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A passionate and illuminating memoir by the celebrated Music Director of the Royal Opera House. 'Mesmerising.' DANIEL BARENBOIM Sir Antonio Pappano is one of the best known and most celebrated conductors alive today. His deeply held belief in the power of music to inspire and enlighten is the motivation behind this long anticipated memoir. In 1969, decades before he was chosen to conduct the music at the Coronation of King Charles, Sir Antonio Pappano was a ten-year-old boy accompanying his father's singing lessons. My Life in Music tells the moving tale of a legendary conductor who, nurtured in childhood by his parents and their dedicated work ethic, goes on to conduct at many of the most influential opera houses of Europe and North America. Pappano skilfully evokes an extensive selection from his wide-ranging repertoire - operas and orchestral works spanning from Mozart to Birtwistle and Mark Anthony Turnage, as well as art song and chamber music works in which he has performed as a pianist - and makes a compelling case for the potential classical music has to captivate new and wider audiences.
Retelling of the myth of the Cretan Minotaur, this book considers the inner world of the Minotaur himself, and suggests a dark and compelling reason for Ariadne's intense relationship with Theseus.
Fiction and theology share an attempt to articulate what it means to be human. They both include narrative accounts of virtue and vice, moral worth and moral failure. Through the themes of courtesy, brutality, silence, sound, and divine absence, the sacred nature and character of being human is explored in novels by Anita Brookner, Chuck Palahniuk, Anne Michaels, Richard Powers, and Iris Murdoch.
A rare glimpse into the life of the conductor considered to be the greatest of all time. Arturo Toscanini is one of the most acclaimed musicians of the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, beginning his career as a cellist then becoming world- renowned as a conductor. Known for his intensity, perfectionism, ear for orchestral detail, and photographic memory (he could conduct 160 operas from memory), he was appointed music director of La Scala in Milan, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra at different stages in his career. Published on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Toscanini’s birthday (March 25, 1867), this book provides insight into the legendary conductor’s genius through never-before-seen photos focusing on key moments of his extraordinary private and public life. Toscanini is a celebrity beloved both in the United States and overseas, and this book is a celebration of his integrity, talent, and relentless pursuit of perfection.
Nicholas Kenyon explores the enduring appeal of the classical canon at a moment when we can access all music—across time and cultures Immersed in music for much of his life as writer, broadcaster and concert presenter, former director of the BBC Proms, Nicholas Kenyon has long championed an astonishingly wide range of composers and performers. Now, as we think about culture in fresh ways, Kenyon revisits the stories that make up the classical tradition and foregrounds those which are too often overlooked. This inclusive, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic guide highlights the achievements of the women and men, amateurs and professionals, who bring music to life. Taking us from pianist Myra Hess’s performance in London during the Blitz, to John Adams’s composition of a piece for mourners after New York’s 9/11 attacks, to Italian opera singers singing from their balconies amidst the 2020 pandemic, Kenyon shows that no matter how great the crisis, music has the power to bring us together. His personal, celebratory account transforms our understanding of how classical music is made—and shows us why it is more relevant than ever.
A thick and informative guide to the world of classical music and its stunning recordings, complete with images from CD cases, concert halls, and of the musicians themselves.
This book focuses on American opera singers and what their recordings say about their artistry. It is not a book about all American opera singers, since many who had important careers on stage, made few, if any, recordings. And many of those who did make recordings, did so prior to the introduction of electrical recording in 1925 (and the resulting advances in the reproduction of the human voice). Opera enthusiasts can only imagine the sound of Farinelli's voice or read what his contemporaries have written about it, but with almost any famous or near-famous singer of recent years, enthusiasts do not have to imagine. Their voices are available through the technology of sound recording. There are 53 entries, one each for 52 singers and a composite entry for a group of Hollywood vocalists. Each entry contains biographical information and is followed by a discography of operatic recordings to be used in conjunction with the critical commentaries. The entries are in alphabetical order by the singer's last name and provide critical analyses of key recordings and of the artists' gifts and limitations.
Olivia is back! She has decided to form a band: a one-pig band, to be exact. And, as we all know, Olivia is certainly capable of making enough noise to sound like an entire orchestra . . . Featuring gatefold flaps, fireworks, experiments with lipstick an a very cross mummy, the fourth Oliviabook is simply and hilariously told and gorgeously rendered - sure to delight Olivia fans of all ages!!
A complete overview of one of the most ambitious urban projects by Italian architect Renzo Piano; a unique volume for all who are interested in architecture and urban landscape. This volume is a close analysis of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, the revolutionary $600 million project designed by renowned architect Renzo Piano and donated by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation to the city of Athens for the construction of the National Library, Opera House, and a public park set in grounds covering 170,000 square meters. A truly urban design dedicated to the citizens of Athens that marks the recovery and revitalization of a derelict site on the edge of the inner city. A downloadable app for Apple and Android provides access to additional multimedia content, including virtual tours, drone videos, and photo galleries.