Essays Before a Sonata, The Majority, and Other Writings [Paperback]

Charles Ives (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 17, 1999

Ives's second piano sonata, Concord, Mass., 1845, stands among the masterpieces of American music.

The Essays Before a Sonata was conceived by Ives as a preface of sorts to the composition. Ives's musings also explore the nature of music, discuss the source of a composer's impulses and inspiration, and offer some biting comments on celebrated masters. The writings in this collection—now featuring a comprehensive index-allow readers entry into the brilliant mind that produced some of America's most innovative musical works.

Product Details

• Paperback: 284 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (January 17, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393318303
• ISBN-13: 978-0393318302
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,172,369 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A highly original writer August 2, 1999

By DJ Rix

Format:Paperback

A highly original writer, Ives can be a tough read. He follows his asides & digressions in prose much the same way as he does in music. But he dragged Transcendentalism (moaning & groaning) into the 20th Century, wrote a philosophy of insurance sales that is still consulted today, & was not afraid to call for a national referendum prior to the United States committing to war. His ideas about creativity remain, at the core, uncomfortably radical for most of his admirers. Bob Rixon, WFMU-FM