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Author: Harold C. Schonberg Publisher: Simon & Schuster ISBN: Category : Music Languages : en Pages : 392
Book Description
"'He is of commanding presence, infinite dignity, fabulous memory, vast experience, high temperament and serene wisdom. He has been tempered in the crucible but he is still molten and he glows with a fierce inner light. He is many things: musician, administrator, executive, minister, psychologist, technician, philosopher and dispenser of wrath. Like many great men, he has come from humble stock; and, like many great men in the public eye, he is instinctively an actor. As such, he is an egoist. He has to be. Without infinite belief in himself and his capabilities, he is as nothing. Above all, he is a leader of men. His subjects look to him for guidance. He is at once a father image, the great provider, the fount of inspiration, the Teacher who knows all ... . He has but to stretch out his hand and he is obeyed. He tolerates no opposition. His will, his word, his very glance, are law.' With this pyrotechnical description of the genus, Harold Schonberg begins his historical survey of the Great Conductors and their art. For the great conductor--from the time-beater of the thirteenth century to the maestro of today--is always the inspired leader who can impose his authority on the musicians who make up his orchestra. Thus it was with Bach, whom Schonberg pictures leading his forces seated at the clavier or with violin at his shoulder, and singing any part that was being wrongly performed. Thus it was with Handel, who threatened to throw a prima donna out of the window if she would not sing the notes as written. Thus it was even with Beethoven, because of his deafness a tragically bad conductor, who nevertheless tried to impose his will on the performers by practically creeping under the desk for pianissimo and jumping high with outstretched arms for the opposite. Before us through the pages of this book march the great conductors of the past and of the present. Schonberg evokes Lully, who beat time on the floor with a cane--so powerfully that he drove it into his foot on one occasion and died of the resulting gangrene. We meet Berlioz, 'in constant motion on the podium, exuding electricity ... who held absolute sway over his troops and played on them as a pianist upon the keyboard,' and Mendelssohn, the gentle, well-mannered aristocrat who ripped up scores and screamed at musicians who showed up drunk and fractious. And so through all the important composer-conductors--Wagner, Liszt, Mahler, Strauss. Then the moderns: the elemental Arturo Toscanini, the loving Bruno Walter, the witty and acrimonious Thomas Beecham--on and on to the youngest to earn a chapter to himself, the phenomenal Leonard Bernstein. With biography, anecdote, vivid description, and more than a hundred well-chosen prints and photographs, Mr. Schonberg gives a striking picture of each of these men, and dozens of others, showing just how and why they influenced the performance of classical music and how they developed a new and modern art--the art of conducting."--Dust jacket.
Author: Harold C. Schonberg Publisher: New York : Simon and Schuster ISBN: Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 392
Book Description
"'He is of commanding presence, infinite dignity, fabulous memory, vast experience, high temperament and serene wisdom. He has been tempered in the crucible but he is still molten and he glows with a fierce inner light. He is many things: musician, administrator, executive, minister, psychologist, technician, philosopher and dispenser of wrath. Like many great men, he has come from humble stock; and, like many great men in the public eye, he is instinctively an actor. As such, he is an egoist. He has to be. Without infinite belief in himself and his capabilities, he is as nothing. Above all, he is a leader of men. His subjects look to him for guidance. He is at once a father image, the great provider, the fount of inspiration, the Teacher who knows all ... . He has but to stretch out his hand and he is obeyed. He tolerates no opposition. His will, his word, his very glance, are law.' With this pyrotechnical description of the genus, Harold Schonberg begins his historical survey of the Great Conductors and their art. For the great conductor--from the time-beater of the thirteenth century to the maestro of today--is always the inspired leader who can impose his authority on the musicians who make up his orchestra. Thus it was with Bach, whom Schonberg pictures leading his forces seated at the clavier or with violin at his shoulder, and singing any part that was being wrongly performed. Thus it was with Handel, who threatened to throw a prima donna out of the window if she would not sing the notes as written. Thus it was even with Beethoven, because of his deafness a tragically bad conductor, who nevertheless tried to impose his will on the performers by practically creeping under the desk for pianissimo and jumping high with outstretched arms for the opposite. Before us through the pages of this book march the great conductors of the past and of the present. Schonberg evokes Lully, who beat time on the floor with a cane--so powerfully that he drove it into his foot on one occasion and died of the resulting gangrene. We meet Berlioz, 'in constant motion on the podium, exuding electricity ... who held absolute sway over his troops and played on them as a pianist upon the keyboard,' and Mendelssohn, the gentle, well-mannered aristocrat who ripped up scores and screamed at musicians who showed up drunk and fractious. And so through all the important composer-conductors--Wagner, Liszt, Mahler, Strauss. Then the moderns: the elemental Arturo Toscanini, the loving Bruno Walter, the witty and acrimonious Thomas Beecham--on and on to the youngest to earn a chapter to himself, the phenomenal Leonard Bernstein. With biography, anecdote, vivid description, and more than a hundred well-chosen prints and photographs, Mr. Schonberg gives a striking picture of each of these men, and dozens of others, showing just how and why they influenced the performance of classical music and how they developed a new and modern art--the art of conducting."--Dust jacket.
Author: Tom Service Publisher: Faber & Faber ISBN: 0571268714 Category : Music Languages : en Pages : 302
Book Description
How are conductors' silent gestures magicked into sound by a group of more than a hundred brilliant but belligerent musicians? The mute choreography of great conductors has fascinated and frustrated musicians and music-lovers for centuries. Orchestras can be inspired to the heights of musical and expressive possibility by their maestros, or flabbergasted that someone who doesn't even make a sound should be elevated to demigod-like status by the public. This is the first book to go inside the rehearsal rooms of some of the most inspirational orchestral partnerships in the world - how Simon Rattle works at the Berlin Philharmonic, how Mariss Jansons deals with the Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam, and how Claudio Abbado creates the world's most luxurious pick-up band every year with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. From London to Budapest, Bamberg to Vienna, great orchestral concerts are recreated as a collection of countless human and musical stories.
Author: Norman Lebrecht Publisher: Citadel Press ISBN: 9780806520889 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 420
Book Description
Nearly ten years after its original publication, The Maestro Myth continues to enthrall readers with its insightful look into the lives and careers of the world's most celebrated conductors. Now updated and including two new chapters, this volume portrays the politics and inflated economics surrounding the podiums of today's international classical music scene, and the obstacles faced by blacks, women, and gays. From Richard Strauss to Herbert von Karajan to Leonard Bernstein to Simon Rattle, The Maesto Myth examines the world of classical music and the mounting crisis in a profession where genuine talent grows ever scarcer. It is a must-have resource for music aficiionados as well as anyone interested in the behind-the-scenes lives of these music masters. Book jacket.
Author: Norman Lebrecht Publisher: Carol Publishing Corporation ISBN: Category : Conducting Languages : en Pages : 408
Book Description
Nearly ten years after its original publication, The Maestro Myth continues to enthrall readers with its insightful look into the lives and careers of the world's most celebrated conductors. Now updated and including two new chapters, this volume portrays the politics and inflated economics surrounding the podiums of today's international classical music scene, and the obstacles faced by blacks, women, and gays. From Richard Strauss to Herbert von Karajan to Leonard Bernstein to Simon Rattle, The Maesto Myth examines the world of classical music and the mounting crisis in a profession where genuine talent grows ever scarcer. It is a must-have resource for music aficiionados as well as anyone interested in the behind-the-scenes lives of these music masters. Book jacket.
Author: Itay Talgam Publisher: Penguin ISBN: 1591847230 Category : Business & Economics Languages : en Pages : 242
Book Description
Offers leadership advice based on examples of good orchestra conducting, emphasizing the importance of the recognition of one's own ignorance and the possibility that others may come up with ideas that a leader could not even imagine.
Author: Michael Charry Publisher: University of Illinois Press ISBN: 0252093100 Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 466
Book Description
This book is the first full biography of George Szell, one of the greatest orchestra and opera conductors of the twentieth century. From child prodigy pianist and composer to world-renowned conductor, Szell's career spanned seven decades, and he led most of the great orchestras and opera companies of the world, including the New York Philharmonic, the NBC and Chicago Symphonies, the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic and Opera, and the Concertgebouw Orchestra. A protégé of composer-conductor Richard Strauss at the Berlin State Opera, his crowning achievement was his twenty-four-year tenure as musical director of the Cleveland Orchestra, transforming it into one of the world's greatest ensembles, touring triumphantly in the United States, Europe, the Soviet Union, South Korea, and Japan. Michael Charry, a conductor who worked with Szell and interviewed him, his family, and his associates over several decades, draws on this first-hand material and correspondence, orchestra records, reviews, and other archival sources to construct a lively and balanced portrait of Szell's life and work from his birth in 1897 in Budapest to his death in 1970 in Cleveland. Readers will follow Szell from his career in Europe, Great Britain, and Australia to his guest conducting at the New York Philharmonic and his distinguished tenure at the Metropolitan Opera and Cleveland Orchestra. Charry details Szell's personal and musical qualities, his recordings and broadcast concerts, his approach to the great works of the orchestral repertoire, and his famous orchestrational changes and interpretation of the symphonies of Robert Schumann. The book also lists Szell's conducting repertoire and includes a comprehensive discography. In highlighting Szell's legacy as a teacher and mentor as well as his contributions to orchestral and opera history, this biography will be of lasting interest to concert-goers, music lovers, conductors, musicians inspired by Szell's many great performances, and new generations who will come to know those performances through Szell's recorded legacy.
Author: Carl Topilow Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield ISBN: 1538154609 Category : Music Languages : en Pages : 261
Book Description
In-text URLs can be accessed via the “Features” tab of the publisher’s website. Conductors face a multitude of hurdles as they strive to obtain a foothold in the professional world. Once they have attained a position, there are obstacles both on and off the podium to keeping that position as well as advancing in the profession. Founding conductor of the Cleveland Pops Orchestra, pedagogue, and frequent guest conductor for both pops and classical concerts, Carl Topilow is in a unique position to help conductors navigate their careers. The Orchestral Conductor’s Career Handbook takes readers through the step-by-step process of establishing a career in orchestral conducting. Through his experiences with professional, pops, conservatory, community, youth, summer festival, opera and ballet orchestras, Topilow provides practical tips for conductors of any orchestra type and at any level of their development. Filled with personal stories from Topilow’s career, the handbook provides insights on an array of topics, including applying for conducting programs and conducting positions, connecting with audiences, developing interpersonal relations within the orchestra family, starting your own orchestra, interacting with donors, and beyond. It also presents fresh ideas for programming, rehearsing, and approaches to standard repertoire pieces.
Author: Jonathan Brown Publisher: Parrot Press ISBN: 0987155652 Category : Music Languages : en Pages : 818
Book Description
This is the Ebook version of the award-winning "Great Wagner Conductors" published in 2012, now scarce in print. It contains corrections to the hardback edition, and remedies some omissions to the discographies. It also contains all 723 illustrations in the book, brilliantly illuminated, many showing the conductors at work. Some of these are rare, some are in colour. (These are not displayed in the free sample.) "Great Wagner Conductors" is the first in-depth study to bring the great historical Wagner conductors to life - through anecdote, their own views on Wagner’s music, reports of their performances throughout the world, and their recordings. There is a substantial introductory chapter on Wagner - what he was like as a conductor of his own works and what he wanted of his conductors – then follow chapters on Hans von Bülow, Hans Richter, Anton Seidl, Hermann Levi, Felix Mottl, Karl Muck, Artur Nikisch, Albert Coates, Gustav Mahler, Felix Weingartner, Bruno Walter, Arturo Toscanini, Artur Bodanzky, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Fritz Busch, Erich Kleiber, Hans Knappertsbusch, Clemens Krauss, Karl Böhm, Richard Strauss, Otto Klemperer, and Fritz Reiner. Thousands of reviews of performances from many countries have been distilled to bring us as close as we can to knowing what the conductors were really like. There are comprehensive discographies setting out what the conductors recorded. Rare recordings are documented. There is comment on or excerpts from reviews of all the major recordings, and on many of the more obscure. A section on timings of actual and recorded performances, from Wagner onwards, reveals how widely practice has varied. There is a Select Bibliography, and an Index. "The level of detail achieved is quite breathtaking," wrote David Patmore in "Classical Recordings Quarterly" reviewing the hardback, "It extends to a vast arsenal of footnotes … as a resource they will be amazingly useful in a vast range of different contexts…. For anyone interested in conducting from the mid-nineteenth century onwards, and in particular the performance of Wagner, this book will be an essential acquisition. Its strength lies in the collection of so many different and varied contemporary reports of Wagner in performance from approximately 1850 to 1960. If this is where your interest lies, it will provide much fascinating reading." (Winter 2012). "Great Wagner Conductors is a major contribution to the literature on this subject," wrote Gary Galo in the "ARSC Journal", "and belongs in the library of every serious Wagner enthusiast." (May 2013). The book was awarded an Association for Recorded Sound Collections (ARSC) Award for Excellence in Historical Recorded Sound Research in 2013.
Author: James M. Doering Publisher: University of Illinois Press ISBN: 025209459X Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 307
Book Description
This biography charts the career and legacy of the pioneering American music manager Arthur Judson (1881–1975), who rose to prominence in Philadelphia and New York at the beginning of the twentieth century. A violinist by training, Judson became manager of the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1915 under the iconic conductor Leopold Stokowski. Within a few years, Judson also took on management of the New York Philharmonic, navigating a period of change and the tenures of several important conductors who included William Mengelberg, Arturo Toscanini, and John Barbirolli. Judson also began managing individual artists, including pianists Alfred Cortot and Vladimir Horowitz, violinist Jasha Heifetz, and cellist Gregor Piatigorsky. He also organized the U.S. tours of several prominent composers, including Igor Stravinsky and Vincent d'Indy. At the same time, Judson began managing conductors. His first clients were Stokowski and Fritz Reiner. By the 1930s, Judson's conductor list included most of the important conductors working in America. Drawing on rich correspondence between Judson and the conductors and artists he served, James M. Doering demonstrates Judson's multifaceted roles, including involvement with programming choices, building audiences, negotiating with orchestra members and their unions, and exploring new technologies for extending the orchestras' reach. In addition to his colorful career behind the scenes at two preeminent American orchestras, Judson was important for a number of innovations in arts management. In 1922, he founded a nationwide network of local managers and later became involved in the relatively unexplored medium of radio, working first with WEAF in New York City and then later forming his own national radio network in 1927. Providing valuable insight into the workings of these orchestras and the formative years of arts management, The Great Orchestrator is a valuable portrait of one of the most powerful managers in American musical history.
Author: Nicole Glover Publisher: HarperCollins ISBN: 0358181798 Category : Fiction Languages : en Pages : 435
Book Description
“A seamless blending of magic, mystery, and history . . . Glover’s worldbuilding, characters, and attention to historical detail create a delightfully genre-bending debut!” — Tananarive Due, American Book Award winner, author of Ghost Summer: Stories From a bold new voice in speculative fiction comes a vibrant historical fantasy of magic and murder set in the aftermath of the Civil War Hetty Rhodes and her husband, Benjy, were Conductors on the Underground Railroad, ferrying dozens of slaves to freedom with daring, cunning, and magic that draws its power from the constellations. With the war over, those skills find new purpose as they solve mysteries and murders that white authorities would otherwise ignore. In the heart of Philadelphia’s Seventh Ward, everyone knows that when there’s a strange death or magical curses causing trouble, Hetty and Benjy are the only ones that can solve the case. But when an old friend is murdered, their investigation stirs up a wasp nest of intrigue, lies, and long-buried secrets—and a mystery unlike anything they handled before. With a clever, cold-blooded killer on the prowl testing their magic and placing their lives at risk, Hetty and Benjy will discover how little they really know about their neighbors . . . and themselves. “An unforgettable debut . . . Wholly original and thoroughly riveting.” — Deanna Raybourn, New York Times best-selling author of A Murderous Relation
Author: Harold C. Schonberg
Author: Harold C. Schonberg
Author: Tom Service
Author: Norman Lebrecht
Author: Norman Lebrecht
Author: Itay Talgam
Author: Michael Charry
Author: Carl Topilow
Author: Jonathan Brown
Author: James M. Doering
Author: Nicole Glover