Description
Book SynopsisRubini, Chopin, Nourrit, Liszt, Donzelli, Thalberg, Velluti, Sontag, and Malibran were prominent celebrity pianists and singers who plied their trade between London and Paris, the most dynamic musical centers of nineteenth-century Europe. This title examines how key musicians and their contemporaries made sense of musical and physical abilities.
Trade Review"Davies narrating incidents and tracing connections is full of animation and amusement ... a master of the anecdote and incident." -- Stephen Brown Times Literary Supplement
Table of ContentsList of Illustrations and Musical Examples Acknowledgments Introduction 1. "Veluti in Speculum": The Twilight of the Castrato 2. Reflecting on Reflex: A Touching New Fact about Chopin 3. The Sontag-Malibran Stereotype 4. Boneless Hands{ths}/{ths}Thalberg's Ready-Made Soul{ths}/{ths}Velvet Fingers 5. In Search of Voice: Nourrit's Voix Mixte, Donzelli's Bari-Tenor 6. Franz Liszt, Metapianism, and the Cultural History of the Hand Epilogue Notes Index
