Clemency Burton-Hill is a critic, writer, broadcaster and classically trained violinist whose work explores how music is heard, understood and lived today. Raised in London and educated at the University of Cambridge (Double First in English Literature), she trained as a violinist at the Royal College of Music, studying with Rodney Friend and receiving guidance from artists including Yehudi Menuhin. Across two decades in journalism and broadcasting, she has focused on bringing the depth and complexity of classical music into clearer, more human focus for broad audiences.
She began her career at Vogue before becoming the youngest broadsheet columnist at The Daily Telegraph, and has since written widely for publications including The Economist, Financial Times, The Guardian, The Observer and Opera News. As a broadcaster, she has presented BBC Radio 3’s flagship Breakfast programme, the BBC Proms, and BBC Two’s The Culture Show, and later served as Creative Director for Music & Arts at WQXR/New York Public Radio. She is now based in the United States.
Burton-Hill is the creator of the British Podcast Award–winning Classical Fix and the Webby-nominated Open Ears Project, both designed to expand how audiences encounter classical music. She is the author of the bestselling Year of Wonder: Classical Music for Every Day and its sequel, which pair musical insight with accessible storytelling.
Alongside her journalism, she has worked internationally on music and education initiatives in the Middle East and across Africa, including with the Choir of London and the arts charity Dramatic Need.
After surviving a catastrophic brain haemorrhage in 2020 that temporarily robbed her of language, Burton-Hill has written and spoken widely about music’s uniquely human and restorative power — an experience that continues to inform her critical perspective.
She has been based in the United States since 2018, working across print, audio and live performance.