Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Classical Music - the 100th edition

Fanfares and fireworks please – it’s the one hundredth edition of the show that helps you get the most out of the world’s greatest music.

Catherine Bott has had an exciting couple of years. Over the 99 previous shows, she's ranged across such themes as the sounds of South America and Scandinavia, from music inspired by the Old Testament to the changing patterns of minimalism.

Some of her favourite programmes have been suggested by you: What does a conductor actually do? Was Mozart really a genius? Do keep the suggestions coming - we've still got 50 more shows to go.

Tonight, though, Catherine has found a variety of ways to celebrate the show's century: music written by, or for – or played by – people who lived to be 100 (or more), and composers who were so prolific they reach the magic number of 100 in their catalogue of works.

There’s Haydn’s Symphony No.100, Glazunov’s second Piano Concerto opus 100 and Mozart’s Serenade in D major which is KV.100 in Mozart’s catalogue of compositions.

And some of the great centenarians featured tonight include the pianist Mieczysław Horszowski who lived to be 100, the composer Elliott Carter who died at 103, and Irving Berlin who was 101 when he passed away in 1989.

And the Russian composer Sviridov features too. He was born 100 years ago this year.