Each week the programme examines some of the larger questions of life, taking a spiritual theme and exploring it through music, prose and poetry.
Programme details: Sunday 8th March 2009
As You Have Lived
Today’s programme was presented by Mark Tully.
The readers were Janice Acquah and David Holt.
Readings and Music
Music 1: ‘Gracias a la Vida’ performed by Joan Baez.
Available on the album The Universal Masters Collection: Classic Joan Baez, released by Universal.
Reading 1: ‘One Virginia Tech, two moral universes’ written by Ben Macintyre.
Published in The Times on 20th April 2007.
Music 2: ‘The Land of Plenty’ performed by Leonard Cohen.
Available on the album Ten New Songs, released by Columbia.
Reading 2: ‘For Those Whom the Gods Love Less’ by Denise Levertov.
From the book New Selected Poems, published by Bloodaxe.
Music 3: ‘Affirmation’ from ‘Suite Hébraïque’ composed by Ernest Bloch.
Performed by Hagai Shaham and Arnon Erez, from the album Baal Shem Suite, released by Hyperion.
Reading 3: ‘A Quick Fix for the Soul’ by Darian Leader.
Published in The Guardian on 9th September 2008.
Reading 4: ‘A Song of Living’ by Amelia Josephine Burr.
From the book Show Me the Way, published by Hodder and Stoughton.
Music 4: ‘Introitus’ composed by Igor Stravinsky and performed by the New London Chamber Choir.
Available on the album Les Noces and Other Choral Music, released by Hyperion.
Reading 5: Mephisto by Klaus Mann. From the translation by Robyn Smith.
Published by Penguin.
Music 5: ‘Eric’s Theme’ performed by Vangelis.
Available on the CD Chariots of Fire, released by Polydor.
Reading 6: ‘You Can’t Get Away With It’ written by Yevgeny Yevtushenko.
Available in the book, The Face Behind the Face. Published by Marion Boyars.
Music 6: ‘Adagio’ from ‘Symphony No. 8’ composed by Anton Bruckner and performed by the Berliner Philharmoniker.
Available on the CD, Symphonie No. 8, released by Deutsche Grammophon.
Something Understood is a Unique production for BBC Radio 4.
