Discover the Tuba with Classic FM

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John Whitener with his cimbasso backstage at the Royal Albert Hall

Meet the cimbasso, the epic brass contraption heard in ‘Inception’ and ‘Call of Duty’

Hans Nickel and the WDR Symphony Orchestra

Jaw-droppingly nimble soloist plays virtuosic violin Czardas... on the tuba?

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Seven students age 16-18 have been left without their musical instruments for 25 days

‘How is this okay?’ – outrage as seven music students’ brass instruments lost by Lufthansa

The UK experienced its highest ever temperatures on record

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COVID-19 patient serenades hospital staff in Utah with violin

Intubated COVID-19 patient plays violin for medical staff to say a musical ‘thank you’

News & Features

US orchestra study finds trumpet ‘riskiest’ instrument for spreading COVID-19

US orchestra study finds trumpet ‘riskiest’ instrument for spreading COVID-19

Coronavirus

Matt Marzano sustains a note for five minutes using circular breathing

‘Mind-blowing’ tuba player holds a five-minute note using circular breathing

Videos

Pictured: Sarah and Simon Jacobs

Newly-wed couple distraught after ‘sentimental’ tuba stolen from car

I refuse to count this

16 confessions of a brass player that will make you say ‘same’

Paganini tuba

Watch this guy play some virtuosic Paganini on TUBA and make it look easy

Paganini

dad text tuba

This dad accidentally texted using voice recognition while playing the TUBA

Game of Thrones low bass cover

23 low brass playing the Game of Thrones theme is monumentally epic

Discover other brass

Rare iron age trumpet unearthed in Norfolk

Rare iron age battle trumpet unearthed in Norfolk

Orchestra formation

What are all the instruments in an orchestra?

A boy plays the trumpet at a No Kings protest in San Diego

‘Goosebumps’ as young boy plays Star-Spangled Banner on his trumpet at San Diego protest

Brass players delight passengers with impromptu ‘The Bare Necessities’ on aeroplane

Brass players delight passengers with impromptu ‘The Bare Necessities’ on aeroplane

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Trumpet rental letter

Son finds touching note sent to his struggling mother ‘forgiving trumpet debt’

English trumpeter Alison Balsom plays in Cologne’s philharmonic hall

10 most spectacular pieces of trumpet music

Paul McCartney asked an English trumpeter to play a painfully high piccolo trumpet solo for ‘Penny Lane’

When Paul McCartney asked an English trumpeter to play the painfully high ‘Penny Lane’ piccolo trumpet solo

The top 10 best pieces of music by Haydn.

10 greatest pieces of classical music by Haydn

Haydn

Trumpeter creates mesmerising sound wave visualisation using fire

Trumpeter uses actual fire to create mesmerising soundwave visualisation

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Sheku Kanneh-Mason plays Elgar Cello Concerto; Alison Balsom plays Haydn Trumpet Concerto; Anne-Sophie Mutter plays Williams Violin Concerto No.2

The 20 greatest concertos in classical music

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Trumpeter Matilda Lloyd performs a Puccini aria in a beautiful stairwell acoustic.

Trumpeter finds extraordinary church stairwell acoustic, plays opera’s greatest tune

Puccini

Bugler sounds the Last Post

What is The Last Post and why is it played on Remembrance Day?

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Alison Balsom is an award-winning trumpet soloist

‘To diminish music in education is a really big mistake’ – star trumpeter Alison Balsom

Alison Balsom

John Blanke, Trumpet

Meet John Blanke, Henry VIII’s highly favoured trumpeter and the face of Black Tudor England

Alison Balsom reveals her Top 5 Trumpet Concertos of all time

Star trumpeter Alison Balsom reveals the top five trumpet concertos of all time

Alison Balsom

A Ukrainian musician plays the National Anthem in a metro station being used as a bomb shelter

Ukrainian trumpeter’s solo national anthem echoes through underground shelter

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Is Jessie Buckley classically trained?

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Hamnet (2026) starring Jessie Buckley

Max Richter’s ‘Hamnet’ soundtrack leaves fans in tears after Jessie Buckley scene

Richter

Washington National Opera leaves Kennedy Center

Washington National Opera ends 55‑year residency at the Trump Kennedy Center, citing financial issues
Listen to the Classic FM Hall of Fame countdown live, 9am-9pm across the Easter weekend.

Vote for your favourite classical music in the Classic FM Hall of Fame 2026

Classic FM Hall of Fame

David Bowie Life on Mars

David Bowie’s isolated vocal from ‘Life On Mars’ reveals the true power of his tenor range

Footage resurfaces of Paul Mescal singing in school production of ‘Phantom of the Opera’

Paul Mescal stars in school production of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ in unearthed footage

Lloyd Webber

Gustavo Dudamel is one of today’s most celebrated orchestral conductors

Who is Gustavo Dudamel, Grammy-winning Venezuelan conductor?

Gustavo Dudamel

Stephen Schwartz boycotts Trump’s Kennedy Center gala

Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz boycotts Trump’s Kennedy Center gala

Latest instrument features

Does Will Sharpe really play the piano in Amadeus?

Does Will Sharpe really play the piano in Amadeus?

Diana Newell makes her Royal Albert Hall debut at Classic FM Live

‘The Piano’ winner, veteran Diana Newell, makes her Royal Albert Hall debut aged 88

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Soloist forced to travel with ‘naked’ 1782 violin as airline refuses her boarding with case

Soloist forced to travel with ‘naked’ 1782 violin as airline refuses her boarding with case
111 pianos played simultaneously at ‘epic’ fundraiser

135 pianists play over a hundred pianos simultaneously at huge fundraiser

Bass clarinettist plays in ‘cathedral-like’ acoustic of cooling towers

Bass clarinettist plays in ‘cathedral-like’ acoustic of cooling towers

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The 15 most famous tunes in classical music

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The 4 eras of classical music: a quick guide

A young Marin Alsop, Sir Simon Rattle, and Seiji Ozawa conduct their respective orchestras.

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