A brilliant hodgepodge of pieces about the life and art of the 20th century's greatest composer, by his longtime associate and amanuensis. Caveat for Craft collectors: Some of this material is recycled (e.g., from Present Perspectives, 1984). If the purpose of writing about music and its creators is to send you scrambling to listen to the works themselves, this is an unqualified success. Craft, editor of three volumes of Stravinsky's correspondence and author of numerous writings about the master, has here collected 24 essays containing his ``remarks,'' musings, and reviews of works by and about the composer, approximately half of them previously unpublished. They range from an overview that focuses on Stravinsky's often abrasive personality and the perceived stylistic shifts in his music (``A Centenary View, Plus Ten'') to ``glimpses'' of his less-than-pretty private life (``Sufferings and Humiliations of Catherine Stravinsky'') to pieces focusing on individual compositions (``The Rite at Sixty-Five''; ``Svadebka: An Introduction''). These last constitute by far the best parts of this book. Four chapters devoted to the creation and performance of The Rite of Spring, an analysis of the origin and revisions of Histoire du Soldat, a discussion of the connection between Debussy and the Symphonies of Wind Instruments—all fascinate. Not that Craft can be read without irritation. His familiar insistence on the importance of his own role in Stravinsky's life (and vice versa) looks like narcissism writ large. Similarly, the amount of space devoted to the purely personal seems disproportionate. The longest essay deals with the litigation between Stravinsky's children and his second wife after his death: It's sad stuff, more appropriate to Knots Landing than to a knotty modern master, and not very enlightening about anything. Not for someone who wants linear biography. Probably not for first-time Stravinskians. But for those with an already established interest in the diverse outpourings of a genius, nearly indispensable. (Illustrations.)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-312-08896-5
Page Count: 384
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1992
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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