classical music & opera
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Classical music simply does not attract large audiences, apart from those for the Proms. Even so, the Barbican and South Bank are not good enough for Simon Rattle
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The Guardian pays a visit to the music festival started by famed cellist Casals in his adopted home of Prades in France
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The best of this year’s releases, from Simon Rattle conducting Lutosławski’s Piano Concerto to Steve Reich’s minimal masterpiece Music for 18 Musicians
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From Bach and Purcell to garage-pop band the Vaselines, conductor, organist and Dunedin Consort director Butt shares his musical inspirations
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Iain Bell’s operatic treatment of the Dickens fable at WNO brings a frenetic series of mini-cameos, with a festive dressing of contemporary politics
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Conductor who rose from the closed musical scene of East Germany to become an international figure
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Recorded from the 2012 production about the final years of Marilyn Monroe, this is an intelligent attempt on a dramatically intractable subject
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From the thrill of Brittany Howard’s alter ego to joy on the Wirral, our critics pick some of this year’s under-the-radar releases
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The quartet give a virtuosically still performance of Frey’s work, capturing the grainy realness of the string timbres, with every quivering bow hair audible
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The experimental composer from Michigan delivers an album of considered music, uncluttered and given space to breathe
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There were masterly turns by prodigious youngsters, and vigorous performances by mature masters – across the UK, it’s been a fascinating classical year
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If you’ve ever wondered why the heroines in tragic opera stories don’t just roll their eyes and mouth ‘Yeah, whatever’, we’ve got the summaries for you
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you may have missed
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An audience with Rieu, the violin superstar nicknamed King of the Waltz
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A marathon performance of Bach by Yo-Yo Ma and a musical-opera take on Taming of the Shrew are among the highlights of the year for our classical critic
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Returning to New York for a rare concert, the composer, whose work with Brian Eno helped shape ambient music, explains he’s not scared to sound pretty
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8 June 1927: Covent Garden was crowded with spectators eager to witness the first performance in England of Puccini’s posthumous opera
guides
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Tom Service's survey of the 50 symphonies that changed classical music
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Tom Service introduces 50 composers from the contemporary classical music scene
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popular
Gurrelieder Bergen PO/Gardner – huge musical hybrid vividly captured