This book is the first comprehensive study of the music and career of contemporary composer Kaija Saariaho. Born in Finland in 1952, Saariaho received her early musical training at the Sibelius Academy, where her close circle included composer and conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen. She has since become internationally known and recognized for her operas ......
Without London band Wire, punk rock might never have developed beyond primitive three-chord thrash and cliched songs. This book tells the story of this crucial transitional band, from their early days dodging hostile crowds, up to their split in 1981 and beyond their mid-80s return and their various solo projects.
Rudolf Friml (1879-1972) is best known as the composer of romantic 1920s operettas. Beginning in 1912 he wrote music in different styles for Broadway, and in 1914, along with Irving Berlin and Victor Herbert, he became a charter member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). Skilled at evoking far-away times and ......
Dudley Buck (1839-1909) was a composer, conductor, and music teacher who helped establish the organ in American musical life. N. Lee Orr's introduction to Buck's life and career details his stint as teacher to Charles Ives, organ recital tours around the Midwest, and work composing music for church organs. His Grand Sonata in E Flat became a great ......
An Australian, Malcolm Williamson was the first non-Briton to hold the post of Master of the Queen's Music. He was appointed in 1975 as a composer. By the time of his death in 2003 he was unproductive and largely forgotten. This work tells his story, sifting fact from fiction and offering a case for re-evaluating this multi-talented musician.
John Sibelius was considered Finland's greatest composer, one of the most distinctive and appealing musical voices in the first half of the 20th century. His example led to an unprecedented cultural flowering in his homeland. This book examines over 80 orchestral pieces, from his songs and choruses to symphonies, overtures, and theatrical music.
John Philip Sousa (1854-1932) is an American icon. Most famous for his military marches, the composer bandmaster led a disciplined group of devoted musicians on numerous American tours and around the world, shaping a new cultural landscape. Paul Bierley has spent forty years documenting every aspect of the ''March King's'' band: its history, its ......
