This symposium celebrates the 450th anniversary of the birth of William Byrd, one of the greatest English composers. Twelve scholars contribute essays which together cover all the genres of Byrd's prolific output. Topics discussed in this collection include authentication of the canon, applications of new technology to Byrd research, Byrd's relationship to earlier English traditions and his influence on his successors. There are studies concerned with manuscript sources and aspects of performance, and the final contribution is a comprehensive listing of Byrd recordings made between 1923 and...

This collection of essays marks the tercentenary in 1995 of Purcell's death. The essays represent the best recent research and deal mainly with the autograph manuscripts, Purcell's compositional technique, the relationship between Purcell and his teacher John Blow, a reassessment of Purcell court odes, performance practice and wordsetting, and eighteenth-century reception history, particularly regarding King Arthur. The book contains the first written reports on the discovery of two important autograph manuscripts.

This book looks at the music of Webern from several new perspectives. The most recent Webern scholarship has emphasized Webern's lyricism, and this is a theme running through Webern Studies. Other techniques not generally associated with Webern are also explored: two chapters illustrate and examine his apparent early interest in octatonic and pitch-specific motivic collections. In addition to previously unpublished entries from Webern's diaries, the volume includes all the row tables for his twelve-note music. There is also a new and comprehensive Webern bibliography.

2009 marked the 75th birthday of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, an occasion that presented an opportunity for reflection upon, and appreciation of, a period of compositional achievement that extends from the 1950s to the present. This book forms part of that reflection through a statement of the current condition of research on Maxwell Davies's music. Detailed analytical discussions of individual works, such as the opera Taverner and the First Symphony, coexist with broader issues and perspectives, including Davies's own writings about music, his engagement with sonata form, the compositional...

Fauré Studies showcases new research from leading scholars in the United States, United Kingdom, and France into this influential French composer of the fin de siècle. This book features interpretations of individual works and musical analyses, as well as studies of compositional pedagogy, social history, and aesthetics. Accessible to a wide range of readers, this volume also provides a valuable overview of Fauré research from the composer's lifetime to the present. As part of Cambridge Composer Studies, Fauré Studies adds momentum to new research into this major composer, which includes...

Thomas Adès is a dominant force in contemporary music, whose work attracts significant attention and acclaim, and has been performed by many renowned ensembles. This volume – the first to present a range of scholarly essays on every aspect of Adès's music – offers authoritative accounts of Adès's major compositions from a variety of analytical, critical, cultural and historical perspectives. The opening chapters focus on Adès's earlier music, offering close readings of key works. Further essays focus on his engagement with forms and instrumental genres. The final chapters turn to...