Book Overview
Berlioz was arguably the greatest French composer of the nineteenth century. Although the author of the Symphonie fantastique was possessed of a fertile imagination and sometimes obsessed by love, the image of Berlioz as a misunderstood and mistreated genius obscures both the solidity of his work as a musical architect and the reality of his position as one sometimes favored by those in power. This Life of Berlioz situates the celebrated French musician in the vibrant and highly politicized musical culture in which he lived and worked as composer, conductor, concert manager, and writer. Bloom's biography--based on special familiarity with archival sources and the composer's only recently made available writings--projects a noncaricatural and enormously talented Berlioz occupied with the practical details of polishing scores and articles, arranging concerts and tours, making connections with those in power, and making an independent career in the age of incipient free enterprise.
Format:Paperback
Language:English
ISBN:0521485487
ISBN13:9780521485487
Release Date:November 1998
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Length:224 Pages
Weight:0.70 lbs.
Dimensions:0.6" x 5.5" x 8.5"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
Excellent introduction to Berlioz
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 24 years ago
This book is an informal and anecdotal look into many of the areas of Berlioz's life that have only recently been uncovered. Bloom returned to primary sources for much of his material. While entertaining, this book deals with many of the major issues in Berlioz's personal and political life.Bloom splits Berlioz's life into three main sections, divided by the French Revolutions of 1830 and 1848. Each subdivision deals with certain relevant issues in somewhat chronological order.Containing no musical examples, this book would be inappropriate for a crash course in the music of Berlioz; rather, knowledge of this music first would be helpful, for Bloom's work provides detailed and interesting context for much of Berlioz's music. This knowledge is not at all necessary however, as the more technical and theoretical passages in the book are brief and presented in a way that is easy to grasp.I enjoyed this short introduction into Berlioz's life, and if you are interested in original, genuine scholarship and interesting, insightful prose you will as well.
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