George Balanchine Ballet Maker by Robert Gottlieb. Harper Collins Publishing ebook Also available on Scribd.com The great Russian born choreographer transformed ballet in America. Balanchine combined American athletiscm and dance into a choregraphic powerhouse. The great ballet master was a friend of Stravinsky and choreographed his music for the New York City Ballet, a dance company he formed and molded into one of the leading ballets. George Balanchine also choreographed for film and Broadway. His influence on American and international ballet is one of the great contributions to the art form. Robert Gottlieb is considered one of the most important dance critics and editors in the U.S. This easy flowing and informative book will greatly appeal to readers interested in dance and in the arts.
Sviatoslav Richter, Pianist by Karl Aage Rasmussen. Northeastern University Press, UPNE Book Partners 2010. The first biography of one of the greatest pianists of the 20th Century. Richter was was known for his outstanding virtuousity, tone, depth of interpretation, and vast repertoire. With this biography, we learn more about his private life and youth in the Soviet Union. Although Bruno Monsaingeon reveals Richter's personality in his book and film, this portrait is based on research and interviews with musicians who knew the legendary pianist. Richter was a complex individual who was very critical of his own art. We learn many fascinating nuggets about his approach to music: he was an auto-didact who was ardent about interpreting music his own way: audience and musical peers were ignored. We also learn about Richter's tormented relationship with his mother, a lifelong source of depression. This excellent biography will be greatly appealing to both professional musicians and individuals who enjoy classical music. It reveals biographic details which are mostly unfamiliar to the public. The author is a Danish composer and writer who was a professor of composition at the The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus,Denmark. His web site is http://www.karlaagerasmussen.com/en/
The Quotable Musician From Bach To Tupac Allworth Press : 2009. Musician's commentary about their life and art span the centuries. In this invaluable highly readable resource, we learn the wisdom of the great musicians across the centuries. Work, self-identity, audiences, fame, and the core elements of music itself are among the diverse subjects of these revealing quotes. Recommended for all musicians and readers who are interested in learning about music first-hand from the music makers themselves. The author is the host of Weekend Jazz After Hours on WBGO FM in Newark. She has more recently written How To Grow as a Musician. Her blog is The Queen of Hang and her twitter handle is jazzsea12
The Leonard Bernstein Letters Yale University Press :2014 Edited by Nigel Simeone. The illustrious pianist, composer and conductor, was a prolific letter writer. His correspondents were among the most important influences in post World War ll music and theater. To name a few: Stephen Sondheim, Aaron Copeland, Jerome Robbins, and Serge Koussevitsky. The maestro's letters are revealing: his opinions about composers ( living and deceased), the intricacies of stage and film productions( e.g. West Side Story, Candide, On the Town) and his conflicted personal issues. Musicians and students interested in this era will discover obscure details about behind the scenes pre-performance correspondence- notably West Side Story- which are often heated discussions. This book serves as a guide to one of the most important artistic figures of the 20th century. The editor is a writer, scholar and broadcaster. He is the author of Paris. a Mus
A Romance on Three Legs Glenn Gould's Obsessive Quest for the Perfect Piano by Katie Hafner. Bloomsbury New York: 2008. An entrancing story about the legendary Canadian pianist, Glenn Gould, and his obsession with a Steinway CD 318. The piano was about to be shipped back to Steinway for a newer model when it was serendipitously discovered by Gould on the stage of a Toronto concert hall. Gould's landmark 1955 recording of the Goldberg Variations on this piano brought him international acclaim. The celebrated Canadian pianist was especially fussy: the CD 318 needed constant repair, and the parallel story of Verne Edquist, who eventually became Gould's personal tuner, is told alongside the personal saga of this legendary figure. He continued to record on this piano until it was no longer serviceable. The imperfect world of piano tunings will strike a familiar chord to the reader who is an advanced pianist. The author is a reporter for the New York Times. She has written four books: Where Wizards Stay Up Late, Cyberpunk, The Well, and The House at the Bridge.
Bad Boy of Music by Goerge Antheil. Originally published in 1945 by Doubleday and Doran, Garden City, NJ: 1945. Current paperback edition Samuel French New York:1990. New Jersey native George Antheil is best known as the composer of the Ballet Mécanique for the Fernand Leger film. This auto-biography transports us back to the era of 1920's Europe- the golden age of Paris and the traumatic post-war years in Germany. Antheil concertized in Germany and his compositions for piano and orchestra were performed in both countries. He lived with his wife Boski above the Shakespeare Bookshop, then an important haunt for writers such as Ford Maddox Ford, and Ernest Hemingway. The composer was friendly with many of the important artists of the day: Igor Stravinsky, James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Getrude Stein, George Gershwin, to name a few. This singular autobiography makes the Paris of the 1920's come alive- we have intimate portraits of many artists of the era- famous and forgotten. The reader can experience both the vibrant art world of Paris and the tense traditional music culture of Germany. Antheil later moved to Hollywood and composed for the movies. His ambivalences about the career of a composer in the United States are candidly expressed. This autobiography is an indispensable resource offering an personalized delving into the life of a 20th century composer, and a first-hand account of Paris in the 1920's.
Jews On Broadway An Historical survey of Performers, Playwrights, Composers, Lyricists, and Producers by Stewart F. Lane.McFarland Jefferson, North Carolina: 2011. American Jews have been a major presence on the New York Broadway stage for over a century. Broadway stars such as Fanny Brice, Irving Berlin, Barbara Streisand, and Tony Kushner share a theatrical tradition rooted in the Yiddish theater, and continues its metamorphosis in our contemporary era. This well-researched book covers the work of many Broadway Jewish writers, directors, producers, and actors, including those who are currently working in New York theater. The author is a four-time Tony Award winner. His web site is www.mrbroadway.com
Musical Stages an autobiography by Richard Rodgers. Random House, New York, original copyright 1975. An autobiography by the famous Broadway and Hollywood composer. Richard Rodgers was born in New York to a middle class Jewish family in 1902. His early upbringing was infused with a love of the arts. He eventually attended Columbia University and chose music as a profession by continuing his studies at the Institute of Musical Art (now Juilliard). He met Lorenz Hart in 1919, with whom he would achieve Broadway fame. Many of the songs from their musical collaboration are American standards: My Funny Valentine, Bewitched, Lover, Blue Moon, and Isn't It Romantic. When Hart's alcoholism and emotional instability endangered their working relationship, Rodgers began to write with Oscar Hammerstein ll, composing legendary scores such as South Pacific, The King and I, and The Sound of Music. Richard Rodgers was a witness to the rise of the New York musical stage. The reader has an eye witness account of the inner workings of the musical theater and the vicissitudes of show business. This is an important history of the rise of the Broadway musical told first hand by one of its greatest composers.
A Fine Romance Jewish Songwriters, American Songs by David Lehman. Nextbook Press, Schoken Books Jewish Encounters series, New York:2009. Jewish songwriters were at the forefront of the development of the American Songbook. After Jerome Kern wrote the seminal American popular song, "They Didn't Believe Me", other New York based Jewish composers followed with great contributions to the new art form. George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Harold Arlen, Richard Rodgers, Larry Hart, Oscar Hammerstein, Jule Stein, and many other important Jewish songwriters added their musical signature to the emerging decades of song. There is extensive background information about the lives of the songwriters and frequent references to recordings of their songs. An excellent bibliography and timeline are included. This book will have exceptional appeal to musicians who perform the American Songbook and to devotees to this golden age of American music. The author is the editor of the Oxford Book of American Poetry and the series editor of Best American Poetry. He has written seven books of poems including Yeshiva Boys and When a Woman Loves a Man.
Master of Ceremonies: a Memoir by Joel Grey.MacMillan:2016. Actor Joel Grey is best known for his role as the emcee in Cabaret, the role which catapulted him to stardom. In the first section of this autobiography, he talks about his family life, his conflicted relationship with his mother, family politics, and his start in the theater. Despite a marriage to actress Jo Wilder for 21 years, the celebrated actor remained ambivalent and secretive about his attraction to men. He wanted domestic security- a family and a female spouse. After his divorce, Mr. Grey sought to be publicly open about his partners- which was more possible in the later years of his career. The book explores Mr. Grey's philosophy on acting and the theater- he strives to take his craft to the highest professional level. Initially, he had difficulty with his part as the emcee in Cabaret, and eventually learned to understand the part and portray the character successfully. We also learn of the ups and downs of his early theater career, which followed a positive trajectory after Cabaret. A wonderful and easy-to-read autobiography of this wonderfully talented actor. Mr. Grey is a Tony Award, Oscar Award and Golden Globe winning actor and director. He has acted in over twenty films, a dozen Broadway productions, and is a renowned photographer.
Hound Dog by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller with David Ritz. Simon and Schuster New York: 2009. The authors were in the vanguard of Rhythm and Blues and Pop music composers in the 1950s and '60s. They are well known for many hits, including "Kansas City", "Hound Dog", "Jailhouse Rock", and "Yakety Yak". The authors composed for the great singers of the 50's and 60's: Elvis, The Coasters, The Drifters, and Peggy Lee. They met as young men in L.A., and collaborated for many years. The book is a series of interviews in which Leiber and Stoller talk candidly about their work and their personal lives. This is a wonderfully fast-paced and important account of American music in the 50's and 60's. The author's web site is leiberstoller.com. David Ritz has written books with Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, B.B King, Smokey Robinson, and other leading pop music personalities. He also co-wrote the song "Sexual Healing", with Marvin Gaye and Odell Brown.
Lost Genius The Curious and Tragic Story of an Extraordinary Musical Prodigy by Kevin Bazzana. DaCapo Press New York:2007. Ervin Nyiregyházi was a famous child prodigy pianist born in Hungary in 1903. During his youth, he was paraded before Europe's celebrated musicians and social elite, praised as the second Mozart. At the age of twenty five, the fortunes of his career reversed. He immigrated to the United States, took odd performing jobs, including playing for women's clubs, private parties, and movies. Nyiregyházi was a magnet to women: he married eight times; all his relationships were tumultuous. In the 1970's he was rediscovered, yet he remained a controversial figure: out of practice and performing in a Romantic style unheard since the early 1900s. This book will resonate with trained musicians- the uncertainties of a musical career- including unpredictable income, an unappreciative public and critical reviews: common realities of a professional musical life. The author has written Glenn Gould: The Performer in the Work and Wondrous Strange: the Life and Art of Glenn Gould, which won the Toronto Book Award, the ASCAP Deems Taylor Award and was named a Washington Post Notable Book.
Piano Notes: The World of the Pianist by Charles Rosen. Free Press, New York:2002. An invaluable resource to both professional and amateur pianists. Mr Rosen, a distinguished pianist, author, and teacher, writes an in-depth analysis of the world of the piano: the evolution of its design, its role in musical history, and workable approaches towards its mastery. The author, a concert pianist, teacher, and critic, has been nominated twice for the Grammy Award, and his important book,The Classical Style, won the National Book Award. Mr. Rosen concertizes actively around the world and writes for the New York Review of Books.
The Lives of Great Composers by Harold C. Schonberg. W.W. Norton New York:1997 3rd edition. An indispensable resource discussing the lives of composers in classical music from Monteverdi to the modern tonalists. The author captures the tenor of the composer's time, while focusing on their role in musical history. This book is a valuable contribution to the history of classical music, and will be enlightening to both professional and amateur musicians. The late author was on the staff of the New York Times for 30 years, and served as their senior music critic from 1960- 1980. Mr. Schonberg received the Pulitzer Prize for criticism in 1971 and was the first music critic to receive this honor. He is the author of many articles and eight books, including one on his passionate avocation:chess. Mr. Schonberg died in 2003 at the age of 87.
The Lost Painting The Quest for a Caravaggio Masterpiece By Jonathan Harr. Random House New York:2005. We are taken on an enthralling journey to discover a long lost painting, The Taking of Christ by Caravaggio, the Italian Baroque master. A young graduate student from Rome, Francesca Cappeletti, researches the provenance of the painting in a decaying palazzo in the Adriatic, leading to an inspired search. The eventual discovery of the painting lies outside of Italy- in an unsuspected place- Ireland. The Lost Painting is a masterful synthesis of history and detective story. The author has written A Civil Action, a national best seller and the 1995 winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award for best non-fiction. The Lost Painting is an excellent book group choice with a special appeal to art museum goers.
Bernard Berenson A Life in the Picture Trade by Rachel Cohen. Yale University Press: 2015. A Yale University Jewish Lives Series book. Bernard Berenson was one of the most highly regarded experts on Italian Renaissance art in the Gilded age. He was an in-demand painting attributer, a well-respected author who purchased paintings and other artwork for the new wealthy. His most famous patron was Isabel Stewart Gardner, whose legacy continues today in the museum she bequeathed to Boston. Berenson educated the public about the expanse of Italian Renaissance art, previously limited to knowledge of DaVinci and Michelangelo. He elevated the status of Botticelli, one of his favorite artists. Berenson, erudite and very urbane, socialized with intellectuals, the wealthy, titled Nobility, and famous writers, such as Edith Wharton and Henry James who were his personal friends. However, he was born into humble surroundings in the Pale of Jewish Lithuania. His family emigrated to Boston, and eventually he studied at Boston Latin School and Harvard University. His school connections led him to the home of Isabel Gardner, who helped launch his career and funded his studies in Italy as a student. This well-researched and fascinating book is an excellent introduction to the life of Bernard Berenson, and the early history of art acquisition in the United States. The author wrote A Chance Meeting: Intertwined Lives of American Writers and Artists, a winner of the The PEN/Jerard Fund Award. She teaches creative writing at Sarah Lawrence College.
Her web site is http://rachelecohen.com.
Marc Chagall by Jonathan Wilson. Nextbook New York: 2008. An excellent introductory biography of the artist, Marc Chagall. Born in Russia in 1887, the artist's career spanned two World Wars, the Russian revolution, the Holocaust, and the birth of the state of Israel. Chagall is known for his colorful folkloric depictions of Jews, inspired by his upbringing in Vitebsk (now Viciebsk), Russia. The biography explores the psychological underpinnings of Chagall's important works, and brings to light his conflictual identity as a Jewish artist. This book is from the Schocken Jewish Encounters series. The author's books include: The Palestine Affair, The Hiding Room, Schoom, and An Ambulance is on the Way: Stories of Men in Trouble. The author has written for The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, and The Best American Short Stories. The author is a professor of English at Tufts University.