Best composers ranked: 50 great names who have shaped music as we hear it today
We asked 174 composers to choose the 50 greatest composers of all time. A tough task: here's how they rank...
Newark School of Musical Instrument Crafts suspends degree courses beginning in 2025
A petition on Change.org protesting against the suspension of degree courses at the UK college has reached over 12,600 signatures
'He was childlike, wanting his own way, but lovable too': Benjamin Appl on studying with Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Baritone Benjamin Appl remembers what it was like to study with his important mentor, the legendary Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Five things to know before buying an acoustic guitar
Let us help find the best acoustic guitar for you
Debussy Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune: the work that tore up the orchestral rulebook
We tell the story of Debussy's sensuous work, Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, which heralded a radical new chapter in orchestral writing
Ranked: opera's 15 greatest arias
From Mozart to Gershwin via Puccini and Delibes, we run through 15 of the best loved arias from 400 years of opera
Hypnotic, sensual: on this day in 1962, Marilyn Monroe sings 'Happy Birthday' to JFK
Over the decades, the 'Happy Birthday, Mr. President' moment has endured as a symbol of Old Hollywood glamour, political myth-making, and the hazy boundaries between fame and power
Revealed: the Beethoven symphony that makes you feel good to be alive
Terry Williams explores the best recordings of a symphony that shows the perky sense of humour lurking within its curmudgeonly composer
Here's how a gentle, blind old elephant reacts to Bach's music
Pianist Paul Barton plays Chopin, Debussy and more to some of Thailand's oldest, hardest worked elephants. And their reaction is beautiful
The strange paintings that inspired a piano masterpiece
It was a series of atmospheric paintings by a much-missed friend that got Mussorgsky going on his superbly evocative Pictures at an Exhibition
Meet the most fascinating figures from classical music
'He was rumoured to carry a loaded revolver': meet the 15 types of conductor
Studying great maestros past and present, Jeremy Pound gives a spotters’ guide to character types regularly seen on the podium
Virtuosos: eight incredible musicians from classical music's past and present
The BBC Music Magazine team chooses the virtuosos from history they would love to have seen perform
Musical rule breakers: 15 artists who redefined the possible
From Callas to Cage, meet 15 fearless musicians who broke every rule in the book - and reshaped the sound of music for evermore
The great composers
Explore the lives and works of classical music's finest composers
Autism, ADHD, Tourette's? We asked psychiatrists to analyse Mozart's bizarre, brilliant mind
Using today’s psychoanalytic methods, what can we learn, asks Rebecca Franks, about the mind of Mozart, perhaps the greatest musical genius of all?
The composer buried alive under an avalanche... and 10 more bizarre musical deaths
Some of the most well-known composers met their ends in highly unusual ways...
Liszt: the game-changing piano superstar who had audiences swooning in the aisles
The composer Franz Liszt was a brilliant but enigmatic piano virtuoso, writes Jessica Duchen
Duke Ellington: the jazz pioneer who broke all the rules
Mervyn Cooke explores a groundbreaking composer and influential bandleader who took jazz into previously untrodden territory
Greatest Recordings
Our recommendations of essential additions to your listening library
Obscure prog rock albums: 15 underrated masterpieces you must hear
Discover 15 mind-blowing prog rock gems you’ve (probably) never heard—bold, beautiful, and criminally overlooked masterpieces await
Genesis albums ranked: all 15 of the legendary band's LPs, from worst to best
We rank every Genesis studio album, from their early prog masterpieces to the stadium filling pop-rock of the 1980s
Here's the best recording of each Beethoven symphony for your collection
No composer changed the symphony more radically than Beethoven... Here is a guide to all nine of his symphonies and their best recordings
Ranked: the 15 greatest folk albums of all time
From Bob Dylan to Bon Iver, here are the 15 greatest folk albums of all time, showcasing timeless storytelling, emotion, and musical mastery
Albums of the week
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
Review: Complete Works for Solo Piano (Bavouzet)
In her review, Rebecca Franks enjoys Jean-Efflam Bavouzet’s characterful new take on the complete solo piano works of Ravel
Review: Brahms – Piano Quartets Nos 2 & 3
Krystian Zimerman and friends deliver a superb performance of radiant and whimsical Brahms Piano Quartets, says Jan Smaczny in his review
Review: Ravel – Complete Songs
In his review, Paul Riley thinks this foray into Ravel’s vocal works by pianist Malcolm Martineau and friends is a box of delights
Audio equipment reviews and advice
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
The sound of the future? Why CD players are making a comeback
These are the best Bluetooth speakers on the market 2025
Would you spend a million pounds on a hi-fi? What if it sounds like nothing you've ever experienced?
Our audio expert Chris Haslam spends a few enjoyable hours in the company of some of the most eye-wateringly capable (and expensive) hi-fi technology out there
