Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757) is one of the greatest composers of keyboard music ever to have lived. This film presents performances of his brilliant, expressive and original sonatas in the context of his travels across Europe in the service of the Vatican and the courts of Portugal and Spain. From Bernini’s impressive façades in Rome, through the peasant areas of the Iberian peninsula and the Spanish royal palaces, it traces the influences and ideas that inspired the composer. Harpsichordist Rafael Puyana performs on an instrument dating from 1740.
Raphael
For four centuries after his death, Raphael (1483-1520) occupied a pre-eminent position in the world of art but, while his greatness is still unquestioned, his popularity has waned over the past hundred years. This three-part study reappraises his work and considers why the values represented in his art are in eclipse. Filmed in Italy in the centres where Raphael lived and worked, the programmes also travel around Europe to survey his influence.