Add to Playlist

Pianist, singer and songwriter Natalie Duncan and Martin Phipps, composer of TV's The Crown and Ridley Scott's new film Napoleon, join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye as they travel from Senegal to a massive Cher hit from 1998.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:El hadji n'fa djigui Diabaté by Salimata Diabaté Mute Heart by Matt Calvert Jingle Bells by Dean Shostak Il Dolce Suono by Gaetano Donizetti Believe by CherOther music in this episode:Insomnia 2021 by Faithless (Maceo Plex Epic Remix) Sabre Dance by Aram Khachaturian Wild Signals from Close Encounters of the Third Kind by John Williams So Doggone Lonesome by Ernest Tubb Adagio in C for Glass Harmonica, K356 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Composer Debbie Wiseman and the writer and multi-instrumentalist Rhodri Marsden join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye as they add five more tracks, taking us from a Drifters' classic hit to one of Beethoven's most famous compositions.For Add to Playlist, the Chinese pianist Lang Lang reflects on playing Beethoven, and percussionist Ruairi Glasheen is on hand to talk us through the finer elements of the popular instrument, the güiro.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Under the Boardwalk by The Drifters Für Elise: Bagatelle No 25 in A Minor by Ludwig van Beethoven Tchintchirote by Cesária Évora Golden Birdies by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band Sabre Dance by Aram Khachaturian Other music in this episode:Carmina Burana by Carl Orff Oye Como Va by Eliane Elias Butt music from Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights Supersonic by Oasis Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones Don't You Worry 'bout a Thing by Stevie Wonder Hands Up by Cherry Bullet

Fraser T Smith - producer, musician and collaborator with artists including Adele, Stormzy, Dave and Sam Smith - and Welsh jazz harpist Amanda Whiting, add the next five tracks to the growing playlist. With Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye they go from a Snoop Dogg 1994 hit to Brazil via some serious jazz piano.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Gin and Juice by Snoop Dogg Passion Dance by McCoy Tyner Deacon Blues by Steely Dan String Quartet No 2 in A Minor: II Andante Cantabile by Florence Price Oye Como Va by Eliane EliasOther music in this episode:Higher Ground by Stevie Wonder I Got the... by Labi Siffre Blinded by Your Grace Pt 2 by Stormzy Set Fire to the Rain by Adele Black by Dave I Know You by Craig David Feat. Bastille Fallin' by Alicia Keys I'd Rather Go Blind by Etta James He's Got the Whole World In His Hands by Wanda Jackson The Banana Boat Song by Harry Belafonte Oye Como Va by Tito Puente Chanchullo by Arcaño y sus Maravillas Oye Como Va by Santana

Baritone and composer Roderick Williams and violinist Jennifer Pike - the youngest ever winner of BBC Young Musician of the Year at the time in 2002, aged just 12 - join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye to add five more tracks to the playlist.The musical choices take us from one of the most famous tunes in the UK (composer unknown) to a Labi Siffre hit famously sampled by Eminem, via arguably the most recognisable film theme of all time. Labi Siffre makes an appearance to look back on his 1975 classic.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:God Save the Queen (from 1888 and 1898) In Flanders Fields by Charles Ives and John McCrae Jaws – Main Title by John Williams Violin Sonata No.2 in G Major: III Perpetuum mobile by Maurice Ravel I Got the... by Labi SiffreOther music in this episode:Yeke Yeke by Mory Kante Let’s Go Fly a Kite from Mary Poppins God Save the King, performed by Roderick Williams and Le Concert Spirituel Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau (Land of My Fathers) - the National Anthem of Wales Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja from The Magic Flute by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Vespers of 1610: Deus in adiutorium meum intende by Claudio Monteverdi Opening of La Valse by Maurice Ravel To Those Who Pass the Borough from Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten Flight of the Bumblebee by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov My Name Is by Eminem

Trumpet player Matilda Lloyd and gold steel pan player Leon Foster Thomas bring their instruments to the studio as they join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye to add five more tracks to the playlist, each chosen for its musical connections with the previous one.In this episode the journey takes us from Mozart via a classic jazz trio to a 1964 kite-flying Disney singalong hit.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Molto allegro from Symphony No. 40 in G Minor by Mozart Easy Does It by Oscar Peterson Trio I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston Kwa Heri Mafisadi by Mwana Cotide Let’s Go Fly a Kite from Mary Poppins Other music in this episode:Bliss by Leon Foster Thomas Tarantella Napoletana played by Matilda Lloyd Hands Up by Cherry Bullet I Will Always Love You by Dolly Parton

21-year-old saxophonist and composer Emma Rawicz, finalist of BBC Young Musician 2022, and conductor Ben Gernon add five more tracks to the playlist with Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye. The musical links take them from a Langston Hughes poem set to jazz to a seventies Spanish disco classic via the dusty plains of Argentina.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Life is Fine by Langston Hughes Estancia/Danzas del Ballet: IV by Alberto Ginastera Yes Sir, I Can Boogie by Baccara Something to Believe In by Madison Cunningham Hands Up by Cherry Bullet Other music in this episode:Phlox by Emma Rawicz The A-Team TV theme by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter Gangnam Style by Psy

Bassoonist Amy Harman and pianist Keelan Carew are today's guests in the studio with Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye as they add the next five tracks to the playlist.From a gentle nursery rhyme, the musical links take us to a Russian dance, a celebration of the Earth's origins in Estonia, and a testosterone-fuelled TV theme with helicopters and machine guns.Dr Peter J Bentley discusses the increasing use - and challenges - of Artificial Intelligence in music, and the singer/songwriter Mari Kalkun tells us about the origins of her track Kui Kivid Olid Veel Pehmed.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Mary Had a Little Lamb by Ramona Singh What a Fool Believes by The Doobie Brothers Russian Dance from Petrushka by Igor Stravinsky Kui Kivid Olid Veel Pehmed by Mari Kalkun The A-Team TV theme by Mike Post and Pete CarpenterOther music in this episode:I wish I Knew How it Would Feel to be Free (Live) by Nina Simone The Rite of Spring by Igor Stravinsky, performed at the BBC Proms by the Aurora Orchestra Fingertips pt 2: Live by Stevie Wonder Gymnopédie No.1 by Erik Satie Theme from The Rockford Files by Mike Post and Pete Carpenter

Pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason and musician and silent movie score composer Neil Brand launch a new playlist. With presenters Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye, they choose the first five tracks which take us from a celebratory anthem chanted in football stadiums to a live, mischievous performance by a 12-year-old Stevie Wonder.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Freed from Desire by Gala Piano Concerto in F Major: 3rd Movement by George Gershwin Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen Piano Quartet in A minor by Gustav Mahler Fingertips pt 2: Live by Stevie WonderOther music in this episode:Welcome to My World by Ezra Collective Piano Concerto No. 3 by Sergei Prokofiev

Composer Isobel Waller-Bridge and baritone Roderick Williams join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye to add the final five tracks to the current series, bringing the playlist up to 40. And the joy of rounds, or canons, with singer, composer and producer Esbe, and one in particular that she sings which goes back to the 13th century.From lovesick individuals to the arrival of spring and with a dramatic finale, the serendipity continues... This episode was first broadcast in March this year. Add to Playlist returns to Radio 4 on 13th OctoberProducer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Lovesick (ft ASAP Rocky) by Mura Masa Zefiro torna e di soavi accenti by Claudio Monteverdi Sumer Is Icumen In by Esbe A Long Time Ago by David Byrne Bat Out of Hell by Meat LoafOther music in this episode:If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake by Ethel Merman and Ray Bolger Huashca de Corales by Biluka y los Canibales Hot Stuff by Donna Summer Oye Cómo Va by Tito Puente

Downton Abbey composer John Lunn and saxophonist Jess Gillam join Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey Boakye on a journey from the snowy landscape of northern Finland to the warmth of Ecuador as they add the next five tracks, exploring unusual instruments and effects, including the theremin and the tremolo. Guitarist and songwriter Johnny Marr, formerly of The Smiths, talks us through one of the most ambitious uses of tremolo, and guitarist Adam Goldsmith demonstrates a few other tricks guitarists have up their sleeve.This episode was first broadcast in March this year.Producer Jerome Weatherald Presented, with music direction, by Cerys Matthews and Jeffrey BoakyeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Kilisee, Kilisee Kulkunen by Tapiola Choir Snowflake by Kate Bush How Soon is Now? by The Smiths Clair de Lune, Arr. for Theremin and Voice by Carolina Eyck - by Claude Debussy Huashca de Corales by Biluka y los CanibalesOther music in this episode:(Love is Like a) Heatwave by Martha & the Vandellas Many Rivers to Cross by Jimmy Cliff