Music Off the Shelf

Tucked away in the Radio 4 schedule this Tuesday afternoon (April 12th) is what should prove to be a fascinating listen, Into the Music Library presented by Jonny Trunk.

Much beloved by tv and radio producers alike library music has been used to provide background music and theme tunes for decades. Increasingly the older pieces of library music can instantly create a particular mood or era. Truly music 'off the shelf'.

Here are some examples (short clips only) you may recognise:

From the KPM Library a composition by Alan Moorhouse, played under the pseudonym of Oscar Brandenburg, called Music to Drive By familiar to Radio 2 listeners as the theme used by Charlie Chester.

Also from KPM another Alan Moorhouse piece called Peter Piper used as the theme to the Radio 4 comedy panel game You've Got to be Joking.

From the De Wolfe Library an Ivor Slaney composition called Top Dog as used in the long-running comedy seriesThe Men from the Ministry.

A TV theme first used by ITN in 1967 this was written by Johnny Pearson and called The Awakening taken from his 20^th Century Portrait. Another KPM Library recording.

Johnny Pearson died just last month. Over on Radio Six International Tony Currie paid tribute to Johnny in a special edition of The Lively Lounge and also broadcast in interview he conducted with Johnny back in 1974. Here’s a small part of that interview.