BBC Music Magazine

This is a very good magazine. The BBC Music Magazine has articles that range from current events, music history, electronics reviews, CD reviews, calendars of events, personalities and music theory, plus the CD that comes with the magazine every month. The photography is very good, the articles are all quite readable, achieving a good balance between being accessible to the novice and containing enough detail for the more knowledgeable.

The music on the monthly CD, and the commentary on it are wonderful. The literature is varied, and has included opera, orchestral, chamber music, art songs, choral, instrumental -- everything. I can't say like all of it, but it exposes to me to music I wouldn't otherwise listen to, which is a good deal.

The CD reviews are a little uneven, which is probably due to the number of different reviewers. Personal taste of the reviewers can skew reviews, since some may like more daring approaches to music, others more conservative, and the ratings can reflect the tastes of the reviewer as much as the worth of the recording.

I've subscribed to this magazine for many years, and every change in format has only increased its readability and usefulness.