How to supercharge your memory - four musical experts share their top tips
When performing by heart, how do musicians remember all those notes? Four top artists explain their recommended methods
Dark harmonies: scandalous tales of great composers and syphilis
Romantic composers were passionate, sensual and untrammelled in their desires. Sadly, this meant a surge in deaths from syphilis
'Miraculous'. 'Evil'. People had a *lot* to say about this legendary conductor
Many revered him, others were perplexed by or even envious of his success. Here's the controversy of Herbert von Karajan in ten quotes
Ranked: the 15 best movie musicals of all time
Ever since sound and film were first united in The Jazz Singer (1927), the musical has been a staple of cinema history and popular culture, but what are the best film musicals of all time?
When opera turns dark: ten eerily unforgettable masterpieces
Ashutosh Khandekar explores how the supernatural in opera has served to express both our deepest fears and darkest desires
These famous pieces of music are not by who you think
So, who wrote Albinoni's beautiful Adagio? And what about Bach's famous Toccata and Fugue in D minor? The answers are not that obvious, says Roderick Swanston, as not all music was written by who we think it was
Passion and power: how the Romantic era changed classical music forever
Passionate and emotional, the Romantic era reshaped classical music. Here are its key personalities and era-defining works
Ranked: the 15 greatest prog rock albums of all time
Did King Crimson hit the prog heights for you? Or were Yes or Genesis at the top of the prog tree? We rank the 15 greatest prog albums of all time
BBC Proms 2025: your essential guide to every concert, every performer, and how to listen
Here is everything you need to know about the 2025 BBC Proms, featuring a jam-packed selection of classical music's best-loved performers and composers
The 15 greatest openings in classical music... How many do you know?
What are the most memorable openings in classical music? Jeremy Pound and Steve Wright explore 15 of the best known, some of which have entirely outshone the works that follow
Meet the most fascinating figures from classical music
Death at the keyboard: a pianist's final, fatal performance at Carnegie Hall
'It's simply untrue to say that women lack the stamina to play brass instruments' – trumpeter Imogen Whitehead
Britten Sinfonia principal trumpet player Imogen Whitehead on why we should challenge anti-female stereotypes in brass playing
‘My fingers were slipping all over the keys’: clarinettist Julian Bliss on his nightmare concert in the rain
The great composers
Explore the lives and works of classical music's finest composers
British composers: ranking our 25 greatest composers
We asked 167 top international musicians to vote for the best British composers of all time. Here are the results… Do you agree - and who was voted number one?
Baroque composers: 11 of the greatest musicians from a dazzling era of music
Just who were the Baroque’s finest exponents? Great names abound, but here are ten of the best Baroque composers who should be on anyone’s list…
Alkan: the lost prodigy who shaped Chopin and Ravel
A performer who became a hermit, Charles-Valentin Alkan wrote the most demanding piano works in history, says Malcolm Hayes
Howard Shore: the film composer behind Hannibal Lecter and Bilbo Baggins
Howard Shore reflects on his years in Middle-earth and tells Michael Beek why he has a lot to thank the LPO for...
Greatest Recordings
Our recommendations of essential additions to your listening library
Best albums of all time: 50 magnificent classical recordings you must hear
Our round-up of the best must-have performances of classical music. Update your collection with the great symphonies, choral works, operas, chamber and instrumental works
Beethoven piano sonatas: six of the best cycles
We name some of the best recordings of Beethoven's sonatas, peformed by the great and the good of the piano world
The Planets: a world-by-world guide to Holst's cosmic work
We bring you the best recordings of each movement of Holst's The Planets
Death and the Maiden: Schubert's harrowing string quartet and most emotive recordings
Erik Levi picks out the finest recordings of Schubert's Death and the Maiden, a piece in which the Austrian composer plumbs the very depths of despair
Albums of the week
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
Review: Ravel Fragments (Bertrand Chamayou)
In his review, Nicholas Kenyon enjoys Bertrand Chamayou’s vision and gripping performance in a clever tribute to Ravel
Review: Dvořák & Price – Piano Quintets (Takács Quartet)
Takács Quartet and Marc-André Hamelin are on sublime form in contrasting piano quintets by Dvořák and Florence Price, says Jan Smaczny in his review
Review: Attende domine (The Bevan Family Consort)
In her review, Alexandra Wilson finds much to enjoy in this glorious family album of beautiful music for Lent and Passiontide from the brilliant Bevans
Audio equipment reviews and advice
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
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
Listening room inspiration: how you can create the ultimate music sanctuary at home
Easy chair, hi-fi, vinyl displays: here's how to furnish your own listening paradise