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The courage of composers and the tyranny of taste : reflections on new music / edited by Bálint András Varga.

Contributor(s): Varga, Bálint András [editor].
Material type: materialTypeLabelBookSeries: Eastman studies in music: v. 141.Publisher: Rochester : University of Rochester Press, 2017Copyright date: ©2017Description: viii, 263 pages ; 24 cm.Content type: text Media type: unmediated Carrier type: volumeISBN: 9781580465939 (hardback).Subject(s): Composers -- Interviews | Music -- 20th century -- History and criticism | Music -- 21st century -- History and criticism | CourageDDC classification: 780.922
Contents:
Composers: Hans Abrahamsen (b. 1952) -- John Adams (b. 1947) -- Vykintas Baltakas (b. 1972) -- George Benjamin (b. 1960) -- Friedrich Cerha (b. 1926) -- Unsuk Chin (b. 1961) -- George Crumb (b. 1929) -- Chaya Czernowin (b. 1957) -- Paul-Heinz Dittrich (b. 1930) -- Pascal Dusapin (b. 1955) -- Lorenzo Ferrero (b. 1951) -- Michael Gielen (b. 1927) -- Detlev Glanert (b. 1960) -- Sofia Gubaidulina (b. 1931) -- Georg Friedrich Haas (b. 1953) -- Giya Kancheli (b. 1935) -- György Kurtág (b. 1926) -- Helmut Lachenmann (b. 1935) -- Libby Larsen (b. 1950) -- Liza Lim (b. 1966) -- Luca Lombardi (b. 1945) -- Siegfried Matthus (b. 1934) -- Robert Morris (b. 1943) -- Olga Neuwirth (b. 1968) -- Enno Poppe (b. 1969) -- Karl Aage Rasmussen (b. 1947) -- Wolfgang Rihm (b. 1952) -- Rebecca Saunders (b. 1967) -- Allen Shawn (b. 1948) -- Johannes Maria Staud (b. 1974) -- Manfred Trojahn (b. 1949) -- Jörg Widmann (b. 1973) -- Christian Wolff (b. 1934) -- Critics: Paul Griffiths (b. 1947) -- Wolfgang Schreiber (b. 1939) -- Arnold Whittall (b. 1935) -- Festival directors: Heike Hoffmann (b. 1958) -- Sir Nicholas Kenyon (b. 1951) -- Epilogue: Rainer Nonnenmann (b. 1968) and Bálint András Varga (b. 1941)
Summary: All-new interviews with 33 of the world's leading composers--from Adams and Crumb to Gubaidulina and Rihm--give unique insights into the creative process. Bálint András Varga is perhaps the world's most respected interviewer of living composers. For The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste: Reflections on New Music, Varga has confronted thirty-three composers with quotations carefully chosen to elicit their thoughts about an issue that is crucial for any serious creative artist: How can one find courage to deal with the sometimes tyrannical expectations of the outside world? The result is an imaginary roundtable at which we encounter fresh, revealing, previously unpublished statements from such world-renowned composers as John Adams, Friedrich Cerha, George Crumb, Sofia Gubaidulina, Georg Friedrich Haas, Giya Kancheli, György Kurtág, Helmut Lachenmann, Libby Larsen, Robert Morris, and Wolfgang Rihm. Also represented are composers who are becoming more prominent with the passing years--Chaya Czernowin, Pascal Dusapin, and Rebecca Saunders--as well as conductor-composer Michael Gielen, festival director Nicholas Kenyon, and music critics Paul Griffiths and Arnold Whittall. In The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste, composers and other insightful individuals comment on choices made, traps avoided, unforeseen consequences, proud accomplishments, occasional regrets: the whole range of experiences central to artistic creativity [Publisher description]
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Status Barcode
General lending MTU Cork School of Music Library Lending 780.922 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Available 00214459
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

All-new interviews with 33 of the world's leading composers--from Adams and Crumb to Gubaïdulina and Rihm--give unique insights into the creative process.

Bálint András Varga is perhaps the world's most respected interviewer of living composers. For The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste: Reflections on New Music, Varga has confronted thirty-three composers with quotations carefully chosen to elicit their thoughts about an issue that is crucial for any serious creative artist: How can one find courage to deal with the sometimes tyrannical expectations of the outside world?

The result is an imaginary roundtable at which we encounter fresh, revealing, previously unpublished statements from such world-renowned composers as John Adams, Friedrich Cerha, George Crumb, Sofia Gubaïdulina, Georg Friedrich Haas, Giya Kancheli, György Kurtág, Helmut Lachenmann, Libby Larsen, Robert Morris, and Wolfgang Rihm. Also represented are composers who are becoming more prominent with the passing years -- Chaya Czernowin, Pascal Dusapin, and Rebecca Saunders -- as well as conductor-composer Michael Gielen, festival director Nicholas Kenyon, and music critics Paul Griffiths and Arnold Whittall. In The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste, composers and other insightful individuals comment on choices made, traps avoided, unforeseen consequences, proud accomplishments, occasional regrets: the whole range of experiences central to artistic creativity.

Bálint András Varga isthe acclaimed author of György Kurtág: Three Interviews and Ligeti Homages; Three Questions for 65 Composers; and From Boulanger to Stockhausen: Interviews and a Memoir (all available from University of Rochester Press).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Composers: Hans Abrahamsen (b. 1952) -- John Adams (b. 1947) -- Vykintas Baltakas (b. 1972) -- George Benjamin (b. 1960) -- Friedrich Cerha (b. 1926) -- Unsuk Chin (b. 1961) -- George Crumb (b. 1929) -- Chaya Czernowin (b. 1957) -- Paul-Heinz Dittrich (b. 1930) -- Pascal Dusapin (b. 1955) -- Lorenzo Ferrero (b. 1951) -- Michael Gielen (b. 1927) -- Detlev Glanert (b. 1960) -- Sofia Gubaidulina (b. 1931) -- Georg Friedrich Haas (b. 1953) -- Giya Kancheli (b. 1935) -- György Kurtág (b. 1926) -- Helmut Lachenmann (b. 1935) -- Libby Larsen (b. 1950) -- Liza Lim (b. 1966) -- Luca Lombardi (b. 1945) -- Siegfried Matthus (b. 1934) -- Robert Morris (b. 1943) -- Olga Neuwirth (b. 1968) -- Enno Poppe (b. 1969) -- Karl Aage Rasmussen (b. 1947) -- Wolfgang Rihm (b. 1952) -- Rebecca Saunders (b. 1967) -- Allen Shawn (b. 1948) -- Johannes Maria Staud (b. 1974) -- Manfred Trojahn (b. 1949) -- Jörg Widmann (b. 1973) -- Christian Wolff (b. 1934) -- Critics: Paul Griffiths (b. 1947) -- Wolfgang Schreiber (b. 1939) -- Arnold Whittall (b. 1935) -- Festival directors: Heike Hoffmann (b. 1958) -- Sir Nicholas Kenyon (b. 1951) -- Epilogue: Rainer Nonnenmann (b. 1968) and Bálint András Varga (b. 1941)

All-new interviews with 33 of the world's leading composers--from Adams and Crumb to Gubaidulina and Rihm--give unique insights into the creative process. Bálint András Varga is perhaps the world's most respected interviewer of living composers. For The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste: Reflections on New Music, Varga has confronted thirty-three composers with quotations carefully chosen to elicit their thoughts about an issue that is crucial for any serious creative artist: How can one find courage to deal with the sometimes tyrannical expectations of the outside world? The result is an imaginary roundtable at which we encounter fresh, revealing, previously unpublished statements from such world-renowned composers as John Adams, Friedrich Cerha, George Crumb, Sofia Gubaidulina, Georg Friedrich Haas, Giya Kancheli, György Kurtág, Helmut Lachenmann, Libby Larsen, Robert Morris, and Wolfgang Rihm. Also represented are composers who are becoming more prominent with the passing years--Chaya Czernowin, Pascal Dusapin, and Rebecca Saunders--as well as conductor-composer Michael Gielen, festival director Nicholas Kenyon, and music critics Paul Griffiths and Arnold Whittall. In The Courage of Composers and the Tyranny of Taste, composers and other insightful individuals comment on choices made, traps avoided, unforeseen consequences, proud accomplishments, occasional regrets: the whole range of experiences central to artistic creativity [Publisher description]

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

  • Introduction (p. 1)
  • Prompts (p. 5)
  • Part 1 Composers
  • 1 Hans Abrahamsen (b. 1952) (p. 13)
  • 2 John Adams (b. 1947) (p. 20)
  • 3 Vykintas Baltakas (b. 1972) (p. 36)
  • 4 George Benjamin (b. 1960) (p. 43)
  • 5 Friedrich Cerha (b. 1926) (p. 45)
  • 6 Unsuk Chin (b. 1961) (p. 52)
  • 7 George Crumb (b. 1929) (p. 59)
  • 8 Chaya Czernowin (b. 1957) (p. 62)
  • 9 Paul-Heinz Dittrich (b. 1930) (p. 67)
  • 10 Pascal Dusapin (b. 1955) (p. 70)
  • 11 Lorenzo Ferrero (b. 1951) (p. 72)
  • 12 Michael Gielen (b. 1927) (p. 76)
  • 13 Detlev Glanert (b. 1960) (p. 84)
  • 14 Sofia Gubaidulina (b. 1931) (p. 87)
  • 15 Georg Friedrich Haas (b. 1953) (p. 90)
  • 16 Giya Kancheli (b. 1935) (p. 96)
  • 17 György Kurtág (b. 1926) (p. 98)
  • 18 Helmut Lachenmann (b. 1935) (p. 111)
  • 19 Libby Larsen (b. 1950) (p. 118)
  • 20 Liza Lim (b. 1966) (p. 120)
  • 21 Luca Lombardi (b. 1945) (p. 123)
  • 22 Siegfried Matthus (b. 1934) (p. 132)
  • 23 Robert Morris (b. 1943) (p. 134)
  • 24 Olga Neuwirth (b. 1968) (p. 139)
  • 25 Enno Poppe (b. 1969) (p. 153)
  • 26 Karl Aage Rasmussen (b. 1947) (p. 161)
  • 27 Wolfgang Rihm (b. 1952) (p. 168)
  • 28 Rebecca Saunders (b. 1967) (p. 178)
  • 29 Allen Shawn (b. 1948) (p. 185)
  • 30 Johannes Maria Staud (b. 1974) (p. 189)
  • 31 Manfred Trojahn (b. 1949) (p. 198)
  • 32 Jörg Widmann (b. 1973) (p. 205)
  • 33 Christian Wolff (b. 1934) (p. 214)
  • Part 2 Critics
  • 34 Paul Griffiths (b. 1947) (p. 223)
  • 35 Wolfgang Schreiber (b. 1939) (p. 230)
  • 36 Arnold Whittall (b. 1935) (p. 232)
  • Part 3 Festival Directors
  • 37 Heike Hoffmann (b. 1958) (p. 237)
  • 38 Sir Nicholas Kenyon (b. 1951) (p. 241)
  • Epilogue: Rainer Nonnenmann (b. 1968) and Bálint András Varga (b. 1941) (p. 245)
  • Index (p. 255)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Varga examines the contrary influences of courage and "the tyranny of taste" among European, American, and Australian composers of avant-garde classical music. Courage functions as a part of the interior struggle to create an authentic, personal sound world, and as a character trait exhibited by composers living behind the Iron Curtain who opposed official restrictions on artistic expression during the Cold War. Each of the book's 38 chapters is a reflection by or longer interview with a composer (or, less often, critic or festival director) regarding courage and composing avant-garde music. Some embrace the idea of courage, but others resist it, asserting that composing is an obsessive, obstinate, compulsive, or necessary act, not a courageous one. Several composers argue that pursuing one's artistic vision and persisting despite negative judgment of one's music do not entail the life-threatening risks associated with opposing a totalitarian social and cultural system. Although some of the contributors disagree with the book's fundamental concepts, Varga's interviewees provide a rich collection of autobiographical reflections--including about artistic life in Nazi Germany, the USSR, and the latter's satellites--and a valuable exploration of postwar aesthetics. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals; general readers. --Stanley Clyde Pelkey, Florida State University