Johann Sebastian Bach is one of the most unfathomable composers in the history of music. How can such sublime work have been produced by a man who (when we can discern his personality at all) seems so ordinary, so opaque?and occasionally so intemperate? John Eliot Gardiner grew …
From one of Bach's greatest living interpreters: a landmark study which explains in wonderful detail how the composer worked, how his music is constructed, how it achieves its effects--and what it can tell us about Bach the man. Johann Sebastian Bach is one of the most famously …
"An unprecedented book about one of the greatest of all composers, by his greatest modern interpreter. Johann Sebastian Bach is one of the most famously unfathomable composers in the history of music. How can such sublime work have been produced by a man who (when we can discern…
This deeply researched biography of Bela Bartok (1881-1945) provides a more comprehensive view of the innovative Hungarian musician than ever before. David Cooper traces Bartok's international career as an ardent ethno-musicologist and composer, teacher, and pianist, while also …
John Williams is one of the most renowned film composers in history. He has penned unforgettable scores for Star Wars, the Indiana Jones series, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Superman, and countless other films. Fans flock to his many concerts, and with forty-nine Academy Aw…
John Williams is one of the most renowned film composers in history. He has penned unforgettable scores for Star Wars, the Indiana Jones series, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Superman, and countless other films. Fans flock to his many concerts, and with forty-nine Academy Aw…
The collected writings of Franz Liszt
Shortly after Chopin's death in 1849, Franz Liszt wrote the first full-length biography of his fellow composer. As one of Chopin's friends, Liszt created a unique biography that allows the reader to experience the world of Chopin through the memories of one of his most adamant s…
Interspersing consideration of Marga Richter's (born 1926) musical works with discussion of her life, her musical style, and the origins and performances of her works, this book documents a successful composer's professional and private life throughout the twentieth century.
"I now stand at the gateway to my fortune," Mozart wrote in a letter of 1790. He had entered into the service of Emperor Joseph II of Austria two years earlier as Imperial-Royal Chamber Composer--a salaried appointment with a distinguished title and few obligations. His extraord…
"I now stand at the gateway to my fortune," Mozart wrote in a letter of 1790. He had entered into the service of Emperor Joseph II of Austria two years earlier as Imperial-Royal Chamber Composer--a salaried appointment with a distinguished title and few obligations. His extraord…