TITLES OF INTEREST
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"21st-Century String Quartets: Volume I"
by Edith Eisler
On Sale
Edith Eisler--writer and corresponding editor for Strings
magazine--doesn't just interview some of the world's most
famous chamber music players in "21st-Century String
Quartets," she gets to know them. Using the insights of a
performer and the conversational tone of a good friend,
Eisler gives her readers the inside story on the
personalities and musical philosophies of the Emerson,
Guarneri, Borodin, Orion, and Tokyo string quartets, among
others.
"Johann Sebastian Bach: The Learned Musician"
by Christoph Wolff
On Sale
Harvard professor and Bach scholar Christoph Wolff has
written a densely argued, contextually rich study of the
great "wellspring" of music. The subtitle refers to a famous
attack on Bach for using too much artifice and creating
works of dry pedantry, which Wolff masterfully counters with
his vision of Bach as a true paradigm shifter, comparable to
an uncanny degree to the genius of Isaac Newton. Wolff's
book is itself richly contrapuntal in its development of
themes and synchronic significances, doing the master proud.
"Peter Pears: Travel Diaries, 1936-1978"
edited by Philip Reed
On Sale
A volume in the Aldeburgh Studies in Music series published
by Boydell and Brewer, which focuses on Benjamin Britten's
techniques and influences, "Peter Pears: Travel Diaries"
documents the alert observer's reactions to the world that
he and famous lover Britten traveled in pursuit of careers
and pleasure. Some of the most compelling aspects of the
tenor's journal entries center around the Asian tour they
made in the mid-1950s, which would profoundly influence the
composer's subsequent development.
"Jacqueline du Pre: Her Life, Her Music, Her Legend"
by Elizabeth Wilson
On Sale
Elizabeth Wilson's exhaustive biography pulls together many
of the contradictory depictions and images of the
legendary--indeed, now mythical--cellist. Originally
published last year amid the du Pre fever that resulted from
the hit 1998 film "Hilary and Jackie," and now reprinted in
paperback, Wilson's study serves as a powerful corrective
that actually keeps the music center stage but also presents
du Pre as a fully dimensional person. Wilson is a cellist
herself and was a friend of du Pre for years, and she brings
these insights to bear in a way that will appeal both to
experts and the average music lover alike.
ALSO OF NOTE
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"Gustav Mahler: Vienna: Triumph and Disillusion (1904-1907)"
by Henry-Louis de La Grange
On Sale
Eminent Mahler expert Henry-Louis de La Grange continues
with his epic biographical journey in this highly
anticipated third volume of his Mahler biography. These are
the years that gave us some of the composer's most
celebrated works, during a time of great stress and creative
upheaval.
NEW CLASSICAL FOR BEGINNERS STORE
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Looking for ways to introduce friends to the world of
classical music? Check out Amazon.com's new Classical for
Beginners Store, where you'll find guides to composers,
recommended music, great performers, historical period
overviews, audio tours with essays relating to specific
works, and more. For those just beginning their appreciation
of classical music, this is the place to go.
Many titles
On Sale