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German composer Max Reger, who died 100 years ago this month, has always been something of a ‘marmite’ composer with equally passionate advocates and detractors. Tom talks to performers and enthusiasts to find out why people both love and might hate the music of a complex individual whose works sit between tradition and modernity. With pianist Markus Becker, musicologists Christopher Anderson and John Deathridge, conductor Herbert Blomstedt and broadcaster Rob Cowan. 

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Markus Becker’s list of 10 ‘Mad Max’ recordings for Reger beginners
Scherchen conducts Reger: Variations and Fugue for Orchestra on a Theme by Mozart Op. 132
Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, Hermann Scherchen (conductor)
CPO 9991432 (2CD)

Reger: Piano Concerto
Rudolf Serkin, Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy (Conductor)
Sony Classical

Reger: The Complete Works For Clarinet And Piano
Ib Hausmann (Clarinet), Nina Tichman (Piano)
HANSSLER HAEN93035

Reger: Clarinet Quintet in A major Op. 146
Sharon Kam (clarinet), Isabelle van Keulen, Ulrike-Anima Mathe, Volker Jacobsen, Gustav Rivinius
BERLIN CLASSICS 0300643BC

Reger: Piano Music for Four Hands
Yaara Tal, Andreas Groethuysen (piano duo)
Sony Classical

Reger: Violin Concerto in A major Op. 101
Tanja Becker-Bender (violin), Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Lothar Zagrosek (conductor)
HYPERION CDA67892 (CD)

Reger: Schlichte Weisen Op. 76
Frauke May (mezzo-soprano), Bernhard Renzikowski (piano) 
ARTE NOVA ANO 927610 (2 CD)

Reger: Cello Sonatas & Cello Suites
Alban Gerhardt (cello), Markus Becker (piano)
HYPERION CDA67581/2 (2CD)

Reger: Sieben Charakterstücke
Markus Becker (piano)
THOROFON CTH 2311

Reger: Sechs Intermezzi
Markus Becker (piano)
THOROFON CTH 2317

Tom Service joins tenor Ian Bostridge and director Netia Jones in rehearsal for Hans Zender's orchestrated version of Schubert's song cycle Winterreise.  They talk about how Zender’s re-imagining adds new dimensions to Schubert’s original, setting it in the musical sound-world of Weimar Germany, making it more theatrical, as well as Bostridge’s personal lifelong journey with Schubert’s work.

Tom talks to composer, pianist and journalist Peter Dickinson about a lifetime spent writing, performing and thinking about music.  He discusses how travelling to  America when he was young affected his music, particularly the influence of John Cage on his compositional technique, as well as his meetings with English poets Auden and Larkin.

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