Kategoria BISAC: Music >> Genres & Styles - Classical

Although born Giuseppe Guttovergi to a poor, immigrant Italian family, it was as Paul Creston that Giuseppe rose to prominence, becoming one of the most widely performed American composers. Rhythm was a continued subject of research for this composer, and by 1945 he had established a terminology of rhythmic structures, which he observed both in his music and the music of other composers, even writing two books on the subject. This volume presents for the first time a complete descriptive account of the life of the composer, as well as access to currently available materials by and about...

Featuring ten new essays on different aspects of the compositions, artistic influences, and persona of Richard Strauss, "The Strauss Companion" explores the composer's relationship to his own work and to that of his noted contemporaries. Guided by not only musical interests but literary, political, and philosophical ones as well, Strauss is an ideal candidate for this sort of treatment. Following this discussion of his influences, the volume moves to a discussion of the works themselves, including operas, tone poems, and stage works; these compositions are explored analytically and also in...

The evolution of Ernest Bloch's music is traced throughout his travels in Europe and America. A complete picture of Bloch emerges from this integrated study of his life and his music. The opening biographical chapter provides a brief, personal history from which Bloch's career and many interests follow, including his pursuits in photography. The biographical information provides the framework for addressing the Jewish Question, a common focus of Bloch's work. Bloch emerges, from this multifaceted study, as a composer whose music must be examined within both its Jewish heritage and in a...

The Sibelius Companion represents in its collected chapters the most advanced research in the field of Sibelius studies today. Since mid-century, so much new information has come to light that our understanding of both the man and his music has changed profoundly. These changes are fully represented in the present volume.

Some of the topics examined, particularly the vocal music, including Luonnotar DEGREES, which is here given a brilliant and provocative analysis, have previously been neglected. Other chapters deal with more familiar works, such as the Second...

With language unencumbered by technical jargon, these scholarly writings bring to life the various facets of Schoenberg's creative process and its influence. Topics include biographical essays, surveys of the music from different periods in Schoenberg's career, and essays on the development of Schoenberg's style, on Schoenberg's attitudes toward music, composition and analysis, and the effect of and interpretation of Schoenberg's music. The contributors provide different points of view based on their unique specialties. The resulting breadth of information illuminates distinct aspects of...

Drawing on primary documents as well as interviews and letters, the authors have created a fascinating portrait of one of America's most distinguished and prolific composers whose creative output spans more than half a century. With its well organized, carefully annotated and indexed bibliography, the book is not only a pleasure to read, but a valuable research tool. Read's notable accomplishments include an extensive catalog of 150 opus numbers that run the gamut of instrumental combinations and musical genres, plus nine scholarly books dealing with various aspects of notation, orchestral...

Schoenberg, Berg, and Webern, modern composers living in Vienna near the turn of the 20th century, are examined in a broad artistic context illustrating how their works grew from earlier Viennese musical developments. Presenting a coherent analysis of a central school of modern musical composition, the essays compare the artists' music to that in the nonmusical arts in Vienna at the time. A prominent musical phenomenon during the period, the Second Viennese School of Music would exert a profound impact on European and American composers in the decades following World War II. The recent...

The popularity of Mahler's symphonic works is unremitting. More recordings have been made during the past ten years than in the previous six decades. This work is a companion to the first volume, published in 1986; together, the two review virtually every recording commercially released (as well as some private issues). The intention of both works is to provide a comprehensive analysis of all recordings. A general overview is combined with details of particular importance. Recordings of special merit are noted. The objective critical discussions will appeal to the newcomer as well as the...

This comprehensive study treats the wind works of Anton Bruckner as a complete genre and uses them to illustrate how the composer evolved in style throughout his career. A major nineteenth-century composer, organist, and church musician, Bruckner's compositional style changed dramatically in the early 1860s, dividing his career into two distinct parts. During his early career he immersed himself in the study of traditional musical principles including form, harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration. The second phase of his career, in which he composed the symphonies upon which much of his...

Dual natures comprised Chopin's personality. On one hand, he was a highly creative romantic idealist and on the other, a realist trying to cope with the world at large. Documentary evidence illustrates the disparities in his personality as a reflection of these two diverse aspects of his psyche. Of special interest are five previously unpublished letters in English and the unfolding of Chopin's controversial relationships with Tytus Woyciechowski, Julian Fontana, George Sand, and Solange Sand. This critical portrayal of Chopin's personality traces his journeys and experiences from Warsaw...

This book introduces every important aspect of the Elizabethan music world. In ten scrupulously researched yet accessible chapters, Lord examines the lives of composers, the evolution of musical instruments, the Elizabethan system of musical notation, and the many textures and traditions of Elizabethan music. Biographical entries introduce the most significant and prolific composers as well as the members of royal society who influenced Elizabethan musical culture. Both familiar and obscure instruments of the era are described with focus on their musical and social contexts. Various types...

George Crumb is a composer at the forefront of post-World War II American music, and never before has one volume combined a portrait of his life with a catalogue of his extensive work. David Cohen's "George Crumb: A Bio-Bibliography" corrects this by providing the reader and researcher with an overview of Crumb's life, career, and compositions; and an annotated guide to literature by and about the composer--including not only articles and books, but also album reviews, concert reviews, and interviews.

The biographical portion, written in close consultation with the subject, has resulted...

In this exciting new study of a largely overlooked but nevertheless extremely important figure in American music, author Allen Cohen explores the relationship between theory and practice in the works of Howard Hanson, a prominent twentieth-century composer, conductor, and educator. In Hanson's book "Harmonic Materials of Modern Music," he proffered a theory of classification of all possible pitch-class collections in the chromatic scale, showing ways of deriving larger collections from smaller ones, and demonstrating significant relationships among them. This theory anticipated in many...

Eminently readable despite the complexity of its subject, "Fugal Composition: A Guide to the Study of Bach's 48" guides the reader in studying the 48 fugues of the composer's "Well-Tempered Clavier." Author Joseph Groocock analyzes each of the fugues individually, both verbally and diagrammatically, and includes such elements as overall structure, episodes, stretto, subsidiary subjects, and countersubjects. The appendices and index furnish a ready reference for the scholar or researcher seeking information or guidance on specific points.

Meanwhile, the volume's editor supplies...

Esteemed by many of his most distinguished contemporaries, including Arnold Schoenberg, Alexander Zemlinsky (1871-1942) was a protege of Brahms and Mahler. Despite this, he was overshadowed by the composers of the second Viennese school, and for many years after his death was remembered merely as the brother-in-law of Schoenberg. But with centenary celebrations of Zemlinsky's birth, scholars began a careful examination of his works and realized they had discovered a forgotten master. Zemlinsky's wonderful melodic gift was manifested in operas, choral works, chamber music, and symphonic...

Focusing on Dvorak's eventful stay in the United States from 1892 to 1895, this book explores the world behind the public legend, offering fresh insights into the composer's music. We see the traditional image--that of a simple Czech fellow with a flair for composing symphonic and chamber music--give way to one of a complex figure writing works filled with hidden drama and secret programs. In his cogent examination of Dvorak's state of mind, Michael B. Beckerman, a noted scholar of Czech music, concludes that the composer suffered from a debilitating and previously unexplored anxiety...