Customer Reviews

Arnold Jacobs: Song and Wind

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It's a sorry state of affairs when great talent,inspiring teachers as Jacobs doesn't get more comprehensive treatment. Mr Frederiksen has done the best job he could,but only about 20 pages,(as the other reviewer said) are valuable. That's if you are interested in the art of Arnold Jacobs: how to become a virtuoso wind player,a consummate musician.

There seems to be a lack a support for books like within the corrdors of established music in the United States.I also know that music books are not great blockbluster sale items,so they frequently get edited to hell.Well this book should have been edited that's not the problem.The problem is focus and funding. There should have been other writers,those who have shared Jacob's craft for teaching,the various problems in playing a wind instrument,and more on the theories he developed for respiratory situations and breathing,which were quite unique to the world of brass.That's here,but not fully explicative and quite sketchy.

The Chicago Symphony should have found the money to produce a more indepth study of Jacob's art. Instead it seems Frederiksen has much filler material here, biographies of conductors and other brass players which reallylooses a focus and is not important for this study.

Also the hardcover price keeps it out of the reach of the multitude of student wind players throughout the country,those who could really benefit from a study like this.(There is no paperback,nor is one contemplated)

There are such similar situations in music where funding is misplaced. The composer Ralph Shapey,as another example, also from the Chicago area should by now have a book length analysis and discussion of his profoundly powerful music.

This is a book for the Arnold Jacobs devoted fan only. Full of seemingly everything the author could find on Jacobs, it will leave the reader who wants to get a sense of Jacobs the musician, teacher, or person feeling empty. For a serious musician who wants ideas on how to improve his playing, practicing, musicality, etc., there are about 20 valuable pages buried in the middle of the book. While we have had many great music teachers, there have been far too few books that capture any of the essence of their teaching. While clearly this is difficult to do, it is something that needs addressing. What a book like this should do is to give a sense of what it was that made Arnold Jacobs great. It should analyse what in his methods, psychology, personality, made him what he was. It should give a sense of what a lesson with him was like, how he would deal with various pedagogical problems. I would reccomend this book, because there is information in it that needs to be published. But it also points out the need for further study and publication.

As a former student of Arnold Jacobs, reading this book brought back many fond memories of this giant of tuba players. His life touched many of the world's best tuba players living today. Those thirsting for Jacobs discography will find a listing of all the recordings he participated in. The book provides fascinating insight into the master's approach to teaching. Any former Jacobs student who wants to have a "refresher lesson" as our friend smiles down on us from heaven will find a treasure trove of knowledge within these pages. And, it has plenty of pictures, too, including the history of Jacobs' find York tuba, which I was priveleged to play when I was his student in Gunnison, Colo. in the '60's.

This book was our Brass Tech. textbook in college. It was great reading it and understanding so much. What helped was our professor had studied with Mr. Jacobs and had a little more insight. This book is very informative, but doesn't read like a text book. Highly recommend to any wind player or music educator.

I found this book very helpful in the concepts that were taught. It is obvious that nothing would compare to what Arnold Jacobs would teach in a private lesson, but I feel that this book fulfills its purpose in giving the basic ideas of his teachings and what his life was like. Great book, I would recommend it to others to read.

This book is an amazing look at the life and teaching approach of the most influential brass teacher of the 20th Century. Well-written with a lot of first-hand accounts. Highly recommended.

This is the story of Arnold Jacobs, and the author has done an amazing job of describing the life of the great late master, as a musician and tuba performer! Must-buy, and it's truely a classic for ALL MUSICIANS and almost anyone else who enjoys biographies about interesting people!