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Outlook Weekend: The Songbooks

You know the songs, but you might not know the stories. How music returned to the children of Afghanistan and how some of your most beloved Disney hits were created.

Louise Pascale was an American Peace Corps volunteer in Afghanistan in the 1960s. Because of her interest in teaching music, she began collecting a songbook of Afghan children's songs. When the Taliban came to power three decades later, they not only banned music, but destroyed recordings and instruments. So when Louise looked in her bookcase she realised she may have one of the last surviving copies of these Afghan children's songs. She vowed to go back to Afghanistan to return the book and the music.

Richard Sherman and his brother Bob were responsible for some of Disney's most iconic hits. They wrote songs for many films including The Jungle Book, Winnie The Pooh, and Mary Poppins. Maryam Maruf sat down at a piano with Richard as he belted out some of the classic tunes and told her the stories behind their creations.

Image: Sherman Bros with Julie Andrews
Credit: Courtesy of Richard Sherman

Available now

27 minutes

Last on

Mon 12 Mar 2018 01:32GMT

Broadcasts

  • Sat 10 Mar 2018 08:32GMT
  • Sun 11 Mar 2018 02:32GMT
  • Mon 12 Mar 2018 01:32GMT

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