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I can't remember life without both Finlandia and the Karelia Suite, always there from my childhood, but I only came upon the symphonies in my 30s, via arguably the most immediately accessible, the...

I was joking, Stavros. I certainly enjoyed the Werckmeister Harmonies and Damnation, which I have on the two disc DVD set.

While no director can be said to be entirely unique, Tarr explores the...

As the guy who started the thread in the first place, I threw it out there to find out if there were other people on here who had a cultural hinterland that went further back than hiphop and...

Alec Guinness's version of The Waste Land is well worth a listen.

I would never for a moment question Wagner's genius, Erika, nor his wonderful facility for innovation. We forget that in the absence of mass communication, recorded music, or anything other than the...

I agree with your analysis of Mahler's 9th, Stavros. The entire symphony is a musical reflection on the approach of imminent death, foreshadowed by the loss of his children in the 6th. With Mahler,...

I know, Trish. But I genuinely find it difficult to listen to Wagner without the negative associations, although some of it is heart-stoppingly beautiful.

In terms of the break with traditional...

I somehow thought you might be, Erika. Sorry, it's a cheap one, but I couldn't resist. Genuinely, no offence intended.

Wagner is the toughest test for the listener, unless you can completely...

I should have added that the exhibition features Vermeer's Lacemaker, one of his most delicate portraits, worth going to see that alone.

The Loch Fyne's in Elton just outside Peterborough and in Woburn are favourite haunts - and you don't have to deal with Cambridge's traffic either!

Dylan? Ye Gods. As a songwriter, peerless. His...

At last, an art exhibition which doesn't involve a schlep into London, queues and an exorbitant fee.

The Fitzwilliam in Cambridge is putting on an exhibition of Dutch portraiture and interiors...

The Liverpool Oratorio and Standing Stones, Macca's previous attempts to gain credibility beyond the pop music universe, were both derivative, mildly melodic (he always did have the knack of writing...

It's all-embracing, Stavros, every culture and influence you can think of. And one of the things I'm finding most interesting is that he's charted the first time that a particular technique was...

Changing tack briefly, has anyone else been watching Mark Cousins' new series on More4 Saturday evenings, about the Story of Cinema?

Once you get over his curious and I'm afraid highly mannered...

I suspect your tongue is so firmly in your cheek, Stavros, that if you were to hold your breath as well you'd only last about three minutes.

FWIW I agree with your assessment of Hamilton. One of...

Saw a musical called Parade at the Southwark Playhouse last night with my goddaughter, who knew several of the cast from her own background in musical theatre. Played in traverse, so very close to...

Is anybody else here enjoying the proms season on Radio 3, BBC4 and occasionally BBC2?

The Brahms Concert on Friday night featuring the 3rd symphony and the 1st piano concerto with the Chamber...

Reluctantly, I have to agree, Aeryn, at least as far as keeping theatres open is concerned. As I've said, I'm very selective about musicals that I'd be prepared to see, but I tend to be a lot more...

I'm ambivalent too, Stavros, although I have a hankering for those with a strong story, and if it's dark and controversial like Carousel, all the better. In addition to my early introduction to...

No Stavros, that was the radio version. Radio 1 wouldn't have it on their playlist unless it was under 4' 33".

And as for the mind-boggling conceit of a musical version of A Clockwork Orange, it...

I wish I could help, Stavros, but my contact with the classical guitar world has always been at arm's length and as a listener rather than a player. I'm entirely self-taught as a guitarist and have...

In Edinburgh, there's a very good and pleasantly eccentric record/bookshop at the bottom of Leith Walk, but I can't remember it's name, and another good independent in Stockbridge, but they're both...

Here in the UK if you're lucky enough to have one of the surviving Fopp shops locally you'll still get that service from interested and knowledgeable geeks. There aren't many, but their staff in my...

I wrote a song, which is on my last album, which only as I finished it did it become clear to me that it was about Johnson. Make of that what you will.

As for the legend about selling his soul to...

Can't agree on Copland - Appalachian Spring remains one of the most evocative pieces and is a perfect fit with the ballet it was written for.

But Scott Joplin - yes, absolutely. The stately...