Early music

The best childcare in the world? Maybe so, but new parents in Iceland are holding out for better

Even in forward-thinking Reykjavik, finding a preschool place for the youngest infants is tough. Parents explain why

Sarah Marsh in Reykjavik

18, May, 2023 @6:00 AM

James Bowman obituary

Countertenor with a clean, focused and lyrical approach to both early and new music, including roles in two Britten operas

Barry Millington

03, Apr, 2023 @2:13 PM

‘Haunting and poignant’: long-lost mass by Shirley Collins’ sister Dolly finally makes its debut

A school-gate chat led to the rediscovery of the late composer Dolly Collins’ Missa Humana, as her folk star sister, the writer Maureen Duffy and medieval academic Lawrence Warner explain

Jude Rogers

22, Feb, 2023 @9:05 AM

Classical home listening: Das Lied von der Erde for piano; The Splendour of Florence with Gothic Voices

Claudia Huckle, Nicky Spence and Justin Brown’s minimalist Mahler wants for nothing, while the pioneering ensemble take on Dufay, Ockeghem and more

Fiona Maddocks

14, Jan, 2023 @12:00 PM

Feed your soul: the 31-day classical music diet for January

From gentle awakening to explosive fanfare, duelling pianos to one chill lone voice, expand your horizons with a month’s worth of classical ear-openers

Fiona Maddocks

01, Jan, 2023 @12:00 PM

The week in classical: The Rape of Lucretia; Solomon’s Knot – review

A shocking update of Britten’s chamber opera feels wearily relevant. And one of the UK’s finest vocal ensembles probes the musical kinship of JS Bach and his uncle

Stephen Pritchard

19, Nov, 2022 @12:30 PM

The week in classical: Mavra/Pierrot lunaire; LSO/ Tilson Thomas; Gabrieli/ McCreesh

Covent Garden’s future stars make the most of a tricky double bill

Fiona Maddocks

21, May, 2022 @11:30 AM

Groundbreaking female composer’s lost madrigals to be heard for first time in 400 years

Maddalena Casulana’s newly discovered songs will feature on BBC Radio 3 to mark International Women’s Day

Dalya Alberge

05, Mar, 2022 @3:00 PM

Andrew Garrett obituary

Other lives: Harpsichord maker and restorer whose historical instruments were prized for their immaculate craftsmanship

Christopher Nobbs

24, Dec, 2021 @3:31 PM

From wassails to Wexford: the best classical Christmas albums of 2021

From an empty King’s College chapel to a treble duo with a cause, domestic Elizabethan music to the balm of vocals and kora, small-scale is beautiful

Fiona Maddocks

18, Dec, 2021 @12:00 PM

Crowe/Byrne/Nordberg review – London international festival of early music: enchantment, engagement and swagger

Lucy Crowe, Liam Byrne and Jonas Nordberg performed music from the 17th and 18th centuries, and revelled in the graciousness of Errollyn Wallen’s brand new Angel Waters

Flora Willson

11, Nov, 2021 @3:52 PM