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BBC Radio 3 The BBC’s home of classical music also plays jazz and drama, and features Composer of the Week among its regular slots. The atmosphere is calm and contemplative – perfect for relaxation. |
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The BBC’s home of classical music also plays jazz and drama, and features Composer of the Week among its regular slots. The atmosphere is calm and contemplative – perfect for relaxation. Radio 3 offers a mix of music and cultural programming. It’s main focus is classical music, but other aspects include general arts programming, cultural talk and drama. The aim of the station is to engage and widen the cultural horizons of listeners of any age. Radio 3 began life as The BBC Third Programme in September 1946. Its name was changed to Radio 3 in 1967 when Radio 1 was launched. The station always broadcast classical music, opera, drama (including most BBC Radio Shakespeare productions) and jazz. It is influential to classical music in the UK as it broadcasts concerts such as the Proms, promotes up and coming musicians, and commissions compositions. One of Radio 3’s mottos is ‘As long as it takes’ because it mostly plays complete pieces instead of picking the most popular parts or ‘bleeding chunks’. This is one way that Radio 3 differs from its competitor Classic fM. Another difference is that Radio 3 always gives full details of a piece before and after it is played. One of Radio 3’s longest running features is ‘Composer of the Week’ which consists of five one-hour-long shows per day for a week, featuring a certain composer. Another popular show is weekly ‘Private Passions’ in which Michael Berkeley interviews celebrities about their musical tastes. The station also airs programmes focusing on world music such as ‘World Routes’ and ‘Late Junction’, and plays the music of the Renaissance and Baroque periods in 'The Early Music Show'. At the moment, a new scheme is being trialed by the station to offer MP3s of recent performances. The experiment is proving successful, so may become a regular feature. Radio 3 thinks of itself as an antidote for the loud, fast-paced radio stations on the airwaves. It has a loyal listener base, and has broadcast for 24 hours a day since the late nineties. |
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