Arthaus Musik, distributed by Naxos, has released an intriguing series of seven DVDs titled Leaving Home: Orchestral Music in the 20th Century. Created for a TV consortium in 1996, Leaving Home features conductor Sir Simon Rattle and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra on a tour through some of the significant musical landmarks of the past century. Most ambitiously, the series tries to provide a context within which to approach—if not completely understand-20th-century music. During the nearly five hours of programming (roughly 50 minutes per DVD), Rattle lays the case for what happened and why.
