| Description |
380 pages, [16] pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm |
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text txt rdacontent |
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unmediated n rdamedia |
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volume nc rdacarrier |
| Note |
"A Birch Lane Press book." |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 360-369) and index. |
| Contents |
Tears of a clown, the composer as conductor; the personal tragedy of Hans von Bulow -- Honest Hans and the magician, Nikisch and Richter -- Masters of the house, Mahler and Strauss; Walter, Klemperer and Krauss -- Facing the dictators, Toscanini v Furtwangler; Szell, Reiner and the Soviet system -- Karajan case, Karajan, Knappertsbusch and Bohm -- 'Starving population and an absentee aristocracy, ' Koussevitsky to Ozawa; Stokowski, showbiz and Previn -- Gremlin in the garden, Beecham v Barbirolli; Kubelik; Solti, Colin Davis and Haitink -- Collapse of the conducting composer, Bernstein and Boulez -- Strange tales from the Vienna Woods, Bernstein, Maazel and Levine -- Formula Uno, Abbado, Muti and Sinopoli, Chailly -- Mavericks, Horenstein, Celibidache, two Kleibers and Tennstedt -- Insider dealing, Mehta, Barenboim and the Kosher nostra -- Left outside, gays, women, blacks -- Search for a semi-conductor, Marriner, Munrow, Hogwood and early music -- Where have all the conductors gone?, the bare future: Rattle, Salonen and Welser-Most -- Master of them all?, Ronald Wilford and the millionaire conductor. |
| Summary |
"There is no profession which an imposter could enter more easily," wrote the violinist Carl Flesch of conducting. The truth may be that "great conductors" exist primarily because we demand mythical heroes, visible leaders, cultural icons. In this vigorous anatomy of power on the podium, Norman Lebrecht argues that the great conductor's musical purpose is secondary to his commercial necessity. Lebrecht traces the rise of the orchestra conductor from Bulow, Richter and Nikisch in the nineteenth century, when composers abdicated responsibility for directing their increasingly unwieldy scores, to the stars of today, masters of the musical world and the media. Lebrecht contends that the supreme example of the omnipotent conductor was Herbert von Karajan, the richest musician in history. With the aid of previously inaccessible material, he exposes the roots of Karajan's career in the Third Reich and on New York's 57th Street. He reassesses the mercurial Arturo Toscanini, looks behind Sir Thomas Beecham's wit and patrician charm, dissects the myriad legends surrounding Leonard Bernstein and examines the fierce professional rivalry between Riccardo Muti and Claudio Abbado. Portrayed here, too, are the obstacles faced by black, female or openly gay conductors. The author also highlights the phenomenon of the "semi-conductor" in the newly fashionable world of "early music" and lays bare the mounting crisis in a profession where real talent grows ever scarcer--with rare exceptions like Simon Rattle. Finally, he probes the awesome power of Ronald Wilford, who singlehandedly masterminds the careers and fortunes of the world's top conductors through the largest classical music agency, Columbia Artists Management Inc. A lively chronicle of individual ambition and achievement, The Maestro Myth delves into conducting's social, psychological, political and economic dynamics. For music lovers who enjoy having their opinions and prejudices challenged, here is a refreshing iconoclastic history of a profession which has too often been the object of sycophantic reverence [Publisher description]. |
| Note |
PSU Kansas Collec. Clugston. Given in the memory of Will Humble. |
| Subject |
Conductors (Music)
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Conducting.
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Conducting. (OCoLC)fst00874582
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Conductors (Music) (OCoLC)fst00874600
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| ISBN |
1559721081 |
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9781559721080 |
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