THE STORY: As described by Atkinson is: the story of mankind living out its destiny under the benevolent eye of God. There were giants on the earth in those days of the Deluge. In spirit Noah was the greatest. It is Mr. Odets' mood not to put him
This book covers the creative work of one of the most prolific and prominent American-Armenian composers, Alan Hovhaness, in the context of East-West cultural interactions. It exposes characteristic features of different branches of Armenian monophonic music, traces modal structures, genre implications and allusions of Indian, Japanese, Korean musical traditions mirrored in his works. Through the analysis of his “multi-voiced” Eastern compositions, his complex musical identity is evaluated with a special emphasis on the manifestation of the phenomenon of “Armenian-ness”.
Peggy Glanville-Hicks (1912-1990) is an Australian composer whose full significance has only recently been appreciated. She produced over seventy finely-crafted works, including operas, ballets, concertos, instrumental chamber pieces, songs and choral works. This book traces the development of her musical language from the English pastoral style of the early works, through the neoclassicism of the middle period, to the melody-rhythm concept of the late works, at the same time locating her music within the broader context of twentieth-century art music and the problems of form, structure, content and direction that followed the breakdown of tonality at the beginning of the twentieth century.
(Book). For more than 200 years, the piano has been an inspirational force in the world of music. The Piano shows how this characterful instrument has won its place at the center of the affections of music lovers everywhere. This is the first popular book to cover every aspect of the instrument's dynamic history, including: origins, technical developments, novelties and experiments; piano music throughout the centuries; profiles of the instruments' musical giants and analyses of their greatest works; and much more. With over 200 photographs and full color throughout, The Piano is a handsome tribute to a great musical personality. 192 pages, 9 1/2 x 11 1/4
The daughter of renowned composer Alan Hovhaness, Jean Nandi grew up without the shadow of disability until the age of twenty, when symptoms of muscle weakness and pain marked the beginning of a slowly progressive disability. In the face of steadily increasing pressuress Nandi would spend time travelling abroad.
To what extent can music be employed to shape one culture's understanding of another? In the American imagination, Japan has represented the "most alien" nation for over 150 years. This perceived difference has inspired fantasies--of both desire and repulsion--through which Japanese culture has profoundly impacted the arts and industry of the U.S. While the influence of Japan on American and European painting, architecture, design, theater, and literature has been celebrated in numerous books and exhibitions, the role of music has been virtually ignored until now. W. Anthony Sheppard's Extreme Exoticism offers a detailed documentation and wide-ranging investigation of music's role in shaping American perceptions of the Japanese, the influence of Japanese music on American composers, and the place of Japanese Americans in American musical life. Presenting numerous American encounters with and representations of Japanese music and Japan, this book reveals how music functions in exotic representation across a variety of genres and media, and how Japanese music has at various times served as a sign of modernist experimentation, a sounding board for defining American music, and a tool for reshaping conceptions of race and gender. From the Tin Pan Alley songs of the Russo-Japanese war period to Weezer's Pinkerton album, music has continued to inscribe Japan as the land of extreme exoticism.
In a remarkable memoir written with insight and humor, Glenn Kurtz takes us from his first lessons at the age of eight to his acceptance at the elite New England Conservatory of Music. After graduation, he attempts a solo career in Vienna but soon realizes that he has neither the ego nor the talent required to succeed and gives up the instrument, and his dream, entirely. But not forever: Returning to the guitar, Kurtz weaves into the narrative the rich experience of a single practice session. Practicing takes us on a revelatory, inspiring journey: a love affair with music.
This title provides a group portrait of some of the greatest musicians of the 20th century, including Bruce Springsteen, Patti Smith, Grandmaster Flash and Bob Dylan.
In Thousand Mile Song, musician and philosopher David Rothenberg uses the enigma of whale sounds to explore whether we can truly understand nonhuman minds. Interviewing scholars around the world as they attempt to decipher underwater music, Rothenberg tells the story of scientists and artists confronting an unknown as vast as the ocean. Along the way, he plays his clarinet live with whales in their native habitats, from Russia to Hawaii, making interspecies music that appears on the included CD. Richly detailed and deeply entertaining, Thousand Mile Song is an imaginative look at the most intriguing creatures of the ocean.