An extraordinary prodigy of Mozartean abilities; Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy was a distinguished composer and conductor; a legendary pianist and organist; and an accomplished painter and classicist. Lionized in his lifetime; he is best remembered today for several staples of the concert hall and for such popular music as "The Wedding March" and "Hark; the Herald Angels Sing."Now; in the first major Mendelssohn biography to appear in decades; R. Larry Todd offers a remarkably fresh account of this musical giant; based upon painstaking research in autograph manuscripts; correspondence; diaries; and paintings. Rejecting the view of the composer as a craftsman of felicitous but sentimental; saccharine works (termed by one critic "moonlight with sugar water"); Todd reexamines the composers entire oeuvre; including many unpublished and little known works. Here are engaging analyses of Mendelssohns distinctive masterpieces--the zestful Octet; puckish Midsummer Nights Dream; haunting Hebrides Overtures; and elegiac Violin Concerto in E minor. Todd describes how the composer excelled in understatement and nuance; in subtle; coloristic orchestrations that lent his scores an undeniable freshness and vividness. He also explores Mendelssohns changing awareness of his religious heritage; Wagners virulent anti-Semitic attack on Mendelssohns music; the composers complex relationship with his sister Fanny Hensel; herself a child prodigy and prolific composer; his avocation as a painter and draughtsman; and his remarkable; polylingual correspondence with the cultural elite of his time.Mendelssohn: A Life offers a masterful blend of biography and musical analysis. Readers will discover many new facets of the familiar but misunderstood composer and gain new perspectives on one of the most formidable musical geniuses of all time.
#350348 in eBooks 1996-10-31 1996-10-31File Name: B004TFXRKM
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Your library needs this book!By AmbaloveThis book is a classic and seminal work researching Black Music. It is a must read for those interested in culture and history8 of 9 people found the following review helpful. A radical presentation of African American musicBy nadav haberI am thankful to Guthrie Ramsey who referred to this book in his book "Race Music". and made me buy it and read it. There is no doubt in my mind that this is a must for anyone interested in African American music.The book begins with the spiritual-mythological aspects of African life - and their musical expressions. He shows how these aspects were brought to America with the tranplanted and enslaved Africans. Floyd generalizes these as "Ring Elements" - coming from the communal ring dance-song-drum of African culture. These elements are present. according to Floyd. in all African American music. sometimes to a great extent (gospel-blues) and sometimes to a lesser extent (composed music). Floyd moves along key points in African American history. and discusses their musical dimensions - the Harlem Renaissance. the Chicago Renaissance. and so on.I have read books on music by Amiri Baraka. James Cone. Nelson George. Albert Murray and Charles Kiel before I read this book. They were all great and illuminating. but I think this book takes things to another level. It makes a lot of bold assumptions that could be used for further research. and develops the language needed for the academic discourse on this amazing music.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Very wordy and hard to keep up with. Throws ...By KoalaVery wordy and hard to keep up with. Throws out a ton of names to the reader at a time and its hard to keep up with what the book is saying.
