Lessons in Harmony with Jonathan Coe
Thu 26 Nov 2026
7:00pm at Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN
Book & ticket includes a ticket with a copy of the book. All tickets include 15% off any books purchased on the night, author talk, Q&A and signing.
Other ways to book:
Email tickets@mrbsemporium.com, call 01225 331155 or pop into the shop at 14-15 John Street, Bath. BA1 2JL.
We can’t wait to welcome Jonathan Coe, the award-winning author of The Proof of My Innocence, Bournville, and Middle England, back to Mr B’s for an event celebrating the release of his brand new novel, Lessons in Harmony!
Following a decades-long friendship between two composers, Lessons in Harmony is a stunning, heartfelt novel about the power of music to create beauty, to freeze time, and, at its greatest, to express the personality not just of its composer, but of an entire nation. We can’t wait to hear Jonathan tell us all about it!
Can’t make it to the event? Order a signed & dedicated copy here!
About the book:
The year is 1907 and Maurice Ravel is one of the most admired young composers in France. In Belle Epoque Paris he cuts a charismatic, dandyish figure, whose technically flawless music hides a deep emotional core, and whose unpredictable talent is as hard to pin down as his mysterious personal life. When Ravel’s devoted acolyte Mylo encourages him to take on a new pupil – a rising British composer called Ralph Vaughan Williams – an unlikely cross-channel friendship starts to blossom.
An aristocratic Englishman and collector of folk songs, Vaughan Williams appears to have nothing in common with his teacher except that, somehow, each of them seems to represent an archetype of his own country. But as the shadow of war approaches, their friendship becomes entwined with Mylo’s own tragic story. The two friends must pursue their vocation through one of the most turbulent but creative periods in history.
But will their differing senses of national identity – one ‘typically French’, the other ‘so British’ – liberate or constrain them?
“A new Jonathan Coe is always a treat.” The Times
“My comfort read: anything by Jonathan Coe.” Bob Mortimer
“Probably the best English novelist of his generation.” Nick Hornby
“Please God… if there is a next life, let me write as well as Jonathan Coe.” Anthony Bourdain
“A novelist who gains in range and reputation with every book.” Pat Barker