To appreciate classical music it would help if you had an understanding of the technical background and the historic context. Any of these TV programmes (or books) by Howard Goodall (in my class at school) will improve your appreciation very greatly:
Shamelessly copied from Wikipedia:
Among many programmes, he has presented six award-winning series of television programmes on musical theory & history, filmed by Tiger Aspect and broadcast on Channel 4:
Howard Goodall’s Organworks (1996) – history of the organ
Howard Goodall’s Choirworks (1998) – history of choral music
Howard Goodall’s Big Bangs (2000) – pivotal events in the history of music (also a book, published by Vintage in 2001, ISBN 0-09-928354-9
Howard Goodall’s Great Dates (2002) – important dates in the history of music
Howard Goodall’s 20th Century Greats (2004) – exploring the divergence between classical and popular music in the 20th century
Howard Goodall’s How Music Works (2006) – analysing the fundamental components of music itself.
The Truth About Christmas Carols (2008) – a documentary examining the surprising, and often secret, history of the traditional Christmas carol
Hallelujah! The Story of Handel’s Messiah (2010) – celebrates Handel’s “Messiah” and looks at its origins and modern arrangements
Broadcast on BBC2.
Howard Goodall’s The Story of Music (2013) – traces the story of music from the ancient world to the modern day. The book accompanying this series has been translated into many languages.
Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (2017) – a 50th anniversary retrospective of the album’s making and impact, shown on both BBC2 and PBS on 3 June 2017.