Freya Parr
Digital Editor and Staff Writer, BBC Music Magazine
Freya Parr is BBC Music Magazine's digital editor and staff writer, editing and writing on all styles of music across both the website and print magazine. She has also written for titles including the Guardian, Circus Journal, Frankie and Suitcase Magazine, and runs The Noiseletter, a fortnightly arts and culture publication. Freya's main areas of interest and research lie in 20th-century and contemporary music. She's a regular sea shanty singer, folk obsessive and occasional flautist, pianist, organist and musical theatre director.
Recent articles by Freya Parr
Struggling to sleep? Try these 11 dreamlike melodies
We guide you through the pieces of music that will help relax the mind, calm the nerves and send you off to sleep
The Lark Ascending: the origin story of Vaughan Williams's atmospheric masterpiece
A guide to The Lark Ascending, Vaughan Williams's much-loved work for violin and orchestra
This is the world's most famous classical concert. But it had some dark beginnings
How Clemens Krauss and the Nazis set off a Vienna New Year tradition in 1939
Best piano concerto: the greatest masterpieces, ranked
We count down the 21 greatest piano concertos - the finest works ever written for piano with orchestra
Music about time: 15, er, timeless masterpieces
Musicians across eras have explored time’s beauty, mystery, and melancholy. These 15 masterpieces don’t just measure time—they feel it, using rhythm, lyrics, and emotion to remind us that music, like time, never stands still
Ennio Morricone: the poor Italian boy who forged the sound of the American Wild West
Ennio Morricone’s iconic film scores evoke images of the great American landscape like no other. But, in an exclusive interview with BBC Music Magazine back in 2016 at his house in Rome, he proved his horizons stretch well beyond that
Irish folk songs: seven beautiful, evocative melodies from the Emerald Isle
Self-confessed folk obsessive Freya Parr shares her favourite 7 Irish folk songs
Best female composers of all time: 15 women who left a huge mark on classical music
Our guide to the best female composers from history, many of whom have historically been wrongly excluded from the canon. Let's put that right – get to know their music now!
The musician George Harrison called 'the Godfather of World Music'
Ravi Shankar's biographer Oliver Craske introduces us to the fascinating musical life of the great sitar virtuoso, composer, father of Norah Jones and Anoushka Shankar, teacher of Philip Glass and friend of Yehudi Menuhin
Think opera's not for you? Try these seven beginner-friendly masterpieces
Want to try opera but don't know where to start? Freya Parr shares the best operas for beginners to the form
Welsh composers: five of the very best
Wales has produced some of the finest singers in musical history, but what about its composers? Here are some of the best Welsh composers you should know about
Ondes Martenot: a guide to this early, eerie electronic musical instrument
We explain the workings of the unusual instrument, the Ondes Martenot, that takes centre stage in Messiaen's Turangalîla Symphony
Stravinsky Rite of Spring: the work that shattered classical music tradition
We explore Stravinsky's groundbreaking ballet The Rite of Spring and its seminal place in music history, before picking out some very best recordings
Desert Island Discs: the most popular classical music choices
We reflect on the programme’s most popular choices, and the BBC Music Magazine team choose the pieces they would happily be stranded on an island with.
Six irresistible Scottish songs you can't help singing along to
Freya Parr shares her favourite six traditional Scottish songs
The Godfather music: why was Nino Rota's score disqualified from the 1972 Oscars?
Despite being initially nominated, Nino Rota's score for 'The Godfather' was replaced by John Addison's soundtrack for 'Sleuth'.
Lin-Manuel Miranda: 'Anyone who tells you Sondheim isn’t an influence on them is lying'
As the legendary Hamilton creator makes his directorial debut in the film adaptation of Jonathan Larson's musical tick, tick... BOOM!, he tells us all about the music that has shaped his life and work
Mahler Symphony 5: a guide to this journey from darkness to triumph, and its best recordings
We name the greatest recordings of Mahler's legendary Fifth Symphony
Christmas choral music: 11 transcendentally beautiful works for the festive season
What are the greatest songs and choral works written for the festive period?
Just why are choristers' voices so beautiful? Science has the answer
Why are choir boys and girls' singing voices so tuneful? Scientists explain just what makes choristers' voices so special and distinctive
History of carol singing: when did the much-loved Christmas tradition begin?
The history of carol singing may go back as far as the medieval era, and has appeared in literature for many years, but it was during Victorian times it became really popular
Why did the FBI keep a file on him? And more fascinating facts from Leonard Bernstein's eventful life
From West Side Story to the Berlin Wall, here is a short guide to the main events in the remarkable life of Leonard Bernstein
Bach for beginners: 12 great recordings to unlock the Baroque master's magical music
Pianist George Lepauw introduces us to his essential Bach listening
The best classical music for winter
We select our favourite wintry classical music works to accompany your cold winter evenings