Perfect Pitch: 100 Pieces of Classical Music to Bring Joy, Tears, Solace, Empathy, Inspiration (& Everything In Between) —by Tim Bouverie (Short Books, 2021)

—Review by Cathy Ritchie

When British historian and political journalist Tim Bouverie was locked down (as so many of us) in the Covid pandemic in 2020, he turned his down-and-out mood toward his avocational passion—classical music—for comfort and entertainment. He began sending his close friends links to various pieces he especially loved, along with a few lines of commentary and appraisal for each.

Eventually, his enthusiastic musings became Perfect Pitch, a book aimed squarely at non-musical professionals such as himself. As he puts it, “I seem to have unearthed a longing not simply for classical music but a way into classical music.” The lemon that was (and is?) Covid clearly became lemonade for this particular enterprising aficionado.

Bouverie’s format is simple, yet offers much. In basically chronological order, beginning with Henry Purcell and concluding with George Gershwin and Richard Strauss, he briefly examines 100 of his favorite works, including operas, oratorios, concertos, symphonies, and more. Very few entries run longer than a half-page, and all include bare-boned biographical data on the composer—not to mention some graceful turns of phrase. For example:

“Whenever I feel jaded, or have overindulged in rich romantic fare, I return to Bach’s compositions for solo keyboard—the musical equivalent of a cold glass of Alpine water: clear, pure, the source of all things.”

In nearly every instance, he also includes humorous anecdotes about the composers’ personal lives and how their creations came to exist, often displaying touches of what might be considered sardonic British wit. His introduction to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D Minor opens with: “Beethoven went deaf. This fact is so well known that it is worth taking a moment to consider, lest familiarity breeds insouciance.”

Despite Bouverie’s lack of professional musical background, he does periodically interject technical comments about his chosen pieces. Non-instrumentalists such as myself can easily skim these parts as deemed necessary. But the fact that he has managed to convey so much well-expressed information within such small spaces deserves reader praise throughout.

And we readers also receive a fine bonus: after each entry, Bouverie offers “Recommended Recording(s)” of each piece, including orchestra, conductor and performer names, and the date of original issue. Thus, he doesn’t expect us to simply take his written opinions as the final answer: he puts some convincing aural proof behind his judgments. I applaud this, as I also commend him for including a brief glossary of terms at the book’s conclusion.

Perfect Pitch is a guidebook for all seasons and for multiple audiences: students,

performing arts nonprofessionals, and motivated “lay” listeners desiring

further guidance into the vast, tangled, yet rewarding world of classical music.

Thanks indirectly to the scourge of Covid, this gem has emerged.