The Story of Classical is your essential nine-part companion guide to classical music. In each of our commentaries, we unlock the mystery and beauty of every musical period—from the Middle Ages to the present day—by chronicling an encounter between vital figures in music history. We now take you on a Romantic journey into a richer, more harmonically complex world. And at the heart of our story lies a young Johannes Brahms whose encounters with fellow composers and pianists Robert and Clara Schumann changed them, and classical music, forever. While Robert recognised and nurtured Brahms’ talent, Brahms’ relationship with Clara is today still shrouded in mystery. Find out what happened between these three gifted musicians and how their music came to define what we call the ‘Romantic’ era. Enjoy the commentary in full on the first track, and on subsequent tracks explore all of its featured music.