The Best Books on Classical Music
Wed, Dec 21 2011, 5:05PM
#2
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
I'm hoping that Santa will deliver a copy of the new Peter Conrad book 'Verdi and/or Wagner'. Enough hints have been dropped to Mission Control and the carrot, mince pie and sherry are all set to lay out.
Ooooooh... that looks like a good read! Thanks for the pointer, will have to have a copy exported to me for the new year.
Wed, Dec 21 2011, 10:46PM
#3
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Don't read 'A Prima Donna's Progress' The Autobiography of Joan Sutherland. It's like reading an Australian housewife's shopping list. That lady can bore.
Wed, Dec 21 2011, 11:15PM
#4
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Mark Morris' 20th Century Composers is an excellent reference book - it's one of those books that is always within grasping range. Nothing wrong with 'clusters', 'series in retrograde' and 'mathematical formulas' in music - they can often sound amazing.
Thu, Dec 22 2011, 12:33PM
#5
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Another terrific read is 'Memories of The Opera', the autobiography of Giulio Gatti-Casazza, who was head of La Scala and then the Metropolitan Opera for almost 30 years in what was, arguably, its greatest era. The descriptions of how the grandes dammes of New York society helped to choose the productions and singers are priceless, and very dryly related.
Also, for those of an operatic bent, Julian Budden's three-volume 'Operas of Verdi' is both an indispensible work of musical reference as well as being a jolly good read.
Thu, Dec 22 2011, 10:39PM
#6
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Sorry for the procrastination in replying, fw, but I just return from a very difficult mission in a far away country and I have to prepare myself for another one. Hectic end of a "terrible" year.
There is nothing wrong with opinions, as long as you may comprehend the relativity and the "cheap" commodity they represent.
My suggestion was that, before you go to comparative, conflicting, argumentative etc. opinions, it's more prudent to study, know, comprehend, command the music itself. Otherwise, it's like reading about the importance and the great taste of the french cuisine, without or with very little actual knowledge or experience of how actually it tastes and it is.
The scores is a very good source of information, provided you can read and study them easily and all the way through. However, I don't think there are quite a few people who own a huge CD collection and the respective scores. So, you may have to follow as many live concerts as possible (the best source), build a proper and comprehensive collection of recorded material and, finally, find information (not necessarily opinions) from sources of authority (musicians, composers, scholars of music), so that you may have a more thorough view of the Classical Music.
These days, we prepare a live performance of the Schubert's "Trout" Quintet along with the Piano Sonata, D.959, both in A major. I listen extensively to the works along with the scores. At the same time, I read any possible info from other "opinion" type sources. They were more distracting, even to the musicians rather than helpful or informative. However, the score and some secure recordings show all the wealth, beauty, poetry, fun and the richness of these glorious works of music. The only information useful for our work and preparation was an essay of an old professor of ours on the use and significance of the tonality of A (major and minor) in Schubert's music.
Anyhow, if you like to read any possible material, go ahead, but make sure if you read any "opinion", "view", etc., you can have access to the actual work (or the composer's output) as well.
Parla
Fri, Dec 23 2011, 1:57AM
#7
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
And I would urge you (and everyone else) to check out Alex Ross’ The Rest is Noise – it’s one of the best books about twentieth century music I’ve come across. It’s a huge book, but always fascinating, whether discussing the premiere of the Rite of Spring or the odd friendship that developed between George Gershwin and Bela Bartok.
Don't you mean Gershwin and Alban Berg?
Fri, Dec 23 2011, 8:13AM
#8
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
My Wish List included 'A Century of Recorded Music:Listening to Musical History' by Timothy Day.
Opinions: somebody said that history is not about what happened, but about opinions.
Fri, Dec 23 2011, 12:28PM
#9
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Whoever said that, Kev, is flirting with the falsification of History. To say the least.
Parla
Fri, Dec 23 2011, 12:44PM
#10
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Whoever said that, Kev, is flirting with the falsification of History. To say the least.
Parla
Parla, do you think you might be taking this a little too literally?
It occurs to me that this might be why your own opinions arouse so much contention here sometimes.
Anyway, seasonal greetings to you and yours, and indeed to all who read here.
Vic.
Mon, Dec 26 2011, 10:22AM
#11
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Parla, do you think you might be taking this a little too literally?
Try this Parla - put 2 historians together and ask them which was the most important event in the history of recorded classical music. Would they come up with the same answer?
Mon, Dec 26 2011, 4:00PM
#12
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
I'm hoping that Santa will deliver a copy of the new Peter Conrad book 'Verdi and/or Wagner'. Enough hints have been dropped to Mission Control and the carrot, mince pie and sherry are all set to lay out.
Santa obviously didn't get my letter. I'm going to stop believing in him soon.
Tue, Dec 27 2011, 5:05AM
#13
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Kev, the question of the most imortant recorded event is the least of my worries about any "historians", since it has alost nothing to do with the actual History of Music and it's a matter of different and various factors they may take into consideration (Production values, recording of a major event, substance of the recording, etc.).
However, I would truly care about the answer they might come up to questions like: "Who master and fully command the art of fugue?", " who wrote the greatest and most significant String Quartets?" "who led Opera to the gesamtwerk (the complete work) of music?", etc. You see in the History of Classical Music, they have to rely on facts and figures, before they...jump into their "opinions", judgemnents and so on. Normally, a great Historian, Professional, Musician never goes to answer to questions of the whatever superlative in Classical Music, but rather to identify the true nature and contribution of each composer. That counts and matters. The interpretations, opinions, judgements may follow, but cannot change that much the facts and, definitely, they don't write History; they can influence some readers, but they cannot dethrone a Bach or Beethoven from where they stand.
Of course, this "flirtation to the falsification of History" was a bit of joke and irony. I didn't take it that seriously, anyway.
Happy New Year, Kev. That counts maybe more, at this particular moment. Happy New Year!
Parla
Fri, Dec 30 2011, 8:43PM
#14
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Parla, do you think you might be taking this a little too literally?
Try this Parla - put 2 historians together and ask them which was the most important event in the history of recorded classical music. Would they come up with the same answer?
Speaking as a historian, I would say this would be true of 2 historians assessing ANY major event, musical or non-musical. I don't think it tells us anything more than the fact that people disagree with each other. It's not something that makes me lose any sleep: on the contrary, in any society worth the name I thinkl it essential if we are to make any progress.
Sat, Dec 31 2011, 1:52PM
#15
RE: The Best Books on Classical Music
Exactly, Micos, provided the "historians" disagree on their interpretation of the facts of History and not even of the facts themselves. Particularly, in the History of Music, the facts and figures are important enough to provide what should be known about the development of Classical Music, regardless of any further interpretation of them.
Parla
So, if you need books on music or for classical music in particular, read first books from the composers themselves (there are some) or from musicians (there are plenty), not from opinionists or even worse opinion-makers. In other words, learn the music first, not about music.
Parla
I was at first a little perplexed at this opinion about disregarding opinion. But then I realised that it's not opinion at all, it's Revelation.
Vic.