Find articles | Playlist

Brahms pours his heart out in every single composition and takes the listener on an unforgettable emotional journey. 

Tchaikovsky spun melodies like few others and was undoubtedly one of the most versatile composers.

Gather your littles ones around and settle down for a musical tale or two with our favourite works for children.

Music for Holy Week: at this time of reflection, reviewer and choral expert David Truslove presents his pick of setting of the Lamentations of Jeremiah.

For 1st April – or indeed any day of the year – some classical music in a playlist to raise a smile or two. 

Putting a spring into your step on the vernal equinox. 

From Schubert and Loewe to Beethoven and even flamenco guitars: Goethe's eerie ballad has been inspiring generations of composers and artists.

As part of keyboard month, we take a look at some of the most important composers who wrote music for this fascinating instrument.

Viscount Organs team, after much discussion, have managed to agree on their favourite organ pieces to celebrate Keyboard Month at Bachtrack.

Mark and Elisabeth offer you hopeless romantics bouquets, chocolates and stars – many stars – in their Valentine’s Day playlist.

Flowers, wine and serenades not doing it for you on Valentine's Day? Then we prescribe a dose of our cynics playlist, which should cure you of all romantic thoughts... at least for an hour or so. 

For Schubert's birthday, our editors have chosen their favourite ten from his 600+ Lieder. Warning: don't expect a jolly time, until we get to no. 10... and even then things turn out badly if you're a fish. 

No, not a playlist of Ludwig's greatest hits, but a delve into the darker reaches of Beethoven's back catalogue, including the many "works without opus"...

Musical theatre expert and writer Kurt Gänzl has selected ten operettas and musicals from different periods and countries so you can get an idea of how vast the genre has been.

To celebrate Viola Month here at Bachtrack, editors Mark and Elisabeth have selected their favourite concertos and sonatas featuring the instrument.

An entire day with Bach as your soundtrack.

The background to Berlioz' great song cycle with a musical analysis and playlist

As the old year gives way to the new, our thoughts turn to Vienna and the New Year's concert. But which are the best waltzes? Mark and Elisabeth decide! 

Make yourself a nice cup of mulled wine and brace yourself for some glorious operatic Christmas schmaltz.

Verdi wrote some terrific "larger than life" roles for mezzo-sopranos. Jamie Barton picks her favourite singers for her "top ten" playlist. 

The Italian bass selects his favourite Verdi arias, including performances by some of the singers he most admires. 

When Mark and Elisabeth considered their top ten violin concertos, an easy truce was agreed. Sorry, Johannes, but when it comes to violin concertos, Pyotr Ilyich was victorious.

From Wilbur Hall to Charlie Chaplin by way of Ray Chen and Gilles Apap, here are ten violinists who won't fail to surprise you with their unsuspected talents.

It's Verdi all the way for our latest playlist: Mark and Elisabeth's favourite choruses from his best operas... with a surprise late entry. 

Libiamo! Crack open a bottle and settle back to enjoy our editors' pick of opera's jolliest drinking songs!

Characters in opera are doomed to die – especially sopranos – but the variety of ways they are dispatched can be highly entertaining. Sit back and enjoy some of our favourites! 

Our editors dry their tears and share their top ten operatic farewells. Handkerchiefs at the ready... 

Rise and shine! Our editors Mark and Elisabeth offer a top ten playlist for your morning enjoyment... 

A selection of musical holiday souvenirs celebrating some exotic (and sometimes not so exotic!) holiday destinations.

For their latest Top Ten playlist for Clarinet Month, our editors chose their favourite sonatas. 

After a long bargaining process, our clarinet editors agreed on an eclectic list of their favourite clarinet concertos.

Claude Debussy died on 25th March 1918. To mark the centenary, here is a playlist of my “top ten” Debussy masterpieces… at least today’s top ten!

From emperors and empresses to nymphs, gods and giants by way of faithful wives, sorceresses, knights, dastardly noblemen and dazzling coloratura arias, here's your guide to the master showman of Baroque opera.

On the Day of German Unity, we look back in time at what happened musically at the time of German reunification.

April 23rd, 2016 sees the 400th anniversary of the Bard's death. We're marking the occation with a playlist of our favourite Shakespeare-inpired works.

Born on the 29th of February, Gioachino Rossini only gets to celebrate his birthday every four years, so we're celebrating in style with a playlist of Bachtrack favourites.

We’ve written a lot about Sibelius in this anniversary year but for his actual 150th birthday we thought we’d offer our favourite Sibelius works for your listening enjoyment!

Denmark’s favourite musical son, Carl Nielsen, celebrates his 150th birthday today. In this playlist, you'll find some of his greatest music in excellent performances.

It's Richard's birthday, and time for all good Gods, heroes and opera lovers to wake up and celebrate! 

We're celebrating Claudio Monteverdi's birthday. Enjoy our musical trip through the life of this revolutionary composer!

Brahms' haunting melodies still speak to the heart, no matter their musical context. In six excerpts, we demonstrate how he is indeed the composer of... love. 

In this battle of the birthday boys, enjoy the rich variety of music in the six clips and cast your vote for Tchaikovsky! 

“Six and a half foot of Russian gloom,” was Igor Stravinsky’s droll quip about his compatriot Sergei Rachmaninov. Here's a birthday playlist mixing a few raarities with some familiar favourites. 

Today we celebrate the birthday of J.S. Bach. It hasn't been an easy task to choose only one piece each, but we have put together an intereting selection for you to enjoy it.

Today we celebrate the birthday of the beloved daddy of the symphony, Joseph Haydn (1732-1809). Take some time to blow the candles with our playlist created by the Bachtrack team. 

Béla Bartók was born on this day in 1881. To mark the occasion, we have put together a playlist of Bachtrack favourites for you to enjoy.

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, we’re sharing some of our most romantic pieces of classical music with you to create that special playlist. Break open a bottle of bubbly, unwrap that box of chocolates and curl up together on the sofa to enjoy our Valentines favourites. 

We know that love isn't really a bed of roses, so if you've been jilted, dumped. left all alone this Valentine's Day, fear not. Here's our alternative guide – a cynic's guide, if you will – to what love can really be like! 

To mark his 259th birthday, the staff at Bachtrack HQ have each nominated their favourite Mozart moment to share with you here. 

It's Beethoven's birthday, born this day (probably) in 1770. To mark the occasion, each member of the Bachtrack office has selected their favourite Beethoven work or moment... some very familiar and some a little off the beaten track!