Andy Bush finds out about the objects of Beethoven's affections - and it turns out there were quite a few. Who was the Immortal Beloved? Who's the Elise in 'Fur Elise'? And where do llamas and bowls of urine come into all of this?

The guests in this podcast are clarinettist Julian Bliss, violinist Nicola Benedetti, conductor Karin Hendrickson, leader of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra Maya Iwabuchi, conductor Mark Elder and cellist Matthew Barley.

This podcast features a clip of 'Fur Elise' played by Llyr Williams, available here: http://hyperurl.co/BeethovenUnbound. The extracts of Beethoven’s Symphonies 5 & 9 are performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra; LPO Label releases are available on all major streaming platforms and at lpo.org.uk/recordings. The recordings of Beethoven’s Piano Concertos 3 & 4 are performed by Elizabeth Sombart and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Piano Concerto No.5 is performed by Alessio Bax and the Southbank Sinfonia - all are available at https://signumrecords.com/