History of music Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"Whether you're the sort of man who knows everything from who first threw the Devil Horns to the correct pronunciation of Yngwie Malmsteen, there is something fascinating to learn from Louder Than Hell ... Shed[s] new light on the making of Satan's Music." -- Esquire "Presents the collective memory of heavy metal through the ages and eras in the voices of the men who lived it ... It's an aficionado's delight." -- New York Daily News "Louder than Hell is a love letter to the misunderstood genre of heavy metal music, written by trusted companions who had a front row seat on the devil's rollercoaster. The definitive chronological testimony by the people who were there, including some who are no longer with us." -- Mark McGrath, Sugar Ray and co-host Extra "A great read and an instant classic." -- The Onion's A.V. Club "This is the best oral history I've read since Please Kill Me. Louder than Hell is the first book that really delivers the brutal truth from the mouths of the artists and key players themselves! I couldn't put it down." -- Matt Pinfield "Two devil horns up!" -- USA Today A compelling, first-person account of a seemingly unstoppable force ...the book reads like an extended, uncensored, shockingly satisfying episode of VH1's Behind the Music. -- Washington Post "An amazingly comprehensive book on all eras and genres of hard rock and heavy metal. The stories and attention to detail make it an instant must for anyone who ever was or is a fan." -- Eddie Trunk, DJ and host of That Metal Show on VH1 Classic Often hilarious, occasionally, 'God, I wish I hadn't read that!', sometimes profound, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes infuriating ... no one holds back on any subject... you come away from this book with a crystal-clear vision of this world -- The Huffington Post "The authors inclusiveness give this examination a weight that is just as heavy as the music." -- Publishers Weekly "A who's who of heavy music ... What makes Louder Than Hell un-put-down-able are the stories ... Essential." -- Revolver (4 stars) "No one's gone quite as deep into the genre's recesses as this 746-page oral history, which covers everything from the birth of Black Sabbath to Dave Mustaine's departure from Metallica to the disaster that was Woodstock '99." -- Rolling Stone, four stars "Jon Wiederhorn and Katherine Turman know metal. Louder Than Hell is an amazing gathering of different breeds of heavy metal rockers telling the tales metal fans want to hear." -- Tom Morello, Rage Against the Machine "If you love metal, great stories, and music history told by the people who made it, then Louder than Hell is a must-read. This is the book every metal fan should own. -- Alice Cooper "Louder Than Hell comes straight from the twisted minds of rock icons and flows seamlessly through various eras of heavy metal...I really dig this book." -- Riki Rachtman "I've said thousands of times that reading 'totally sucks.' But this book does indeed not suck. Books on the history of even something as cool as metal can be a bit antiseptic and boring-not this one." -- Brendon Small, Dethklok "Who likes rock n roll here?? Well if you do, this is the book for you! ... This is the definitive chronicle of all that is heavy metal and I've read them all!" -- Chris Jericho, Fozzy "As definitive as it gets, bonding historical anecdotes to pieces of debauched mythology from the scene's platinum superstars and fringe icons ... as indispensable as a skull-adorned leather jacket." -- Entertainment Weekly, A-

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Book SynopsisIn this first of a groundbreaking multivolume set, THE MCCARTNEY LEGACY, VOL 1: 1969-73 captures the life of Paul McCartney in the years immediately following the dissolution of the Beatles, a period in which McCartney recreated himself as both a man and a musician.Trade Review"Volume 1 of The McCartney Legacy by Allan Kozinn and Adrian Sinclair, arrives like a well-planned encore a year after the publication of The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present by Paul McCartney. Influenced by the methods of Mark Lewisohn, the exacting Beatles historian currently at work on the second volume of a trilogy about the group (the first was 900 pages, and that was an abridgment)... in a way The McCartney Legacy out-Lewisohns Lewisohn, taking almost 700 pages to cover only five years." — The New York Times Book Review “This is the comprehensive, painstaking, dazzling and definitive chronicle of rock’s strangest story: how Paul McCartney refused to go quietly after the Beatles, and how he kept his genius moving forward into another day. An amazing, inspiring trip.” — Rob Sheffield, author of Dreaming the Beatles “No maybe – I’m plain amazed at this real reveal of Paul McCartney with his decades of artful creativity. Through these pages is the accurate biography of a universal explorer.” — Mark Lewisohn, world renowned Beatles expert "Allan Kozinn and Adrian Sinclair's The McCartney Legacy: Volume 1, 1969-73 is a triumph... their masterful study of the artist's spectacular rise from the ashes of the Beatles, Kozinn and Sinclair bring McCartney's comeback story vividly to life." — Salon "Anybody in the future who wants to know anything about the subject will find the information here. Allan Kozinn and Adrian Sinclair, a former New York Times music critic and a documentary maker respectively, have entirely succeeded in the task they set themselves — to find out and inform the reader of everything there is to know about the life of Paul McCartney between 1969 and 1973." — The Times (UK) "If the devil is in the detail the The McCartney Legacy is positively satanic." — The Mail on Sunday Book Review "Setting the story between The Beatles’ demise and 1973 offers Kozinn and Sinclair a compelling redemptive narrative arc... Choosing to tell their story without foreknowledge, the authors allow it to unfold as if it’s happening in real time and without looking ahead to the outcome of any particular actions. It’s an often breathless and riveting read." — Reader's Digest "One thing that really sets this book apart is Kozinn and Sinclair’s unprecedented amount of detail on every single Paul McCartney solo recording session: dates, places, songs worked on, remembrances from those in the room, and lots of equipment detail." — Houston Press Book Review "A gold mine for avid fans." — Kirkus Reviews

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Book SynopsisThe first performance of Handel’s 'Messiah' in Dublin in 1742 is now legendary. Gentlemen were asked to leave their swords at home and ladies to come without hoops in their skirts in order to fit more people into the audience. Why then, did this now famous and much-loved oratorio receive a somewhat cool reception in London less than a year later? Placing Handel’s best-known work in the context of its times, this vivid account charts the composer’s working relationship with his librettist, the gifted but demanding Charles Jennens, and looks at Handel’s varied and evolving company of singers together with his royal patronage. Through examination of the composition manuscript and Handel’s own conducting score, held in the Bodleian, it explores the complex issues around the performance of sacred texts in a non-sacred context, particularly Handel’s collaboration with the men and boys of the Chapel Royal. The later reception and performance history of what is one of the most successful pieces of choral music of all time is also reviewed, including the festival performance attended by Haydn, the massed-choir tradition of the Victorian period and today’s ‘come-and-sing’ events.Table of ContentsIntroduction 71. Handel’s world: Germany, Italy, London, Dublin 132. The sacred oratorio: form and context 253. Charles Jennens, librettist 374. The composition of Messiah and Handel’s ‘borrowings’ 515. ‘For this may all your sins be forgiven’: the Dublin premiere 676. Handel’s performers and performances 837. ‘We shall be changed’: versions and variants 958. ‘For ever and ever’: the later performance history of Messiah 105Conclusion 119Appendix 1: Scene Structure 121Appendix 2: Libretto 123Notes 133Further Reading 139Selected Discography 140Picture Credits 142Index 143

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Book SynopsisThe story of a remarkable time and place: Los Angeles from the dawn of the singer-songwriter era in the mid-Sixties to the peak of The Eagles' success in the late Seventies.Hotel California' is an epic tale of songs and sunshine, drugs and denim, genius and greed, and is the first in-depth account of the LA Canyons scene between 1967 and 1976.Hoskyn''s history of this vital period in the development of today''s great musical influences spans the rise of Joni Mitchell, Crosby Stills Nash and Young, The Eagles, James Taylor and Jackson Browne, and focuses on the brilliance and determination of David Geffen, the man who linked them all.Covering genius, drug-crazed disintegration, and the myriad relationships between these artists and the songs that issued from them, and drawing on extensive interviews with countless stars, singers, writers, managers, executives and scenesters, Hotel California' is a pop-culture classic.Trade Review‘Hoskyns impresses with the sheer weight of testimony he has amassed and the skill with which he has woven it into a tightly coiled and elegiac narrative.’ Christopher Silvester, Sunday Times ‘A terrific account of the interface between idealism and squalor, art and commerce.’ Guardian ‘The author skillfully teases out the complex web of relationships between the artists, managers, and record executives who made up the West Coast’s self-styled bohemian elite.’ Ben Thompson, Independent ‘if you are looking for the ingredients traditionally required of a good rock'n'roll story, then “Hotel California” has got the lot… An ambitious and authoritative account which makes overdue sense of a spectacularly decadent period of pop history’ David Sinclair, Guardian

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Book SynopsisThe definitive book on the influence of LGBT performers on modern music: a Duckworth contemporary classic, beautifully repackaged for our 125th anniversaryTrade Review‘Lovingly detailed and exhaustively researched – easily the most readable and comprehensive guide I've seen to this fascinating hidden history’ Tom Robinson, musician, broadcaster and long-time LGBT rights activist‘An excellent book’ GayStarNews'Darryl W. Bullock leaves no stone unturned in his analysis of this crucial part of LGBT culture' Men 24 Magazine'A thorough and enjoyable tour through LGBT history that underlines how important music is to us, and how important we are to music' Rod Thomas, Bright Light Bright Light'An important volume. One that deserves to be read. One that deserves to be taught’ New York Journal of Books

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Book SynopsisIt was the year their records were burned in America after John’s explosive claim that the group was "more popular than Jesus," the year they were hounded out of the Philippines for "snubbing" its First Lady, the year John met Yoko Ono, and the year Paul conceived the idea for Sgt.Trade Review"A pleasing romp through the Beatles' annus mirabilis...Turner does a nice job of capturing them at their best." -- Kirkus Reviews "Reading Beatles '66, I'm right there-and where else would you want to be if you love music?" -- Bono "1966 was a crucial year in the Beatles' amazing journey from being the Fab Four to becoming the princes of psychedelia...By concentrating on just this one year, Steve Turner has been able to examine every influence, document every detail, and fit the jigsaw together. An extraordinary achievement." -- Barry Miles, author of Paul McCartney: Many Years from Now and In the Sixties "1966 was the year of my marriage to George, our first visit to India, and the Beatles' last concert. It was a really exciting time of innovation and exploration- the world, our oyster. Everything is captured most vividly and in such detail in this book. " -- Pattie Boyd "A fascinating dissection of these best and worst of times for the Beatles. Steve Turner's research is impressive." -- Philip Norman, author of Shout! The True Story of the Beatles, John Lennon: The Life, and Paul McCartney: The Biography "The most comprehensive coverage of Revolver and the events in the Beatles' lives and times in 1966. Splendid!" -- Tony Bramwell, author of Magical Mystery Tours: My Life with the Beatles "Turner succeeds in creating an illuminating portrait of the Beatles, both as a band and as individual artists." -- Publishers Weekly "This book guides Beatles fans through that year in an engaging, interesting and compelling way. Beatles '66 is a major achievement-for Beatles fans, yes of course, but also for anyone interested in how creativity works and is affected by its surroundings." -- New York Journal of Books "Turner's well-researched, in-depth, quote- and photo-filled precis will thrill all Beatles fans." -- Booklist "What music journalist Turner brings...is fantastic access (the book draws upon his interviews with The Beatles, as well as producer George Martin and George Harrison's mentor Ravi Shankar) and an extraordinary, Peter Guralnick-like (Last Train to Memphis: The Rise of Elvis Presley) attention to detail." -- USA Today "Turner tackles the year from all angles, incorporating a wealth of source material and new quotes from people involved to shed some fresh light on these incidents ... This book is the work of an expert, and expertly written at that." -- Paste Magazine "A wonderfully compelling look into the year that changed everything for the band." -- BookPage "This is a Beatles book to read many times. An extraordinary book." -- Beatles Magazine

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2010 Non-Fiction National Book Award Patti Smith''s definitive memoir is an evocative, honest and moving coming-of-age story of her extraordinary relationship with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe.Sharp, elegiac and finely crafted'' Sunday TimesTerrifically evocative ... The most spellbinding and diverting portrait of funky-but-chic New York in the late ''60s and ''70s that any alumnus has committed to print'' New York TimesRender, harrowing, often hilarious'' VogueIn 1967, a chance meeting between two young people led to a romance and a lifelong friendship that would carry each to international success never dreamed of. The backdrop is Brooklyn, Chelsea Hotel, Max''s Kansas City, Scribner''s Bookstore, Coney Island, Warhol''s Factory and the whole city resplendent. Among their friends, literary lights, musicians and artists such as Harry Smith, Bobby Neuwirth, Allen Ginsberg, Sandy Daley, Sam Shepherd, William Burroughs, etc. It was a heightened time politically and culturally; the art and music worlds exploding and colliding. In the midst of all this two kids made a pact to always care for one another. Scrappy, romantic, committed to making art, they prodded and provided each other with faith and confidence during the hungry years--the days of cous-cous and lettuce soup. Just Kids begins as a love story and ends as an elegy. Beautifully written, this is a profound portrait of two young artists, often hungry, sated only by art and experience. And an unforgettable portrait of New York, her rich and poor, hustlers and hellions, those who made it and those whose memory lingers near.Trade Review‘The most beautiful, incredible autobiography - it will make you ache for a time and a place that you probably never knew, New York in the 1970s' * Nick Hornby *‘A sharp, elegiac and finely crafted tribute to their childlike, pre-fame romance, set against the thrilling back drop of New York's countercultural blast' * Sunday Times *‘Terrifically evocative ... The most spellbinding and diverting portrait of funky-but-chic New York in the late '60s and '70s that any alumnus has committed to print' * New York Times *‘A tender, harrowing, often hilarious portrait of young lovers forging their paths in an eccentric milieu of Beat poets, Warhol socialites, and transvestites, rock stars and artists ... Much has been written about that time, but Just Kids offers new insight' * Vogue *Just Kids is not just one of the great rock-star memoirs – and there are a few – but one of the all-time greats. Smith’s book is part youthful rapture, part elegy, part artists’ handbook. And entirely sublime * Guardian Australia: 15 Great Celebrity Memoirs *It’s a book about women, and desire, and not necessarily fitting in the box of sexuality. I really love reading stories by women that really understand the complexity and the messiness of women * Russh *

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Book SynopsisWith a cast of characters ranging from Malcolm X to 50 Cent, Knight’s compelling work is the first detailed account of the movement inextricably linked with black empowerment, Islam, New York, and hip-hop. Whether discussing the stars of Five Percenter rap or 1980s crack empires, this fast-paced investigation uncovers the community’s icons and heritage, and examines its growing influence in urban American youth culture.Trade Review"Knight does an excellent job of presenting the movement’s founders, belief system and its history as seen by the people who live it." * Monsters and Critics *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Music journalist Azerrad provides an electric revision to his 1993 account of the defining band of the grunge movement. (...) The band’s myriad fans will be rapt." — Publishers Weekly (starred review) Thirty years after its original publication, rock writer Azerrad (Our Band Could Be Your Life) updates and nearly doubles the number of pages of his groundbreaking Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana. The author intersperses hundreds of new, detailed paragraphs throughout the original text to amplify and clarify the earlier material. Most satisfying, he adds a lengthy epilogue which deals with events that happened after the 1991 release of the album Nevermind, including Kurt Cobain’s last months and tragic death in 1994. New material includes the Nirvana tours and practice sessions that Azerrad attended; Cobain’s meeting with one of his heroes, William Burroughs; the telltale signs that pointed to Cobain’s self-destructive impulses and his eventual death; and the utter remorse that Azerrad and other insiders felt after Cobain’s suicide at age 27. VERDICT (...) Nirvana fans will want to read it. — Library Journal (starred review) "Michael Azerrad has always demonstrated a passionate feeling for the ideas, the ambitions, that drive the notable moments of recent musical history. But this annotated edition of his earlier book, which was already a very successful biography, breaks out even further into high art. He's the perfect narrator, now, for a very important question, perhaps increasingly forgotten: why was punk important and how do we talk about it now? The urgencies of this question are everywhere in this powerful, uncertain, and profoundly human work. Azzerad's restless plunging onward, represents the further entanglement in deep, fraught, endangered wisdom." — Rick Moody, bestselling author of The Ice Storm and Hotels of North America “Enriched with new anecdotes, insights and info-morsels, this super-expanded Michael Azerrad classic is a great story made even more gripping. Nirvana’s underground-overground arc becomes a prism for understanding an entire era of rock music and pop culture.” — Simon Reynolds, author of Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-84 "Essential for Nirvana fans." — Kirkus Reviews "A fascinating examination of a band's rise and demise; life and death, personality flaws and mistakes and the ways in which someone in the public eye deals with them" — Culture Catch “Veteran music scribe Michael Azerrad’s absorbing, admirable and deeply personal sequel to his acclaimed 1993 bio Come As You Are: The Story Of Nirvana. (...) [This] might be the most fully rounded portrait of the artist to date” — Tinnitist

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Book SynopsisThe Definitive Jazz & Blues Encyclopedia, now fully updated from the illustrated edition, is the ultimate guide to two musical styles that have fundamentally influenced popular music. Divided into chapters, each covering a different era, the book traces the evolution of jazz and blues from their nineteenth-century African-American origins right through to the present day. Each chapter starts with a Sounds & Sources section, looking at the key developments in the music during that period. This is followed by an A–Z of artists from that era, with more extensive entries on key artists that include recommended classic recordings. With further sections on Styles, covering everything from Ragtime to Bebop and Texas Blues to Rhythm & Blues, and more; and Instruments, all written by a team of experts, this invaluable encyclopedia is comprehensive, easy to use and highly informative.

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Book SynopsisIn den 1920er-Jahren gerät nicht nur die Welt, sondern auch die Musik und das Musikleben ins Taumeln: zwischen Krise und Krieg, Abschottung und Austausch, dem resignativen Blick zurück und neuer Dynamik. Wie eng Musik und Gesellschaft miteinander verflochten sind, zeigt das Jahr 1923. Geprägt ist es durch Geschehnisse, Debatten und Entwicklungen, die uns auch heute noch beschäftigen.Im besetzten Ruhrgebiet wird Musik zu einem Mittel des politischen Kampfes; in der von der Hyperinflation erschütterten Weimarer Republik verschärft sich die Krise des Konzertlebens und der Kartenpreis steigt im Herbst auf 200 Milliarden Mark; in den USA machen afroamerikanische Blues- und Jazz-Größen wie Bessie Smith, oder Louis Armstrong im Rahmen der sogenannten „race records“ ihre ersten Schallplattenaufnahmen; In Wien vollendet Arnold Schönberg seine ersten zwölftönigen Werke; In Paris schockiert Igor Strawinsky die Avantgarde mit seinem neoklassizistischen Bläseroktett und in Budapest setzt Béla Bartók mit seiner Tanz-Suite ein musikalisches Zeichen gegen den Nationalismus. Im Berliner Voxhaus wird mit der Ausstrahlung der ersten Funkstunde auf dem Höhepunkt der politischen und ökonomischen Krise das Zeitalter des öffentlichen Rundfunks in Deutschland eingeläutet.- Das Buch von Tobias Bleek erzählt auf faszinierende Weise, wie die Musik in das kulturelle, gesellschaftliche und politische Leben dieses Jahres der Extreme eingebettet ist.Trade Review“... Wie vielfältig und dramatisch die politischen Ereignisse in Europa um das Jahr 1923 waren und wie heterogen gleichzeitig künstlerische Strömungen, Trends und Erfindungen, das weiß dieses Buch beeindruckend zu schildern.” (Hans Georg Nicklaus, in: OE1, oe1.ORF.at, 22. September 2023)“... Tobias Bleek hat diese belangvollen Ereignisse und wegweisenden Innovationen sorgfältig und gründlich untersucht und bis aufs Einzelne zu Papier gebracht. Doch damit nicht genug. Denn darüber hinaus setzt er sie in einen Kontext zu den politischen, gesellschaftlichen und wirtschaftlichen Geschehnissen als da sind etwa Migration, Antisemitismus, Rassismus und Militarismus. Des Weiteren zeigt er auf, welche Wirkung sie auf die Musiker, Komponisten und deren Kompositionen ausübten. … Flüssig und allgemeinverständlich ist der Band verfasst und ist somit eine fesselnde Lektüre.” (Hartmut Sassenhausen, in: O-Ton, o-ton.online, 18. August 2023)“... Das anregende, elegant geschriebene Buch legt die erhebliche Wechselwirkung zwischen Musik, Gesellschaft und Politik dar. Diese Fundgrube für musik- wie historisch Interessierte mit Literaturverzeichnis, zahlreichen Anmerkung und einem Register wird dringend empfohlen.” (Johannes Vesper, in: Musenblätter, musenblaetter.de, 15. August 2023)“... Bleeks Buch liest sich nicht nur wie ein (dazu präzise mit historischen Aufnahmen bebilderter) Roman, sondern ist darüber hinaus pointiert und witzig. … Der Zoom von «allgemeiner» Geschichte im Großen zur Musik im Kleinen»: Er funktioniert an jeder Stelle dieses vergnüglich zu lesenden und doch intensiv immersiven Buches. Dabei holt Bleek den Leser immer von der Haltestelle richtig vermuteten Vorwissens ab ...” (Arno Lücker, in: Opernwelt, August 2023)“Noch ein Band zu den Zwanzigern? – ja, diesen gern! … eine sehr lebendige Kulturgeschichte zu einer Zeit, die nicht nur musikalisch in alle denkbaren Richtungen explodierte.” (Michael Wackerbauer, in: Neue Musikzeitung, Juni 2023) “... Endlich gibt es eines der beliebten „Jahresbücher“ auch für die Musik. ... Bleek behandelt das krisenhafte Umbruchsjahr zum einen sehr strukturiert ... Zum enorm sinnlichen Erlebnis wird die Lektüre zum anderen durch „eine Vielzahl historischer Quellen: Briefe, Tagebücher und andere private Aufzeichnungen, Artikel aus Zeitungen und Journalen, Fotografien und Bilder. Schallplatten, historische Notendrucke und Musikmanuskripte, Programmzettel, Annoncen, Eintrittskarten ...” (Ingo Hoddick, in: das Orchester, Heft 12, 2023)“... Bewundernswert ist ... sein Buch sowohl für eine Leserschaft ohne spezielle Fachkenntnis oder Studium als auch für ein wissenschaftlich gebildetes Publikum zu schreiben, weshalb es für alle Musik- und Kulturinteressierten lesenswert ist. Ein Anhang mit Hunderten von Anmerkungen, einem ausführlichen Literatur- und Quellenverzeichnis sowie Register runden dieses überaus spannend geschriebene, sehr empfehlenswerte Buch ab.” (Michael van Gee, in: Jazz ´n´ More, Das Schweizer Jazz & Blues Magazin, Heft 6, 2023)Table of ContentsSelbsterneuerung eines Migranten: Igor Strawinskys Metamorphosen.- Komponieren in Zeiten des Nationalismus: Béla Bartóks Tanz-Suite im kulturpolitischen Kontext.- „deutsche Treue … und deutscher Sang“: Die Nationalhymne und Musik in Zeiten der Ruhrbesetzung.- Black Music Matters – Bessie Smith erobert den Tonträgermarkt.- Von der Peripherie ins Zentrum – Louis Armstrong, Joe Oliver, Lilian Hardin und die Creole Jazz Band.- Arnold Schönberg und die „Hegemonie der deutschen Musik“: Die Entwicklung der Zwölftontechnik als Kompositionsverfahren und kulturpolitisches Projekt.- Eine Konzertkarte für 200 Milliarden Mark – Musikleben in Zeiten der Hyperinflation – „Start up“ am Küchentisch: Karl Vötterle gründet den Bärenreiter-Verlag.- Fritz Kreisler im Äther – Medienwelten 1923.

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Book SynopsisNoted organist and scholar Anthony Hammond tells the full story, for the first time, of one of the great organists of the twentieth century. Described by his teacher Marcel Dupré as "a phenomenon without equal in the history of the contemporary organ," Pierre Cochereau is considered one of the twentieth century's greatest French organists.This book tells, for the firsttime, the full story of of his extraordinary life and glittering, worldwide career. In 1955 Cochereau was appointed Organiste Titulaire at Notre-Dame de Paris, where he restored the cathedral's musical glory and oversawa far-reaching and controversial transformation of its organ. As a recitalist, he toured South America, Australia, Asia, Canada, and Europe in addition to twenty-five tours of the United States. He was the first western organist to perform in the former Soviet Union., played with many major orchestras under the batons of distinguished conductors, participated in numerous music festivals in Europe, made over eighty recordings, and was one of the founders of the Chartres International Organ Competition. He was honored several times for his achievements, including being named an Officer of the Legion of Honor (1978). A tireless campaigner for standards in music education, Cochereau also served as director at many of France's prominent conservatories, including Le Mans, Lyons, and Nice, which under his directorhsip became one of the leading music schools in France. Biographer AnthonyHammond draws from a variety of of prominent primary sources, notably Marcel Dupré's papers in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris, but also from Cochereau's surviving family and friends, and uses recordings and previously overlooked archive films in the Institut National de l'Audiovisuel, France to construct this definitive account and critical appraisal of one of France's most distinguished organists. Anthony Hammond is an English concert organist, improviser, and musicologist who specializes in French Romantic and twentieth-century organ music.Trade ReviewA layered and affectionate portrait. . . Figure 4.4, modestly described as 'summariz(ing) the essential features of Cochereau's style, is in fact a tiny masterpiece. . . . Hammond's manner of discussing improvisation is readable and practical. . . . His writing is sharp and deeply knowledgeable, [with] inspiring originality and enormous energy. Anthony Hammond makes me think of a young Charles Rosen, enthusiastic and sincere, . . . an advocate for performance as an intellectual act. -- Christina Linklater * MUSIC LIBRARY ASSOCIATION NOTES *A compelling read for all organists and, especially today, for the new breed of improvisers. . . . . In the discussions of Cochereau the improviser the story really comes to life. . . . A fine tribute to one of the 20th century's true musical geniuses--and a great read. -- Rollin Smith * THE AMERICAN ORGANIST *Fascinating and welcome. . . . Daring, brave, and brilliant. . . . Defines and reintroduces us to a spectacular church musician, organist, educator, and 'Premier Prix' in all his accomplishments. . . . Be sure to read this charming and intelligent book. -- William Tortolano * PASTORAL MUSIC *Fascinating. . . . A most respectful account of his compositions, at a length and thoroughness to satisfy anyone as keen on the French conception of organ-music and organ-playing as he clearly is. -- Peter Williams * MUSICAL TIMES *Hammond here offers a thorough account of the work of this passionate, attractive, and generous artist, . . . showi[ng] how Pierre Cochereau's legacy would inspire generations to come. . . . Can be consulted with great interest even by non-English-speakers. -- Carolyn Shuster Fournier * ORGUES NOUVELLES *In this most welcome first biography of Pierre Cochereau, Anthony Hammond gives us just what one would hope for: a detailed account of Cochereau's life, a thorough look at the influences that shaped his work, a valuable assessment of his craft as an interpreter, and new understanding of his art as an improviser. --Lawrence Archbold, Carleton College * . *'A model of scholarly research, Pierre Cochereau's legendary career is extensively recounted and the influence forming his mature style as an improviser and composer expertly documented. The post-1955 history of the Notre-Dame organ is by far the most accurate account in print today. -- Jesse Eschbach, University of North TexasTable of ContentsIntroduction Cochereau: The Life and Career of the Organist of Notre-Dame An Apostolic Succession?-Studies with Marcel Dupré Pierre Cochereau as Interpreter The Musical Language of Pierre Cochereau The Improvisations of Pierre Cochereau In Conclusion: The Legacy of Pierre Cochereau Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe definitive account of the life and music of Hungary’s greatest twentieth-century composerTrade Review“David Cooper offers a rounded, all-encompassing portrait of the man and the musician in this authoritative biography”—Stringendo'Béla Bartók was without a doubt one of the most important composers of the twentieth century. Outside of his native country Hungary, there have been relatively few books devoted to his life and works. David Cooper's comprehensive study of Bartók?'s ?oeuvre is a most welcome addition to the canon. Cooper justly concentrates on the music, introducing and analysing each and every composition, starting with the very early works. He also provides the appropriate historical background that is absolutely necessary to comprehend the man and his music. Bartók's life is a rare example of artistic progress and of uncompromising integrity. He is one of the giants in the history of music, a fact that this book will duly confirm.' - Sir Andras Schiff

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Book SynopsisU2 planted the seeds for The Joshua Tree during an existential journey through America. As Irishmen in the 1970s, the band grew up with the belief that America was a place of freedom and prosperity, a symbol of hope and a refuge for all people. However, global politics of the 1980s undermined that impression and fostered hypocritical policies that manipulated Americans and devastated people around the world. Originally conceived as The Two Americas, The Joshua Tree was U2''s critique of America. Rather than living up to the ideal that the country was an idea that belongs to people who need it most, the band found that America sacrificed equality and justice for populism and fascism. This book explores the political, social, and cultural themes rooted in The Joshua Tree when it was originally released in 1987 and how those themes resonated as a response to the election of Donald Trump when U2 toured for the album''s 30th anniversary. The author juxtaposes the band''s ex

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Book SynopsisFrom his own adolescence, when his allegiance was to punk rock, to his work as one of the essential voices of our time on music and culture at the New York Times and the New Yorker, Kelefa Sanneh has made a deep study of how our popular music unites and divides us. Distilling a career's worth of knowledge, Sanneh explores the tribes music forms, and how its genres, shape-shifting across the years, give us a way to track larger forces and concerns.He debunks cherished myths, reappraises beloved heroes and upends familiar ideas of musical greatness, arguing that sometimes the best popular music isn't transcendent: it expresses our grudges as well as our hopes, and is motivated by greed as well as inspiration. Throughout, race is a powerful touchstone: just as there's always been a 'Black' audience and a 'white' audience (with some overlap) there is Black music and white music and a whole lot of expropriation.This is a book to shock and awe the deepest music nerd, and at the same time to work as a heady gateway drug for the uninitiated.Trade ReviewThe most elegant history of popular music ever written . . . Sanneh not only delivers a coolly dazzling overview of the battlefields of genre but also revels open-heartedly in the music itself, his taste unbound by dogma or prejudice. The operative word is keen: zealous in spirit, exact in execution, ferociously acute from the first sentence to the last -- ALEX ROSS * * author of The Rest is Noise * *Kelefa Sanneh has achieved the impossible. Major Labels somehow manages to unspool everything you need to know about 50 years of music, but more impressively, he makes you care about all of it. Even the stuff you don't care about. It's funny, it's personal, and as a piece of writing the book borders on poetry -- DAVID LETTERMANAn intellectually rigorous retelling of rock and pop history * * The Times, Best Books of the Year * *The most wide-ranging music book of the year . . . elegantly written * * Herald, Music Books of the Year * *Intriguing, controversial, personal . . . a unique and absorbing read * * Guardian * *The book is immensely readable, and full of rich detail * * Independent * *This is a long-haul read, yet charmingly conducted in that languid, laconic New Yorker style that makes such a mammoth undertaking even possible. Its kick is to sew into the stories some near hidden gems - and socking ones too -- ANNIE NIGHTINGALESanneh's hospitable prose makes understanding this labyrinthine history feel like an adventure * * Guardian * *Entertaining, diligent . . . His observations are always fresh and thought-provoking, and presented with clarity and wit * * MOJO * *Inside this big, ambitious hybrid book was a smaller, more personal and altogether more compelling exploration of belonging and identity through music * * Observer * *

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Book SynopsisGorgeously illustrated and authoritatively written, Fender®is the officially licensed celebration of the legendary brand’s iconic guitars, amps, and basses.Table of ContentsContents Introduction Chapter 1 California Dreamin’: Young Leo Fender and the Radio Store, 1909–1946 Chapter 2 Wood, Wire, and Steel: The Birth of Fender Electric Instrument Co., 1946–1949 Chapter 3 Twang Comes to Town: The Telecaster Arrives, 1949–1952 Chapter 4 Radical Curves: The Stratocaster and the Precision Bass, 1951–1959 Chapter 5 The Need for Tweed: Fender Amps of the Fifties, 1948–1960 Chapter 6 All That Jazz: Offset Guitars and Upmarket Advertising, 1957–1962 Chapter 7 Surf’s Up: Tolex Amps, Reverb, and Evolving Guitars, 1959–1967 Chapter 8 Executive Order: The Mustang Debuts, and CBS Comes Knocking, 1962–1969 Chapter 9 Feelin’ Groovy: Pianos, Pedals, and Psychedelic Guitars, 1964–1970 Chapter 10 Saved by the Bill: Declining Quality and a Management Buyout, 1969–1985 Chapter 11 Hot-Rod Rock: The Custom Shop and Relic Guitars, 1985–1999 Chapter 12 Border Song: Fender Amps Roar Back, 1984–2023 Chapter 13 Pro Shop: Vintage Reissues and Modern Masterpieces, 2010–2023 Chapter 14 Future Perfect: The Next 75 Years, 2023–2096 Acknowledgments Image Credits Index

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Book SynopsisThe first official account of the iconic record label.An NME Book of the Year 2013 A Rough Trade Book of the Year 2013 A Times Literary Supplement Book of the Year 2013This Mortal Coil, Birthday Party, Bauhaus, Cocteau Twins, Pixies, Throwing Muses, Breeders, Dead Can Dance, Lisa Germano, Kristin Hersh, Belly, Red House Painters.Just a handful of the bands and artists who started out recording for 4AD, a record label founded by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1979, a label which went on to be one of the most influential of the modern era.Combining the unique tastes of Watts-Russell and the striking design aesthetic of Vaughan Oliver, 4AD records were recognisable by their look as much their sound. In this comprehensive account concentrating on the label's first two decades (up to the point that Watts-Russell left), music journalist Martin Aston explores the fascinating story with unique access to all the key players and pretty much every artist who released a record on 4AD duringTrade Review‘4AD get the lavish label history they deserve’ – MOJO ‘Aston has impressive access to some of rock’s most reclusive figures’ – Q ‘The book is an exquisite reflection of 4AD itself—extravagant, atmospheric, and rich in texture and timbre.’ – PITCHFORK ‘Facing The Other Way represents one of the greatest stories to emerge from rock and roll's modern history’ – DROWNED IN SOUND ‘The conviction of Aston's storytelling blows dust off the needle so that those records and their often magical beauties are dragged out to be admired once again… Compelling stuff’ – MOUTH MAGAZINE 'Martin Aston's 600-page chronicle is a suitable extravagant enterprise' – GUARDIAN “A fanatically scholarly account of the definitive art-pop label of the 1980s.” – THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT

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Book SynopsisIncludes a new chapter on John Cage.Alex Ross's award-winning international best-seller, The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century', has become a contemporary classic, establishing him as one of our most popular and acclaimed cultural historians; this is his much anticipated next book on the subject of music.In Listen To This' Alex Ross, the music critic for the New Yorker, looks both backwards and forwards in time, capturing essential figures and ideas in classical music history, as well as giving an alternative view of recent pop music that emphasizes the power of the individual musical voice.After relating his first encounter with classical music, Ross vibrantly sketches canonical composers such as Schubert, Verdi and Brahms; gives us in-depth interviews wth modern pop masters such as Bjork and Radiohead; and introduces us to music students at a Newark high school and to indie-rock hipsters in Beijing. In his essay Chacona, Lamento, Walking Blues', Ross brilliantly retelTrade Review‘Chacona, Lamento, Walking Blues. This essay is Alex Ross’s own chaconne, one that only he could have written – a display of lateral thinking as virtuosic, in its own way. It alone is worth the price of the book, which I strongly encourage you to buy.’ Sunday Telegraph ‘One minute, you're immersed in Mozart, and then suddenly you're on tour with Radiohead and contemplating what it must have felt like for an unworldly Finnish conductor, Esa-Pekka Salonen, to take the reins of the LA Philharmonic. Reading the book is the literary equivalent of an iPod on shuffle; it offers fresh and unexpected stimulation at every turn.’ Guardian ‘The qualities that make him a top-notch critic become clearer in concentrated reading…Ross is an avowed buff. He loves music with a nerdish obsession and he wants you to love it as much as he does’ New Statesman

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Book SynopsisToby Faber was born in Cambridge in 1965 and now lives in London with his wife and daughter. This is his first book.Trade Review"'fascinating, accessible and enjoyable' - Tracy Chevallier"

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Book SynopsisThe remarkable autobiography of the last great wartime icon.Born Vera Welch on 20 March, 1917 in the East End of London, Dame Vera Lynn's career was set from an early age - along with her father, who also did a turn', she sang in Working Men's Clubs from just seven years old. She had a successful radio career with Joe Loss and Charlie Kunz in the 1920s and 30s, but it was with World War II that she became the iconic figure that captured the imagination of the national public.Her spirit and verve, along with her ability to connect with the men fighting for their country and those left behind praying for their loved ones, made her the Forces' sweetheart'. Performing the songs that she will always be associated with, such as We'll Meet Again' and Yours', Vera toured Egypt, India and Burma to entertain the troops and bring them a sense of back home'.Her career after the war flourished, with hits in the US and the UK, but Vera was never able to leave behind her wartime role and was deeply a

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Book SynopsisThe Sunday Times bestsellerThe tale of two Waltz Kings: how the Strauss family took Europe by storm during the nineteenth century.The Strauss family name is forever intertwined with Vienna - as is their music. Two generations of this remarkable family transformed and popularised the waltz, delighting all of Viennese society with their prolific compositions. But behind the melody lay a darker discord, as the Strausses tore themselves apart while Vienna itself struggled to secure its place in a rapidly changing world.In The Last Waltz John Suchet skilfully portrays this gripping story, capturing the family dramas, the tensions, triumphs and disasters, all set against the turbulent backdrop of Austria in the nineteenth century, from revolution to regicide.Discover the truth behind Vienna's extraordinary musical dynasty.Trade Review"I greatly enjoyed spending time with John Suchet's fascinating book about Johann Strauss, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did." -- Andre Rieu; "John beautifully balances the family Strauss saga with the fall of the Habsburg Empire. This copiously illustrated book is terrific!" --Carl Davis, composer and conductor; "Very readable ... elegantly prepared with plenty of quality illustrations ... makes a fascinating read about one of the greatest musical dynasties that ever lived. John Suchet puts their personal lives into the context of the politics of the day without missing out on the musical history. A book to be thoroughly recommended." -- John Diamond, Chairman of The Johann Strauss Society of Great Britain; "Riveting reading ... I found it difficult to put down. Stuffed full of facts, both historical and musical, this is in no way a dry academic tome because John Suchet, as always, spins his enthusiastic way through the drama as if guiding us personally in the footsteps of the protagonists and their times. I can highly recommend this absorbing and beautifully presented book." -- Howard Shelley, pianist and conductor; "This handsomely presented volume positively screams to be taken down from the shelf and explored. In its pages, John Suchet succeeds in giving an overview of the Viennese Strauss dynasty of musicians, setting it in the context of the often turbulent and tragic lives of the ruling Habsburg dynasty. Importantly, and unlike almost every other contemporary writer in this field, Suchet embraces the fact that the Strauss family's music-making did not end with the death of the 'Waltz King' in 1899, but continued well into the 'swinging sixties' of the 20th century." -- Peter Kemp, author of The Strauss Family: Portrait of a Musical Dynasty; "Handsomely produced and superbly written... As a former News at Ten anchor [Suchet] knows a thing or two about distilling narratives and crafting pay-off lines. (His best is the book's very last sentence, which it would be churlish to reveal.)" -- Richard Osborne, The Oldie; "Engaging ... the narrative style is very beguiling and draws the reader in very quickly. I could not put this down once I had started it... This book, as well as being immensely readable, entertaining and beautifully written, is also beautifully produced. The paper is of a high quality, the kind that you want to stroke, the illustrations are superb and the layout of the whole book is a joy. I loved it." --Random Jottings blog; "Thoroughly interesting and entertaining" -- The Herts Advertiser; "Incredibly informative and entertaining ... made me realise how little I knew about this musical dynasty. [Suchet's] talent for giving the reader facts without any heavy academic approach means this is a very approachable route into becoming your own Strauss authority! The snippets and anecdotes have been carefully collected and put together in such a way that dipping in and out of the book is easy - highly recommended for anyone wondering what is behind the Blue Danube!" --Sandra Parr, Artistic Planning Director (Orchestra and Ensembles), Royal Liverpool Philharmonic OrchestraTable of ContentsContents; Introduction ... vii; 1. City of Dreams ... 1; 2. Cafe Culture ... 16; 3. Conquering Paris ... 28; 4. By Royal Appointment ... 39; 5. A Family Conspiracy ... 49; 6. 'Good Morning, Strauss Son!' ... 59; 7. Radetzky Marches Out of Step ... 70; 8. A New Waltz King ... 84; 9. 'Pepi' Joins the Family Firm ... 93; 10. In Russia and in Love ... 102; 11. Tying the Knot ... 114; 12. The Strauss Family in Mourning ... 127; 13. Strauss Turns His Hand to Operetta ... 141; 14. Johann Strauss Tastes Failure ... 154; 15. To the Altar Again ... 165; 16. Tragedy in the Imperial Royal Family ... 178; 17. The 'Emperor Waltz'... 198; 18. An Assassin's Knife Breaks the Emperor's Heart ... 218; 19. A Final Fledermaus and Johann Strauss Bids Farewell ... 237; 20. Eduard's Flames of Revenge ... 249; 21. A New Century and a New Vienna ... 262; 22. The Nazis Rewrite History ... 274; 23. Admired by the Greats ... 285; Afterword ... 297; Acknowledgements ... 302; About Classic FM ... 303; Index ... 305; About the Author ... 312

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Book SynopsisExactly what does a conductor do in front of an orchestra? Internationally renowned conductor Christopher Seaman offers lively and informative answers in this wise yet humorous book. What does a conductor actually do? How much effect does he or she have? Can the orchestra manage without one? Why don't the players look at the conductor more? Is it necessary for the conductor to play every instrument? What about interpretation? What happens at rehearsals? Why do some conductors "thrash around" more than others? Who's the boss in a concerto: the soloist or the conductor? These are some of the questions that receive lively andinformative answers in this book by renowned conductor Christopher Seaman. Composed of short articles on individual topics, it is accessible and easy to consult. Each article begins with an anecdote or saying and ends with quotations from musicians, often expressing opposing views. There are many books on the art of conducting, but none like this. Music lovers wondering what the figure on the podium actually does, and aspiring conductors eager to learn more about the art and craft of leading an orchestra, will all treasure this wise yet humorous book. Christopher Seaman has been successful at both ends of the baton. After four years as principal timpanist of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, he was appointed principal conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and has enjoyed a busy international conducting career for over forty years. He is now Conductor Laureate for Life of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, New York, and he continues to bring great music and wise words to audiences, students, and readers around the world.Trade Review[Seaman's] experience is wonderfully crystallized in the pithy observations here. TLS [Michael Downes] -- Michael Downes * TLS *Engaging, uncomplicated overview of the conductor's role ... Very readable, with some good jokes, hoary anecdotes and nice analogies. * CLASSICAL MUSIC's Books of the Year, December 2013 *Chosen by Financial Times as a Classical Music Book of the Year * . *One of Classical Music's Best Books of the Year * . *With humor, clarity, and wisdom, Christopher Seaman gives insight into the mind of a conductor. A feast of inside scoops for music lovers. -- -- Yo-Yo Ma, cellist and Artistic Director of the Silk Road Project * Yo-Yo Ma, cellist and Artistic Director of the Silk Road Project *This book is simply typical Christopher, something I would consider one of the highest compliments. Typical of Christopher to combine so much wisdom with so much wit. Required reading, I think, and one of the friendliest books about music ever penned. -- -- Sir Simon Rattle, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra * Sir Simon Rattle, Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra *To hear the human truths from an experienced music director, enriched by examples from his life, is marvelously illuminating. I learned many little things and some big ones. -- -- Norman Lebrecht, author and criticChristopher Seaman, who is renowned for his teaching work at the Guildhall School of Music, and has conducted at the highest level, provides a barrage of straight answers. Most are directed towards real would-be conductors, rather than bedroom-mirror amateurs, but there's plenty for the outsider looking in. . . . The conductor's work is not often discussed in such plain detail. Conducting is 'like riding a horse not driving a car'. A tighter grip on the baton produces a harder tone. Keeping the arms moving upward very slowly can restrain an audience's desire to rush to clap after a quiet ending. . . . Demystifies the art and the figure of the conductor. -- James McConnachie http://www.spectator.co.uk/books/8966601/inside-conducting-by-christopher-seaman-a-review/'>Full Review * THE SPECTATOR *The art of conducting is hard to nail but Christopher Seaman does just that in exemplary fashion. . . . Interesting reading for all lovers of music, students of conducting as well as fellow professionals. . . . Serious practical application and in-depth musicological insight laced with the author's engaging humour. Highly recommended. -- Christopher Fifield * MUSICWEB-INTERNATIONAL *Table of ContentsBackground Harmony Memory Perfect Pitch Training Conductors Youth Orchestras Balance Choral Works Concerto Accompaniment Ear Eye Contact Opera Rehearsing Baton Beat Behind-the-Beat Playing Directing from the Harpsichord Economy of Gesture, Cueing, Use of the Left Hand Auditions Chamber Orchestras Chief Conductor Friend or Boss? Orchestral Playing Role of Concertmaster Solos in an Orchestral Piece Stage Settings Strings Winds Timpani and Percussion Composers Learning Scores, Interpretation Marking Parts Performance Practice Shape and Structure Tempo and Metronome Addressing the Audience Applause, Platform Demeanor, Coughing Program Planning Career and Agents Critics Gender Guest Conducting Orchestra Managements Recording Travel and Packing Concentration Control and Power Ego Languages Nervousness Our Heritage: Some Ancestors and My Links with Them Suggested Reading Musical Example Credits A Note on the Illustrations Index of Conductors

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Book SynopsisFeaturing exclusive interviews with key figures, from Napalm Death vocalist Barney Greenway to guitarist Bill Steer of Gentlemans Pistols, Carcass, and Napalm Death, this is your guide through the history of death metal. Guitars playing abrasive, discordant riffs, the thunderous double-kick of the drums acting like an accelerated heartbeat, and porcine, guttural vocals pummeling twisted lyrics. Courting controversy from inception to its modern day iteration, death metal presents a number of contradictions: Driven and adventurous musicians compete to make uncomfortable noises; it is crude and far beyond parody and yet consistently popular; and the music is pig-headedly uncommercial despite making a few labels, albeit briefly, wealthy. This book explores the history and methodology of the genre, charting its aims and intentions, its crossovers to the mainstream, successes and failures, and tracks how it developed from the bedrooms of Birmingham and Florida to the near-mainstream, to thTrade ReviewIt’s good that books like this exist. * Randomly Yours, Alex *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements 1 You Suffer, But Why? 2 Death Rides Out (1980 to 1989) 3 Death Rising (1988-1993) 4 Deathly Peaks (1993-1996) 5 New Frontiers (1996-2013) 6 Death in the Present (2013-2021) 7 Death Wins

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Book SynopsisA fully updated edition of the leading reference work on musical key characteristics during the Baroque, Classical and Romantic periods. This is a revised second edition of Dr. Steblin's important work on key characteristics, first published in 1983 by UMI Research Press and re-issued by the University of Rochester Press in 1996. The revision has been limited to athorough correction and update of the material in the first edition, so as to not disrupt the content and organization, for which the book has been praised as a significant and noteworthy reference for both scholars and research students alike. The book discusses the extra-musical meanings associated with various musical keys by ancient Greek and medieval-renaissance theorists and in particular composers and writers on music in the Baroque, Classical,and early Romantic periods. Chapters focus on Mattheson's extensive key descriptions from 1713, the Rameau-Rousseau and Marpurg-Kirnberger controversies regarding unequal versus equal temperaments, and C.F.D. Schubart's influential list based on the sharp-flat [bright-dark] principle of key-distinctions. Rita Katherine Steblin is a world-renowned music scholar, living and working in Vienna.Table of ContentsThe Ancient Greeks and the Doctrine of Ethos The Medieval-Renaissance Modes and Their Affects The Transition from Modality to Tonality: Early French Key Characteristics Johann Mattheson and the Early Eighteenth-Century German Approach to Key Characteristics Rameau and Rousseau: Equal Temperament versus Unequal Temperament Marpurg versus Kimberger: The Tuning Controversy in Germany Psychological Factors: The Sharp-Flat Principle Physical Factors: The Properties of Instruments Tradition and Key Characteristics in the Early Nineteenth Century

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Book SynopsisAn authoritative survey of music and its context in the Renaissance. The sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries - the so-called Golden Age of Polyphony - represent a time of great change and development in European music, with the flourishing of Orlando di Lasso, Palestrina, Byrd, Victoria, Monteverdi and Schütz among others. The chapters of this book, contributed by established scholars on subjects within their fields of expertise, deal with polyphonic music - sacred and secular, vocal and instrumental - during this period. The volume offers chronological surveys of national musical cultures (in Italy, France, the Netherlands, Germany, England, and Spain); genre studies (Mass, motet, madrigal, chanson, instrumental music, opera); and is completed with essays on intellectual and cultural developments and concepts relevant to music (music theory, printing, the Protestant Reformation and the corresponding Catholic movement, humanism, concepts of "Renaissance" and "Baroque"). It thus provides a complete overview of the music and its context. Contributors: GARY TOMLINSON, JAMES HAAR, TIM CARTER, GIULIO ONGARO, NOEL O'REGAN, ALLAN ATLAS, ANTHONY CUMMINGS, RICHARD FREEDMAN, JEANICE BROOKS,DAVID TUNLEY, KATE VAN ORDEN, KRISTINE FORNEY, IAIN FENLON, KAROL BERGER, PETER BERGQUIST, DAVID CROOK, ROBIN LEAVER, CRAIG MONSON, TODD BORGERDING, LOUISE K. STEIN, GIUSEPPE GERBINO, ROGER BRAY, JONATHAN WAINWRIGHT, VICTOR COELHO, KEITH POLKTrade ReviewA fine achievement. * THE CONSORT *Offers a selection of essays by many of the leading figures in the field of Renaissance music history, creating a mosaic in a carefully thought-out pattern of viewpoints and topics. The single contributions are excellent. * EARLY MUSIC *A fine book. [...] This civilised volume is highly recommended [and] excellent in content. * EARLY MUSIC REVIEW *This is an extremely useful addition to music historiography that will both aid students and provide many insights to the more general reader who feels in need of an over-arching survey of the period. -- Brian Robins * GOLDBERG *A lively and scholarly account of the multiple complexities and paradoxes that characterise this period...compelling reading with hitherto neglected areas at last gaining accessible recognition. * EARLY MUSIC TODAY *Table of ContentsRenaissance Humanism and Music - Gary Tomlinson The Concept of the Renaissance - James Haar The Concept of the Baroque - Tim Carter Italy [i], 1520-1560 - Giulio Ongaro Music in Italy [ii], 1560-1600 - T Noel O'Regan Ital [iii], 1600-1640 - Tim Carter Music for the Mass - Allan Atlas The Motet, 1520-1640 - Anthony Cummings Music in France [i], 1520-1560 - Richard Freedman France [ii], 1560-1600 - Jeanice Brooks French Music in the Early Seventeenth Century - David Tunley Chanson, 1520-1640 - Kate Van Orden Madrigal - James Haar The Netherlands [i], 1520-1560 - Kristine Forney The Netherlands [ii], 1560-1600 - Kristine Forney The Netherlands [iii], 1600-1640 - Kristine Forney Music, Print and Society in Sixteenth-Century Europe - Iain Fenlon Concepts and Developments in Music Theory - Karol Berger German Music [i], 1520-1560 - Peter Bergquist German Music [ii], 1560-1600 - Peter Bergquist Germany and Central Europe, 1600-1640 - David Crook The Reformation and Music - Robin Leaver Renewal, Reform, and Reaction in Catholic Music - Craig Monson Spain [i-ii], 1530-1600 - Todd Borgerding and Louise K Stein Spain [iii], 1600-1640 - Louise K Stein Early Opera: the Initial Stage - Iain Fenlon Music in England before 1560 - Roger Bray Music in England [ii], 1560-1600 - Roger Bray English Music, 1603-1642 - Jonathan Wainwright Instrumental Music in Europe, 1520-1640 - Victor Coelho and Keith Polk

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Book SynopsisWithout an understanding of the conflicts of Mahler's youth one cannot truly appreciate the impulses behind the major symphonies and song cycles of his later years. Available again for a new generation of Mahlerians, Donald Mitchell's famous study of the composer's early life and music was greeted as a major advance on its first appearance in 1958. Revised and updated in the early 1980s, thispaperback edition includes a new introduction by the author to bring this classic work once again to the forefront of Mahler studies. From his birth in Bohemia, then part of the mighty Austro-Hungarian empire, to a surveyof his early works, many now lost, Gustav Mahler: The Early Years forms an indispensable prelude to the period of the great compositions. The conflicts which came to mark Mahler's music and personality had their beginningsin his childhood and youth. Without understanding the territorial, social and familial conflicts of this time one cannot truly appreciate the impulses behind the major symphonies and song cycles of his later years. DONALD MITCHELL was born in 1925. Two composers have been central to his writings on music, Gustav Mahler and Benjamin Britten. His three studies of Mahler, The Early Years (1958), The Wunderhorn Years (1975), and Songs and Symphonies of Life and Death (1985), are among the enduring monuments of postwar Mahler literature. He was founder Professor of Music at the University of Sussex (1971-76), was visiting Professor atKing's College, London, and is currently a visiting Professor at the Universities of Sussex and York.

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Book SynopsisNew research throws light on the history of the viol after Purcell, including its revival in the late eighteenth century through Charles Frederick Abel. It is normally thought that the bass viol or viola da gamba dropped out of British musical life in the 1690s, and that Henry Purcell was the last composer to write for it. Peter Holman shows how the gamba changed its role and function in the Restoration period under the influence of foreign music and musicians; how it was played and composed for by the circle of immigrant musicians around Handel; how it was part of the fashion for exotic instruments in themiddle of the century; and how the presence in London of its greatest eighteenth-century exponent, Charles Frederick Abel, sparked off a revival in the 1760s and 70s. Later chapters investigate the gamba's role as an emblem of sensibility among aristocrats, artists and intellectuals, including the Countess of Pembroke, Sir Edward Walpole, Ann Ford, Laurence Sterne, Thomas Gainsborough and Benjamin Franklin, and trace Abel's influence and legacy farinto the nineteenth century. A concluding chapter is concerned with its role in the developing early music movement, culminating with Arnold Dolmetsch's first London concerts with old instruments in 1890. PETER HOLMAN is Professor Emeritus of Historical Musicology at Leeds University, and director of The Parley of Instruments, the choir Psalmody, and the Suffolk Villages Festival.Trade Review[O]utstanding research [...] a valuable reference book that I will no doubt consult again and again. * EIGHTEENTH CENTURY MUSIC *[A] fascinating study that has significantly enlightened the dark ages of a much loved instrument. * MUSIC & LETTERS *[Eine] spannenede und extreme informative Abhandlung. * VIOLA DA GAMBA *This is a book not only for those interested in the viola da gamba but also in musical social history in Britain from the 17th to the end of the 19th century. It is rich in scholarly detail and is entertaining to read. * STRINGENDO *[B]eautifully presented and Holman's lucid and elegant prose is a joy to read. [...] This is a book suitable for players and scholars alike, which makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of the viol; I recommend it wholeheartedly. * EARLY MUSIC *[This] volume draws on a truly vast range of documentation [...] and is written in an unpretentious, descriptive prose [...] the coverage is impressive and its result will be of use in many connections: indeed a reference work. * MUSICAL TIMES *There are so many new insights into the life of the viol in this book [...] that the reader is put on a steep learning curve and sent on a truly fascinating journey through the centuries. [...] it can easily be used as a reference book by delving into the sub-chapters or consulting the very comprehensive index, or be read like an exciting novel. * THE CONSORT *No one better could have written this book, which is superb. [...] Applying to the task his extensive research, close acquaintance with the instruments and their music, stellar command of the literature, and lively narrative, Holman demonstrates the extent to which viol playing in Britain survived. * CHOICE *Holman has the knack of finding interesting information and writing interestingly about it. [...] It is a book to dip into. * EARLY MUSIC REVIEW *

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Book SynopsisMusic at German Courts serves to illustrate the extraordinary diversity of eighteenth-century German court music establishments without losing sight of what these Kapellen had in common. What was musical life at German courts really like during the eighteenth century? Were musical ensembles as diverse as the Holy Roman Empire's kaleidoscopic political landscape? Through a series of individual case studies contributed by leading scholars from Germany, Poland, the United States, Canada, and Australia, this book investigates the realities of musical life at fifteen German courts of varied size (ranging from kingdoms to principalities), religious denomination, and geographical location. Significant shifts that occurred in the artistic priorities of each court are presented through a series of "snapshots"- in effect "core sample" years - which highlight both individualand shared patterns of development and decline. What emerges from the wealth of primary source material examined in this volume is an in-depth picture of music-making within the daily life of individual courts, featuring a cast ofmusic directors, instrumentalists, and vocalists, together with numerous support staff drawn from across Europe. Music at German Courts serves to illustrate the extraordinary diversity of eighteenth-century German court music establishments without losing sight of what these Kapellen had in common. SAMANTHA OWENS is Associate Professor in Musicology at the University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. BARBARA M. REUL is Associate Professor of Musicology at Luther College, University of Regina, Canada. JANICE B. STOCKIGT is a Principal Fellow of the University of Melbourne, Australia. Contributors: DIETER KIRSCH, URSULA KRAMER, MICHAEL MAUL, MARYOLESKIEWICZ, SAMANTHA OWENS, RASHID-S. PEGAH, BÄRBEL PELKER, BARBARA M. REUL, WOLFGANG RUF, BERT SIEGMUND, JANICE B. STOCKIGT, MICHAEL TALBOT, RÜDIGER THOMSEN-FÜRST, ALINA ZORAWSKA-WITKOWSKA, STEVEN ZOHNTrade ReviewUltimately, this book is to be highly recommended: it will make a valuable and indispensable addition to the libraries of both scholars of eighteenth-century music and those from other disciplines who want to expand their knowledge of the role of music [...] in the self-fashioning and sustenance of European monarchic structures. * NOTES *This book is one of the most important contributions to our understanding of the context of the music most familiar to musicians and concert-goers today. [...] The editors have gathered an expert team; their own contributions are paradigms of accessibility. I commend this important book to every serious musician's book shelf. * STRINGENDO *The editors of this volume are [...] to be congratulated on assembling a systematically organized collection of essays by an impressive international panel of scholars, each of whom is an expert on a particular court and its archival sources. [...] It includes much new and occasionally surprising information, and a substantial amount of material made available in English for the first time. * MUSICOLOGY AUSTRALIA *The detail presented in this book is remarkable [...] a useful book which extends our knowledge of courtly music-making in Germany during this time, and it will undoubtedly be of value to scholars of the period. * THE CONSORT *[A] valuable resource for any historical musicologist investigating this extraordinarily productive and fascinating period of German music history, and I hope it encourages and enables more research in this area, and ultimately more performances of its many forgotten treasures. * CONTEXT *[T]he treasures in [the book's] 500 pages will satisfy a whole range of other music historical interests for years to come. The personnel lists, mini biographies and sheer number of name references to rulers and the musicians in their employ are invaluable. * MUSICAL TIMES *[A] fascinating picture emerges of the birth and nurture of a rich musical tradition which continues today in democratic form with the unequalled wealth of German musical performance in virtually every German town. * CLASSICAL MUSIC *[T]his valuable book provides a reliable source of information for anyone interested in 18th-century music in Germany. [...] there is an abundance of knowledge here from which everyone can draw. * EARLY MUSIC REVIEW *

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Book SynopsisIn this classic account of the new black music of the 1960s and 70s, celebrated photographer and jazz historian Val Wilmer tells the story of how a generation of revolutionary musicians established black music as the true vanguard of American culture. Placing the achievements of African-American artists such as Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane and Sun Ra in their broader political and social context, Wilmer evokes an era of extraordinary innovation and experimentation that continues to inspire musicians today. As vital now as when it was first published in 1977, As Serious As Your Life is the essential story of one of the most dynamic musical movements of the twentieth century.Trade ReviewThis book saved me from giving up. Even though the jazz musicians Wilmer wrote about were mostly male, their approach to music making, their passion and their activism resonated with me and showed me a way to move forward musically -- Viv AlbertineThe best of those books that found evidence of a black revolution or resurgence in the musical achievements of Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Albert Ayler and others * Guardian *A very powerful and proud black book ... it sings the praise-song of the procreators of the new music and their direct descendants * Coda *An exceptionally illuminating book on jazz now - and on music to come. Indeed, it's one of the relatively few indispensable books about America's classical music -- Nat HentoffA fascinating document, full of the energy of political struggle * Socialist Review *A masterpiece of jazz history ... it charts the development of the new black music, delving deep into the lives, minds and politics of the people behind it * BBC Radio 3 *Fascinating snapshot * The Wire *A classic ... jam-packed with gems -- Cerys Matthews * BBC Radio 6Music *A social history of the free jazz movement from its beginnings in the late 1950s ... as serious, and necessary, as ever * Village Voice *One of the foremost chroniclers of African-American musical culture * Spectator *One of the most important and exciting books ever written about jazz. It's essential * Stereogum *

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Book SynopsisIn August 1965, during a sweltering heatwave, 56,000 people traveled by plane, car, bus, ferry, and subway train to pack New York''s Shea Stadium on a Sunday eveningnot for a baseball game, but for a rock and roll concert. This idea was the crazy dream of concert promoter Sid Bernstein. No rock band had ever played a baseball stadium, and no one believed he could pull it off. But on that glorious night, The Beatles sold out Shea Stadium, shattering all existing box office and attendance records in show business history. Oh, and they also changed the world. Against the backdrop of a remarkably volatile year in our nation''s history, Top of the Mountain: The Beatles at Shea Stadium, 1965 delivers all the detail and excitement of Shea and the spirited, curious new generation who would soon claim the decade for its own. Told through first-person interviews and quotes, a unique cast of characters tells the story: celebrities then and celebrities now, writers, agents, producers, ph

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Book SynopsisThe Child Ballads are a series of over 300 traditional ballads from England and Scotland that, along with their American variants, were anthologized by folklorist Francis James Child in the nineteenth century. An Evolving Tradition is the story of the Child Balladsthe world's best-known and most highly regarded repository of traditional English folk songs, and the wellspring for approximately 10,000 recordings over the last century, from obscure musicological archives to classic releases from Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, and Led Zeppelin.Drawing on interviews with numerous scholars and musicians, author Dave Thompson explains what a ballad is, outlines their dominant themes, and recounts how these ballads survived to become a mainstay of field recordings made by Cecil Sharp, Alan Lomax, and others as they traveled the English and American countryside in search of old songs. Thompson traverses the entire spectrum of rock, pop, folk, roots, experimental music, industrial, and

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Book SynopsisIn an age of ubiquitous music and countless new songs releasing every minute, the Great American Songbook endures. After all, the Songbookthat sprawling canon of popular songs, standards, and show tunes from roughly the 1920s through the 1950sis a foundational text of American pop music. Rare indeed is the song that doesn't in some way draw on this magnificent corpus, and rare is the person who hasn't heard at least a few of its most enduring melodies.Nonetheless, the Songbook is broader and deeper than most listeners can imagine, and on the margins, the question of whether this or that song should be included is the source of regular arguments among scholars and buffs alike. Attempting to plumb its depths can be a daunting prospect.Enter Steven Suskin, who has been writing about music since the days that Rodgers, Arlen, and Berlin still roamed the streets of Manhattan. In this carefully curated and cheerfully opinionated guidebook, Suskin surveys 201 of the most signi

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Book Synopsis“[A] vivid and lively account of those hectic and historic three days….The best fly-on-the-wall account, tantamount to having had a backstage pass to an iconic event.”—New York PostCelebrate the 50th Anniversary of Woodstock with the definitive book on the festival.The Woodstock music festival of 1969 is an American cultural touchstone, and no book captures the sights, sounds, and behind-the-scenes machinations of the historic gathering better than Michael Lang’s New York Times bestseller, The Road to Woodstock. USA Today calls this fascinating, entertaining, and blissfully nostalgic look back, “Invaluable.” In The Road to Woodstock, Michael Lang recaptures the magic for the generation that was there…and for the generations that followed.Trade Review"Lang, one of Woodstock's organizers, provides details about how the production was put together and kept running. His account is interspersed with interviews with performers and others, including, perhaps most interestingly, Hugh Romney, aka Wavy Gravy, of the Hog Farm, whose group provided order, reassurance and, as we know, granola." -- New York Times Book Review, Paperback Row "At Woodstock I saw a collective adventure representing something that still holds true today. When the Berlin Wall came down, Woodstock was there. When Mandela was liberated, Woodstock was in there. When we celebrated the year 2000, Woodstock was in there. Woodstock is still every day." -- Carlos Santana "Reading this inimitable account of how Woodstock really came to pass makes the Manhattan Project seem like whippin' up one of my mom's custard pies...[This book] he and Holly George-Warren will knock you out and once again make you wish that you were there." -- Terry Stewart, President of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum "Totally rocking...what elevates this book above the level of most rock memoirs is the inclusion of voices other than Lang's-including scenesters and key Woodstock players like Jimi Hendrix, Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, Jerry Garcia...Well-written, informative and tons of fun." -- Kirkus Reviews "Invaluable...[Lang] wraps up his cinematic reminiscing by taking a seminal thread from Woodstock's history-Jimi Hendrix's breathtaking interpretation of The Star Spangled Banner-and linking its poignancy to what some have called the 21st century Woodstock moment: the day Barack Obama became the first black president." -- USA Today "The shelf of books about Woodstock is groaning, but Lang's is the best fly-on-the-wall account, tantamount to having had a backstage pass to an iconic event." -- New York Post "There are plenty of juicy tidbits in "The Road to Woodstock," starting with the compelling opening of Lang sharing his backstage view of Hendrix's sizzling performance at the rain-soaked end of the festival." -- Richmond Times-Dispatch

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Book SynopsisIncludes short tales accompanied by an array of photographs from around the globe.Trade Review"An effortless summer read for the music lover." -- Houston Chronicle "We picked up the book expecting to inflate our egos, reinforcing the myth that we know everything there is to know about music history. Short answer- we were wrong, very wrong." -- LA Weekly "A little book you won't be able to put down." -- Florida Times-Union "History doesn't have to be boring and author Rick Beyer proves it with this fun look at music." -- Rock Book Show "Full of tasty morsels...A delightful book to arm one for the next dull cocktail party." -- Chicago Tribune "History like you've never read it before...Amusing." -- The Tennessean "100 stories you haven't heard will delight in knowing...Lively, offbeat and surprising in quick-hit snippets." -- Denver Rocky Mountain News "Surprising...the essentials of fascinating stories are here." -- Dallas Morning News

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Trade ReviewRiveting -- Wall Street Journal "A biting, in-depth chronicle of Nashville's most tumultuous era told through the voices of iconic artists who used their music to accomplish significant changes in the music industry." -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review) Offers a look at the how the 'outlaw' music of Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson shook up Nashville in the late '60s and '70s... Author Streissguth has country music bona fides: He also wrote Johnny Cash: The Biography. -- USA Today A riveting look at how how three Texans joined forces to liberate Nashville from its company-town ways in the 1970s. It is a small group portrait, tightly focused and well told by Michael Streissguth. -- Wall Street Journal Outlaw is an entertaining, authoritative account of Nashville's rebel years. -- popmatters.com "Compulsively readable..." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) Streissguth goes widescreen with this look at the social and musical ferment that produced the Seventies outlaw-country movement... [he] skillfully portrays Sixties Nashville's studio politics and their gradual loosening up, alongside a city where post-Sixties social change took its time arriving. -- Rolling Stone

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Book SynopsisA superbly insightful and moving exploration of Wagner''s last opera, by one of Britain''s leading intellectuals Wagner''s last music-drama tells the story of Parsifal, the ''pure fool, knowing through compassion'', who has been called to rescue the Kingdom of the Grail from the sins that have polluted it. The Grail is a symbol of purity in a world of lust and power, but although Parsifal is the culmination of Wagner''s life-long obsession with the religious frame of mind, the redemption sought by his characters is far from the Christian archetype. For Wagner, redemption occurs inthis life, when compassion prevails over enslavement, and purity replaces spiritual pollution. His music here ties together suffering and contrition, sin and forgiveness, downfall and redemption in an inextricable knot, healing the fractures and uniting the warring elements in human life in a way that is clear, convincing and uncanny. More than any other of his works, ParsifaTrade ReviewIn his weaving of philosophy and musicology into an explication of redemption via the vehicle of compassion, this is an unparalleled, sadly posthumously published offering. It is at once required reading and a launch pad for an infinitude of musings. It is also, it should be clearly stated, magisterial. -- Colin Clarke * Opera Now *This is Roger Scruton's final book. Parsifal was Wagner's final opera. Both works are intended to be taken as Last Words: testaments of belief at the end of a long spiritual journey... you [will] find enormous satisfaction in following the journey of one of our great philosophers making sense of his own life though another's sublime work of art. -- Sue Prideaux * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisThe initial volume in a series of American Bach Society Guides, Bach''s Art of Fugue and Musical Offering is a comprehensive study of two closely related masterworks of the late Baroque fugal style. This compact guide, intended for practitioners, music scholars, and a general readership, summarizes a considerable body of knowledge about these famously cerebral collections in an engaging and accessible style. Bach specialist and keyboard player Matthew Dirst explains the Art of Fugue and Musical Offering''s idiosyncratic musical language while reviewing how both projects took shape during Bach''s final decade. They reflect Bach''s lifelong fascination with learned counterpoint, as demonstrated in elaborate series of fugues and canons in both and in an unusually intricate trio sonata in the latter. Dirst provides commentary on individual movements and groups of pieces and on the historical reception of this music, including its impact on other disciplines. Recurring themes include Bach''Table of ContentsForeword Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Contrapuntal Pursuits 2. Origins and Audience 3. From One, Many 4. Musical Gaming 5. Paying Tribute 6. Elusive Ideals Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis interdisciplinary study uncovers a fascination with women cross dressers in the popular literature of early modern Britain, in a wide range of texts from popular ballads and chapbook life histories to the comedies and tragedies of aristocratic literature.Table of ContentsList of illustrations Preface Acknowledgments List of abbreviations Prologue 1: Popular balladry, Mary Ambree, and the beginnings of the Female Warrior motif, 1600-1650 2: The fashion for Female Warrior ballads: new "hits" and old favorites, 1650-1800 3: The museum life of Mary Ambree and the decline of the Female Warrior, 1800 to the present 4: The Female Warrior motif as an idea 5: The Female Warrior and everyday life in the early modern world 6: The Female Warrior and the construction of gender 7: Hic-Mulier: imaginative preoccupation and genotype for the Female Warrior 8: The Female Warrior, Gay's Polly, and the heroic ideal Epilogue Appendix Select bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Mozart the Performer offers a genuinely new way to process Mozart’s music, one that answers to a widely varied range of evidence at once musical, historical, and biographical. It constitutes a bold attempt to reimagine Mozart’s creative process—particularly as that of a self-conscious performer, an ‘inveterate showman’ playing to an audience—and to draw extensive interpretive conclusions from that reimagining.” * Scott Burnham, the Graduate Center, City University of New York *“Mozart the Performer is a fresh attempt to demythologize Mozart, to ground his creativity in real-world experiences and concerns, as opposed to the image of a ‘divine’ composer, the beauty of whose music somehow floats above mundane explication. Mozart the Performer is a striking expansion of scholarly horizons.” * W. Dean Sutcliffe, University of Auckland *“The joie de vivre of Mozart’s performerly approach to composition is echoed in Bandy’s own inviting prose. Structuring the book as a theme and variations, he welcomes the reader into that growing ensemble celebrating the tactile, the playful, the parodic, and above all, the humane in Mozart.” * Adeline Mueller, Mount Holyoke College *Table of ContentsNotes on the Text Theme Variation 1 Mozart the Performer Variation 2 Mozart the Pianist Variation 3 Mozart the Improviser Variation 4 Mozart the Decorator Variation 5 Mozart the Dramatist Coda Performing Mozart Acknowledgments Notes Bibliography Index

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