[PDF] Conserving the Railway Heritage by Peter Burman; Michael Stratton at Arts-Photography

Review

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A BOOK ABOUT WOMEN IN CLASSICAL MUSIC. IS IT?By Claudia EtheridgeThis recently published book (2016); supposedly introduces the readers to women composers. The book is written by Anna Beer; a British author and lecturer; specializing in biographies. ldquo;Sounds and Sweet Airsrdquo; describes eight female composers; representative of historic periods extending from 1587 to 1994; namely the Baroque; the Classical; the Romantic and the Modern and Contemporary periods.The ladies are: Francesca Caccini (1587-1641) from Florence; Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677) from Venice; Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre (1665-1729) from Paris; Marianna Martines (1744-1812) from Vienna; Fanny Mendelssohn (1805-1847) originally from Berlin; then from various cities also in Gernamy; Clara Wieck (1819-1896) from various cities in Germany; Lili Boulanger (1893-1918) from Paris; Elizabeth Maconchi (1907-1994) from Dublin.The above are described in eight chapters; each dedicated to one composer; following an introduction titled ldquo;Notes from the Silencerdquo;.Unfortunately; the composers seem to be randomly selected and just as randomly presented. Let us see how.First; some major figures were left out. Most important among them are:German Benedictine Abbess and multi-talented genius Hildegard Von Bingen (1098-1179). Her inclusion should have been a must; not just because of her own talent; but because of the times that she represents: the Middle Ages during the 12th century - about three centuries before the Renaissance; the time when human creativity started to awaken after centuries of undisturbed sleep.Nadia Boulanger is the next major disappointing omission. Not only because she was left out; but also because her little sister Lili was selected instead. There is a 40 plus page chapter dedicated to Lili Boulanger (1893-1918) and practically nothing about her big sister Nadia (1887-1979); big in every sense of the word. At 25; Lili died very young. This means that she did not have the opportunity to develop and express her creativity; after reaching maturity. Nadia; on the other hand; lived a much longer life; and that alone gave her the necessary time to mature and compose. Nadia was multi-talented. In addition to being a composer; she was a conductor and a teacher. She is famous for having taught many of the leading composers and musicians of the 20th century. Nadia also performed occasionally as a pianist and organist. She was the first woman to conduct major orchestras in America and Europe; including the BBC Symphony; the Boston Symphony; the New York Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Symphony orchestras. She conducted world premieres; among them works by Copland and Stravinsky.And the author leaves her out; in favor of her 25 year old sister?!?!?!Nadia Boulanger and Hildegard Von Bingen are not the only composers conspicuously absent in a book dedicated to female composers. Internet site Wikipedia lists additional prominent female composers: Ethel Smyth (1858-1944); Amy Beach (1867-1944); Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979); Germaine Tailleferre (1892-1983); and Sofia Gubaidulina 1931; all belonging to the Romantic and Modern periods.In addition to the above; Wikipedia also lists in chronological order the names of all recorded female composers starting with Greek poet and musician Sappho (born c. 612 BCE in the island of Lesbos); along with their dates of birth and death. The names are too many to count; dozens; and dozens. This means that we may seldom hear about female composers; but their names and published works are all recorded and available. The author neglects to mention these women; and that leaves the readers with the impression that the eight women that she describes are the only female composers whose work has survived.Let us go back to the eight composers and the way in which the author presents them.The title of each of the eight main chapters is the composerrsquo;s last name; yes; the last name only; without the first name or years of birth and death. The years of birth and death are very basic information in any biography and essential for the understanding of the compositions themselves against their historical backgrounds. In the book; these years are given separately about the beginning and end of the chapter; but not consistently in the same section. In other words; it is not always easy to find the date of birth. More difficult is locating the year of death.As for the way in which the biographies are presented; they seem to have been put together in a hurry; a great hurry. One almost has the impression that the author gathered the information; then threw it on the pages without worrying about any kind of organization. There is not a preset scheme; nor a coherent story that one can follow; for example; the composer was born in hellip;hellip;hellip;.; grew up inhellip;hellip;..; worked forhellip;hellip;hellip;..; composed these many works; most prominent among them beinghellip;.. She died inhellip;hellip;..; onhellip;.There are no organized lists of the major works by each composer. Sometimes the author concentrates on one work; not necessarily her best or most popular; while neglecting the rest. She candidly admits to having done that.In addition to the main body; there is an Endnote; reflecting on ldquo;how to be a great composerrdquo; and concluding that the composer has to be a man. A playlist of works by each of the eight composers follows; but the author makes it clear in the very title that such is: ldquo;A Highly Personal Playlistldquo;. In other words; not all works are mentioned; only the few with which she is familiar. Consistent with the already noted lack of organization; the eight composers in this chapter are not presented in the same chronological order as they are in the text.There are spelling mistakes for some of the musical compositions whose title is presented in a foreign languages.A Glossary; Further Reading; References; Acknowledgements and Index conclude the book.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. |Readable volume of biographiesBy Paul XuerebThe biographies are informative both as regards the composers personal lives and their compositions. It is also a very readable book.1 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Good book about some of the more well-known historical female composersBy ZorroInteresting to read some of this; but if you already know quite a bit about female composers; you wont learn a lot that you dont already know. It gives short synopses of the "usual" historical female composers Caccini; Strozzi; de la Guerre; Martines; Hensel; Schumann; Boulanger and; a composer of more recent vintage; Maconchy.The book is; however; well-written. And if you dont know much about these composers; the stories of their lives and accomplishments are engagingly brought to life.