Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle [Hardcover]

Anthony Tommasini (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1997

This is a biography of Virgil Thomson (1896-1989) as a composer, a critic and a gay man. It chronicles his search for a place in the world and how he came to accept his sexuality. Anthony Tommasini was a close confidant of Thomson's during his last years and was allowed complete access to his private papers. He admires his musical and literary genius but he looks unflinchingly at the ego behind it. He portrays his often bitter rivalries with other composers such as Aaron Copland, his penchant for settling scores as America's most influential music critic, his lasting impact on younger composers such as Leonard Bernstein, John Cage and Philip Glass, and his continuous struggle to write and to win an audience for his music.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Best known for an opera he set to Gertrude Stein's text, Four Saints in Three Acts (1934), and for the Pulitzer Prize-winning score of the documentary Louisiana Story (1948), composer Virgil Thomson (1896-1989) was also an unswerving champion of modern American classical music during his tenure as the powerful music critic of the New York Herald Tribune (1940-54). His works' tonality, stress on simplicity, and skillful use of traditional American tunes strongly influenced Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, and many others. Lively prose evokes the crusty character of an American original in this enjoyably opinionated biography.

From Library Journal

Thomson was a prominent musical figure who won a Pulitizer Prize for music, reigned as music critic of the New York Herald Tribune for 14 years, and wrote, with Gertrude Stein, Four Saints in Three Acts, which created a sensation and set a record for an opera by running for six weeks on Broadway. Yet Leonard Bernstein commented at Thomson's death in 1989 that "we all loved his music but seldom played it." This book, the first biography to appear since Kathleen Hoover's 1959 work and the composer's 1966 autobiography, should contribute significantly to his current rise from undeserved neglect. The author of Virgil Thomson's Musical Portraits (Pendragon, 1986), Tommasini is well suited to the task. He made the composer's acquaintance in his final years so that the closing chapters are in effect a memoir. Moreover, this is the first book to deal honestly with Thomson's closely guarded personal life. Like many of the other musical figures who appear in this book?Aaron Copland, Ned Rorem, John Cage, among others?Thomson was gay. This absorbing book is an essential purchase for collections of American and 20th-century music.?Michael Colby, Univ. of California Lib., Davis
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 605 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1st edition (June 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393040062
• ISBN-13: 978-0393040067
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.7 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,169,189 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent overview of Thomson's life, June 24, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle (Hardcover)

The late composer Virgil Thomson did write an autobiography. However, autobiographies are not often fully honest. Nor do they often capture the essence of the person. Anthony Tommasini has accomplished both tasks. His portrait of Thomson, while certainly uncompromising is neither a scandal volume and it certainly is not hagiographical. He portrays Thomson very much as he was.

At the time when Thomson wrote his autobiography, American attitudes towards homosexuality were less than favourable. His colleague, Henry Cowell had done time at San Quentin Prison for his homosexual relationships with young men. Tommasini very frankly discusses Thomson's many relationships, particularly his long relationship with the painter Maurice Grosser.

Tommasini obviously does hold his subject in high esteem. However, that does not preclude Tommasini's critical look at his subject. He presents us with a portrait of an often irascible composer/critic whose contributions to American musical life have not yet been fully realised. Bernstein's statement on the death of Thomson unfortunately rings true today: 'we loved his music but rarely played it.' Hopefully, those who read Tommasini's work will become more interested in the extraordinary oeuvre of Virgil Thomson. His is a unique voice. Hopefully, it will be recovered.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent work, the new standard on Thomson, July 20, 2009

By 

Sebastian Winston "Music Doctor" (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Virgil Thomson: Composer on the Aisle (Hardcover)

Bravo, Anthony Tommasini. What a tour de force! Exquisitely written, copiously researched, deftly presented. This biography has it all. Look no further if you are interested in Thomson's REAL story. Thank you, Mr. Tommasini for this marvelous book which is destined to be the standard reference work on Virgil Thomson for many years to come.