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Greeneland

A celebration of Graham Greene on the 25th anniversary of his death, with readings by Samuel West and Romola Garai. Including Honegger, Delius and a medieval motet.

A celebration of Graham Greene on the 25th anniversary of his death with the actors Samuel West and Romola Garai. Pack your bags, check your passport and prepare to renew your acquaintance with Scobie, Aunt Augusta, Sarah Miles, Minty and of course Harry Lime. As they buttonhole you expect to hear music that complements or even contradicts what they have to say - Honegger's Pacific 231, The Walk to the Paradise Garden by Delius, a medieval motet, the odd snatch of gypsy zither and maybe even a spot of dodecaphony - music as angular, varied and surprising as the features of Greeneland itself.

Producer: Zahid Warley.

1 hour, 15 minutes

Last on

Wed 28 Dec 2016 16:30
Â鶹ԼÅÄ Radio 3

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Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:00

    The Chico Hamilton Quintet

    Goodbye Baby

    Performer: The Chico Hamilton Quintet.
    • EL RECORDS ACMEM132CD.
    • Tr1.

  • Graham Greene

    From Stamboul Train, read by Samuel West

  • 00:06

    Arthur Honegger

    Pacific 231

    Performer: Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Neeme Järvi (conductor).
    • Chandos CHAN 9176.
    • Tr7.

  • Graham Greene

    From Travels with my Aunt, read by Romola Garai

  • 00:15

    Serenade Op.31, Canzonetta

    • BIS CD310BIS.
    • Tr3.

  • Graham Greene

    From England Made Me, read by Samuel West

  • 00:23

    Anton Webern

    Variations for Piano op. 27, III. Ruhig fiebend

    Performer: Krystian Zimerman.
    • Deutsche Grammophon 4576372 (6).
    • CD6 Tr17.

  • Graham Greene

    From A Shocking Accident, read by Romola Garai

  • 00:30

    Jones/Green

    More than Ever

    Performer: Mildred Bailey.
    • ASV CDAJA5065.
    • Tr15.

  • Graham Greene

    From Brighton Rock, read by Romola Garai

  • 00:35

    Frederick Delius

    The Walk to the Paradise Garden

    Performer: Â鶹ԼÅÄ Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Davis (conductor).
    • TELDEC 4509908452.
    • Tr4.

  • Graham Greene

    From The Quiet American, read by Samuel West

  • 00:48

    Osvaldo Golijov

    KÂ’In Sventa ChÂ’ul MeÂ’tik Kwadulupe

    Performer: Kronos Quartet.
    • Nonesuch 7559796492.
    • Tr7.

  • Graham Greene

    from The Power and the Glory, read by Samuel West

  • 00:56

    Trad.

    Agnus Dei

    Performer: Joachim Ngoi and Les Troubadours du Roi Baudouin.
    • El ACMEM 136CD.
    • Tr13.

  • Graham Greene

    From The End of the Affair, read by Romola Garai

  • 01:02

    From Montpellier Manuscript

    O Maria

    Performer: Vox Clamantis, Jaan-Eik Tulve (conductor).
    • ECM New Series2244 4764499.
    • Tr13.

  • Graham Greene

    From The Heart of the Matter, read by Samuel West

  • 01:09

    Anton Karas

    Harry Lime Theme (The Third Man)

    Performer: Anton Karas.
    • Soundtrack Factory SFCD33538.
    • Tr2.

  • Graham Greene

    From The Third Man, read by Samuel West

  • 01:09

    Anton Karas

    Anton Karas' Performance at a London Club

    Performer: Anton Karas.
    • Soundtrack Factory SFCD33538.
    • Tr19.

Producer's Notes: Greeneland

Most of us have been there at least once; some of us are permanent residents; others just casual but regular visitors.  Greeneland is not so much a point on the map as a place in our minds and hearts -- a landscape where joy is frequently alloyed with pain and doubt always seems to tussle with faith.  It has a knack of combining the exotic with the familiar so you’re likely to find a scrofulous old Harrovian working as a hack but in Sweden not Fleet Street; or learn that your seventy year old aunty has a penchant for smuggling and married men.  Something odd seems to be going on with the perspective.  Saigon and Istanbul are brought into sharp focus but then blur at the approach of a very English lens.  The same optical instrument has a way of finding jungle flora and fauna in a Brighton pub or on Clapham Common.


Which brings us to this evening’s brief excursion into Greeneland.  You’ll encounter some old friends and maybe make some new ones – Scobie, Aunt Augusta, Rose and Pinkie are waiting to buttonhole you as well as a priest with no name and a lugubrious chap called Minty.  In Greeneland you’re as likely to hear a Viennese zither as a dodecaphonic squawk.  Some pieces such as Harry Lime’s theme from the film of  The Third Man or Honegger’s Pacific 231 - which Greene listened to compulsively while writing Stamboul Train – seem to fit the landscape with a kind of inevitability while others such as The Walk to the Paradise Garden by Delius, are perfectly, but obscurely right for Greeneland’s climatic conditions.  A little imagination has been used to supply any gaps in the score for which I can only ask for patience and indulgence ….Neither of which will be needed for the actors, Romola Garai and Samuel West who breathe new life into the all too hungry ghosts of Greeneland   gathering to mark the twenty fifth anniversary of their creator’s death.

Producer: Zahid Warley

Broadcasts

  • Sun 3 Apr 2016 17:30
    Â鶹ԼÅÄ Radio 3
  • Wed 28 Dec 2016 16:30
    Â鶹ԼÅÄ Radio 3

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