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Tom Walsh's opera : a history of the Wexford Festival, 1951-2004 / Karina Daly.

By: Daly, Karina.
Material type: materialTypeLabelBookPublisher: Dublin ; Portland, OR : Four Courts, c2004Description: 226 p. : ill. ; 25 cm. + hbk.ISBN: 1851828788.Subject(s): Walsh, T. J | Wexford Festival Opera -- History | Opera festivals -- Ireland -- WexfordDDC classification: 782.1079418856
Holdings
Item type Current library Call number Copy number Status Barcode
General lending MTU Cork School of Music Library Lending 782.1079418856 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) 1 Available 00151593
Total holds: 0

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

In 1951, the first ever Wexford Opera Festival (now known as 'Wexford Festival Opera') took place in a small town in the southeast corner of Ireland. What started out as an informal gathering of friends listening to gramophone music, developed into one of Europe's leading classical music events. T.J. Walsh, a medical doctor by profession and an amateur musician, was the man whose novel idea it was to start an opera festival from such humble beginnings. This book traces the history of the Festival, from its establishment up to the present day.

Includes index.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

  • Acknowledgements (p. 8)
  • Prologue (p. 10)
  • 1 The most ambitious venture in years, 1951 (p. 11)
  • 2 An amateurish affair, 1952-1955 (p. 29)
  • 3 The burden of carrying it on, 1956-1959 (p. 44)
  • 4 On the musical map of the world, 1960-1963 (p. 60)
  • 5 Walsh and Wexford, Anthony and Cleopatra, bacon and eggs, 1964-1966 (p. 80)
  • 6 The professional amateurs, 1967-1973 (p. 98)
  • 7 Not so much a festival as a way of life, 1974-1985 (p. 116)
  • 8 Walsh's final farewell, 1986-1988 (p. 132)
  • 9 We still believe in miracles at Wexford, 1989-2003 (p. 142)
  • Epilogue: 'My Wexford' (p. 167)
  • 'The Wexford Experience' (p. 173)
  • Notes (p. 175)
  • List of Illustrations (p. 183)
  • Index of Performances (p. 185)
  • Index (p. 215)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

The vision of Tom Walsh led to what Daly (historian and independent scholar) calls "the most ambitious venture in years," the Wexford Festival, which has taken place in the coastal Irish town of Wexford for more than 50 years. Daly's history of the festival reads more like a program book than a scholarly study. However, it is rich in photographs of productions over the festival's half-century existence, and it indicates the variety and vitality of this important Irish musical institution. Complete with an index of performances and performers, the book makes for an admirable tribute to the festival and its founder. This is a book for opera historians. ^BSumming Up: Optional. Researchers; general readers. R. Miller Oberlin College

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Karina Daly holds a Masters in Modern Cultural History and completed her PhD in Modern History at University College Dublin, 2001