Author: Roman Rolland
Publisher: Read Books Ltd
ISBN: 1447495543
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 351
Book Description
Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.
Beethoven the Creator
Author: Roman Rolland
Publisher: Read Books Ltd
ISBN: 1447495543
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 351
Book Description
Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.
Publisher: Read Books Ltd
ISBN: 1447495543
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 351
Book Description
Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.
The First Four Notes
Author: Matthew Guerrieri
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307960927
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 385
Book Description
A TIME Magazine Top 10 Nonfiction Book of 2012 A New Yorker Best Book of the Year Los Angeles Magazine's #1 Music Book of the Year A unique and revelatory book of music history that examines in great depth what is perhaps the best-known and most-popular symphony ever written and its four-note opening, which has fascinated musicians, historians, and philosophers for the last two hundred years. Music critic Matthew Guerrieri reaches back before Beethoven’s time to examine what might have influenced him in writing his Fifth Symphony, and forward into our own time to describe the ways in which the Fifth has, in turn, asserted its influence. He uncovers possible sources for the famous opening notes in the rhythms of ancient Greek poetry and certain French Revolutionary songs and symphonies. Guerrieri confirms that, contrary to popular belief, Beethoven was not deaf when he wrote the Fifth. He traces the Fifth’s influence in China, Russia, and the United States (Emerson and Thoreau were passionate fans) and shows how the masterpiece was used by both the Allies and the Nazis in World War II. Altogether, a fascinating piece of musical detective work—a treat for music lovers of every stripe.
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307960927
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 385
Book Description
A TIME Magazine Top 10 Nonfiction Book of 2012 A New Yorker Best Book of the Year Los Angeles Magazine's #1 Music Book of the Year A unique and revelatory book of music history that examines in great depth what is perhaps the best-known and most-popular symphony ever written and its four-note opening, which has fascinated musicians, historians, and philosophers for the last two hundred years. Music critic Matthew Guerrieri reaches back before Beethoven’s time to examine what might have influenced him in writing his Fifth Symphony, and forward into our own time to describe the ways in which the Fifth has, in turn, asserted its influence. He uncovers possible sources for the famous opening notes in the rhythms of ancient Greek poetry and certain French Revolutionary songs and symphonies. Guerrieri confirms that, contrary to popular belief, Beethoven was not deaf when he wrote the Fifth. He traces the Fifth’s influence in China, Russia, and the United States (Emerson and Thoreau were passionate fans) and shows how the masterpiece was used by both the Allies and the Nazis in World War II. Altogether, a fascinating piece of musical detective work—a treat for music lovers of every stripe.
Beethoven's Piano Sonatas
Author: Charles Rosen
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 030019613X
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 340
Book Description
Beethoven’s piano sonatas form one of the most important collections of works in the whole history of music. Spanning several decades of his life as a composer, the sonatas soon came to be seen as the first body of substantial serious works for piano suited to performance in large concert halls seating hundreds of people. In this comprehensive and authoritative guide, Charles Rosen places the works in context and provides an understanding of the formal principles involved in interpreting and performing this unique repertoire, covering such aspects as sonata form, phrasing, and tempo, as well as the use of pedal and trills. In the second part of his book, he looks at the sonatas individually, from the earliest works of the 1790s through the sonatas of Beethoven’s youthful popularity of the early 1800s, the subsequent years of mastery, the years of stress (1812†“1817), and the last three sonatas of the 1820s. Composed as much for private music-making as public recital, Beethoven’s sonatas have long formed a bridge between the worlds of the salon and the concert hall. For today’s audience, Rosen has written a guide that brings out the gravity, passion, and humor of these works and will enrich the appreciation of a wide range of readers, whether listeners, amateur musicians, or professional pianists. The book includes a CD of Rosen performing extracts from several of the sonatas, illustrating points made in the text.
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 030019613X
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 340
Book Description
Beethoven’s piano sonatas form one of the most important collections of works in the whole history of music. Spanning several decades of his life as a composer, the sonatas soon came to be seen as the first body of substantial serious works for piano suited to performance in large concert halls seating hundreds of people. In this comprehensive and authoritative guide, Charles Rosen places the works in context and provides an understanding of the formal principles involved in interpreting and performing this unique repertoire, covering such aspects as sonata form, phrasing, and tempo, as well as the use of pedal and trills. In the second part of his book, he looks at the sonatas individually, from the earliest works of the 1790s through the sonatas of Beethoven’s youthful popularity of the early 1800s, the subsequent years of mastery, the years of stress (1812†“1817), and the last three sonatas of the 1820s. Composed as much for private music-making as public recital, Beethoven’s sonatas have long formed a bridge between the worlds of the salon and the concert hall. For today’s audience, Rosen has written a guide that brings out the gravity, passion, and humor of these works and will enrich the appreciation of a wide range of readers, whether listeners, amateur musicians, or professional pianists. The book includes a CD of Rosen performing extracts from several of the sonatas, illustrating points made in the text.
Beethoven and the Construction of Genius
Author: Tia DeNora
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520211588
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
"It was high time that someone tried to explain more fully, and on the basis of the known documents, the course of Beethoven's meteoric rise to fame in Vienna at the end of the eighteenth century. . . . I would consider this cleverly written and authoritative book to be the most important about Beethoven in twenty-five years. No one considering the subject will be able to overlook DeNora's research."—H.C. Robbins Landon, author of Beethoven: His Life, Work, and World "This is a study with the power to reshape our perceptions of Beethoven's first decade in Vienna and substantially refine our notions of the creation and foundations of Beethoven's career."—William Meredith, Ira Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, San Jose State University "Professor DeNora's achievement in placing Beethoven, and the reception of Beethoven's music, in social context is all the more impressive because it goes so much against the grain of conventional habits of thought. In illuminating how changing social institutions created opportunities for Beethoven to gain contemporary and posthumous recognition, and, in so doing, created new forms for thinking and talking about musical achievement—the author at once provides fresh insights into the institutional origins of 'classical' music and offers an exemplary contribution to the sociological study of the arts."—Paul DiMaggio, Princeton University "An important landmark in our understanding of the relationship of the creative musician to society, and a vital contribution to debates about the central phenomenon which distinguishes Western music from other musical traditions: the phenomenon of the Great Composer."—Julian Rushton, University of Leeds "This original book argues that Beethoven's high reputation was created as much by the social-cultural agendas of his aristocratic Viennese patrons in the 1790s as by the qualities of his music. DeNora's persuasive reading of this momentous cultural-artistic event will be welcome to sociologists for its successful contextualization of a hero of 'absolute music,' as well as to musicologists and music-lovers who wish to move beyond the myth of Beethoven as 'the man who freed music.'"—James Webster, Cornell University "Lucid, well-researched, and theoretically informed, Beethoven and the Construction of Genius is one of the best works yet published in the historical sociology of culture. DeNora makes important contributions not only to our knowledge of Beethoven and of the social construction of genius but to the general problems of how identities are created, shaped, and sustained and of how aesthetic claims gain authority."—Craig Calhoun, University of North Carolina
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520211588
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
"It was high time that someone tried to explain more fully, and on the basis of the known documents, the course of Beethoven's meteoric rise to fame in Vienna at the end of the eighteenth century. . . . I would consider this cleverly written and authoritative book to be the most important about Beethoven in twenty-five years. No one considering the subject will be able to overlook DeNora's research."—H.C. Robbins Landon, author of Beethoven: His Life, Work, and World "This is a study with the power to reshape our perceptions of Beethoven's first decade in Vienna and substantially refine our notions of the creation and foundations of Beethoven's career."—William Meredith, Ira Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, San Jose State University "Professor DeNora's achievement in placing Beethoven, and the reception of Beethoven's music, in social context is all the more impressive because it goes so much against the grain of conventional habits of thought. In illuminating how changing social institutions created opportunities for Beethoven to gain contemporary and posthumous recognition, and, in so doing, created new forms for thinking and talking about musical achievement—the author at once provides fresh insights into the institutional origins of 'classical' music and offers an exemplary contribution to the sociological study of the arts."—Paul DiMaggio, Princeton University "An important landmark in our understanding of the relationship of the creative musician to society, and a vital contribution to debates about the central phenomenon which distinguishes Western music from other musical traditions: the phenomenon of the Great Composer."—Julian Rushton, University of Leeds "This original book argues that Beethoven's high reputation was created as much by the social-cultural agendas of his aristocratic Viennese patrons in the 1790s as by the qualities of his music. DeNora's persuasive reading of this momentous cultural-artistic event will be welcome to sociologists for its successful contextualization of a hero of 'absolute music,' as well as to musicologists and music-lovers who wish to move beyond the myth of Beethoven as 'the man who freed music.'"—James Webster, Cornell University "Lucid, well-researched, and theoretically informed, Beethoven and the Construction of Genius is one of the best works yet published in the historical sociology of culture. DeNora makes important contributions not only to our knowledge of Beethoven and of the social construction of genius but to the general problems of how identities are created, shaped, and sustained and of how aesthetic claims gain authority."—Craig Calhoun, University of North Carolina
Beethoven
Author: Jan Swafford
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN: 061805474X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 1107
Book Description
The definitive book on the life and music of Ludwig van Beethoven, written by the acclaimed biographer of Brahms and Ives.
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN: 061805474X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 1107
Book Description
The definitive book on the life and music of Ludwig van Beethoven, written by the acclaimed biographer of Brahms and Ives.
The Creators
Author: Daniel J. Boorstin
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307817210
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 834
Book Description
By piecing the lives of selected individuals into a grand mosaic, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Daniel J. Boorstin explores the development of artistic innovation over 3,000 years. A hugely ambitious chronicle of the arts that Boorstin delivers with the scope that made his Discoverers a national bestseller. Even as he tells the stories of such individual creators as Homer, Joyce, Giotto, Picasso, Handel, Wagner, and Virginia Woolf, Boorstin assembles them into a grand mosaic of aesthetic and intellectual invention. In the process he tells us not only how great art (and great architecture and philosophy) is created, but where it comes from and how it has shaped and mirrored societies from Vedic India to the twentieth-century United States.
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307817210
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 834
Book Description
By piecing the lives of selected individuals into a grand mosaic, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Daniel J. Boorstin explores the development of artistic innovation over 3,000 years. A hugely ambitious chronicle of the arts that Boorstin delivers with the scope that made his Discoverers a national bestseller. Even as he tells the stories of such individual creators as Homer, Joyce, Giotto, Picasso, Handel, Wagner, and Virginia Woolf, Boorstin assembles them into a grand mosaic of aesthetic and intellectual invention. In the process he tells us not only how great art (and great architecture and philosophy) is created, but where it comes from and how it has shaped and mirrored societies from Vedic India to the twentieth-century United States.
The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven (Vol. 1-3)
Author: Alexander Wheelock Thayer
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 1230
Book Description
Alexander Wheelock Thayer's 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' is a monumental three-volume biography that delves deep into the personal and professional life of the legendary composer. Thayer's meticulous research and comprehensive documentation provide readers with a detailed account of Beethoven's trials and triumphs, offering insights into his revolutionary compositions and enduring legacy. Written in a scholarly but approachable style, this biography sheds light on Beethoven's complex personality and the social and cultural context in which he created his immortal music. Thayer's work is not only a biography but also a valuable historical and artistic resource for anyone interested in classical music and the life of one of its greatest composers. Alexander Wheelock Thayer, a dedicated music historian, spent years studying Beethoven's life and works, collecting extensive materials to create this definitive account. His passion for Beethoven's music and commitment to accuracy shine through in every page of this meticulously researched biography. Thayer's expertise and deep understanding of Beethoven's music and life make 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' a must-read for scholars, musicians, and music lovers alike. I highly recommend 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' to anyone seeking a comprehensive and engaging exploration of Beethoven's life, music, and lasting influence on classical music. Thayer's scholarly approach and detailed analysis provide a rich and rewarding reading experience for those interested in the life and works of one of the greatest composers in history.
Publisher: Good Press
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 1230
Book Description
Alexander Wheelock Thayer's 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' is a monumental three-volume biography that delves deep into the personal and professional life of the legendary composer. Thayer's meticulous research and comprehensive documentation provide readers with a detailed account of Beethoven's trials and triumphs, offering insights into his revolutionary compositions and enduring legacy. Written in a scholarly but approachable style, this biography sheds light on Beethoven's complex personality and the social and cultural context in which he created his immortal music. Thayer's work is not only a biography but also a valuable historical and artistic resource for anyone interested in classical music and the life of one of its greatest composers. Alexander Wheelock Thayer, a dedicated music historian, spent years studying Beethoven's life and works, collecting extensive materials to create this definitive account. His passion for Beethoven's music and commitment to accuracy shine through in every page of this meticulously researched biography. Thayer's expertise and deep understanding of Beethoven's music and life make 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' a must-read for scholars, musicians, and music lovers alike. I highly recommend 'The Life of Ludwig van Beethoven' to anyone seeking a comprehensive and engaging exploration of Beethoven's life, music, and lasting influence on classical music. Thayer's scholarly approach and detailed analysis provide a rich and rewarding reading experience for those interested in the life and works of one of the greatest composers in history.
The Life of Beethoven
Author: David Wyn Jones
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521568784
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 220
Book Description
'My compositions bring me in a good deal ... I state my price and they pay.' Beethoven was an inspired composer but he was also a working musician with sound commercial sense. David Wyn Jones's account of Beethoven the man and composer reveals the life of a creative musician in Bonn and Vienna in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. While paying due regard to the image of Beethoven as one of the most single-minded composers in the history of music, this biography places his work in the context of the musical life of the period. Through an understanding of the changing nature of musical patronage, the private and public concert, the impact of the Napoleonic Wars on culture and society, and the increasing ambition of musical life in the period after the end of the wars, a varied and dynamic picture of Beethoven's musical career emerges.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521568784
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 220
Book Description
'My compositions bring me in a good deal ... I state my price and they pay.' Beethoven was an inspired composer but he was also a working musician with sound commercial sense. David Wyn Jones's account of Beethoven the man and composer reveals the life of a creative musician in Bonn and Vienna in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. While paying due regard to the image of Beethoven as one of the most single-minded composers in the history of music, this biography places his work in the context of the musical life of the period. Through an understanding of the changing nature of musical patronage, the private and public concert, the impact of the Napoleonic Wars on culture and society, and the increasing ambition of musical life in the period after the end of the wars, a varied and dynamic picture of Beethoven's musical career emerges.
The Ninth
Author: Harvey Sachs
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
ISBN: 0812969073
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 242
Book Description
The premier of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in Vienna on May 7, 1824, was the most significant artistic event of the year—and the work remains one of the most precedent-shattering and influential compositions in the history of music. Described in vibrant detail by eminent musicologist Harvey Sachs, this symbol of freedom and joy was so unorthodox that it amazed and confused listeners at its unveiling—yet it became a standard for subsequent generations of creative artists, and its composer came to embody the Romantic cult of genius. In this unconventional, provocative book, Beethoven’s masterwork becomes a prism through which we may view the politics, aesthetics, and overall climate of the era. Part biography, part history, part memoir, The Ninth brilliantly explores the intricacies of Beethoven’s last symphony—how it brought forth the power of the individual while celebrating the collective spirit of humanity.
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
ISBN: 0812969073
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 242
Book Description
The premier of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony in Vienna on May 7, 1824, was the most significant artistic event of the year—and the work remains one of the most precedent-shattering and influential compositions in the history of music. Described in vibrant detail by eminent musicologist Harvey Sachs, this symbol of freedom and joy was so unorthodox that it amazed and confused listeners at its unveiling—yet it became a standard for subsequent generations of creative artists, and its composer came to embody the Romantic cult of genius. In this unconventional, provocative book, Beethoven’s masterwork becomes a prism through which we may view the politics, aesthetics, and overall climate of the era. Part biography, part history, part memoir, The Ninth brilliantly explores the intricacies of Beethoven’s last symphony—how it brought forth the power of the individual while celebrating the collective spirit of humanity.
Creators
Author: Paul Johnson
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061740950
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338
Book Description
“Johnson emphasizes the rarity of truly visionary artists . . . his approach is unfailingly generous. . . . Genuinely revealing.” —Publishers Weekly From celebrated journalist and historian Paul Johnson, an enlightening look at the imagination and drive of visionaries who have changed our world. Paul Johnson believes that creation is a mysterious business which cannot be satisfactorily analyzed. But it can be illustrated in such a way as to bring out its salient characteristics. In this companion to his New York Times bestseller, Intellectuals, he profiles outstanding and prolific creative spirits from a variety of artistic pursuits. Here are essays on such giants as Chaucer and Shakespeare, Mark Twain and T. S. Eliot, Jane Austen and George Eliot; artists such as Dürer, Turner, and the contemporary Japanese master Hokusai; architects Pugin and Viollet-le-Duc; Johann Sebastian Bach; Louis Comfort Tiffany; clothing designers Balenciaga and Dior; and masters of the 20th century, Picasso and Disney.
Publisher: Harper Collins
ISBN: 0061740950
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 338
Book Description
“Johnson emphasizes the rarity of truly visionary artists . . . his approach is unfailingly generous. . . . Genuinely revealing.” —Publishers Weekly From celebrated journalist and historian Paul Johnson, an enlightening look at the imagination and drive of visionaries who have changed our world. Paul Johnson believes that creation is a mysterious business which cannot be satisfactorily analyzed. But it can be illustrated in such a way as to bring out its salient characteristics. In this companion to his New York Times bestseller, Intellectuals, he profiles outstanding and prolific creative spirits from a variety of artistic pursuits. Here are essays on such giants as Chaucer and Shakespeare, Mark Twain and T. S. Eliot, Jane Austen and George Eliot; artists such as Dürer, Turner, and the contemporary Japanese master Hokusai; architects Pugin and Viollet-le-Duc; Johann Sebastian Bach; Louis Comfort Tiffany; clothing designers Balenciaga and Dior; and masters of the 20th century, Picasso and Disney.