The Cello Suites: In Search of a Baroque Masterpiece

New
Paperback
2011
$11.54

One autumn evening, not long after ending a stint as a pop music critic, Eric Siblin attended a recital of Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suites - and fell deeply in love. So began a quest that would unravel three centuries of mystery, intrigue, history, politics, and passion. The Cello Suites weaves together three dramatic narratives: the first features Bach and the missing manuscript of the suites; the next, the legendary Spanish Catalan cellist Pablo Casals and his historic discovery of the music; and finally, Eric Siblin's own infatuation. From the back streets of Barcelona to archives, festivals, and conferences, and even to cello lessons, Siblin attempts to unravel the enigmas that continue to haunt this mesmerisingly beautiful music.

Synopsis

One autumn evening, not long after ending a stint as a pop music critic, Eric Siblin attended a recital of Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suites - and fell deeply in love. So began a quest that would unravel three centuries of mystery, intrigue, history, politics, and passion. The Cello Suites weaves together three dramatic narratives: the first features Bach and the missing manuscript of the suites; the next, the legendary Spanish Catalan cellist Pablo Casals and his historic discovery of the music; and finally, Eric Siblin's own infatuation. From the back streets of Barcelona to archives, festivals, and conferences, and even to cello lessons, Siblin attempts to unravel the enigmas that continue to haunt this mesmerisingly beautiful music.

$11.54

Quantity

1 in stock

More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
Publisher: Vintage
Published: 06 Jan 2011
ISBN 10: 0099546787
ISBN 13: 9780099546788
Book Overview: The remarkable search to discover the truth about some of the greatest music ever written.

Media Reviews

In Siblin's world, Bach and Casals have real, beating hearts... He brings an unstuffy freshness to the often staid world of classical music writing... This book reminds us of the joy of exploration, of finding glorious things in the least likely places -- Suzy Klein * New Statesman *
Bach and Casal's stories are lucidly, even grippingly, told * Daily Telegraph *
A passionate ode to the joy of discovery... He doesn't patronise and writes about Bach for a reader like himself - who wants to know more but doesn't know where to start... What a gift -- Natalie Clein * The Times *
A work of ever-percolating interest...tirelessly enthusiastic * New York Times *
One of the most extraordinary, clever, beautiful, and impeccably researched books I have read in years * Simon Winchester *

Author Bio

Eric Siblin is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker, and was the pop music critic at the Montreal Gazette. The Cello Suites is his first book. www.ericsiblin.com