Venki Ramakrishnan on Private Passions with Michael Berkeley 27th October 2019
Sir Venki Ramakrishnan is President of the Royal Society and was awarded the Nobel Prize in 2009 for his research into the ribosome – the mysterious ancient molecule that decodes DNA, what he terms ‘the mother of all molecules’. He’s what you might call a science all-rounder: he gained a PhD in Physics before turning to Biology, and his Nobel Prize was in Chemistry. Born in India, he moved to the US as a postgraduate student, and in 1999 came to Britain to work at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge.
Alongside science Venki Ramakrishnan has another passion – for music, and, in particular, chamber music, which grew out of the Indian classical music he heard as a child. His son Raman is the cellist with the Horszowski Trio and we hear their performance of music by Schubert, as well as a Brahms piano quartet and a Beethoven cello sonata, reflecting both Raman's and Venki’s deep engagement with that instrument.
Venki's other great love is for the violin, and he chooses music by Mozart alongside Bach's Double Violin Concerto - which Venki himself played whilst learning the violin as a graduate student in the USA.
He talks to Michael about the central role of music in his life, about how he would reform the Nobel Prizes in science, and why he swapped the mountains of Utah for the fens of East Anglia.
Producer: Jane Greenwood
A Loftus production for BBC Radio 3
-
40:31
Michael Franzese
2 hours agoHow Russian scammers make MILLIONS from INSURANCE FRAUD | Sitdown with Michael Franzese
6.83K8 -
39:09
Candace Owens
3 hours agoI Say Ban Porn, Cardi B Defends It | Candace Ep 8
13.2K74 -
1:37:06
2 MIKES LIVE
3 hours ago2 MIKES LIVE #80 NEWS BREAKDOWN WEDNESDAY!
8.88K -
LIVE
LFA TV
15 hours agoDems Begin Attacks on SCOTUS in Preparation for 2024 Election Steal | Trumpet Daily 6.19.24 9pm EST
688 watching -
LIVE
TENET Media
3 hours agoGuest Mark Fitzpatrick, ‘Hetero Awesomeness Month’ Bar Owner, Biden’s Amnesty Plan & More LIVE 9 ET
136 watching -
33:31
Patriots With Grit
3 hours agoHow 'Ya Gonna Call | Brett Miller
1.63K1 -
LIVE
RealitySurvival
3 hours agoNATIONAL PREPER SITREP - We Have Big Problems!
263 watching -
1:42:37
The Quartering
4 hours agoKamala Harris Replaced With Hillary, Biden's Short Circuit Problem, Fauci Admits Another Bombshell
41.7K55 -
1:18:40
Dr. Drew
7 hours agoExclusive: Julian Assange's Brother Defends Wikileaks Founder From US Espionage Charges w/ Gabriel Shipton & Dr. Aimee – Ask Dr. Drew
32.5K1 -
1:00:10
Michael Feyrer Jr
10 hours agoGet Your Live Streaming Questions Answered! LIVE
10.8K3