Uploaded February 2011 | Updated September 2026, 9 hours ago
February 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini's return to Tehran and the overthrowing of the Shah. Throughout the month, BBC World News will have news and documentary coverage assessing the impact of the revolution on modern day Iran and its relations with the rest of the world.
A Taste Of Iran
In a new four-part series the BBC's Iranian Affairs Analyst Sadeq Saba travels around his home country to get a taste of today's Iran -- its land, its people, and above all, its cuisine.
Fall of a Shah
This two-part series examines the seismic events that led to the fall of a Shah. Presented by World News Today presenter Mishal Husain, this programme uses BBC News and documentary archive to look back on the reign of the Shah and explore how both he and the West underestimated the power of religion in Iran.
February 2009 marks the 30th anniversary of Ayatollah Khomeini's return to Tehran and the overthrowing of the Shah. Throughout the month, BBC World News will have news and documentary coverage assessing the impact of the revolution on modern day Iran and its relations with the rest of the world.
A Taste Of Iran
In a new four-part series the BBC's Iranian Affairs Analyst Sadeq Saba travels around his home country to get a taste of today's Iran -- its land, its people, and above all, its cuisine.
Fall of a Shah
This two-part series examines the seismic events that led to the fall of a Shah. Presented by World News Today presenter Mishal Husain, this programme uses BBC News and documentary archive to look back on the reign of the Shah and explore how both he and the West underestimated the power of religion in Iran.
![Ludwig Van Beethoven 5th Symphony in C minor, Op. 67
The Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67, was written by Ludwig van Beethoven in 1804 08. This symphony is one of the most popular and best-known compositions in all of classical music, and one of the most often played symphonies.[1] It comprises four movements: an opening sonata, an andante, and a fast scherzo which leads attacca to the finale. First performed in Viennas Theater an der Wien in 1808, the work achieved its prodigious reputation soon afterwards. E. T. A. Hoffmann described the symphony as one of the most important works of the time. Ludwig Van Beethoven 5th Symphony in C minor, Op. 67](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/6uAL5PaOTEA/mqdefault.jpg)
![Franz Joseph Haydn BBC Documentary Part 3 of 5
Franz Joseph Haydn ( /ˈdʒoʊzəf ˈhaɪdən/; German pronunciation: [ˈjoːzɛf ˈhaɪdən]; 31 March[1] 1732 31 May 1809), known as Joseph Haydn,[2] was an Austrian[3] composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the Father of the Symphony and Father of the String Quartet because of his important contributions to these forms. He was also instrumental in the development of the piano trio and in the evolution of sonata form.[4][5]
A lifelong resident of Austria, Haydn spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Esterházy family on their remote estate. Isolated from other composers and trends in music until the later part of his long life, he was, as he put it, forced to become original.[6] At the time of his death, he was one of the most celebrated composers in Europe.[7]
Joseph Haydn was the brother of Michael Haydn, himself a highly regarded composer, and Johann Evangelist Haydn, a tenor. He was also a close friend of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and a teacher of Ludwig van Beethoven. Franz Joseph Haydn BBC Documentary Part 3 of 5](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/70SqrnlJjsE/mqdefault.jpg)
![Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart BBC Documentary Part 11/18
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (German: [ˈvɔlfɡaŋ amaˈdeus ˈmoːtsaʁt], English see fn.),[1] baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart[2] (27 January 1756 5 December 1791), was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music. He is among the most enduringly popular of classical composers.
Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood in Salzburg. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. At 17, he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless and travelled in search of a better position, always composing abundantly. While visiting Vienna in 1781, he was dismissed from his Salzburg position. He chose to stay in the capital, where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas, and portions of the Requiem, which was largely unfinished at the time of Mozarts death. The circumstances of his early death have been much mythologized. He was survived by his wife Constanze and two sons.
Mozart learned voraciously from others, and developed a brilliance and maturity of style that encompassed the light and graceful along with the dark and passionate. His influence on subsequent Western art music is profound. Beethoven wrote his own early compositions in the shadow of Mozart, of whom Joseph Haydn wrote that posterity will not see such a talent again in 100 years.[3] Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart BBC Documentary Part 11/18](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/7J4LhQwYKfc/mqdefault.jpg)
![Richard Wagner Documentary 1874 Part 3
Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( /ˈvɑːɡnər/; German pronunciation: [ˈʁiçaʁt ˈvaːɡnɐ]; 22 May 1813 13 February 1883) was a German composer, conductor, theatre director and essayist, primarily known for his operas (or music dramas, as they were later called). Wagners compositions, particularly those of his later period, are notable for their complex texture, rich harmonies and orchestration, and the elaborate use of leitmotifs: musical themes associated with individual characters, places, ideas or plot elements. Unlike most other opera composers, Wagner wrote both the music and libretto for every one of his stage works. Richard Wagner Documentary 1874 Part 3](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/7tFBWBOeW1A/mqdefault.jpg)
![Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff Documentary Part 06 of 07
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (Russian: Сергей Васильевич Рахманиновъ)[1] (Russian pronunciation: [sʲɪrˈɡʲej rɐxˈmanʲɪnəf]; 1 April 1873 28 March 1943) was a Russian[2] composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music.[3] Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and other Russian composers gave way to a thoroughly personal idiom that included a pronounced lyricism, expressive breadth, structural ingenuity, and a tonal palette of rich, distinctive orchestral colors.[4] The piano is featured prominently in Rachmaninoffs compositional output. He made a point of using his own skills as a performer to explore fully the expressive possibilities of the instrument. Even in his earliest works he revealed a sure grasp of idiomatic piano writing and a striking gift for melody. Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff Documentary Part 06 of 07](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/7z8QXBjghg4/mqdefault.jpg)
![Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 5 of 18)
Ludwig van Beethoven[1] (17 December 1770 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. The crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.
Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in present-day Germany, Beethoven moved to Vienna in his early 20s, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf. Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 5 of 18)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/85hZ9D_91dk/mqdefault.jpg)
![Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff Documentary Part 02 of 07
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff (Russian: Сергей Васильевич Рахманиновъ)[1] (Russian pronunciation: [sʲɪrˈɡʲej rɐxˈmanʲɪnəf]; 1 April 1873 28 March 1943) was a Russian[2] composer, pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of the last great representatives of Romanticism in Russian classical music.[3] Early influences of Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and other Russian composers gave way to a thoroughly personal idiom that included a pronounced lyricism, expressive breadth, structural ingenuity, and a tonal palette of rich, distinctive orchestral colors.[4] The piano is featured prominently in Rachmaninoffs compositional output. He made a point of using his own skills as a performer to explore fully the expressive possibilities of the instrument. Even in his earliest works he revealed a sure grasp of idiomatic piano writing and a striking gift for melody. Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff Documentary Part 02 of 07](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8P79b17MDfE/mqdefault.jpg)

![Ludwig van Beethoven Fur Elise
Bagatelle No. 25 in A minor (WoO 59 and Bia 515) for solo piano, commonly known as Für Elise (English: For Elise), is one of Ludwig van Beethovens most popular compositions.[1][2][3] It is usually classified as a bagatelle, but it is also sometimes referred to as an Albumblatt. Ludwig van Beethoven Fur Elise](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BTHrBVPQmiM/mqdefault.jpg)
![Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 18 of 18)
Ludwig van Beethoven[1] (17 December 1770 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. The crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.
Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in present-day Germany, Beethoven moved to Vienna in his early 20s, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf. Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 18 of 18)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BXVrvLPqa18/mqdefault.jpg)
![Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 4 of 18)
Ludwig van Beethoven[1] (17 December 1770 26 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. The crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.
Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in present-day Germany, Beethoven moved to Vienna in his early 20s, studying with Joseph Haydn and quickly gaining a reputation as a virtuoso pianist. His hearing began to deteriorate in the late 1790s, yet he continued to compose, conduct, and perform, even after becoming completely deaf. Ludwig van Beethoven BBC Documentary (Part 4 of 18)](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Bek_FhhlfVE/mqdefault.jpg)