Max Richter's songs to compel

Max Richter is one of the most loved modern composers in the world. He’s sold millions of albums, and been streamed billions of times. Max’s work is just as likely to be heard in prestigious concert halls as through your tv speakers, and his scores for shows like Leftovers and Bridgerton, or films like Ad Astra, have been critically acclaimed. Richter’s compositions are as comfortable in the catwalks of Paris as the hallways of your home, and his music has been a beautiful saviour and release to me for many years.

For all of these reasons, asking Max to Take 5 was a bucket list. I wanted to get a window into his mind, and hear the songs that compelled him. As someone whose music can make me cry, swoon, and think differently about the world around me, what are the tunes that do that for Max Richter? From Kraftwerk to Joni Mitchell, to Bach, this is as much a conversation about songs as it is the creative lifeblood of one of the world’s greatest living composers.

Kraftwerk – 'Computer World'

Joni Mitchell – 'Chelsea Morning'

Johann Sebastian Bach – 'Concerto in D Minor for two violins'

Soft Machine – 'Why Are We Sleeping?'

Nina Simone – 'I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free'