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Episode details

Radio 3,14 Feb 2026,56 mins

Series The President and the Polka

6. Power and Protest

Music Matters

Available for 25 days

Justin Webb (presenter of Today and Americast, and former BBC North America Editor) explores the surprising relationship between classical music and American politics. From the days of the Founding Fathers, music was used to assert an American identity, distinct from a European musical tradition. And evolving political and social ideals, dreams and struggles were mirrored in the music being created - from Manifest Destiny to #MeToo, from Civil War to Civil Rights. Today, the role of music in the push for racial equality and social unity. And the challenges facing classical music in today's divided America. Producer - Megan Jones, BBC Audio Wales

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Tracklist

  1. Track
    Artist
  2. 1.
    Mass (Part 6, Gloria Tibi)
    Mass (Part 6, Gloria Tibi)
    Leonard Bernstein
  3. 2.
    Camelot (excerpt)
    Camelot (excerpt)
    Frederick Loewe
  4. 3.
    Mass (Part 1, Devotions before Mass)
    Mass (Part 1, Devotions before Mass)
    Leonard Bernstein
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