This week, reviews editor Michael Beek sits down with the award-winning British film and television composer Debbie Wiseman OBE (Wolf Hall, Father Brown, Wilde) for a chat about her work. Debbie shares insights into her methods, conducting, her favourite music to listen to and a sneak preview of her latest film score, To Olivia. Recordings featured: Chopin: Preludes Op. 28 – No. 4 in E minor Eric Lu (piano) Warner Classics 9029529234 Mozart: Sinfonia Concertante in E flat, K364 –...

In this episode, BBC Music Magazine’s editor Oliver Condy talks to the former Guardian editor and now principal of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, Alan Rusbridger. While the editor of a national paper during the Arab Spring, Wikileaks controversies, the newspaper hacking scandal, riots in the UK and more, Alan Rusbridger found time to learn and perform Chopin’s Ballade No. 1, a feat he describes in his book Play It Again: An Amateur Against the Impossible. Recordings featured: Chopin: Ballade...

In this episode of the Music to my Ears podcast, BBC Music Magazine speaks to Karina Canellakis, who is currently chief conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and principal guest conductor of the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, and has been recently appointed as principal guest conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. Karina was born and brought up in a very musical family in New York. She initially studied and began her career as a violinist and played in a...

Poet Wendy Cope joins our editorial assistant Freya Parr over Zoom from her home in Cambridgeshire to discuss how her enduring relationship with classical music has changed throughout the course of her life, with various careers as a primary school teacher, journalist and now poet. Introduced to the piano at the age of five, music has been a constant in Wendy’s life, with many of her poems having now been set by the UK’s leading composers. She tells us all about this fascinating process, and...

Irish soprano Ailish Tynan talks to BBC Music Magazine's editor Oliver Condy about her musical experiences in lockdown, recent streamed performances at the Royal Opera house and at Wigmore Hall and at home with her family, as well as the music that has inspired her throughout the year. Recordings featured: Wolf: Ganymed John McCormack (tenor), Edwin Schneider (piano) Symposium SYMPCD1164   Schubert: Die Forelle Ailish Tynan (soprano), Iain Burnside (piano) Delphian DCD34165   Mahler: Des...

Editorial assistant Freya Parr meets virtually with composer Errollyn Wallen. They discuss how lockdown effects a composer and what music Errollyn counld not live without. Website: classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Comedian and host of The Guilty Feminist podcast Deborah Frances-White joins our editorial assistant Freya Parr at her home in central London. She tells stories about sneaking into the opera when she first arrived in London from Australia, her experiences of music as part of the Jehovah’s Witness religion and the breadth of music she’s discovered through hosting The Guilty Feminist podcast. Website: classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Introducing a brand new season of BBC Music Magazine’s Music to my Ears podcast. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be joined by a raft of famous faces from the classical music world and beyond, including comedian Deborah Frances-White, former Guardian editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger, composer Errollyn Wallen, poet Wendy Cope and conductor Vasily Petrenko. Join us for a new episode every Wednesday and subscribe now to stay updated.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason joins our managing editor Rebecca Franks at the Royal Academy of Music to share the music she’s listened to throughout her life. From discovering Rachmaninov on CD in the car with her parents and seven highly musical siblings to streaming Yuja Wang and Beyoncé today, we hear about the music that’s shaped who she is as both a performer and avid listener. Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2FaFkcK2TQLVg50BNYvk9A?si=a0hckCZxRySz1rI4vEPZ9A Website:...

Familiar to BBC Radio 4 listeners as an announcer, newsreader and, perhaps above all, the voice of the Shipping Forecast, Zeb Soanes has been a classical music enthusiast from a young age. He tells us about the music that has inspired him over the years. Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/69MDC2lhe97UXwT1EKfWv8?si=A8I3CUNUR6iRxeUisPF7oA Website: Classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

British composer Sally Beamish joined us via video conferencing software in lockdown to discuss the surprising musical discoveries she’s been making while at home with her partner, falling in love with Bartók’s string quartets and a vibrant Colombian joropo concert she attended earlier this year. Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5CUCWUTOQEalD9Ieu4Uqjm?si=cYv6JIpcTcaCQCuwcAVbRQ Website: Classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Jake Heggie is one of America’s busiest and most popular composers. Music for voices sits at the heart of what continues to be a varied career, from his first opera – Dead Man Walking – to his latest song cycle based on poems by Margaret Attwood. In this podcast he talks to Michael Beek about his craft, finding his voice with opera and his greatest musical loves and inspirations. Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2vLnj9bKq67FCw9LMU5Ejw?si=DDlmzIUBRrmOWfP8IiA4dQ Website:...

Organist, choirmaster and presenter Anna Lapwood talks about her role at Pembroke College as director music, her first recording with the choir there and her musical loves that ranges from Richard Strauss and Tchaikovsky to the choral music of Caroline Shaw. Oliver Condy met her before the lockdown at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff, just down the road from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama where Anna had been presenting BBC Young Musicians for BBC Four. Spotify Playlist:...

Founder and conductor of the groundbreaking Aurora Orchestra, Nicholas Collon explores the music that has inspired him over the years, from the Bach piano pieces he learnt as a child to glorious moments of English choral music. Episode Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/36bnWpyFELm1D9vW0qw5jx?si=WhTnLEVjTnqhbgzBLrUVqA Website: Classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Australian saxophonist Amy Dickson tells us about the music that’s shaped her life, from the Spanish piano music she listened to in the car as a child to Philip Glass’s violin transcriptions, which helped her learn how to circular breathe. Episode Playlist: Website: Classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Following his recital with recorder player Michaela Petri at the Bath Bachfest, harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani strolled around the centre of the Georgian city with Oliver Condy and shared his favourite music, including a symphonic discovery and the single piece of music he couldn’t live without… Episode Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2v78HC0EKL7tiArRw4ApM7?si=qT5om-FHTFqiIzh3vCsMLQ Website: Classical-music.com/podcasts   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

BBC Music Magazine’s brand new podcast, Music to my Ears, features a series of interviews with well-known classical musicians and composers about their musical passions and discoveries. Join us for a new episode every Wednesday and Subscribe to stay updated.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this month's podcast, we discuss Yo-Yo Ma's intrepid musical exploration across the globe, from the Silk Road to Appalachian America. Plus, we discuss the plans for this year's slightly different BBC Proms season and what London's Wigmore Hall is doing to welcome artists back to its stage. We've also each brought along a new recording we've been enjoying, including a fresh interpretation of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, plus works by Morton Gould and Louis-Gabriel...

In this month's podcast, we announce the winners of this year's BBC Music Magazine Awards and listen to a track from our Recording of the Year. Plus, we discuss the enduring relationship between two artistic forms: classical music and fashion. We also look back on the recent highlights of musicians innovating during the lockdown period while they're not able to work in the usual way. These include mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnston's new cookbook: Notes from Musicians' Kitchens, and the...

In this month's podcast, we reflect on some of our favourite concerts that have been streamed online over the past few weeks, and suggest a few to look out for in the coming months. Plus, we discuss the new virtual festival of the arts 'Culture in Quarantine' on BBC Arts. Also this month, we discuss the fabulous virtuosity of violinist and conductor Maxim Vengerov as he marks 40 years on stage, and Ravi Shankar, whose centenary we are celebrating in our May issue. As usual, we've each...

In the April issue of the BBC Music Magazine Podcast, we discuss the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on music festivals across the globe. We also look at the recently released list of PRS Women Changing Music, which features a number of film composers.  Also this month, we flick through the latest issue of BBC Music Magazine, which features pianist Angela Hewitt on the cover. We reflect on the tragic story of her broken Fazioli piano, which hit headlines earlier this year. You’ll also...

Welcome to the March 2020 edition of the BBC Music Magazine Podcast! This month we discuss the news that the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment will only travel by train (rather than plane) on its upcoming tour, as part of its commitment to becoming carbon neutral. We also look at new research which uncovers the fact that Beethoven may not, in fact, have been completely deaf when his final symphony was premiered.  Also this episode, we explore the genius of Polish composer Grażyna...

In our February 2020 podcast, we discuss cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s entry into the Official UK Album Chart, the first cellist in history to do so. We also analyse the nominees for Best Original Score at this year’s Oscars, BAFTAs and Golden Globes, and look at who from the classical music was named on the New Year’s Honours list this year. Also this episode, we listen to extracts from both our cover CD and our Recording of the Month, the latter of which is pianist Angela Hewitt performing...

In our January 2020 podcast, we find out about violinist Nicola Benedetti's latest venture, an impressive educational initiative that she's been dreaming of starting for years. She's our cover star on the January issue of BBC Music Magazine, and in this podcast we also enjoy a clip from our cover CD of works by Mozart and Schubert, played by BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists. Plus, in this episode we pay tribute to the late conductors Mariss Jansons and Stephen Cleobury, bring news of the...

We have sherry, mince pies and crackers: it must be time for the Christmas podcast! Join us for an episode packed with Yuletide joy, beautiful new carols by Dobrinka Tabakova, Toby Young, Cecilia McDowall and Michael Finnissy, as well as our favourite festive musical jokes. Plus hear all about our Christmas isssue. Our cover feature takes a look at a masterpiece that has redefined the sound of Christmas, Handel's Messiah; we also explore the parish church choir scene, and find out what...