Music under threat in Kabul

Music Matters

Kate Molleson is joined by musicians in Kabul to discuss the new restrictions on women singing - the ban, from the Afghan Ministry of Education, has caused concern that the Taliban is increasing its influence in the Afghan government as western forces prepare to pull out of the country. With contributions from Ahmad Sarmast, Director of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, and pianist Maram Abdullah.

Following the death earlier this month of the conductor James Levine, Kate hears from the American music critic Anne Midgette and conductor Kenneth Woods as they discuss the moral questions surrounding Levine’s recorded legacy in the light of the controversy over his personal life.

Ahead of World Autism Awareness Week, Kate talks to Adam Ockleford, who has worked extensively in the field of autism and music, and to Joe Stollery, a composer who regards his own autism as both a help and a hindrance in his musical life.

And, the broadcaster Jennifer Lucy Allan speaks about her new book 'The Foghorn's Lament', which documents the role this coastal 'music' has played in our life and culture.