A worthy addition to the small shelf of famous-maestro biographies relying on thoughtful scholarship rather than hype. Hart (Conductors, 1979) was at one time assistant manager of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, where he made the acquaintance of its notoriously difficult conductor, Fritz Reiner (18881963). The relationship ripened into a long-term friendship, though this book is no hagiography. Hart recognizes that the conductor's blazing musicianship and advocacy of such 20th-century masters as Bartok and Stravinsky have only recently begun to loom larger than his reputation as an odious martinet, feared and despised by generations of musicians. Against his problematic personality, the author sets Reiner's genuine musical achievements, now better known thanks to the rerelease on CD of his greatest recordings. Hart persuades the reader not only that Reiner was capable of humor and warmth, but that the same sternly disciplined perfectionism that made him personally so inflexible allowed him to give phenomenal performances and inspire his students, among them Leonard Bernstein. Born in Hungary, Reiner acquired staggering practical experience conducting in Europe. He emigrated to America in 1922 and remained at the center of the country's musical life until his death; he was music director of the historic Cincinnati Symphony, principal conductor at Pittsburgh and then Chicago, and spent five seasons at the Metropolitan Opera. Hart's careful, non- sensationalistic account of Reiner's working life thus becomes a portrait of the American classical music establishment during its most vital years. His musical judgments are generally sensible, and the book includes a valuable discography and a list of Reiner's extensive podium repertory. This substantial study makes the reader hungry for the same treatment of Reiner's contemporaries: How about Eugene Ormandy, Charles Munch, Paul Paray, or Thomas Schippers, Mr. Hart? (40 b&w photos, not seen)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 1994
ISBN: 0-8101-1125-X
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Northwestern Univ.
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1994
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
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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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