Isaac Albļæ1/2niz: Portrait of a Romantic [Hardcover]

Walter Aaron Clark (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 1999

Walter Aaron Clark here presents, for the first time in English, a detailed and accurate account of one of the most intriguing figures in the Romantic period. Isaac Albeniz (1860-1909), a renowned concert pianist, created a national style of Spanish piano music and also fostered the growth of the concerto, orchestral music, and opera in Spain. As a touring child prodigy who supposedly stowed away on a steamer to the New World, later studied with Liszt, and eventually got ensnared in a "Faustian pact" with the wealthy English librettist, Frances Burdett Money-Coutts, Albeniz has become somewhat of a legend. Based on a wealth of new and previously overlooked documentary evidence, this biography debunks the mythology surrounding his career, much of it spun by the composer himself.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...[a] thoroughly researched book....Albeniz's own existence was as colourful and self-mythologized as his piano pieces....This is a rewarding book about a fascinating and highly original artist."--Times Literary Supplement

"...this biography brings back to the attention of musicians and music lovers a composer of appealing music that helped to inspire the Spanish musical renaissance....Useful in all libraries."--Choice

About the Author

Walter Aaron Clark is at University of Kansas.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (June 24, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 019816369X
• ISBN-13: 978-0198163695
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,435,793 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating and insightful, September 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Isaac Albļæ1/2niz: Portrait of a Romantic (Hardcover)

Aaron Clark is admirably unwilling to speculate as so many much earlier biographies of Albeniz have been about the more hazy periods in his life. He is particularly good on understanding the hyperbole and publicity-friendly porkies Albeniz was given to in the context of his character. Where he is at his best is in the analysis and history of the music/forms it uses. I wish he would write a work which concentrates on analysis of the music itself as well - I'd buy that too. It is also a very entertaining read, and has many very sensible conclusions especially about Albeniz's earlier life, which is surrounded by myth! This is an essential book for anyone interested in Spanish Nationalist Romantic Music. Does this man have an email address? Ben Coulthard

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Transcendent music, April 23, 2007

By 

Matthew L. Schaut - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Isaac Albļæ1/2niz: Portrait of a Romantic (Paperback)

I discovered Albeniz through the 2006 movie Iberia which features the music of Albeniz. I decided to try playing it on the piano. It has captured me in a way I could never have expected. I am not a young person and thought I knew the repertoire, but there is no finer music for the piano than the Iberia suite. I strongly encourage every good pianist to discover this music! Learning about the man has been as much of a joy as integrating his music into my being, for that is what has happened. He's quite a character. This book is admirable and like the other reviewer I too would like more on the music itself. However, I think the other reviewer is much to limited in whom he recommends Albeniz too. Albeniiz' piano music belongs to all the ages -- it is as good as anything ever composed, and better than most. If Albeniz were not a "Spanish" composer, he would be much better heard, and his music would be much easier to find. So do not think you have to be interested in "Nationalist Spanish Music" to be interested in Albeniz. His music is as universal as Chopin's or Beethoven's. Albeniz needs to be liberated from pigeonholing because he belongs in the universal pantheon.