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Richard Strauss: Man, Musician, Enigma

Richard Strauss: Man, Musician, Enigma

by Michael Kennedy (Author)

  • New

    Hardcover 1999

    $125.70

  • Used

    Hardcover 1988

    $5.49

  • New

    Paperback 2006

    $51.13
Synopsis

This book re-evaluates a figure whom the author considers to be the greatest composer of the twentieth century. Kennedy deals fully with Strauss's life as leading composer and national figure in the Third Reich, during which he was both feted and cold-shouldered by the authorities. In putting this period into perspective he draws heavily on hitherto ignored material, including Strauss's own letters and diaries. In addition he reveals much about Strauss's long, happy but tempestuous marriage to the soprano Pauline de Ahna as well as tracing the important relationships to his librettists Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Stefan Zweig, Joseph Gregor and Clemens Krauss. Kennedy reassesses the man and the music, revealing a picture of a level-headed, practical and extremely versatile musician - a great conductor as well as a great composer.

$125.70

Quantity

20+ in stock

More Information

Format: Hardcover
 Pages: 468
 Edition: 1st Edition, First printing.
 Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 13 Jan 1999
ISBN 10: 0521581737
ISBN 13: 9780521581738
Book Overview: This first detailed biography of Richard Strauss for many years reassesses both man and musician.

Media Reviews
'Mr Kennedy's new biography of Strauss is certain to become the standard work, shaping the interpretations of a whole generation of Strauss's scholars (and ordinary music lovers) to come.' Sunday Telegraph
'One of the many merits of this excellently researched book is that it pinpoints the centrality to Strauss of his family life ... It is worth reading ... not only for its jaunty style, but also for the integrity with which it provides even discreditable information about its protagonist.' Gerald Kaufman, Daily Telegraph
'Although Kennedy refrains from detailed musical analysis, he is always interesting, if sometimes controversial, in his evaluation of Strauss's most important works and evangelical on behalf of his lesser known ones ... Kennedy's book is an important and absorbing contribution to the continuing Strauss debate.' Hugh Canning, Sunday Times
'Michael Kennedy has written a fine work, which I believe will be the benchmark for all future biographies of Richard Strauss.' Literary Review
'Written in an elegantly accessible style, this is the most valuable book on Strauss and his music to have appeared in English.' Charles Osborne, BBC Music Magazine
'... his is one of the best balanced and most intelligent presentations of a composer's work I have ever encountered.' The Observer
'This is a highly enjoyable book. Kennedy gives a sensitive and judicious account of Strauss's life ...' The Musical Times
'... majestic and beautifully written study ... Here is a major contribution to musical literature at the highest level.' Musical Opinion
'... his abiding love of the subject and his gift for sane human judgements persistently edge us closer to the truth of the enigma that was Strauss.' Gramaphone
'... by virtue of his thoroughness and passion for the subject, Kennedy has given us even cause to celebrate Strauss ...' Opera News
'Lord Harewood, the former chairman of English National Opera, reckons Kennedy's 'measured, accurate and penetrating championing' of Strauss to be his finest achievment, 'Strauss was, in some quarters, reviled, and Michael corrected that. He's not just a critic, but an excellent historian'.' The Sunday Telegraph
The first large-scale biography of Strauss to be published in many years, this volume is beautifully written by one of the great writers on music in the English language. Choice
...this is a lively 'Life' that redresses some balances in previous biographical excursions. The Times, London
Kennedy has added fresh analyses and drawn on much unpublished material....Kennedy provides significant insights into the composer's personal life and complicated mindset throughout his career. While avoiding the cliches of so many of today's over-written psycho-biographies, Kennedy brings Strauss vividly alive and places him firmly in the context of his times. Opera News
An excellent biography.... Booklist
An engaging, straightforward biography that largely eschews extended musical analysis. Gazette
...a coherent and convincing portrait of the composer that comes from years of study....a thoroughly engaging book that should prompt the reader to...return to the music... James L. Zychowicz, Opera Quarterly
Biographer Michael Kennedy Demonstrates that the many varying shades of criticism that have painted Richard Strauss in the past half century resemble the similar understandings and misunderstandings held by his contemporaries. He builds his analysis around the few constants in Strauss's life: his admiration for German culture, his dependence on his own family for guidance, and his ^Nietzschean total absorption in art. Kennedy also deals with Strauss's problematic relationship with Nazi authorities. Shofar
Kennedy, in this well-written biography, offers many insights into the family an professional life of Strauss. Kennedy shos great interest in the intellect, the miracle that produced the sublime music of the composer's Lieder, tone poems and operas and implies the Lieder mayy well be the finest works, perhaps presenting yet another enigma for readers to consider. The Oper Jrnl MARCH 2001