producer - Turan Ali

A Bona Broadcasting production for BBC Radio 3.

Famous composers devoted to dogs. Edward Elgar was inseparable from his spaniel, Marco.