Choirmaster Gareth Malone has criticised The X Factor as being too loud and “shiny”.

The 40-year-old – who became a household name teaching choral music to people with little singing experience in BBC Two’s The Choir – feels the volume of the ITV show has been over-amplified and admitted he is not a fan.

Asked by the Radio Times what he would change about British television, he said: “It’s a boring, nerdy answer: less audio compression, which is when they make the softer bits loud, so that everything is loud.

“X Factor is a prime example. It’s so shiny. You can turn it right down, and still hear absolutely everything.”

Gareth Malone
Gareth Malone (Ian West/PA Archive/PA Images)

Gareth also said he would rather watch professional singers than newcomers getting started.

“I work with amateur musicians myself, so those shows feel a bit like a busman’s holiday to me,” he said.

He continued: “Look, I was an avid watcher of X Factor in 2005. It’s just been going on for a little while. And that’s fine, if that’s what you like.

“Sometimes things shouldn’t change too much. Nobody wants a massive overhaul of BBC Breakfast, do they?

“When I watch Countryfile, I know what I’m going to get. John Craven in wellies… With a fantastic jumper.

“There’s a lot to be said for shows maintaining what people like about them.”

X Factor (Syco/Thames/Dymond / Press Association Images)
X Factor (Syco/Thames/Dymond / Press Association Images)

It is not the first time the choirmaster has taken a swipe at The X Factor.

Last year he told the Radio Times that both Simon Cowell’s show and The Voice were not to his “taste”.

This week’s Radio Times is on sale on Tuesday.