Main content

Alison Balsom

Kirsty Young talks to trumpeter Alison Balsom.

Kirsty Young's castaway this week is the musician, Alison Balsom.

Widely considered the finest classical trumpet player of her generation, she's performed in all the great concert halls of the world, winning a huge amount of fans and a string of awards for her ability to exquisitely convey the many voices of her chosen instrument.

As a child she had dreams of being a part-time trumpet player, astronaut and jockey - she's only 36 so there's time yet for the other two; but whilst she is solely devoting her energies to her instrument her belief in the power of music seems endless. In between gigs, rehearsals, recordings and motherhood, she's found time to travel to Uganda and Liberia as patron of Brass for Africa, with the heartfelt conviction that she can transform the lives of street children by teaching them to play.

Producer: Sarah Taylor.

Available now

36 minutes

Last on

Fri 9 Oct 2015 09:00
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4

More episodes

Previous

Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran

Next

Lemn Sissay

See all episodes from Desert Island Discs

Clips

See all clips from Alison Balsom (2)

Music Played

  • Dizzy Gillespie

    Con Alma

    • Compact Jazz: Dizzy Gillespie.
    • MERCURY.

  • Queen

    Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy

    • Queen: Platinum collection.
    • PARLOPHONE.

  • CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE

    • Johann Sebastian Bach

      Concerto No. 5 BWV 1050 in D Major

      Performer: The English Concert Orchestra conducted by Trevor Pinnock.
      • Johann Sebastian Bach Brandenburg Concertos No. 4, 5 & 6.
      • ARCHIV.

  • Gustav Mahler

    Symphony No. 5 V Rondo-Finale

    Performer: Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
    • Mahler: Symphony No. 5.
    • DECCA.

  • Whitney Houston

    I Have Nothing

    • The Bodyguard Original Motion Picture Soundtrack.
    • ARISTA.

  • Ludwig van Beethoven

    Violin Concerto

    Performer: Maxim Vengerov. Performer: London Symphony Orchestra. Performer: Mstislav Rostropovich (Conductor).
    • Beethoven: Violin Concerto / Romances Nos. 1 & 2.
    • EMI Classics.

  • Henry Purcell

    March

    Performer: Monteverdi Choir. Performer: Monteverdi Orchestra. Performer: Equale Brass Ensemble. Performer: John Eliot Gardiner (Conductor).
    • Music For Queen Mary.
    • ERATO.

  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    Chorus "Ruht wohl, ihr heiligen Gebeine"

    Performer: Collegium Vocale Gent. Performer: Philippe Herreweghe.
    • J.S. Bach: Johannes-Passion.
    • Harmonia Mundi.

  • BOOK CHOICE

    The Complete Scores of Bach

  • LUXURY ITEM

    Trumpet

Credits

Presenter Kirsty Young
Interviewed Guest Alison Balsom
Producer Sarah Taylor

Broadcasts

  • Sun 4 Oct 2015 11:15
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4
  • Fri 9 Oct 2015 09:00
    Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Radio 4

Featured in...

The Desert Island Discs podcast

The Desert Island Discs podcast

Subscribe or download individual episodes.

Listen to over 2,000 programmes

Click above to browse castaways, from 1942 to today.

Articles

Read the surprising things we've learned about some stand-out castaways.

Podcast