Richard Strauss: Man, Musician, Enigma
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Book Overview
Extensively revised, this well-received account of Richard Strauss's life and music enters its second edition. The life was rich in controversy, from the outrage' caused by operas Salome and Elektra to the years under the Nazi regime. In his survey of the music, rejecting the generally accepted view that Strauss's genius declined in his middle years, Michael Kennedy traces refinements of style from the early 1920s to Strauss's late works.
Customer Reviews
Rated 5 starsA VERY WORTHWHILE BIOGRAPHY OF A PUZZLING COMPOSER
Michael Kennedy has written a very useful and insightful biography of a controversial composer, along with an ingtelligent analysis of his music. Strauss summarized his approach to "program music" (of which he was a foremost developer) by saying, "I am a musician first and last, for whom all 'programs' are merely the stimulus to the creation of new forms, and nothing more." Kennedy observes that "Religion played no part...
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Rated 5 starsFor Strauss enthusiasts
It is an excellent biography of Richard Strauss, well written and employing up-to-date scholarship on the great composer. It portrays not only Strauss' life and historical milieu, but also addresses inaccurate views of his political situation during Hitler's Third Reich, which have unfairly colored his reputation. The book would be an essential tool in fully understanding and appreciating this musical genius.
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Rated 5 starsAn eye and ear opener - why did it take this long?
I have grown up reading Michael Kennedy's biographies of such great English composers as Vaughan-Williams and Edward Elgar. So I eagerly picked-up his latest biography of Richard Strauss partly because of what I deemed to be Kennedy's objective approach to his subjects, and also because Strauss seemed to be a deeply held secret not meant to be shared with us ordinary listeners (in other words, there wasn't much else available)...
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Rated 5 starsThe best compact introduction to Richard Strauss
Studies of Richard Strauss have a tendency to hover between enthusiasm and mealy-mouthed criticism. Or else they are so voluminous (multiple volumes) that only the most serious scholar or eager enthusiast can imagine plowing through them. Michael Kennedy's volume has two great strengths that place it at the top of the class when it comes to finding a good introduction to Strauss: It is compact, yet invitingly enthusiastic...
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