Return to Wolf Hall: Creating the music for the Tudor TV epic...
With Tudor epic 'Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light' about to hit TV screens, composer Debbie Wiseman and director Peter Kosminsky talk to Michael Beek
Ella Fitzgerald: the jazz icon whose warm tone and joyous stage presence captivated audiences worldwide
Geoffrey Smith looks back at the life of an indisputable jazz legend
The BBC Music Magazine Quiz. This week's theme: Sheep
How much do you know on the subject of woolly works and ovine operas?
Lord Berners: a true English eccentric
Geoff Brown tells the story of the maverick composer Lord Berners, whose flamboyant lifestyle went hand-in-hand with a major talent
'Unresisting imbecility' or 'imaginative masterpiece'? The story behind Disney's Fantasia
These are 15 cast-iron classical masterpieces. But they all had truly disastrous first nights
John Evans takes a look at the great works that, while much adored and respected today, all got off to a horribly shaky start
Paul Robeson: the strange tale of how a charismatic black American singer fell under the spell of Stalinism
How his passion for Soviet politics led Paul Robeson to be relegated from national hero to media pariah
Best backstage tours: here are some of the world's most fascinating concert hall tours you can join
What secrets lurk behind the stages of the world’s great concert halls? To find out, Brian Wise takes backstage tours of five leading concert halls and venues in London and New York
Ranked: the ten best cello concertos of all time - and the revelatory recordings you need
Here is our selection of the greatest pieces ever written for cello and orchestra. Do you agree?
'Trivial, noisy and blatant': sometimes even great composers write terrible music
Genius doesn’t guarantee you will create a winner every time, writes Richard Morrison
Meet the most fascinating figures from classical music
Jacqueline du Pré: the cellist whose talent was as extraordinary as her tale was tragic
Jacqueline du Pré was a brilliant but complex genius whose shyness and vulnerability, particularly in the light of her illness, often left her misunderstood, says Helen Wallace
What's it like to study with a living legend? Cellist János Starker was 'like a doctor with X-ray eyes'
Ildikó Szabó remembers her cello lessons with the great János Starker
Oscar Levant: film star, and greatest Gershwin pianist of his generation
Oscar Levant built his reputation as an actor and radio host, but this talented pianist was also a key interpreter of Gershwin’s music
The great composers
Explore the lives and works of classical music's finest composers
Murder schemes, all-night drinking, saucy shenanigans: 15 reckless and rebellious composers
From Mozart to Peter Warlock, here are 15 composers who stepped out of line - socially, sexually, or just with too much motorbike-based nudity
Secret rituals and brotherly love: why Mozart joined the Freemasons
Undoubtedly Mozart joined the Freemasons to assist his career, but the young composer was also inspired by their egalitarian values
John Williams's family: The musical dynasty you knew nothing about...
The release of the new feature documentary Music by John Williams shines a light on the man behind some of the most iconic music ever written. But he’s not the only successful musician in the family who you may have listened to…
Previously unheard Chopin Waltz is a ‘precious find’
Chopin died 175 years ago, so you’d be forgiven for thinking we’d heard everything there is to hear. But no, not if a fascinating find by New York’s Morgan Library and Museum is to be believed…
Greatest Recordings
Our recommendations of essential additions to your listening library
Best Beethoven recordings of all time: 20 great moments in Beethoven recording history
We name the best albums and recordings every Beethoven lover needs to add to their collection
These are the 50 greatest recordings of all time. How many are in your collection?
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
Vivaldi Four Seasons: five of the greatest recordings of all time (and, just for fun, three wild cards)
These four revolutionary violin concertos remain Vivaldi's most-loved works. Lucy Chaudhuri rounds up the best recordings of The Four Seasons to date, and adds in three wild cards for good measure
Appalachian Spring: Aaron Copland's masterful evocation of America's wide open spaces
The 1940s ballet Appalachian Spring has become one of Copland’s most popular works. And its true American spirit has inspired many great recordings, finds Anthony Burton
Albums of the week
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
Folk & Ba-Rock Cello (Giovanni Sollima)
In her review, Jo Talbot is wowed by Giovanni Sollima’s technique and virtuosity in this ear-opening showcase of the cello’s thrilling sonic possibilities
Souvenirs (Johan Dalene and Peter Friis Johansson)
In his review, Michael Jameson gives a big thumbs up to this dazzling recital from the exceptional young Scandinavian violinist Johan Dalene
Pierrot Portraits
Claire Booth and Ensemble 360 deliver a triumphant gallery of ‘Pierrot Portraits’, says Paul Riley in his review
Audio equipment reviews and advice
A selection of the best reviewed albums from the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine
Best TV speakers: revolutionise your TV sound with these state-of-the-art speaker systems
Whether you're after a wireless option, a soundbar or something more design-led, we've brought together some of the best TV speakers for all audiophiles available to buy now
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
The best bluetooth speakers to take on your travels
Which are the best speakers to take on holiday with you? Here's our handy guide to battery life, connectivity, waterproof ratings and a whole lot more...