Christmas is upon us again!

While an integral part of Christmas are the carols, Handel’s Messiah and many other classical works, there are many classical music lovers out there and you don’t have to be stuck on carols to appreciate the world of classical music at this time of year.

Here are 12 titles that caught my eye.

Jordi Savall, Hesperion XXI and Alia Vox bring out a beautiful box for every Christmas and there are couple this year that you can choose from to present to your special someone who loves early music.

First, there’s the celebration of Joan of Arc through music, interspersed with texts from her trial. There is no better way to find out about this woman ready to give it up in belief of her religion.

The other collection available is simply called Pro Pacem and features 23 works from the Alia Vox catalogue. This is an interesting look at our world through the prism of music. If you want something a little smaller, but still fairly new, have a look at the Spirit of Armenia. Another classic to add to the Alia Vox collection.

Where would classical music be without Wagner’s Ring Cycle?

The Metropolitan Opera has completed their latest Ring Cycle recently and have released it in many formats, including a beautiful complete DVD box set.

Over 800,000 people have already seen these productions and I urge you not to miss out. It doesn’t suffer from being shown within the comfort of your own living room - the beauty of the music and the cinematography really translates through to the DVD.

Keeping within the world of Opera, Andrea Bocelli is a superstar whether you’re a fan of classical music or not. This is an 18 CD box set that will look great wrapped up underneath the Christmas tree.

A must for anyone who loves vocal music, but doesn’t know a lot of classical music and wants something fun and sounds glorious.

I discovered to my horror the other day not everyone has heard of ‘The Proms’. If this is also you, do yourself a favour and get this DVD. The Last Night of the Proms is a celebration, not only of classical music and all things British but how in today’s day and age we can still be a community in a larger world. Full of enthusiasm, singing, laughter and of course music, this is a great gift to celebrate the holiday season.

For people who adore piano music, this box set is not only sure to impress but please them greatly! Lang Lang is the Chinese superstar pianist and it’s terrifying to think how much he has accomplished in his life as he turns 31 next year. These are his complete recordings on the esteemed Deutsche Grammophon.

The Classic 100 on ABC Classic FM has become an institution in its own right. We’ve done the top 100 works of all time, as well as Chamber Music, Piano Music and more. This time their eyes have turned to France. This is the Classic 100 Music of France as voted by the listeners of ABC Classic FM. A must for any Francophile.

What I’ve mentioned so far are mostly giant box sets bursting with good music. However don’t forget there are some fabulous new releases that may looking unprepossessing but would still be appreciated by that special someone.

There’s something for someone who loves audio books, for a cellist, Australian music fan and someone into guitar music. There are also heaps of classical music books for those who are always looking for more to learn.

For more ideas have a look at our