Authored by leading scholars in the field, this collection of fourteen essays surveys the life, work, and posthumous reception of the nineteenth-century German-Jewish composer. Sections cover aspects of biography as well as Felix Mendelssohn's expansive and multi-faceted musical output. Two closing essays confront the turbulent course of his posthumous reception and the challenges his music continues to pose for modern performers.

This Companion provides an up-to-date introduction to the life and music of Finland's greatest composer, Jean Sibelius (1865-1957). Divided into four sections, it explores Sibelius's early career, his major musical achievements, historical reception and influence, and the performance and interpretation of his work. Sibelius emerges as one of the most striking figures in twentieth-century music. The book will be of interest to performers and the general public as well as serious scholars.

This book is all about the current state of music, about thinking, speaking, and writing about music in the immediate aftermath of that stirring and crucial twentieth century. Five distinguished authors with very different backgrounds, subscribe to the same seriousness of purpose: Jonathan Cross, Jonathan Harvey, Helmut Lachenmann, Albrecht Wellmer and Richard Klein. Two of them are British, three are Germans; two are prominent composers, both keen and provocative writers about music, one is a musicologist and daring critic who specializes in contemporary music, two are philosophers and...

Readers will not be able to put down The Vatican Conspiracy, the latest thrilling adventure by Jonathan Cross. In this mystical suspense novel, the first American/Jewish Pope conspires with the head of the Italian Mafia, a U.S. Senator, a young Jesuit priest, and a covert military operative to stop drug cartels from selling drugs to children. Will he be successful? The action twists and turns continually as this mystical thriller rushes to its stunning conclusion. Vatican Conspiracy is a must-read for suspense fans. About the Author: Jonathan Cross of Honolulu has written three...

Igor Stravinsky (1882 1971) was perhaps the twentieth century s most celebrated composer, a leading light of modernism and a restlessly creative artist. This new entry in the Critical Lives series traces the story of Stravinsky s life and work, setting him in the context of the turbulent times in which he lived. Born in Russia, Stravinsky spent most of his life in exile and while his work was deliberately cosmopolitan, the pain of estrangement nonetheless left its mark on the man and his work, distinguishable in an ever-present sense of loss. Jonathan Cross shows how that work emerged over...