Everything you always wanted to know (and perhaps a bit more) about the legendary Spanish soprano—a sensible, readable biography. Baptized Maria de Montserrat Viviana Concepci¢n CaballÇ i Folch, CaballÇ is still singing in her early 60s, to the enjoyment of music lovers worldwide. The authors, both London-based opera buffs, cover her distinguished ancestry (a family that declined from national prominence to genteel poverty), Catalan childhood and musical study, early theatrical experiences, rise to superstardom in the world's major lyric theaters, repeated illnesses that earned her a reputation as someone likely to cancel performances, and long, happy marriage to BernabÇ Mart° (an average tenor but above- average domestic and professional partner), all leading up to the recent rejuvenation of her career symbolized by her 1992 appearance at the opening of the Barcelona Olympic Games. Given the inevitable difficulty of writing about a performer whose art contains more drama than her life (hearing a five-minute snippet of CaballÇ's magic pianissimo conveys more of her essence than any descriptive volume), it is hard to see how the book could be bettered, offering as it does a full and thoughtful narrative of CaballÇ live and on disc. The authors conclude with a lengthy and excellent ``critical discography,'' by itself worth the price of admission for CaballÇ's many admirers. Although they engage in some pardonable diva-olotry, they also make needed corrections to record, as when they point out that since her debut in 1956, the reputedly erratic CaballÇ has given some 3,800 performances—considerably more than Maria Callas and Joan Sutherland combined—and withdrawn from 200. Since Pullen and Taylor obviously have access to CaballÇ and her entourage, they should now give us a follow-up volume devoted solely to the soprano's breathtaking vocal technique. A fine addition to the opera lover's shelf. (16 pages b&w photos)
Pub Date: April 1, 1995
ISBN: 1-55553-228-4
Page Count: 464
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1995
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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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