Forum des auditeurs passionnés et critiques de France Culture

Une merveille de lecture et de réalisation radiophonique : Yorkshire* dans  Book of the Week, commençant le 19 02 2018.  Les 5 épisodes de la semaine, chacun de 13 minutes, sont déjà tous disponibles.

Written by Richard Morris
Abridged by Pete Nichols
Reader: Philip Jackson
Produced by Karen Rose
A Sweet Talk production for BBC Radio 4.

Les maisons de production auxquelles la BBC commande et achète des émissions créent des œuvres patrimoniales remarquables. Ici, c'est l'histoire d'un comté, le Yorkshire, qui nous est narrée. Son fil rouge : la recherche d'origines  familiales. Et c'est soudain toute une région qui s'éclaire à travers l'histoire, la politique, l'économie, l'urbanisme, la géologie, la nature, la littérature, la poésie. C'est très bien conçu et le climat suscite immédiate adhésion auditive : atmosphère sonore sobre, lecture habitée de Philip Jackson.


Yorkshire is one of Europe's most geologically varied areas - a realm where mountain, plain, coast, chalk hills, wetland and heath intermingle.

In Richard Morris' Yorkshire, we discover the county through eyes of artists like J M W Turner, William Callow and Henry Moore - and the imagination of writers such as The Brontes, Winifred Holtby and J B Priestley.

We travel to the county's netherworld of caves, mines and tunnels, and confront dark subjects such as the part played by Whitby and Hull in the emptying of Arctic seas and shores of whales and bears.

Yorkshire explores the tumultuous history of the county and asks why it has so often been to the fore in times of conflict or tension - think Wars of the Roses, Civil War, Cold War, the miners' strike of 1984.

Both in area and population, Yorkshire today is larger than many member countries of the UN, yet remains just an English county. Richard Morris delivers a wide-ranging, lyrical and very personal history of God's Own County.

Richard Morris is an Emeritus Professor of the University of Huddersfield. He was Director of the Council for British Archaeology (CBA) from 1991 to 1999. His interest in churches, settlement, historical topography, cultural history and aviation are reflected in essays, articles and books. His book Time's Anvil: England, Archaeology and the Imagination was longlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize and shortlisted for the 2015 Archaeological Book of the Year. His other publications include Churches In The Landscape (1989) as well as biographies of Guy Gibson (1994) and Leonard Cheshire (2000).

* http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09rx200

BBC Radio 3 The Dance of Nature Free Thinking, Festival 2018 - The One and the Many Episode 3 of 13
Tue 13 Mar 2018 22:00
From schools of fish to starlings to atomic particles. what does group behaviour look like in nature ? Rana Mitter is joined by BBC Radio 4's presenter of The Life Scientific Jim Al-Khalili, Melissa Bateson, Andrew Mcbain and Richard Bevan. Recorded with an audience at Sage Gateshead for the 2018 Free Thinking Festival. (...)

BBC Radio 4 Swimming Through Ice Out of the Ordinary, Series 5  Fri 17 Mar 2017 11:00
Jolyon Jenkins meets the people who want to swim a mile through freezing cold water. This isn't like a quick dip on New Year's Day - it takes about 40 minutes to swim a mile. As the swimmers battle the second law of thermodynamics, only the fit, or fat, will make it. (...)

BBC Radio 4 Silent Night Short Cuts, Series 15 Episode 5 of 8  Tue 13 Mar 2018 15:00
A quiet walk through an abandoned prison camp in darkness, late night ambient sound in the Maasai Mara - Josie Long listens for sounds in the hush of the night.
Silent Night
Featuring Carl Cattermole
Produced by Thomas Glasser and based on his documentary for National Prison Radio, Sounds Inside
Crickets - Night - Maasai Mara (...)

BBC Radio 4 Disinformation, A User's Guide Archive on 4 17 03 2018
What if there was never a 'Truth' era before 'Post-Truth'?
In this edition of Archive on 4, Phil Tinline mines the archives to trace the story of 'disinformation' - navigating the slippery history of such incidents as the Zinoviev Letter, the Reichstag Fire, the Moscow Trials and the allegations that the US used germ warfare in the Korean War.(...)

BBC Radio 4 Stephen Reicher on the psychology of crowds The Life Scientific  Tue 13 Mar 2018 09:00
Stephen Reicher is a social psychologist at St Andrews University who has spent decades understanding how people behave when in a group. To do so, he's often had to immerse himself among the subjects of his studies, from the Bristol riots in 1980 to the millions of Hindu pilgrims who go to the Magh Mela. Stephen Reicher talks to Jim al-Khalili about the positive and the negative sides to a crowd and the role of a leader of a crowd. (...)

BBC Radio 3 What Lies Beneath, Neanderthal Cave Art to Fatbergs Free Thinking  Wed 28 Feb 2018 22:00
The archaeologist Francis Pryor tells Shahidha Bari about a lifetime of building vistas of our history and prehistory through the evidence of pottery shards, holes in the mud and broken bones and palaeo-archaeologist Paul Pettitt who co-discovered Britain's first cave art explains why darkness informed a critical component in the development of the human brain and archaeologist Ruth Whitehouse reflects on the use of caves for ritual.(...)

BBC Radio 4 Michael Gets Voice Training Word of Mouth  Tue 23 Jan 2018 16:00
Vocal coaches Gillyanne Kayes and Jeremy Fisher, authors of This is a Voice, give Michael Rosen a workout. They get him to read against natural pitch and intonation, which proves nearly impossible, and make him match his speaking pace to a walk around the studio. What we do with our consonants and our ability with a tongue twister also turn out to play a part in the ways in which we speak.
Producer Beth O'Dea.(...)

BBC Radio 3 Jane Birkin Private Passions  Sun 17 Dec 2017 12:00
Jane Birkin came to fame in the swinging 60s, thanks to her wild beauty and daring appearances in avant-garde films such as Blow-up, and thanks also to her tempestuous relationship with Serge Gainsbourg. In 1969 their song "Je t'aime" was banned by the BBC and the rest is history; it became the biggest-selling foreign language record ever. Since then, Jane Birkin has appeared in more than fifty films, been awarded the OBE for services to Anglo-French relations and released thirteen albums.(...)

BBC Radio 3 Quatuor pour la fin du temps Recital Sun 10 Dec 2017 23:30
New Generation Artists Annelien Van Wauwe and the Amatis Piano Trio perform Messiaen's spiritually exultant work, composed in 1940 while he was a German prisoner of war. Recorded in October at the Stratford-on-Avon Festival.(...)

BBC Radio 4 Stand By Me We Need to Talk About Death, Series 1  Sat 3 Dec 2016 22:15
Mortality is often on Joan Bakewell's mind. She's in her eighties, many of her friends have died and older relatives went long ago. She's seen others die and doesn't find it frightening.
Given that death and dying are just part of the stream of human existence, she's baffled that so many of us shy away from the subject. Particularly given that many of us don't die 'well'. (...)

Tweet of the Week Week 44 - Chris Baines 11 March 2018
Naturalist, environmentalist and wildlife gardener Chris Baines introduces his collection of Tweet episodes.

Etc.

Dans le "Etc" ci-dessus, il faut compter évidemment l'excellente série ''The Essay'' (une quotidienne de 13 minutes) qui, cette semaine, a pour sujet ''Is Music a Civilising Force?''. Le premier numéro est confié à Sir Roger Scruton.

On ajoutera "au panier" Debussy 100 on BBC Radio 3.

Pourquoi encore écouter France Culture ?

Qui est Seán Williams ? Un New Generation Thinker. C'est-à-dire ? Eh bien, une de ces brillantes personnalités sélectionnées et formées pour la production et l'animation radiophoniques. J'ai déjà signalé ce programme de formation interne de la BBC qui permet d'entendre de nouvelles voix et de donner leur chance à des créateurs et des intervieweurs en devenir, c'était le 15 novembre 2015 dans New Generation Thinkers.

Comment ne pas penser à France Culture où chaque producteur souhaite sans doute, avec l'aval de la direction, nous imposer sa présence pendant une ou plusieurs décennies, où il n'y a aucun renouvellement, aucune fraîcheur tout au long de l'année, tout au long des années. Quelle est la personnalité marquante qui a émergé à France Culture ces vingt dernières années ? La station est sans surprise, sans fantaisie, et sans ressort, les sujets sont connus d'avance, ils sont rabâchés à longueur d'année (voir la nouvelle série de 5h sur Lacan dans les Chemins de la philosophie, par exemple).

En attendant (d'y revenir), écoutons, si c'est possible, Seán Williams parfaitement diriger trois entretiens de la série Arts and Ideas & Free thinking de BBC 3, dans une émission intitulée A Sentimental Journey* (1 March 2018). Placement de voix, ton, débit, langue, capacité à relancer, ça sent le professionnalisme et l'auditeur est reconnaissant d'être ainsi respecté.

* Laurence Sterne's subjective travel book was published in 1768. Mary Newbould and Duncan Large discuss its influence.
    Plus novelist Philip Hensher on his new book The Friendly Ones and writing fiction about neighbourliness, families and the Bangladesh Liberation War.
    Walker Nick Hunt discusses his journeys following the pathways taken by European winds such as the Mistral and the Foehn and the conversations he had about nationalism, immigration and myths.

On rêve d'avoir à France Culture une présentatrice aussi structurée que Bridget Kendall. Sa conduite d'entretien dans l'émission The Forum du samedi 7 avril sur BBC Radio 4 est un modèle du genre.

Quel était le sujet de cette discussion avec quatre intervenants ? La concurrence ? La bioéthique ? L'accès à l'information ? La révolution en Amérique latine ? La laïcité ?* Non :  l'histoire du coton : Cotton, Yarn with a Twist.**

Instructif et stimulant à tous égards : histoire, botanique, sciences et techniques, évolution de l'habillement.


* Sujets du Grain à moudre, forum de bavardage sur l'actualité en fin d'après-midi.

** It is a fibre and a fabric that is part of many people's daily lives, it grows wild on at least three continents, it has been woven into cloth and traded all over the world for thousands of years. And when machines made possible the mass production of cotton, its story became entwined with the history of human slavery: making fortunes for a few, and condemning many to a life of misery. So what are the milestones in the history of cotton? And why has it always proved such a popular clothing material across the centuries and across the world?

Bridget Kendall is joined by four textile historians to trace cotton's origins and its evolution into one of the world's most important global commodities: Sven Beckert, Professor of History at Harvard, Prasannan Parthasarathi, Professor of History at Boston College, Giorgio Riello, Professor of Global History and Culture at the University of Warwick and the President of the Textile Society Mary Schoeser.
Producer: Radek Boschetty.

''Composer of the Week'', Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), Episode 1 of 5 : Beyond The Canon.

Du 9  au 13 avril 2018, disponible en ligne durant 4 semaines.

Donald Macleod unravels the rich musical legacy of a composer known almost exclusively for one iconic work: the "Canon in D".

Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706) was one of the most exceptional musical minds of his generation - a composer of brilliant choral and keyboard music and a huge influence on JS Bach. Yet more than three centuries on, his reputation rests almost exclusively on one piece - his "Canon in D", one of the most famous pieces of classical music of own our age. This week, Donald Macleod delves deep into his world, exploring a raft of brilliant vocal and instrumental works and putting to bed the myth of the "one-hit wonder". We also look more closely at the iconic Canon - in a variety of fascinating, sometimes surprising arrangements.

''Once Sanskrit is converted into Chinese, the subtle nuances are lost. Though the general meaning gets across, there is no way to bridge the gap in genre and style. It is like feeding another person with chewed-over rice. Not only is the flavour lost, it will cause the other person to vomit." Kumārajīva (344–413 CE)

C'est le producteur de la BBC et professeur d'histoire Rana Mitter qui fait cette citation dans le troisième épisode* de Chinese Characters, une série passionnante qui se propose, en vingt épisodes de 15 minutes, de raconter l'histoire de la Chine à travers la vie de personnalités marquantes.

Du beau patrimoine radiophonique.

Kumarajiva: Translator Monk

Philaunet(https://regardfc.1fr1.net/t13p310-bbc-radio-3-radio-4#30450) a écrit:''Composer of the Week'', Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), Episode 1 of 5 : Beyond The Canon.

Du 9 au 13 avril 2018, disponible en ligne durant 4 semaines.

Donald Macleod unravels the rich musical legacy of a composer known almost exclusively for one iconic work: the "Canon in D".

Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706) was one of the most exceptional musical minds of his generation - a composer of brilliant choral and keyboard music and a huge influence on JS Bach. Yet more than three centuries on, his reputation rests almost exclusively on one piece - his "Canon in D", one of the most famous pieces of classical music of own our age. This week, Donald Macleod delves deep into his world, exploring a raft of brilliant vocal and instrumental works and putting to bed the myth of the "one-hit wonder". We also look more closely at the iconic Canon - in a variety of fascinating, sometimes surprising arrangements.

Dans le troisième numéro de cette splendide série de Donald Macleod,  All Together Now*, se trouve la pièce "Alle Menschen mussen sterben" de Johann Pachelbel interprétée par le pianiste et compositeur minimaliste, Anton Batagov. Une merveille. La pièce n'est pas disponible en ligne, on pourra néanmoins goûter l'art du pianiste dans Johann Pachelbel: Chaconne in F minor. À noter qu'Anton Batagov a pris récemment le chemin de Glenn Gould (et cela s'entend), à savoir quitter toute représentation publique pour se dédier à l'enregistrement de studio.

"Alle Menschen müssen sterben" a été écrit par Pachelbel après que sa femme et son premier fils sont morts de la peste. Et justement à propos de la peste, en trois minutes Donald Macleod nous en apprend plus sur la maladie, son origine, sa propagation et ses conséquences démographiques qu'une récente émission de France Culture...

Post dédié à notre ami mélomane Fred de Rouen, frénétique partageur de belles choses, décédé il y aura bientôt trois mois.

* In today's episode Donald Macleod explores how the composer expressed in music his deep grief at the loss of his first wife and infant son in his unique collection "Musical Thoughts On Death". Plus, as he continues his journey through the diverse arrangements of the famous Canon - there's a curious connection to the world of 1990s "Madchester" dance music, and American West Coast hip-hop..

Le 5e et dernier numéro, Japan Refusal*, de la série Dark Blossoms commence avec le séjour de l'écrivain Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) à Londres. Mieux qu'un débat à la France Culture ("c'est la faute à la société néo-libérale", etc.) le monologue bien rythmé de Christopher Harding retrace les origines de la neurasthénie et de la dépression chez certains Japonais aux 20e et 21e siècles. Histoire, économie, société, le tableau est brossé en moins de 15 minutes. De la radio efficace, parce que préparée et ayant pour but d'édifier l'auditeur (et non d'exprimer un point de vue définitif pour s'affirmer, comme dans les nombreuses tables rondes de FC).

On se demande, d'ailleurs, en mettant en parallèle la BBC et FC, pourquoi France Cult[ouver]ure ne s'ouvre pas à d'autres formats que les sempiternelles discussions entre un producteur (h/f) et un ou plusieurs intervenants. Les émissions hors discussions de FC doivent se compter sur les doigts d'une main

BBC Radio 3 Fri 27 Apr 2018 22:45

Christopher Harding asks if mental illness in Japan may actually be a sign of a rejection of a narrowly-conceived modernity? From the neurasthenia of the great novelist Natsume Soseki to the "hikikomori" or acute social withdrawal of the 1990s, he questions whether these conditions may actually be a rational response to a tightly governed society: "their deep disorientation may be the result of living in a rapidly-changing society and possessing an almost pathological degree of clear-sightedness" This is the final episode in a series of essays in which he explores the doubts and misgivings which have beset the rapid modernisation of mainstream life in Japan.
Producer: Sheila Cook.

1Deer Cry Hall
2 Happy Families
3 Rebranding the Buddha
4 The Art of the Heist

''- Are we living in a golden age of audio at the moment, when podcasters can go on world tours?

- I think we definitely are, yes, on-demand audio like podcasts (...) are cross-revolutionizing what's happening, finally radio stations have competition, which is quite exciting''.

The Media Show BBC Radio 4 Wed 4 Apr 2018.

Laura Howard on the Swift Tweet of the Day

Springwatch producer Laura Howard describes how the arrival of swifts in May and learning more about nature walking in the countryside felt like wearing glasses that let her see clearly for the first time.