Deutsche Welle launched its DW Classical Music YouTube channel on Wednesday, right in time for the start of Beethoven's 250th birthday celebrations, and right in tune, too!  Many of the first videos on the platform focus on the German composer, including a recording of his Symphony No. 6 "Pastoral" and interviews with leading contemporary conductors such as Teodor Currentzison the composer.

DW Classical Music takes a contemporary and multifaceted approach to presenting all aspects of classical music. Through interviews with musicians, behind-the-scenes documentaries on orchestras, and comparisons and connections to other genres, the YouTube channel has something for both classical music's longtime fans as well as newcomers to the musical style.

English is the channel's primary language, but the concert recordings cross all language barriers in their purely musical form.

Germany: An unrivaled classical music landscape

For many, Germany is synonymous internationally with classical music. German composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Händel, Schumann, and Wagner, to name a few, are known worldwide, and the country is currently home to more than 130 professional orchestras and more than 10,000 permanently employed musicians.

Its concert houses, such as Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie, Dresden's Semperoper and Berlin's Philharmonie, are shining icons of classical music.

From enthusiastic listeners to star performers to motivated music students, Germany draws classical music fans and participants from around the world to a musical landscape that is unlike any other. DW Classical Music now brings this landscape to the digital user.

Platform for exclusive content

DW Classical Music will show previously screened and newly released productions from DW TV, as well as content made exclusively for YouTube.

The playlists available at the channel's launch are "Sarah's Music — with horn player Sarah Willis," in which the Berlin Philharmonic's Willis presents intimate, light-hearted encounters with other musicians; "Musica Maestra — with conductor Alondra de la Parra," a behind-the-scenes look at professional musicians' lives; "Listen and Watch — your private concert hall," a selection of purely musical recordings; and "Artists — in their own words," which features interviews and portraits of the leading classical artists of today and tomorrow.

You can explore DW Classical Music, featuring documentaries to concerts to artists portraits and more, on YouTube.