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Themes and Variations

Tom Service explores the endless potential of musical variations on a theme.

Tom Service explores the endless potential of musical variations on a theme. On the one hand it's the simplest of all musical ideas - take a basic tune and play around with it - and yet on the other, it's a deeply profound reflection of life, as small sequences of musical DNA provide the building blocks for structures of ever increasing complexity.

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29 minutes

Last on

Fri 23 Jul 2021 16:30
BBC Radio 3

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Music Played

  • Richard Blackford

    The Great animal orchestra; Introduction and Tuning

    Conductor: Martyn Brabbins. Performer: BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
    • Nimbus.
    • NI6274.

  • Benjamin Britten

    The Young person's guide to the orchestra; Fugue

    Conductor: Sir Andrew Davis. Performer: BBC Symphony Orchestra.
    • Teldec.
    • 9031731262.

  • Richard Rodgers

    My favourite things [from 'The Sound of Music']

    Performer: Elvin Jones. Performer: John Coltrane. Performer: McCoy Tyner. Performer: Steve Davis.
    • Atlantic.
    • 7567-81346-2.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Theme

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 6

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 1

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 2

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 3

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    112 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 4

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 6

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 7

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 8

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 9

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 11

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

    12 Variations on 'Ah, vous dirai-je, Maman' K.265; Variation 12

    Performer: Lang Lang.
    • DG.
    • 4797528.

  • Richard Rodgers

    My favourite things [from 'The Sound of Music']

    Performer: Julie Andrews.
    • RCA.
    • 07863 66587-2.

  • Johannes Brahms

    25 Variations and fugue on a theme by G F Handel Op.24

    Performer: Murray Perahia.
    • Sony Classical.
    • 88697727252.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    5 Variations on 'Rule Britannia' in D major WoO.79

    Performer: Cédric Tiberghien.
    • Harmonia Mundi.
    • HMC901775.

  • Andrew Lloyd Webber

    Variations

    Performer: Barbara Thompson. Performer: Don Airey. Performer: Gary Moore. Performer: John Mole. Performer: Jon Hiseman. Performer: Julian Lloyd Webber. Performer: Rod Argent.
    • MCA Records.
    • DMCL 1816.

  • Nicola Matteis

    Variations on La Folia

    Performer: Théotime Langlois de Swarte. Performer: Thomas Dunford.
    • Harmonia Mundi.
    • 902305DI.

  • Antonio Vivaldi

    Trio sonata in D minor RV.63, Op.1`12 (La Follia) for 2 violins and continuo

    Performer: Hespèrion XXI.
    • Alia Vox.
    • AV9844.

  • Sergey Rachmaninov

    Variations on a theme of Corelli Op.42

    Performer: Howard Shelley.
    • Hyperion.
    • CDA66009.

  • Antonio Salieri

    24 Variations on 'La Folia di Spagnia'

    Conductor: Matthias Bamert. Performer: London Mozart Players.
    • CHANDOS.
    • CHAN 9877.

  • Max Richter

    Three worlds - music from Woolf Works

    Conductor: Robert Ziegler. Performer: Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg.
    • DG.
    • 4797158.

  • Johannes Brahms

    Variations on a theme by Haydn Op.56a

    Conductor: Riccardo Chailly. Performer: Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra.
    • Decca.
    • 478-7471.

  • Frederic Rzewski

    Variations on "The People United will Never be Defeated"; Final Variation

    Performer: Igor Levit.
    • SONY.
    • 88875060962.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Theme

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 1

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 6

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 10

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 12

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 13

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 20

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 21

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 22

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 31

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 32

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Diabelli Variations; Variation 33

    Performer: Llŷr Williams.
    • Signum Classics.
    • SIGCD527.

Broadcasts

  • Sun 18 Jul 2021 17:00
    BBC Radio 3
  • Fri 23 Jul 2021 16:30
    BBC Radio 3

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