Howard Goodall – Britain’s Treasured Music Communicator

Howard Goodall

Howard Goodall deserves a place within the pantheon of the world’s greatest documentary series presenters, among them Jacob Bronowski, Carl Sagan, David Attenborough, and Neil deGrasse Tyson. I first encountered Howard Goodall in 2017 when PBS Wisconsin aired his “Sgt. Pepper’s Musical Revolution” and I was wowed by his enthusiasm, knowledge of music, and presentation style. Since then, I’ve purchased several of his music documentary series (some of them are not currently available, at least not here in the U.S.), and there is no question he is not only a British treasure, but a world treasure.

If you want to obtain a deeper knowledge of the music theory behind classical and popular music, seek him out! You won’t be disappointed.


Sgt. Pepper’s Musical Revolution (2017)
DVD (includes Lennon/McCartney from Howard Goodall’s 20th Century Greats)


Howard Goodall’s The Story of Music (2013)

  1. The Popular Age
  2. The Age of Rebellion
  3. The Age of Tragedy
  4. The Age of Elegance & Sensibility
  5. The Age of Invention
  6. The Age of Discovery
    MP4 download – make your own DVD with Wondershare DVD Creator

Music Room with Howard Goodall (2010)

  1. Julian Lloyd Webber (cellist)
  2. Lang Lang (pianist)
  3. Nicola Beneditti (violinist)
  4. Alison Balsom (trumpeter)
  5. Leif Ove Andsnes (pianist)
  6. Emma Johnson (clarinetist)
  7. Natalie Clein (cellist)
  8. Evelyn Glennie (percussionist)
    Not currently available?

How Music Works (2006)

  1. Melody
  2. Rhythm
  3. Harmony
  4. Bass
    MP4 download – make your own DVD with Wondershare DVD Creator

Howard Goodall’s 20th Century Greats (2004)

  1. Lennon/McCartney
  2. Bernard Herrmann
  3. Leonard Bernstein
  4. Cole Porter
    DVD

Howard Goodall’s Great Dates (2002)

  1. 1564
  2. 1791
  3. 1874
  4. 1937
    Not currently available?

Howard Goodall’s Big Bangs (2000)

  1. The Thin Red Line: Guido of Arezzo & the Invention of Notation
  2. The Inventing of Opera
  3. Accidentals will happen: The Invention of Equal Temperament
  4. Bartolomeo Cristofori and his Amazing Loud and Soft Machine
  5. Mary and her Little Lamb: The Invention of Recorded Sound
    DVD

Howard Goodall’s Choir Works (1998)

  1. Bulgaria & Estonia
  2. Nashville
  3. South Africa
  4. Oxford
    DVD

Howard Goodall’s Organ Works (1997)

  1. Medieval Organs
  2. Baroque Organs
  3. 19th Century
  4. Contemporary
    DVD

Howard Goodall

I first became familiar with British composer, musician, and music presenter extraordinaire Howard Goodall on August 7, 2017, when his documentary Sgt. Pepper’s Musical Revolution aired on Wisconsin Public Television.  As a lifelong Beatlephile who knows a thing or two about the Beatles and their music, I was immensely impressed with the quality and content of this documentary.  I especially liked his detailed analysis (vis-à-vis Alan W. Pollack) of what makes the music of the Beatles so extraordinary, and his obvious enthusiasm for the subject.  After watching this wonderful hour-long (yes, no commercials!) programme, I vowed to do two things:

  1. Purchase an official DVD copy of Sgt. Pepper’s Musical Revolution
  2. Find out more about Howard Goodall and his work

#1  Sad to say, periodic searches have only turned up bootleg copies from questionable sources.  When will the DVD finally be released?

#2  Somehow I missed it when it was originally broadcast on PBS, but I was delighted to find Howard Goodall’s Big Bangs available through Netflix, so I recently ordered it.

First broadcast in the UK in the autumn of 2000, Howard Goodall’s Big Bangs is a series of 50-minute documentaries on five transformative developments in the history of Western music.  They are

  1. Notation
  2. Equal Temperament
  3. Opera
  4. The Piano(forte)
  5. Recorded Sound

I just finished watching this series, and would highly recommend it for anyone interested in music history.

I enthusiastically look forward to other music documentaries by Howard Goodall.  After watching Sgt. Pepper’s Musical Revolution, I believe that he may well be the best person in the world to develop an entire documentary series on the music of The Beatles.  Here’s hoping!

There are those who say that if music has mass appeal it can’t also be music of great significance or depth. What The Beatles proved once and for all is that this idea is hopelessly and absurdly wrong. – Howard Goodall

There are very, very few composers in history whose work changed all the music that followed it: Beethoven was one, Wagner was another. I believe that posterity will add to their select ranks The Beatles. – Howard Goodall