by Eric Siblin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 2010
Emotionally sincere but lacking insight into the music or its composer.
In his debut, a Canadian journalist traces the history of Johann Sebastian Bach’s six cello suites from their composition to their rediscovery almost 200 years later.
Siblin, the former pop-music critic at the Montreal Gazette, travels around the world following the suites through the lives of Bach and Spanish cellist Pablo Casals, whose performances of the suites launched them to their current fame. The author does a thorough job with the biography of Casals, whose life was nothing short of epic, and provides a capable travelogue of his journeys through Europe. However, when it comes to Bach and any sort of nuanced discussion of the suites themselves, Siblin falls short, failing to offer the slightest analysis or interpretation of the music. Even though the six chapters are entitled “Suite 1” through “Suite 6” and subdivided by movement (prelude, allemande, courante, etc.), these titles have little bearing on the actual text. This inability, or unwillingness, to address the music also affects the portion of the narrative devoted to Bach. While the facts about his personal life are quite intriguing and often very funny—he once got into a fist-fight for insulting a bassoonist—no true understanding of Bach’s life can be reached without an earnest engagement with his compositions, which Siblin mostly avoids, aside from a few mentions of polyphony and counterpoint. In later sections, the narrative turns to the author’s personal treasure hunt for manuscripts of the suites, which have yet to be found. It’s an interesting final twist on Siblin’s fixation, but readers may find it difficult to share his excitement, since the author neglects to examine what would be written on those sacred pages.
Emotionally sincere but lacking insight into the music or its composer.Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-8021-1929-2
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atlantic Monthly
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2009
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by Eric Siblin
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson
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by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis
by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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developed by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
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by Ludwig Bemelmans ; illustrated by Steven Salerno
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