A broad-ranging introduction to classical chamber music. The book provides a rich trove of historical background information on 77 composers ranging from Haydn and Boccherini through Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms to Bartok, Stravinsky and Philip Glass. The descriptions and analysis of 253 chamber works have been crafted to enhance the enjoyment of the listener. Also provided are performance commentaries by distinguished chamber musicians including Bruce Adolphe, James Bonn, James Dunham, Daniel Epstein, Ralph Evans, Bert Lucarelli, Stuart Malina, Robert Martin, Peter Orth, Susan Salm, David Shifrin, Arnold Steinhardt and Philip Ying. As stated in the Introduction by Richard Weinert, President of Concert Artists Guild: Program notes are ubiquitous but highly variable. Every recital program contains some notes, generally provided by the performers, that tell the audience something about the works they are about to hear. Some of these notes are highly technical, others are biographical. Lucy Miller's program notes stand apart. First of all, Lucy is a wonderful writer and goes to great effort to make her notes literary gems. Second, while deeply musical and knowledgeable, she is...unconstrained by conventions and seeks a slant on each work that interests her. Third, she delves widely into literature and history as well as musicology for insights and perspectives. (The book) is a fun and enlightening read and a wonderful companion to playing and listening. The composers whose historical backgrounds and compositions are discussed include Adams, Antheil, Arensky, Arriaga, Barber, Bartok, Bax, Beethoven, Berg, Bloch, Boccherini, Borodin, Brahms, Bridge, Britten, Bruch, Bruckner, Carter, Chausson, Chopin, Clarke, Copland, Debussy, Dohnanyi, Dvorak, Elgar, Enesco, Faure, Finzi, Foss, Franck, Ginastera, Glass, Glazunov, Glinka, Goossens, Grieg, Harrison, Haydn, Hermann, Hindemuth, Ives, Janacek, Kirchner, Kletski, Korngold, Martinu, Mendelssohn, Messiaen, Milhaud, Mozart, Panni, Penderecki, Poulenc, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff, Ravel, Roger, Resphighi, Rossini, Schafer, Schnittke, Schoenberg, Schubert, Schulhoff, Schumann, Shostakovich, Spohr, Stranz, Strauss, Stravinsky, Suk, Tchaikovsky, Turina, Webern, Wolf and Zemlinsky.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.