Your Hundred Best Tunes
1975 album of music from the show selected by Alan Keith (pictured)
GenreMusic
Running time60 minutes (9:00 pm – 10:00 pm)
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Language(s)English
Home station
Hosted by
Created byAlan Keith
Original release15 November 1959 (1959-11-15) –
21 January 2007 (2007-01-21)
No. of episodesapproximately 2500

Your Hundred Best Tunes was a BBC radio music programme, always broadcast on Sunday evenings, which presented popular works which were mostly classical excerpts, choral works, opera and ballads. The hundred tunes which made up the playlist were initially selected by the creator and presenter, Alan Keith. Subsequently, tunes were suggested by requests and polls of listeners.[1]

History

The Hundred Best Tunes in the World was broadcast on the BBC Light Programme from 15 November 1959 until 7 February 1960, when Alan Keith's personal list of one hundred had all been played. The title was changed from 14 February 1960. At this point it ran for half an hour from 10 to 10.30 pm, but from 25 December 1960 it was extended and moved to earlier in the evening, running from 7.35 to 8.30 pm. From 12 March 1961 it adopted the 9 to 10 pm time slot which it would occupy for the rest of its life, on four different networks: it moved from the Light Programme to the Home Service from 5 January 1964, and remained there after it became Radio 4 from 1 October 1967, but returned to what had been the Light Programme, now renamed Radio 2, from 5 April 1970.

The last show was transmitted on 21 January 2007 – a run of over 47 years. For most of this time, it was presented by the original creator, Alan Keith, who continued up to the age of 94. After his death in 2003,[2] Richard Baker presented the show.[3] Holiday guest presenters included Evelyn Barbirolli, Rosalind Runcie, Earl Spencer and Ursula Vaughan Williams.[4][5]

The show was cancelled by Lesley Douglas, Controller of Radio 2, who replaced it with a longer Melodies for You, presented by Alan Titchmarsh, which continued to play music from the same repertoire until it too was cancelled in 2011.[6] A special edition of the format was aired on 30 December 2011, presented by Alfie Boe, who played a selection from the 2003 poll plus some of his own favourites.[7][8]

The hundred best tunes

Polls were taken to confirm the choice of the hundred best tunes. The results of the last poll in 2003 are below. The previous poll was in 1997 and the position of each work in that earlier poll is shown in the right hand column.[9]

Number Piece Composer Previous
1"Au fond du temple saint" from The Pearl FishersGeorges Bizet1
2"Nimrod" from Enigma VariationsEdward Elgar16
3"Va, pensiero" from NabuccoGiuseppe Verdi22
4Violin Concerto No. 1 in G MinorMax Bruch12
5Canon in DJohann Pachelbel52
6Clarinet Concerto in AWolfgang Amadeus Mozart33
7Symphony No. 6 in F (Pastoral)Ludwig van Beethoven27
8Piano Concerto No. 2 in C MinorSergei Rachmaninoff8
9"Intermezzo" from Cavalleria rusticanaPietro Mascagni23
10The Lark AscendingRalph Vaughan Williams–
11FinlandiaJean Sibelius2
12Symphony No. 9 in D Minor 'Choral'Ludwig van Beethoven5
13The PlanetsGustav Holst9
14"Ombra mai fu" from SerseGeorge Frideric Handel17
15Piano Concerto No. 21 in CWolfgang Amadeus Mozart25
16Adagio for StringsSamuel Barber14
17Piano Concerto No. 5 in E Flat 'Emperor'Ludwig van Beethoven24
18"Méditation" from ThaïsJules Massenet39
19Symphony No. 9 in E Minor From the New WorldAntonín Dvořák36
20Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas TallisRalph Vaughan Williams-
21Ave Verum CorpusWolfgang Amadeus Mozart28
22Miserere mei, Deus – Psalm 51Gregorio Allegri–
23"Hallelujah!" from MessiahGeorge Frideric Handel32
24"Laudate Dominum" from Solemn VespersWolfgang Amadeus Mozart-
25"Romance" from The Gadfly SuiteDmitri Shostakovich29
26Zadok the Priest, one of the Coronation AnthemsGeorge Frideric Handel68
27"Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" from SolomonGeorge Frideric Handel38
28Piano Concerto in A minorEdvard Grieg–
29"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring"Johann Sebastian Bach85
30Cello Concerto in E MinorEdward Elgar6
31"What is Life?" from Orfeo ed EuridiceChristoph Willibald Gluck performed by Kathleen Ferrier30
33"Baïlèro" from Songs of the AuvergneJoseph Canteloube18
33The Blue DanubeJohann Strauss II
34"Listen to the Mocking Bird"Septimus Winner (as Alice Hawthorne)42
35"Song to the Moon" from RusalkaAntonín Dvořák4
36"Bells Across the Meadows"Albert Ketèlbey–
37Symphony No. 3 (Organ)Camille Saint-Saëns–
38Pomp and Circumstance No. 1Edward Elgar31
39Violin Concerto in E MinorFelix Mendelssohn40
40"Che gelida manina" from La bohèmeGiacomo Puccini89
41The Four SeasonsAntonio Vivaldi–
42Symphony No. 5Ludwig van Beethoven–
43"Panis angelicus"César Franck13
44"I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls" from The Bohemian GirlMichael William Balfe–
45Piano Concerto No. 1Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky–
46"Grand March" from AidaGiuseppe Verdi26
47"A Londonderry Air" - this was the theme tune – traditional, arrangedPercy Grainger59
48The Merry WidowFranz Lehár67
49"Nessun dorma" from TurandotGiacomo Puccini51
50Cantique de Jean RacineGabriel Fauré–
51"In Paradisum" from RequiemGabriel Fauré–
52Symphony No. 7Ludwig van Beethoven–
53Toccata and Fugue in D minorJohann Sebastian Bach–
54Adagio in G minorTomaso Albinoni–
55"Judex" from Mors et vitaCharles Gounod–
56Rhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniSergei Rachmaninoff–
57Warsaw ConcertoRichard Addinsell–
58"Adagio" from SpartacusAram Khachaturian–
59Romeo and JulietPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky–
60"Don't Be Cross" from The Mine Foreman (Der Obersteiger)Carl Zeller79
61"Sanctus" from German Mass (Deutsche Messe)Franz Schubert20
62"I know that my Redeemer liveth" from MessiahGeorge Frideric Handel10
63"Love Duet" from Madama ButterflyGiacomo Puccini15
65Fantasia on "Greensleeves"Ralph Vaughan Williams[10]–
65Symphony No. 2Sergei Rachmaninoff–
66Fingal's CaveFelix Mendelssohn–
67"Polovetsian Dances" from Prince IgorAlexander Borodin–
68The Yeomen of the GuardGilbert and Sullivan–
69Schindler's List ThemeJohn Williams–
70Symphony No. 5 (Adagietto)Gustav Mahler–
71"Sanctus" from St. Cecilia MassCharles Gounod–
72ScheherezadeNikolai Rimsky-Korsakov–
73"Old Comrades" ("Alte Kameraden")Carl Teike11
74The Marriage of FigaroWolfgang Amadeus Mozart–
75"Nuns' Chorus" from CasanovaRalph Benatzky (based on Johann Strauss II)7
761812 OverturePyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky–
77"Jerusalem"Hubert Parry58
78"Morning Mood" from Peer Gynt SuitesEdvard Grieg47
79Concierto de AranjuezJoaquín Rodrigo–
80"Dance of the Blessed Spirits" from Orfeo ed EuridiceChristoph Willibald Gluck–
81"Casta diva" from NormaVincenzo Bellini–
82The Nutcracker SuitePyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky–
83"Softly Awakes My Heart" from Samson and DelilahCamille Saint-Saëns49
84Eine kleine NachtmusikWolfgang Amadeus Mozart–
85"Ave Maria"Franz Schubert43
86"O mio babbino caro" from Gianni SchicchiGiacomo Puccini–
87Moonlight SonataLudwig van Beethoven–
88"Sheep May Safely Graze"Johann Sebastian Bach–
89"Where Corals Lie" from Sea PicturesEdward Elgar-
90Concerto for Two Violins in D minorJohann Sebastian Bach–
91Clair de luneClaude Debussy–
92The CreationJoseph Haydn77
93Crown ImperialWilliam Walton–
94"On the Road to Mandalay"Oley Speaks–
95Romance No. 2 in F majorLudwig van Beethoven–
96The WatermillRonald Binge35
97The Holy CityFrederic Weatherly and Stephen Adams-
98"Bredon Hill" from A Shropshire LadGraham Peel–
99William Tell Overture from William TellGioachino Rossini–
100Hear My PrayerFelix Mendelssohn–

Other media

Alan Keith published a book about the music played in the show in 1975.[11] The Decca Record Company published a successful ten-volume series of records with the title The World of Your 100 Best Tunes.[12] The BBC published a six-CD collection of the music selected by the final poll listed above.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Bizet's The Pearl Fishers named nation's favourite tune". BBC Press Office (Press release). BBC. 12 October 2003. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  2. ↑ "Obituary: Alan Keith". The Daily Telegraph. London. 19 March 2003. ISSN 0307-1235.
  3. ↑ Plunkett, John (10 January 2007). "Titchmarsh replaces Radio 2's Your Hundred Best Tunes". The Guardian. London: Guardian Media Group. eISSN 1756-3224. ISSN 0261-3077.
  4. ↑ Donovan, Paul (21 January 2007). "End Game". Radio Waves. The Sunday Times. London: News International.
  5. ↑ Your 100 Best Tunes, Radio Rewind
  6. ↑ Donovan, Paul (9 November 2008). "Ross and Brand: Radio 2 clean up their act". The Sunday Times. London: News International.
  7. ↑ Pledger, Laura (2011). "Your One Hundred Best Tunes with Alfie Boe". Radio Times. Immediate Media.
  8. ↑ "Hear Alfie Boe's 100 Best Tunes Tonight". TheatreSpy. Musical Theatre News. 30 December 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  9. ↑ Your 100 Best Tunes, 1959 - 2007, The Radio 2 Preservation Society, 12 January 2007
  10. ↑ "Ralph Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on Greensleeves". Composers. Classic FM.
  11. ↑ Keith, Alan (1975). Your Hundred Best Tunes. London: J.M. Dent & Sons. ISBN 0-460-04214-9. OCLC 1993474.
  12. ↑ "Your Hundred Best Tunes". Gramophone. London. December 1975. p. 129. ISSN 0017-310X. Archived from the original on 4 June 2010 – via Wayback Machine.
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