New Publications,
New Music Book Publications - 12th August 2024
Welcome to our latest selection of new music publications, including an examination of the formative years of composer and conductor Pierre Boulez, a collection of essays looking at the legacy of Hector Berlioz, a guide for singers on analysing the musical and textual context of Schubert songs, an exploration of the evolution of the guitar in the twenty-first century, essays on music by Theodor Adorno, a paperback reissue of a book delving into the world of operetta in early twentieth-century Vienna, and a humorous take on all things musical from comedian Alex Horne and The Horne Section.
As an integral figure in twentieth-century music, Pierre Boulez innovated musical ideas through extraordinary creative processes. His formative years tracked his compositional development from his confrontations with serialism to drafting one of his major works, Pli selon pli, in the early 1960s. Part biography, part survey, this book situates Boulez and his compositions among a complex network of influences, urging a reconsideration of narratives and discussions surrounding his life and works.
Available Format: Book
Berlioz and His World
Francesca Brittan & Sarah Hibberd (editors); University of Chicago Press; Paperback
This collection, published in collaboration with the Bard Music Festival, takes a deep dive into Berlioz's complex legacy, tracing lines between his musical and literary output and the scientific, sociological, technological, and political influences that shaped him. Comprising nine essays and six short “object lessons” meant as conversation starters, it reveals Berlioz as a richly intersectional figure, inviting new lines of cross-disciplinary inquiry and a fresh look at his European and American reception.
Available Format: Book
Unlocking Meaning in Art Song: A Singer’s Guide to Practical Analysis Using Schubert Songs
Beverly Stein; Rowman & Littlefield; Paperback
This book teaches singers how to analyse the musical and textual content in songs in order to discover hidden meanings and create more compelling performances. Featuring twenty chapters that each focus on a Schubert Lied, it highlights new analytical techniques and provides a guided analysis of each song. Voice students can work through the guided analysis on their own, whilst pianists can use the chapters to assist a singer’s understanding and expression in order to rise to the next level of interpretation.
Available Format: Book
21st Century Guitar: Evolutions and Augmentations
Richard Perks & John McGrath (editors); Bloomsbury; Paperback
In the twenty-first century, the guitar continues to be reimagined and reinvented as both a material object and as a tool for artistic expression,. Such wide-ranging evolutions reflect the advancing creative and expressive needs of the modern guitarist and offer myriad new affordances. This book examines the diverse physical manifestations of the guitar across the modern performative landscape through a series of essays and interviews.
Available Format: Book
Orpheus in the Underworld: Essays on Music and Its Mediation
Theodor W. Adorno; Seagull Books; Hardback
This book centres on Adorno's concrete and immediate engagement with musical compositions and their interpretation in the concert hall and elsewhere. Here, Adorno registers his initial encounters with the compositions of the Second Viennese School, whilst complementary essays on Béla Bartók, Jean Sibelius, and Kurt Weill afford insight into his understanding of composers who did not fit neatly into the dialectical schema propounded in the Philosophy of New Music.
Available Format: Book
The Operetta Empire: Music Theater in Early Twentieth-Century Vienna
Micaela Baranello; University of California Press; Paperback
Viennese operettas like Franz Lehár's The Merry Widow were pre-eminent cultural texts during the Austro-Hungarian Empire's final years. Alternately hopeful and nihilistic, operetta staged contemporary debates about gender, nationality, and labour. This book delves into this vibrant theatrical culture, whose creators simultaneously sought the respectability of high art and the popularity of low entertainment. Case studies examine works by Lehár, Kálmán, Oscar Straus, and Leo Fall in light of current musicological conversations about hybridity and middle-brow culture.
Available Format: Book
Make Some Noise: The mind-blowing guide to all things music by the world’s funniest band
The Horne Section; Puffin; Hardback
The Horne Section (fronted by Taskmaster's Alex Horne) tell you everything you need to know to be a music genius, with bizarre tales, absurd history and unbelievable facts. In this book, you'll find answers to all-important questions such as: why is cabbage the key to musical genius, which is the fartiest of all the instruments, and which song has the funniest lyrics of all time. Band leader Alex Horne has also added some special tasks, so readers will be making their own music in no time at all.
Available Format: Book
James Longstaffe - Head of Retail
