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WOODY HERMAN

Name: WOODY HERMAN
Author: William D. Clancy
ISBN: 0-02-870496-7

CHRONICLES OF THE HERDS

by William D. Clancy and Audree Coke Kenton ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1995

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A profusion of facts inundates this biography/oral history of one of the most underrated figures in jazz, bandleader/singer/reedman Woody Herman. Clancy, the official archivist of the Herman bands, and Kenton, widow of bandleader Stan Kenton, have put together an almost definitive history of Herman's career. They seem to have interviewed everyone who ever played with Herman for more than five minutes, and the book offers a detailed chronology that covers virtually every personnel change in a career that lasted over 60 years. The result is a book that quickly goes from exhilarating to enervating. The Milwaukee-born Herman, an only child, became interested in music almost from the cradle and, by his own admission, ``went on the road for my first tour when I was nine.'' After a successful career touring in vaudeville as the ``Boy Wonder of the Saxophone,'' Herman gravitated toward jazz. After a rough start and a slow rise, Herman took the leadership of the cooperative band he helped found, the Band That Plays the Blues, winning a devoted following. Out of that band evolved the hard- swinging First Herd, which was followed by the legendary Second Herd, one of the few aggregations to assimilate the innovations of be-bop in a big-band context. After rampant drug use ripped that group apart, Herman carried on with successive Herds and varying results. The authors provide some memorable anecdotes, but one wishes they had delved more deeply into such interesting sidelights as Herman's relationship with Igor Stravinsky (who wrote ``Ebony Rhapsody'' for the bandleader), his singing, his willingness- -unheard of in its time—to hire women instrumentalists, and his later, tragic run-ins with the IRS. Moreover, the book contains at best perfunctory musical analysis. For die-hard Herman fans only. (40 b&w photos, not seen)

Pub Date: April 1, 1995

ISBN: 0-02-870496-7

Page Count: 352

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1995

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.