Guardian Music — As the composer and conductor celebrates his 60th birthday year, he talks to Fiona MaddocksRead Tom Service's guide to Knussen's musicDid you always find music a living entity – in the sense that you were always a composer, never content with perfo... more info

Guardian Music — Barbican, LondonIt's 17 years since Michael Tilson Thomas stepped down as the London Symphony Orchestra's principal conductor. But he returns regularly, and there is now talk that he might be open to a second stint at the LSO's helm when Valery Gergi... more info

Guardian Music — Oliver Knussen's music packs as much incident and expression into mere minutes than some composers manage in a lifetimeAll articles in this seriesOliver Knussen's huge influence as conductor, teacher, programmer, artistic director, and catalyst for s... more info

Guardian Music — The conductor on his relationship with the London Symphony Orchestra, the importance of Mahler, and musical cats and dogsWhen conductor Michael Tilson Thomas emerged as the wunderkind of American music and heir apparent to Bernstein in the early 70s,... more info

Guardian Music — On Saturday 12 May, the rain clouds briefly lifted and the London Symphony Orchestra played a free concert to an audience of thousands in Trafalgar Square more info

Guardian Music — Barbican, LondonValery Gergiev chose Stravinsky's 1948 Mass setting to fire the starting gun for his week-long Stravinsky festival. An interesting choice for portraying variegations in the composer's diverse stylistic spectrum, the Mass isn't really ... more info

Guardian Music — Cvilak/Bostridge/Noseda/Keenlyside/LSO and Chorus/Choir of Eltham College (LSO Live, 2CDs)Released to mark the 50th anniversary of the War Requiem's premiere, this was recorded during a series of Barbican concerts last autumn. The conductor is Giana... more info

Guardian Music — Young musicians auditioned online to join Aldeburgh's world ensemble for Olympic Games festivalAn international orchestra will be born this summer when musicians meet for the first time in a rehearsal hall on the Suffolk coast. In an unprecedented mo... more info

Guardian Music — Barbican, LondonPerformances of Weber's Gothic tale of demonic pacts and shooting trials have become few and far between, so we should be grateful to Colin Davis for presenting it in concert with the London Symphony Orchestra. He feels great fondness... more info

Guardian Music — Barbican, LondonPerformances of Mahler's Third Symphony may not be as rare as they used to be, but each one is still an event, and a challenge for any conductor. Semyon Bychkov made his debut with the London Symphony Orchestra two years ago, and an i... more info