Episode 1: Haydn's Missing Head

How did the tomb of Austria's great composer come to contain not one skull, but two? The story of Haydn's head leads us into the murky world of 19th-century medicine, complete with grave robbing and some gruesome pseudo-science. Be warned, this episode contains descriptions that some listeners might find disturbing. Original music was written by Thomas Hewitt Jones (@thewittjones). Tim Lihoreau can be found on Twitter (@TimLihoreau) and the Classic FM team can be found @ClassicFM. You can get in touch about the show at classicfm.com and find out more about this episode at classicfm.com/casenotes The recordings featured in this episode are: The Creation – Haydn performed by Collegium Vocale Gent and the Orchestre des Champs-Élysées conducted by Philippe Herreweghe (Phi) 'London' Symphonies – Haydn performed by Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, conducted by Howard Shelley (Hyperion) The 'Joke' Quartet – Haydn performed by The London Haydn Quartet (Hyperion) The Queen of the Night’s aria from The Magic Flute – Mozart performed by Sabine Devieilhe (soprano), Pygmalion conducted by Raphaël Pichon (Warner Classics)