The Royal Philharmonic Society Awards were a stylish affair full of wit, polish and verve. Classical music as self-assured and…
classical music isn’t difficult. it’s just music.
independent writing about classical music, books, and tv
NEWS & Reviews
Concerts, albums, and video reviews. Familiar, unfamiliar, plus stuff fresh out of the packaging.
Edinburgh International Festival 2026: there’s more to this creative risk than meets the eye
The 2026 Edinburgh International Festival programme is bold, substantial, and confident. And it poses a big uncomfortable question….
News – Classical Music Magazine to shut down
Mark Allen Group – the publishing house behind many of the UK’s trade and consumer publications in the classical music,…
An International Piano Competition. In Hastings.
Rachmaninov played in Hastings twice. What the Hastings International Piano Competition does that legacy is a more complicated question….
News – Paavo Järvi and the LPO: shrewder than disruption
In appointing Järvi, the LPO has made the case for experience that the rest of the classical music industry currently…
Review – Ronnie Scott’s Classical All Stars, Upstairs at Ronnie Scott’s
Ronnie Scott’s Classical All Stars: classical music stripped of its safety net. Deliciously so….
thoroughly good classical music podcast
Interviews with compositions, musicians and producers about the music they love.
225: Gen Z, Gen A, and Forgotten Older People – Thoroughly Good Classical Music Podcast
- 225: Gen Z, Gen A, and Forgotten Older People
- 224: Lizzie Ball
- 223: Mezzo Soprano Katie Bray
- 222: Penelope Appleyard
- 221: Revere Arts' Elise Brown and Class Ceiling
- 220: Composer and Sound Artist Ruby Colley
- 219: Writer Carole Hayman
- 218: Vache Baroque's Betty Makharinsky
- 217: Pianist Clare Hammond and Michael Betteridge
- 216: Aida Lahlou
opinion
Thoroughly Good thoughts and reflections on the classical music industry.
RPS Awards 2026: Classical is a sector that knows what it wants
The Royal Philharmonic Society Awards were a stylish affair full of wit, polish and verve. Classical music as self-assured and…
On Chalamet and sympathy exhausted
If ballet and opera really are in trouble like Chalamet’s ill-thought out throwaway comment might suggest, then it’s going to…
Humphrey Burton (1931 – 2025)
Reduce classical music’s exposure and you don’t merely rearrange a schedule — you relegate an art form. No television executive…
dispatches
Stories from in and around where music is heard.
New Year’s Day Concert 2026
Monday can wait. New Year needs to be gently ushered in by stylish people in stylish surroundings….
Notes on Listening
After a day immersed in figures and forecasts, stepping into Wigmore Hall feels like surfacing for air. Here, the discipline…
The Wrong Boat to Venice
A trip to Venice to review a festival. Yet, somewhere between the wrong boat, the gondoliers and a memory from…
beyond classical music on thoroughly good
More writing on books, television, and the arts.
New Year’s Day Concert 2026
Monday can wait. New Year needs to be gently ushered in by stylish people in stylish surroundings….
Review – BBC Proms 2025: The Traitors Prom
Brand tie-ins at the Proms can be clumsy, but The Traitors Prom proved how a crossover event can work. Packed…
Review – Series 3 – The Diplomat
A firm Thoroughly Good favourite. Definitely a three series box set to binge. Full of grand performances….
Review – Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue
A stylish, pacey whodunnit from Anthony Horowitz. Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue balances peril and polish with a touch…
Review – ‘Flesh’ – David Szalay
A fast, hard-hitting novel where emotion lands late and quietly, turning detachment into its own kind of intimacy….
Thoroughly Good
Classical Music | TV | Books
Reviews, insights, and opinions about classical music. Supporting the industry with digital content, leadership training, and consultancy.