Marc Blitzstein:His Life, His Work, His World

His Life, His Work, His World

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Music, Theory & Criticism, History & Criticism, Reference
Cover of the book Marc Blitzstein:His Life, His Work, His World by Howard Pollack, Oxford University Press, USA
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Howard Pollack ISBN: 9780199977086
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Publication: September 5, 2012
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Howard Pollack
ISBN: 9780199977086
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Publication: September 5, 2012
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

A composer and lyricist of enormous innovation and influence, Marc Blitzstein remains one of the most versatile and fascinating figures in the history of American music, his creative output running the gamut from films scores and Broadway operas to art songs and chamber pieces. A prominent leftist and social maverick, Blitzstein constantly pushed the boundaries of convention in mid-century America in both his work and his life. Award-winning music historian Howard Pollack's new biography covers Blitzstein's life in full, from his childhood in Philadelphia to his violent death in Martinique at age 58. The author describes how this student of contemporary luminaries Nadia Boulanger and Arnold Schoenberg became swept up in the stormy political atmosphere of the 1920s and 1930s and throughout his career walked the fine line between his formal training and his populist principles. Indeed, Blitzstein developed a unique sound that drew on everything contemporary, from the high modernism of Stravinsky and Hindemith to jazz and Broadway show tunes. Pollack captures the astonishing breadth of Blitzstein's work--from provocative operas like The Cradle Will Rock, No for an Answer, and Regina, to the wartime Airborne Symphony composed during his years in service, to lesser known ballets, film scores, and stage works. A courageous artist, Blitzstein translated Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera during the heyday of McCarthyism and the red scare, and turned it into an off-Broadway sensation, its "Mack the Knife" becoming one of the era's biggest hits. Beautifully written, drawing on new interviews with friends and family of the composer, and making extensive use of new archival and secondary sources, Marc Blitzstein presents the most complete biography of this important American artist.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A composer and lyricist of enormous innovation and influence, Marc Blitzstein remains one of the most versatile and fascinating figures in the history of American music, his creative output running the gamut from films scores and Broadway operas to art songs and chamber pieces. A prominent leftist and social maverick, Blitzstein constantly pushed the boundaries of convention in mid-century America in both his work and his life. Award-winning music historian Howard Pollack's new biography covers Blitzstein's life in full, from his childhood in Philadelphia to his violent death in Martinique at age 58. The author describes how this student of contemporary luminaries Nadia Boulanger and Arnold Schoenberg became swept up in the stormy political atmosphere of the 1920s and 1930s and throughout his career walked the fine line between his formal training and his populist principles. Indeed, Blitzstein developed a unique sound that drew on everything contemporary, from the high modernism of Stravinsky and Hindemith to jazz and Broadway show tunes. Pollack captures the astonishing breadth of Blitzstein's work--from provocative operas like The Cradle Will Rock, No for an Answer, and Regina, to the wartime Airborne Symphony composed during his years in service, to lesser known ballets, film scores, and stage works. A courageous artist, Blitzstein translated Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera during the heyday of McCarthyism and the red scare, and turned it into an off-Broadway sensation, its "Mack the Knife" becoming one of the era's biggest hits. Beautifully written, drawing on new interviews with friends and family of the composer, and making extensive use of new archival and secondary sources, Marc Blitzstein presents the most complete biography of this important American artist.

More books from Oxford University Press, USA

Cover of the book How Everyone Became Depressed: The Rise and Fall of the Nervous Breakdown by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book The Invisible Constitution by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book The Accidental Guerrilla : Fighting Small Wars In The Midst Of A Big One by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Medical Saints: Cosmas and Damian in a Postmodern World by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book How To Think Like a Neandertal by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book The Art of Conversation Through Serious Illness:Lessons for Caregivers by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Buzz to Brilliance:A Beginning and Intermediate Guide to Trumpet Playing by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book American Politics: A Very Short Introduction by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Thicker Than Oil : America's Uneasy Partnership With Saudi Arabia by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Arnold J. Toynbee:A Life by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Islam and the Arab Awakening by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Killing by Remote Control: The Ethics of an Unmanned Military by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book The Oxford Companion To The Bible by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book The Ponzi Scheme Puzzle:A History and Analysis of Con Artists and Victims by Howard Pollack
Cover of the book Fanny Brice : The Original Funny Girl by Howard Pollack
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy