The Elements - Earth

[ardcarp]

The Early Music Show begins at 12 noon again this Sunday.


Hannah French begins a series of four programmes associated with the ancient Greek concept of the four elements - symbolic forces that inspired Renaissance and Baroque composers with the essences of creation out of chaos: air, water, fire, and today earth.

Today's programme focuses on all things earthly, with music by Rebel, Purcell, Handel, Almeida, Monteverdi, Ramsay, Brumel, Delalande, Morley and Byrd.

'The Elements' is a rather broad sweep of a title, presumably allowing the producers freedom to dig up some random pieces. Oh well. We may be surprised.
Hopefully, the annoying 'half-time' offering will seem less annoying if it doesn't interrupt the flow (as it did big time in last week's Taverner Consort programme).

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000z5sr

[MickyD]

The Early Music Show begins at 12 noon again this Sunday.


Hannah French begins a series of four programmes associated with the ancient Greek concept of the four elements - symbolic forces that inspired Renaissance and Baroque composers with the essences of creation out of chaos: air, water, fire, and today earth.

Today's programme focuses on all things earthly, with music by Rebel, Purcell, Handel, Almeida, Monteverdi, Ramsay, Brumel, Delalande, Morley and Byrd.

'The Elements' is a rather broad sweep of a title, presumably allowing the producers freedom to dig up some random pieces. Oh well. We may be surprised.
Hopefully, the annoying 'half-time' offering will seem less annoying if it doesn't interrupt the flow (as it did big time in last week's Taverner Consort programme).

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000z5sr

Frankly, I don't see how it cannot interrupt the flow if they continue to stick it thirty minutes in to the programme. If they must inflict it on us, why not put it at the end of the programme so we can listen in peace and turn the wretched thing off?

[oddoneout]

Frankly, I don't see how it cannot interrupt the flow if they continue to stick it thirty minutes in to the programme. If they must inflict it on us, why not put it at the end of the programme so we can listen in peace and turn the wretched thing off?

They did do that one time, and what a relief. However I did see a "response" somewhere along the lines of a) listeners had been positive about the new(s) addition and b) putting it at the beginning of the programme would risk listeners missing it - no comment about putting it at the end, but I suppose that's an even bigger "risk" as troublemaker listeners would be able to turn off.
"Stuff the music" would seem to sum up the approach...

[MickyD]

They did do that one time, and what a relief. However I did see a "response" somewhere along the lines of a) listeners had been positive about the new(s) addition and b) putting it at the beginning of the programme would risk listeners missing it - no comment about putting it at the end, but I suppose that's an even bigger "risk" as troublemaker listeners would be able to turn off.
"Stuff the music" would seem to sum up the approach...

Absolutely. Isn't it suspicious that the moment listeners complain about a feature, the automatic response is that 'listeners have been positive about the new addition'? It is such a vague explanation, with no figures of any kind to give us reason to believe it.

[ardcarp]

It seems obvious to say it, but I just cannot imagine any listener (early music buff or not) being 'positive' about that horrendous wrecking ball crashing into the middle of a music programme.

[oddoneout]

It seems obvious to say it, but I just cannot imagine any listener (early music buff or not) being 'positive' about that horrendous wrecking ball crashing into the middle of a music programme.

Unfortunately I didn't make a note at the time about the response/BBC statement I found and a cursory search suggests I didn't link in a post either. However I think the general gist was the usual "lively, fresh" guff, code for younger/new audience, whose opinions matter so much more than those of the established listeners. As I said earlier "stuff the music" is the attitude as no-one who values, let alone actually listens to, the music content of EMS could welcome the interruption, not least because it is so completely and utterly unnecessary. A simple change of placement to beginning or end would do, although that would still leave the residual issue of decreasing time for the proper content, which come on top of the general reduction started some time ago of dedicated early music content on R3. Ironically, putting it at the beginning would increase the chances of me hearing it, at least in part, as I would have the sound on to catch the start of the proper programme, and so half an ear on Mr Meow.

[french frank]

Absolutely. Isn't it suspicious that the moment listeners complain about a feature, the automatic response is that 'listeners have been positive about the new addition'? It is such a vague explanation, with no figures of any kind to give us reason to believe it.

What it has meant in the past is that 'our focus group didn't (spontaneously) mention it' . I'm beginning to feel the new controller shouldn't be spared from regular "comments" from an organised listener group.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Absolutely. Isn't it suspicious that the moment listeners complain about a feature, the automatic response is that 'listeners have been positive about the new addition'? It is such a vague explanation, with no figures of any kind to give us reason to believe it.

It only requires two listeners to back them up to allow them to make a statement such as this.

[Serial_Apologist]

It only requires two listeners to back them up to allow them to make a statement such as this.

Not half!

[AuntDaisy]

(Un)Fortunately, it's a repeat from 2 years ago.
But will they insert the annoying News just for us?

[french frank]

Has it been cut from Sounds? I played about 20 mins from the middle of the programme but there was no break. Perhaps the listeners via Sounds are considered more dedicated that the casual background listeners who are only listening because it's on?

[AuntDaisy]

Has it been cut from Sounds? I played about 20 mins from the middle of the programme but there was no break. Perhaps the listeners via Sounds are considered more dedicated that the casual background listeners who are only listening because it's on?

The version on Sounds is ~26min, the original programme was ~58min. I don't think we were blessed with "News" back in August 2021 & I couldn't find any.
For the "Podcast" versions, they cut & fade the music but usually keep the chatty bits intact. Just think how much more "News" that leaves as a percentage!