The director general of the BBC, Tony Hall, is to announce the release of the corporation’s back catalogue of classical music recordings and broadcasts. The accouncement is due this Thusday at the launch of the BBC’s Our Classical Century project, which looks back over 100 years of classical music in the UK.
The catalogue will be available to the public online via BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sounds app, and is one of the largest in the world. It includes iconic recordings from the BBC Proms, BBC Young Musician and BBC Introducing.
Lord Hall is expected to say: ‘In an age of every-growing platforms and social media sharing, these historic and recent performances will be returned to the public as their rightful property.
‘Whilst the way we consume and share content is changing rapidly, music’s ability to bring us together has stayed the same, and classical music’s role in that should not be underestimated.’
Our Classical Century will be available on BBC Radio 3, BBC Sounds, BBC Two, and BBC Four from mid-November. See the Radio & TV page of our November issue for more information.