As he prepares for concerts in the UK with the Czech Philharmonic, conductor Semyon Bychkov talks to Tom Service about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and about the relationship between art and politics, and draws a fascinating comparison with events in recent European history.

We also hear heart-rending accounts from Ukrainian musicians, some still in the country, some abroad, about how the conflict has affected their lives, about whether they're prepared to answer the call to arms to defend their homeland, and about how they see their future. We hear from Oleksander Piriyev, cellist and broadcaster in Radio Kultura, in Lviv; from the leader of the Lviv National Philharmonic, Marko Komonko; from Dartsya Tarkovska, co-founder of Music Export Ukraine, an organisation promoting artists; and from Kirill Karabits, chief conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.

Also, Concert Fieri premieres recently found madrigals from Italian late Renaissance composer Maddalena Casulana; we talk to musicologist Laurie Stras who discovered them, as well as Hannah Ely, from the ensemble.

And leading up to Radio 3's programmes on International Women’s Day next Tuesday, we take a look at female sound engineers and record producers, a role traditionally associated with men only. With contributions from Classical producer Martha de Francisco, who recorded artists such as Jessye Norman, Alfred Brendel, the Vienna Philharmonic and Simon Rattle, and also from Marta Salogni, whose creative drive has led her to collaborate with Bjork, Holly Herndon and Anna Meredith, and bands like Django Django and Groove Armada.

Producer: Juan Carlos Jaramillo

Photo: Semyon Bychkov (c) Umberto Nicoletti