I suspect a big part of this may be that some folks are nervous about discussing the music with others who are more knowledgeable about it.

Mainly for me it is time. I can listen to other genres in chunks and, if I really do not like it, skip through songs. A classical piece feels like it demands more attention and should be listened to in its entirety and at leisure. In many cases I 'know' the piece presented, but not well and it may not be a 'favourite, and so to set time aside to listen takes more effort. With other genres I am keen to here something new and so there is a more compelling reason to listen to it, even if I end up hating it!

I do not subscribe to the rather aloof notion that you must listen to an entire classical symphony, concerto etc. in one go. Yes, it helps but you can certainly dip in to favourite sections. Of course, you need to get to know the sections that you like, and that comes with time. I do try and guide a little in Classical Album Choice but they are my favourites and may not be yours.

You should feel absolutely free to listen to one movement if you don't want to spend an evening listening to one long symphony. For instance, just the 'sunrise' 3rd movement of Beethoven's 5th is fabulous and stands alone as a superb example of his talent.

I love classical music but need to be in the right mood to enjoy it and also without interruptions. So I do not listen as often as maybe I should.

Some good honest opinions, here. They offer some enlightenment.

I'd like to hear more before offering a possible solution.

The Onedin Line theme music - Spartacus: Adagio of Spartacus and Phrygia - has always been an absolute favourite of mine and was perhaps one of the first classical LP's I ever bought - this version with the Vienna Philharmonic remains unsurpassed by all those I have listened to ... The ballet from which it comes is spectacular too.

...and on a similar note, Khachaturian also wrote another ballet called Gayaneh. The Adagio is hauntingly empty and beautiful, as used in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey to depict the long and lonely journey to Jupiter.

When I first investigated classical the starting point was the 'good bits' I heard from various sources

Played the whole piece and the previously known good bits were the only attraction for me.
The rest meandered on and on

These are good points from MikeMusic and Clive . It's not always successful 'dipping into' classical music to find the "best bits" and it takes time to listen to a whole work while you're ramping up your appreciation. Very often, I find the "best bits" are no longer the best and other sections start to raise themselves after a bit more listening. Very much like concept albums. This is why I'm thinking of formulating a place where we can introduce short sections or single movements to ease members into what classical music can really do, and leave them to explore further (or not) depending on how taken they are with it.

Just as with modern music, no classical music fan likes ALL of classical music. That would be impossible. For me, I have yet to find anything much in Mendelssohn's work that I like and there is very little in opera that turns me on. Yet some of the overtures are fantastic! So no-one is expected to love all that they are presented with.

The examples in this thread (Spartacus and Gayaneh) are good examples of music you may have heard but could not name. There's a lot of music used in Ads like this, although Shazam has made it easier to identify now.

I am not suggesting that we go on a quasi-religious mission of conversion here, but it would be fun to introduce pieces that engenders a reaction of "I like that but never knew what it was".

Thoughts?