Since the mid-2010s, ambient music has not just celebrated a resurgence but an impressive growth, driven by streaming platforms on the one hand and an exciting global experimental underground on the other hand. grains takes a deeper look into the omnipresent genre’s cultural roots, sonic characteristics and historical development

When British-German composer and pianist Max Richter took to the stage of Berlin's elegantly renovated Admiralspalast in November 2024 while touring the world for his new album In a Landscape, the stage remained surprisingly dark – precisely as dark as we are more used to at pop concerts than at classical performances...

grains talks to Icelandic composer and producer Snorri Hallgrímsson about his debut Deutsche Grammophon release, Longer shadows, softer stones, his live performance for the Yellow Lounge concert series, and his creative process…

This year has spawned some outstanding tunes in the wide field of neoclassical music. grains looks back on some of the most memorable songs from the scene’s greatest composers – and promising newcomers as well

grains editors bring readers a selection of calm, reflective and night-inspired songs perfectly suited for the Winter Solstice. The soundtrack features some of the greatest composers working today, including Max Richter, Ólafur Arnalds, Philip Glass, Brian Eno, Anne-Sophie Mutter, and many more…

Our editors select nine iconic movie soundtracks from some of the greatest film composers of all time, including films such as Psycho, Goldfinger, Bladerunner, Star Wars and Gladiator by the likes of John Williams, Henry Mancini, Ennio Morricone, John Barry and Hans Zimmer

From Einaudi’s hypnotic arpeggios to Jóhannsson’s ominous drones – if you’re searching for the shared roots of neoclassical music, you inevitably land in 1960s America. grains explains the Minimal Music movement that originated as a rebellion against the European avant-garde

The winter season means different things to different people; and sometimes even myriad things to each of us individually. It can be a time of darkness and melancholy; a time of snowfall and Christmas cheer; a time for quietude and contemplation; a time, even, of fairy-tales and mystery

Look closely at the credits your favourite neoclassical album, and you might discover the name of Francesco Donadello. grains paid a visit to one of the scene’s finest sound engineers and producers in his Berlin studio to chat about working with everyone from Jóhannsson to Einaudi to Nils Frahm

How does film scoring actually work? How do you get to work on movies? What’s the role of the composer in relation to the director? grains spoke to Yair Elazar Glotman, a Berlin-based electroacoustic composer and orchestral double-bass player, about his experience in writing music for films

Our editors select several movie soundtracks from the 2000s that are distinctive, innovative and just plain breathtaking

At just 25-years-old, Icelandic composer Gabríel Ólafs is already one of classical music’s most exciting composers. He has released several albums, racked up 200 million streams, and has co-founded an orchestra for film and TV music that features on his new recording. Read our interview here…