Luciano Berio (1925-2003)

Series

Episode

Title

First
Broadcast

Comments

2018

The Boy From Oneglia

20180702

Donald Macleod looks at the life and music of Italian composer Luciano Berio (1925-2003) in the company of Gillian Moore. In today's episode, Donald follows Berio's early life in the Ligurian port of Oneglia, the son and grandson of composers. After the War, Berio enrolled in the Milan Conservatoire, studying piano and composition, and it was during the 1950s that he would meet his first love, the singer Cathy Berberian, and would start to experiment with electronic music.

Prelude from Petite Suite

David Arden, pianist

Cinque variazioni per pianoforte (1952-3) 1

Vanessa Wagner, piano

Quartetto per archi

Arditti String Quartet

Thema - Omaggio a Joyce

Cathy Berberian, voice

Epifanie (1959-61/rev 65)

Cathy Berberian, Mezzo Soprano

ORF-Symphonienorchester

Leif Segerstam, conductor.

Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.

2018

Berio Discovers The Voice

20180703

The vocal prowess of Berio's wife Cathy Berberian was to prove a revelation to him, and a stimulus to some of his most intriguing works. Donald Macleod discusses the life and music of Luciano Berio (1925-2003) with Gillian Moore, focusing today on Berio's rich period of creativity during the 1960s. It's a time when Berio's marriage to Cathy was under increasing strain, and Luciano spent time teaching in the USA, where he met the woman who would become his second wife.

Circles

Text by e.e.cummings

Vinko Globokar / Aur耀le Nicolet, percussion

Cathy Berberian, mezzo-soprano

Folk Songs

Wasserklavier

David Arden, piano

Labyrintus II, Part II

Ensemble Musique Vivante

Chorale Experimentale

Luciano Berio, director.

Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.

2018

Berio The Joker

20180704

Donald Macleod discusses the life and music of Luciano Berio (1925-2003) with Gillian Moore. In today's episode Donald recounts some of Berio's childhood love of practical jokes, and relates this to Berio's irreverence towards certain aspects of the classical tradition. By the late 1960s he was sought out even by The Beatles as a leading light in the classical world . In 1968 he spent a vacation in Sicily (complete with his present and former wife and families) to compose his masterpiece. This is the bold and thrilling Sinfonia, with its O King response to the assassination of Dr Martin Luther King, and its famous adaptation of Mahler, complete with the addition of amplified voices.

Sequenza 1

Sophie Cherrier, flute

Sequenza III

Cathy Berberian, mezzo-soprano

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Riccardo Chailly.

Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.

2018

The Intercontinental Composer

20180705

By the early 1970s Luciano Berio (1925-2003) was in demand in many parts of the world, and regularly travelling between Europe and the USA, and even Israel, where he would meet his third wife. Donald Macleod discusses this phase of his life with Gillian Moore - a period which sees Berio composing such a strange and yet captivating work as A-Ronne, and the vast canvas of Coro, using texts in various languages. It's a period which also finds the restless Berio settling down to purchase a private estate at Radicondoli, in Tuscany.

Erdenklavier

David Arden, pianist

Points on the Curve to Find' (1974)

Ensemble InterContemperain

Pierre Boulez, conductor

A Ronne (excerpt)

Swingle II

Cries of London

Coro (1975/6) (excerpt)

ORF-Symphonienorchester

Leif Segerstam, conductor.

Donald Macleod discusses some of Luciano Berio's works from the 1970s with Gillian Moore.

2018

05 LAST

What My Spirit Tells Me

20180706

Luciano Berio (1925-2003) felt compelled to compose right until the very end of his life, declaring to one of his grandchildren that he simply had to, because it was 'what my spirit tells me'. He completed his very last commission only shortly before he died. Donald Macleod and Gillian Moore look at Berio's life and music at this period (a time when Gillian came to know the composer personally), and among other things consider the extraordinary paradox of an avowed communist or partito communista supporter who owned a private estate complete with vineyard! As well as writing extraordinary works for the theatre, Berio maintained a lifelong interest in folksong, and added to his series of Sequenzas for virtuoso instrumentalists.

Un re in ascolto (excerpt)

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

Lorin Maazel, conductor

Naturale

Kim Kashkashian, viola

Robyn Schulkowsky, percussion

Sequenza XIII

Teodoro Anzellotti, Accordion

Stanze

Tenebrae (Paul Celan)

Die Schlacht (Dan Pagis)

Dietrich Henschel, Baritone

Orchestre de Paris

Christoph Escenbach, Conductor.

Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore some of the late works of Luciano Berio.

Episodes

Series	Episode	Title	First Broadcast	Comments
2018	01	The Boy From Oneglia	20180702	Donald Macleod looks at the life and music of Italian composer Luciano Berio (1925-2003) in the company of Gillian Moore. In today's episode, Donald follows Berio's early life in the Ligurian port of Oneglia, the son and grandson of composers. After the War, Berio enrolled in the Milan Conservatoire, studying piano and composition, and it was during the 1950s that he would meet his first love, the singer Cathy Berberian, and would start to experiment with electronic music. Prelude from Petite Suite David Arden, pianist Cinque variazioni per pianoforte (1952-3) 1 Vanessa Wagner, piano Quartetto per archi Arditti String Quartet Thema - Omaggio a Joyce Cathy Berberian, voice Epifanie (1959-61/rev 65) Cathy Berberian, Mezzo Soprano ORF-Symphonienorchester Leif Segerstam, conductor. Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.
2018	02	Berio Discovers The Voice	20180703	The vocal prowess of Berio's wife Cathy Berberian was to prove a revelation to him, and a stimulus to some of his most intriguing works. Donald Macleod discusses the life and music of Luciano Berio (1925-2003) with Gillian Moore, focusing today on Berio's rich period of creativity during the 1960s. It's a time when Berio's marriage to Cathy was under increasing strain, and Luciano spent time teaching in the USA, where he met the woman who would become his second wife. Circles Text by e.e.cummings Vinko Globokar / Aur耀le Nicolet, percussion Cathy Berberian, mezzo-soprano Folk Songs Wasserklavier David Arden, piano Labyrintus II, Part II Ensemble Musique Vivante Chorale Experimentale Luciano Berio, director. Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.
2018	03	Berio The Joker	20180704	Donald Macleod discusses the life and music of Luciano Berio (1925-2003) with Gillian Moore. In today's episode Donald recounts some of Berio's childhood love of practical jokes, and relates this to Berio's irreverence towards certain aspects of the classical tradition. By the late 1960s he was sought out even by The Beatles as a leading light in the classical world . In 1968 he spent a vacation in Sicily (complete with his present and former wife and families) to compose his masterpiece. This is the bold and thrilling Sinfonia, with its O King response to the assassination of Dr Martin Luther King, and its famous adaptation of Mahler, complete with the addition of amplified voices. Sequenza 1 Sophie Cherrier, flute Sequenza III Cathy Berberian, mezzo-soprano Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Riccardo Chailly. Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore the life and music of Luciano Berio.
2018	04	The Intercontinental Composer	20180705	By the early 1970s Luciano Berio (1925-2003) was in demand in many parts of the world, and regularly travelling between Europe and the USA, and even Israel, where he would meet his third wife. Donald Macleod discusses this phase of his life with Gillian Moore - a period which sees Berio composing such a strange and yet captivating work as A-Ronne, and the vast canvas of Coro, using texts in various languages. It's a period which also finds the restless Berio settling down to purchase a private estate at Radicondoli, in Tuscany. Erdenklavier David Arden, pianist Points on the Curve to Find' (1974) Ensemble InterContemperain Pierre Boulez, conductor A Ronne (excerpt) Swingle II Cries of London Coro (1975/6) (excerpt) ORF-Symphonienorchester Leif Segerstam, conductor. Donald Macleod discusses some of Luciano Berio's works from the 1970s with Gillian Moore.
2018	05 LAST	What My Spirit Tells Me	20180706	Luciano Berio (1925-2003) felt compelled to compose right until the very end of his life, declaring to one of his grandchildren that he simply had to, because it was 'what my spirit tells me'. He completed his very last commission only shortly before he died. Donald Macleod and Gillian Moore look at Berio's life and music at this period (a time when Gillian came to know the composer personally), and among other things consider the extraordinary paradox of an avowed communist or partito communista supporter who owned a private estate complete with vineyard! As well as writing extraordinary works for the theatre, Berio maintained a lifelong interest in folksong, and added to his series of Sequenzas for virtuoso instrumentalists. Un re in ascolto (excerpt) Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Lorin Maazel, conductor Naturale Kim Kashkashian, viola Robyn Schulkowsky, percussion Sequenza XIII Teodoro Anzellotti, Accordion Stanze Tenebrae (Paul Celan) Die Schlacht (Dan Pagis) Dietrich Henschel, Baritone Orchestre de Paris Christoph Escenbach, Conductor. Donald Macleod discusses with Gillian Moore some of the late works of Luciano Berio.