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Books > Music > Western music, periods & styles > General
Nostalgia for the Future is the first collection in English of the
writings and interviews of Luigi Nono (1924-1990). One of the most
prominent figures in the development of new music after World War
II, he is renowned for both his compositions and his utopian views.
His many essays and lectures reveal an artist at the center of the
analytical, theoretical, critical, and political debates of the
time. This selection of Nono's most significant essays, articles,
and interviews covers his entire career (1948-1989), faithfully
mirroring the interests, orientations, continuities, and fractures
of a complex and unique personality. His writings illuminate his
intensive involvements with theatre, painting, literature,
politics, science, and even mysticism. Nono's words make vividly
evident his restless quest for the transformative possibilities of
a radical musical experience, one that is at the same time
profoundly engaged with its performers and spaces, its audiences,
and its human and social motivations and ramifications.
Peaceful Piano Playlist: Revisited presents a chilled collection of
peaceful piano solos for the intermediate pianist. Inspired by the
popular Peaceful Piano playlists available on streaming services,
it features pieces such as The Light She Brings by Joep Beving, I
due fiumi by Ludovico Einaudi, and By The Still Waters by Amy
Beach.
Where previous accounts of the Renaissance have not fully
acknowledged the role that music played in this decisive period of
cultural history, Laurenz Lutteken merges historical music analysis
with the analysis of the other arts to provide a richer context for
the emergence and evolution of creative cultures across
civilizations. This fascinating panorama foregrounds music as a
substantial component of the era and considers musical works and
practices in a wider cultural-historical context. Among the topics
surveyed are music's relationship to antiquity, the position of
music within systems of the arts, the emergence of the concept of
the musical work, as well as music's relationship to the theory and
practice of painting, literature, and architecture. What becomes
clear is that the Renaissance gave rise to many musical concepts
and practices that persist to this day, whether the figure of the
composer, musical institutions, and modes of musical writing and
memory.
Agile, flexible and never afraid of controversial innovations (such
as abandoning traditional 'black tie' evening dress for its players
or giving amplified concerts with creative lighting at the
Hammersmith Apollo), the LCO has surfed the waves of history. It
has travelled from the early days of broadcasting - which other
orchestras shunned, fearing it spelt the end of 'live' music -
through the difficult days of the Second World War, when London's
largest concert hall was bombed, and the thrill of being invited to
play at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011,
to a triumphant return and reinvention after the Covid-19 pandemic
when its comeback programmes included Concerto for Turntables by
the composer Sergei Prokofiev's grandson Gabriel Prokofiev,
featuring DJ Mr Switch. Author and music critic Jessica Duchen
traces the LCO's history from the beginning under its founding
conductor, the entrepreneurial Anthony Bernard from London's East
End, whose contacts included Britain's first female MP, the
American Nancy Astor (who kindly lent her house for the orchestra's
first concert) and leading composers like Edward Elgar and Ralph
Vaughan Williams, up to its current Artistic Director, Christopher
Warren-Green, who ensures the LCO continues to delight its devoted
audiences at home and abroad with an eclectic and diverse programme
of music. Over the years it has performed dozens of world or UK
premieres by composers including Stravinsky, Falla, Delius and even
Mozart. This engaging book teems with entertaining stories: the
composer who relished riding naked on a motor bike in the
Gloucestershire countryside, the oboe player who taught her
daughter's boyfriend, Paul McCartney, to play the recorder for a
much-loved Beatles song, and the times the LCO travelled the length
and breadth of the US in a country & western tour bus straight
out of Nashville. It adds up to a fascinating celebration of over
100 years of classical music, as well as giving unique insider
glimpses into this vibrant and much loved orchestra.
In the early seventeenth century, enthusiasm for the violin swept
across Europe-this was an instrument capable of bewitching
virtuosity, with the power to express emotions in a way only before
achieved with the human voice. With this new guide to the Baroque
violin, and its close cousin, the Baroque viola, distinguished
performer and pedagogue Walter Reiter puts this power into the
hands of today's players. Through fifty lessons based on the
Reiter's own highly-renowned course at The Royal Conservatory of
the Hague, The Baroque Violin & Viola, Volume I provides a
comprehensive exploration of the period's rich and varied
repertoire. Volume I covers the basics of choosing a violin,
techniques to produce an ideal sound, and sonatas by Vivaldi and
Corelli. Practical exercises are integrated into each lesson, and
accompanied by rich video demonstrations on the book's companion
website. Brought to life by Reiter's deep insight into key
repertoire based on a lifetime of playing and teaching, The Baroque
Violin & Viola, Volume I: A Fifty-Lesson Course will enhance
performances of professional and amateur musicians alike.
WE SANG BETTER consists of two volumes of very clear advice about
singing from great singers of the past. Volume 2 (ISBN
978-84-940477-9-4) is entitled Why it was better and contains
further evidence and reasoning from singers 1800 to 1960. This
volume is 260 pages long, and contains 20 illustrations. One very
important thing right from the start, said Puccini s star soprano
Maria Jeritza, - not to scream and not to force. As Volume 1 made
clear, the best singers of this period approached their art and
their training gently. They built slowly upon the individual voice
granted by nature. Volume 2 gives further proof that many of these
singers knew exactly what they were doing and why. They were highly
aware that singing can go wrong. But they said if you wanted
superlative singing you had to keep approaching it their way. You
would never master supreme singing: if you put your trust in
scientific discoveries or fixes; if you rushed your training or
forced; or if you tried to copy some academic style . The original
Italian model for singers was uncomplicated: the aim was to be
natural, spontaneous and simple. And, as Puccini added, We Italians
love beauty of sound. This volume takes evidence from the singers
on dozens of topics such as: pressure, exercises, forward, dans le
masque, covering, from the chest, voix sombr e, portamento, attack,
vowel modifications, support, golden ages, keeping up with
instrumentalists, listening to others, performances of early music,
etc - and also on the question of whether singing is a science, an
art, or even something more - something spiritual. James Anderson
is a musician who has worked for the Arts Council of Great Britain
and has run major European Festivals. Regretting the scarcity of
supreme singing today, he has spent the last 30 years researching
and collating this advice. He now helps young singers through the
Singers Legacy website. For your information, the first volume
(ISBN 978-84-940477-8-7) is entitled How we sang and contains 250
tips on how to sing from singers 1800 to 1960; the first volume is
490 pages long, and contains 130 illustrations.
Using an approach to music informed by T. W. Adorno, this book
examines the real-world, political significance of seemingly
abstracted things like musical and literary forms. Re-assessing
music in James Joyce, Ezra Pound and Sylvia Townsend Warner, this
book re-shapes temporal, aesthetic and political understandings of
modernism, by arguing that music plays a crucial role in ongoing
attempts to investigate language, rational thought and ideology
using aesthetic forms.
**Finalist in the Outstanding Music Education Resource Category for
the 2023 Music & Drama Education Awards** HerStory: The Piano
Collection presents invaluable repertoire by remarkable female
composers across the ages. This important collection is
progressively graded, suitable for intermediate to advanced level
players (approximately Grade 4 to Grade 8) and also features a
piano duet and an ensemble piece for piano, clarinet, viola and
cello. Written and compiled by award-winning author and piano
pedagogue Karen Marshall, each piece is accompanied by a
fascinating 'snapshot' of the 29 composers, providing invaluable
insights into how they lived and composed, alongside quotes from
them or about them. In addition there are suggestions of other
pieces to try, personal observations from Karen Marshall and
pedagogical activities and ideas. "This vibrant collection of
wonderful music from literally every musical period promises to
enrich the musical lives of everyone. Female composers have
suffered shocking neglect over the centuries, but society is now
beginning to make amends. Karen Marshall's extraordinary anthology
brings neglected jewels out of obscurity and into the limelight,
where they will be loved and cherished." Kathryn Page, pianist,
adjudicator, teacher and co-founder of Chetham's International
Piano Summer School 'Marshall's book is much more than a practical
text - it is a library of forgotten treasures that we should bring
back to life on pianos across the world. This is proof that the
uniting force of music can transcend patriarchal barriers and has
the power to inspire the next generation to start a new cycle of
creativity.' Hattie Fisk, Music Teacher Online, 1st May 2022
HerStory is more than the sum of its parts, a singular and
significant achievement, lifting the lid on a terrific range of
superb music that is long-overdue its day in the sun. Not only so,
but Karen Marshall has also done a huge service in further
elevating the music with such a wealth of historical research,
personal detail, and pedagogic insight, all delivered with her
wonderfully personable expertise and infectious enthusiasm. As a
fresh and varied collection of 30 intermediate to advanced pieces,
the book offers rich pickings for concerts, piano clubs, festivals
and examination syllabi alike, and will surely come to be regarded
as a significant sourcebook of musical inspiration. These are
winsome, highly likeable works which audiences will surely warm to,
and which students and players of all ages will undoubtedly find
deeply rewarding to play. Andrew Eales, pianodao.com, March 2022
Over the past few months, I've enjoyed exploring HerStory. It is a
unique collection, and one which should be seen as an iconic
milestone in music publishing. It is rare for me to say it, but I
enjoyed every piece, and it's a collection I shall enjoy playing
from as much as I enjoy teaching. David Barton,
davidbartonmusic.co.uk, May 2022
Selected by piano teachers for piano teachers, EPTA Teachers'
Choice Piano Collection 1 is a collection of the most popular
pieces for Grade 1-4 level students, as voted for by members of the
European Piano Teacher's Association (EPTA). Each piece is
introduced with a comment from a teacher, providing first-hand
insights, tips and technical advice.
for SATB and organ or brass quartet and timpani Eleanor Daley sets
this Wesley text in an antiphonal style between the SATB choir and
organ (or brass quartet, parts available separately). The sound is
majestic and declamatory, just as one would expect from an Easter
fanfare, with a hint of modal harmony, resulting in a strong and
accessible Eastertide anthem.
for SSAATTBarB unaccompanied Descendi in hortum meum is an original
setting of the Song of Solomon, unique in that it is arranged for
seven voices while still capturing the lush and beautiful essence
of a garden in bloom and longing for the return of the beloved
Shulamite. This general text of love and yearning is suitable
throughout the church year, but also serves well as a concert piece
for a community choir.
for SATB and organ or orchestra A stirring hymn, important to the
Mormon religion but suitable for all denominations, conveys a
spirit of faith and praise despite difficult times. This text is
originally written by William Clayton, but has alternate lyrics in
spots for maximal ecumenism. The piece is accessible to most church
choirs and includes Wilberg's signature sound and a climactic
ending. Orchestral material is available on hire.
for SATB and piano four-hands or orchestra A wonderful
processional, Wilberg's Bring a torch, Jeannette, Isabella! is a
joyful carol. A catchy, brightly articulated countermelody
distinguishes this from other settings. The women sing alone, then
the men, and all join together for a triumphant finish. Orchestral
material is available on rental.
for SATB and organ or chamber orchestra This delightful setting of
the French carol is perfectly suited to open a service or concert
with its spirited choral parts, energetic articulations, and quick
glissandi in the organ. A new English translation is written by
David Warner. Orchestral material is available on rental.
The greatest of the heroic epics to emerge from medieval Germany,
the Nibelungenlied is a revenge saga of sweeping dimensions. It
tells of the dragon-slayer Sivrit, the mysterious kingdom of the
Nibelungs, a priceless treasure guarded by dwarves and giants, an
Amazonian queen, fortune-telling water-sprites, and a cloak of
invisibility. Driven by the conflict between Kriemhilt, the
innocent maiden turned she-devil, and her antagonist, the stoic,
indomitable Hagen, the story is one of love, jealousy, murder, and
revenge, ending in slaughter on a horrific scale. Since its
rediscovery in the eighteenth century, the Nibelungenlied has come
to be regarded as the national epic of the Germans, and has
inspired countless adaptations, including Richard Wagner's Ring
cycle. Cyril Edwards' prose translation, the first in forty years,
is more accurate and accessible and captures the poem's epic
qualities. Edwards also provides an introduction that discusses the
poem's historical background and its status as German national
epic. The volume includes an up-to-date bibliography, invaluable
notes, a map, and a list of people and places.
About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has
made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the
globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to
scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of
other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading
authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date
bibliographies for further study, and much more.
First published in 1998, this broad survey includes a large number
of musical illustrations and provides an indispensable guide for
both students and teachers. Hexachords and solmization syllables
formed the foundations of musical language during the sixteenth
century. Yet, owing to changes over time in music education and
style, there no longer exists widespread general knowledge of
hexachords. Without this awareness it is impossible to appreciate
fully the music of the most important composers of the Renaissance
such as Palestrina, Lasso and Monteverdi. This book is the first
attempt to fill such a gap in our understanding of hexachords and
how they were employed in late-Renaissance music. Lionel Pike's
research covers the period from Willaert to Dowland (c. 1530-1600)
and examines the ways in which the uses of hexachords developed in
the hands of different composers. The book concludes with an
investigation of English examples of hexachords in vocal and
instrumental music.
Few genres of the last 250 years have proved so crucial to the
course of music history, or so vital to public musical experience,
as the symphony. This Companion offers an accessible guide to the
historical, analytical and interpretative issues surrounding this
major genre of Western music, discussing an extensive variety of
works from the eighteenth century to the present day. The book
complements a detailed review of the symphony's history with
focused analytical essays from leading scholars on the symphonic
music of both mainstream composers, including Haydn, Mozart and
Beethoven and lesser-known figures, including Carter, Berio and
Maxwell Davies. With chapters on a comprehensive range of topics,
from the symphony's origins to the politics of its reception in the
twentieth century, this is an invaluable resource for anyone with
an interest in the history, analysis and performance of the
symphonic repertoire.
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