Twentieth-Century Piano Music - Softcover

Burge, David

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0810849666 ISBN 13: 9780810849662

Publisher: Scarecrow Press, 2004

Synopsis

Now in Paperback!
The piano is central to the music of the twentieth century. Here Burge, widely acclaimed for introducing much of this literature to the repertoire, offers a personal and inviting overview of the often challenging music written for solo piano during this century.

Divided into four sections, each covering a key historical period with musical examples, this resource examines the development of different styles and compositional techniques, and integrates historical and artistic details. Burge offers cogent performance suggestions for selected works of Aaron Copland, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Pierre Boulez, Luciano Berio, John Cage, George Crumb, and others.

Following the main text is a Selected Bibliography, a Chronological List of Works and Publishers, Notes, Discography, and Index. A valuable addition to this paperback reissue is a CD of Burge's performances of several works discussed in the text. [Cloth edition 0-02-870321-9 originally published by Schirmer Books in 1990]

About this title

About the Author:

David Burge is a performer, composer, recording artist, and writer.

Review:

David Burge is one of our finest concert pianists, and his playing of twentieth-century music is always splendid. His new book will be an indispensable guide. (David Dubal, Professor of piano, The Juilliard School, New York)

[Burge] succeeds in describing hundreds of pieces in a manner that gives each a unique identity, no small achievement...Twentieth-Century Piano Music fills a gap in the available literature on the subject and should be required reading for advanced pianists of all ages. (Kendall Feeney Clavier)

It is the fact that Burge has known so many composers personally, including especially Crumb, Berio, and Krenek, that makes his insights so very valuable to the reader. (Thomas Warburton, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Sonneck Society Bulletin)

This important volume, reissued last year by Scarecrow Press, commends itself for many reasons, not the least of which is the easy authority brought to the subject by its author, pianist, and composer David Burge. His advocacy of much of the music he writes about is underpinned by his having performed or recorded many of the works discussed. This lends his comments considerable weight, endorsed by the CD enclosed with the book....There is much of great value in this book... (Piano Professional)

How refreshing to read a book that does not claim to be definitive or complete, that has a mere five pages of notes, and that is unashamedly biased in what it chooses to discuss. Indeed, the author, American pianist and composer David Burge, hopes that readers will find that some of his omissions and opinions infuriate....a largely enjoyable introduction to last century's wealth of piano music. (Classical Music)

...Burge gets the combination of historical context, artistic suggestion and level of detail just right....a must have book for anyone studying the piano. (Muso)

About this edition

• Publisher: Scarecrow Press
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0810849666
• ISBN 13: 9780810849662
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 296