Waterman, currently a judge on ITV1's Popstars: The Rivals, told BBC Music Magazine that songs by Kylie Minogue and Steps were among those with a classical influence.

He said that Minogue's first chart-topper, I Should Be So Lucky, was inspired by Pachelbel's Canon.

Another of his productions, Dead Or Alive's 1985 number one hit You Spin Me Round (Like A Record), borrowed from Wagner's Ride Of The Valkyries.

Classical music has had an amazing influence on pop, although at the moment R&B and rap artists have forced all the tunes out

Pete Waterman

"If I'm good at what I do, you shouldn't be able to hear where I've taken it from," said Waterman, who added that he had taken elements of Wagner's work around 20 times over the years.

Mozart

"You Spin Me Round had Ride of The Valkyries all over it. We changed a few things around but if you listen to it the strings are straight off it."

He also said Steps' hit Last Thing On My Mind was inspired by Mozart.

"I think classical music has had an amazing influence on pop, although at the moment R&B and rap artists have forced all the tunes out," Waterman said.

Waterman: "the tune is the most important thing"

"But pop will come back to classical music."

Godfather

Waterman pointed out that other acts, including Barry Manilow, The Beatles and The Farm, had also sought inspiration from classical music, citing Pachelbel's Canon as a popular choice.

"That's almost the godfather of pop music because we've all used that in our own ways for the past 30 years," he said.

"The Farm used it for All Together Now and we used it for I Should Be So Lucky by Kylie.

"Then you've got Whiter Shade Of Pale by Procul Harum which is Bach's Air On The G Strong, while Could It Be Magic by Barry Manilow is of course Chopin's Prelude in C Minor."

Waterman, who was also behind the careers of late-1980s performers Rick Astley, Sonia and The Reynolds Girls, added: "For people like myself, The Beatles and Burt Bacharach, the tune was always the most important thing.

"If you look at the greatest pop writers you'll always spot the classical influence."