Yehudi Menuhin is one of those rare men who is truly a legend in his own time. In rich and wonderfully candid detail, the great violinist tells the story of his life, recounting the defining moments of a crowded and fascinating journey that began when he captivated the world as a small boy. At seven he debuted in San Francisco, at eleven in Paris, at twelve in Berlin, with Bruno Walter. The great and the gifted were eager to embrace him, from Arturo Toscanini to Albert Einstein to Queen Elisabeth of Belgium. Here Menuhin recalls his friendships and collaborations with Rudolf Serkin, Benjamin Britten, Jean Sibelius, Bla Bartk, Glenn Gould, Pablo Casals, Jascha Heifetz, Dmitry Shostakovich, and Gregor Piatigorsky. In some remarkable passages, Menuhin lets us enter the workshop of his craft, discussing the exact ways in which he made the opening of a Beethoven concerto or a Mozart sonata a part of himself.
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Book Description
The thrilling memoirs of one of the great musical figures of our age-now in paperback.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
World-famous violinist Yehudi Menuhin revisits familiar ground in Unfinished Journey: Twenty Years Later, a revised and updated edition of his 1976 autobiography. A prodigy who made his concert debut at age 7, Menuhin later became a conductor and revered educator, founding several schools as well as an international foundation. Along the way he cultivated friendships with some of the most illustrious figures of his age; Bela Bartók, Benjamin Britten, and Pablo Casals all play prominent roles in Menuhin's life story, with luminaries such as Willa Cather, Charles de Gaulle, and Pope John Paul II making walk-on appearances. Played out against the turbulent landscape of the 20th century, Menuhin's story often reads like the best kind of fiction. After one performance, Einstein rushes across the stage to embrace the young violinist, crying, "Now I know there is a God in heaven!" Later, Menuhin and Britten play a poignant concert for recently liberated victims of the concentration camp Belsen, performing in the theater once reserved for their SS oppressors.
New to this edition are four chapters in which Menuhin describes the last 20 years of his life. He also airs the minutiae of his startlingly comprehensive worldview, skipping from the problems of foreign labor to the pleasures of sitz baths and stretching, all within the space of a few paragraphs. Philanthropist, teacher, and self-described "health crank," Menuhin has an opinion on every subject imaginable; taken together, these thoughts add up to a well-rounded portrait of a remarkable life.
From Library Journal
To his 1976 memoir, Unfinished Journey (LJ 4/15/77), Menuhin has added four chapters of updated material that confirms his reputation as one of the most energetic and selfless musicians of this century. As if maintaining an active life as performer, educator, and administrator were not enough, Menuhin at age 80 remains a tireless advocate for world peace, justice for the downtrodden, and opportunity for the needy. With great wit, gentle irony, and a natural gift for storytelling, Menuhin vividly recounts what has truly been a remarkable life and career. On nearly every page, his love for his family and humankind itself shines forth. One does not even need to be conversant with classical music to be inspired by this man's talent and his dedication of that talent to furthering the causes he holds dear. For musicians, especially budding violinists, Menuhin's insights?particularly on the Beethoven concerto?are invaluable. Essential.?Larry A. Lipkis, Moravian Coll., Bethlehem, Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An authentic life!,
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This review is from: Unfinished Journey: Twenty Years Later (Hardcover)
Here is an authentic man of genius! To read Yehudi Menuhin is an experience comparable to hearing him play the Chaconne, itself an experience that bears no easy comparisons. Every page of this book, and indeed of any number of his writing excursions (the magnificent essay 'Peace and Culture' given by him in his association with UNESCO and the interviews with David Dubal come to mind), bursts with a vital intelligence and egalitarian humanity uncommon to modern man. This is a revised edition of his original memoirs, updated to the present. Everything is here, the profound thought of one of the truly humane artists of the twentieth century, the magnificent story of his family, his parents and gifted sisters, his early life, the splendid accomplishments in the true service of humanity that have marked his later life so deeply. One is compelled to comment upon the nature of the family into which he was born, so perfect an incubator for one such as Yehudi Menuhin, an authentic genius requiring an authentic environment in which to develop. Menuhin doesn't disappoint the reader, he amply and brilliantly illumines the story of his family in a devoted and balanced account of lives of high human principles fully lived , and proof of the essential role his family played in his life is clear in the full measure of this man's life and work. Anyone with an interest in authentic human philosophy, in an examination of those elements that characterize the authentic role of the artist in society, will find this book a joy! Nothing forced here, nothing of pretense. This book is but the calm and elegant persuasion of a consummate human being and a genuine artist.
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