Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Philharmonic explore how composers including Rachmaninov, Handel and Beethoven have used the technique of theme and variations. Show more

Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Philharmonic explore the musical technique of counterpoint - the combination of simultaneous musical lines. Show more

Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Philharmonic examine the history of the concerto, from its origins in the concerto grosso. Show more

Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Philharmonic explore what makes sonata form so satisfying for composers. Show more

Leonard Slatkin and the BBC Philharmonic explore how performers put their individual stamp on a piece of music - through their interpretation. Show more

Leonard Slatkin examines how to approach listening to a new piece of music - not just modern works but even a Haydn symphony that you have never heard before. Show more

Charles Hazlewood and the BBC Concert Orchestra reveal the extent to which the forms and styles of classical and modern dance music have provided the basis of works for the concert hall.
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Stephen Johnson explores the moods and impressions conveyed by Sibelius in his tone poems The Oceanides and Pohjola's Daughter. The performances are provided by the BBC Philharmonic.
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Stephen Johnson is joined by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales under Nicholas Kraemer to explore two great works of the Baroque - the Vivaldi and Bach Double Concertos. Show more

Stephen Johnson explores Brahms's third and final string quartet, with excerpts and a complete performance given by the Kuss Quartet. Show more

Stephen Johnson explores Strauss's tone poem Also sprach Zarathustra, discussing how the composer adapted Nietzsche's complex and controversial ideas for the work. Show more

Stephen Johnson explores Elgar's Symphony No. 1. Ten years in the gestation, the work was an immediate and phenomenal success at its first performance in 1908. Show more

Stephen Johnson investigates one of the monumental challenges of the piano repertoire - Liszt's Piano Sonata in B minor - ahead of a live performance of by Nelson Goerner. Show more

Tom Service is joined by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and conductor Andrew Manze to explore Mozart's Symphony No 36 (Linz), a work which was composed in just four days. Show more

Charles Hazlewood and the BBC Concert Orchestra explore how the foxtrot of the 1920s and 40s dance halls had a creative impact on the imagination of 20th-century composers. Show more

Stephen Johnson explores the history and musical mechanics of Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor), finding that myth has obscured the brilliance of the work's construction. Show more

Stephen Johnson examines the echoes of Mahler's songs in his later symphonies. Their subtle resonances are important in unlocking and understanding the emotional depths of Nos 5-10. Show more

Stephen Johnson is joined by pianists Llyr Williams and Benjamin Frith to examine the history and musical ideas behind Chopin's cycle of Preludes. Show more

Stephen Johnson and the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Michal Dworzynski are joined by the Danel String Quartet to explore the music and ideas behind Shostakovich's 9th Symphony. Show more

Sara Mohr-Pietsch joins Richard Egarr and the Academy of Ancient Music to explore the musical ideas in Bach's Brandenburg Concertos Nos 2, 4 and 5. Show more