Gordon Wise
Curtis Brown
Haymarket House
28/29 Haymarket
London SW1Y 4SP
Tel. +44 (0)20 7393 4400
Fax +44 (0)20 7396 0110
Edited by Jeremy Nicholas
Jerome K Jerome Society (2009)
£20.00, hbk, 224 pp , ISBN 978-0-9562212-0-9
For review on The Bookbag.com follow the link: http://tinyurl.com/o8wqa8
Go to www.jeromekjerome.com for further information
Quercus (2007 & 2008)
204pp. Illustrated. £15
Cloth case, printed case, paperback, book & CD pack editions
From the romantic agonies of Hector Berlioz to the lonely labours of Anton Bruckner, and from the cosmopolitan triumphs of George Frideric Handel to the politically fraught career of Dmitri Shostakovich in the Soviet Union, the lives of the great composers are as varied and multifaceted as the works of creative genius they produced. Writing with verve and passion, broadcaster and writer Jeremy Nicholas presents, in chronological order, elegant, informative and often affectionate biographical profiles of 50 of the greatest composers in the history of classical music. The biographies not only describe the life, artistic development and creative output of each composer, but also set the composers and their works in a broader historical and cultural context. Furthermore, shortlists of 'must-hear' masterpieces for each composer give the reader all the information they need to begin to build a brilliant classical music collection. Taken together, the 50 profiles in The Great Composers amount to a concise history of 500 years of classical music. Accessible and entertaining, but also informative and authoritative, this is the perfect introduction to the world of classical music for the general reader.
Naxos Books (ISBN: 1-84379-115-3) 268 pages;
illustrated in black & white and including 2CDs [75:14 + 79:41] of music spanning Chopin’s career + free access to a dedicated website with hours of extra music to listen to, and other bonus material.
Press reviews:
Jeremy Nicholas is primarily concerned to tell us the harrowing story of Chopin’s life. He rather cheats on the terms of the series, though many readers may be grateful: the body of his book is 194 generously laid-out pages of text and pictures ... after which no less than 60 pages of closely packed information about the chronology of the works, including discussions of many of them (34 pages), the personalities in his life (7 pages), and an appendix listing films about him, arrangements of his work and plagiarisms, etc (10 pages). This latter half of the book is valuable and learned, but seems to have a different public in mind. It would be useful to have a further appendix about the wildly different traditions of Chopin performance. Nicholas’s text is an excellent read, once past the thicket of unpronounceable Polish names, with Chopin’s appalling health and his passionate relationship with George Sand taking the foreground.
Michael Tanner, BBC Music Magazine (August 2006)
Books about Chopin are not exactly rare on the ground – as the selected bibliography in the end of the book tells us – but it also seems that latterly not many have been published. Given the short turn-over time for books few may be available in the stores.
This well-written overview certainly fills a need and – as far as I know – it is unique in that it is not just a book; it is part of a multimedia concept. It includes two well-filled CDs and access to a website. The content of the CDs is culled from Naxos’s complete Chopin cycle, played by Idil Biret. Even though there may be individual recordings by other great Chopin interpreters that are even better Biret’s remain consistent and illuminating readings. I collected several of the discs when they were new and have found much to admire, the snag being a somewhat clangy sound, robbing the music of some of its poetry. As so often happens, though, one gets used to it and adjusts.
The choice of music is excellent. It is presented chronologically with references in the text and also annotations for each of the musical numbers at the end of the book. By acquiring this book the Chopin newcomer will gain a fine cross-section of his best compositions. These are to be savoured a few at a time or will provide continuous listening for years to come.
The book is divided into fourteen chapters. We follow Chopin’s life and career from the cradle to the grave. In an Epilogue Jeremy Nicholas brings together all the loose ends: what happened to those who were close to him and survived him? It turns out that some of their lives occupy the rest of the century, his early love Maria Wodzinska died in 1896 and George Sand’s daughter Solange in 1899.
Under Jeremy Nicholas’s skilled guidance we get to know everything that was important in Chopin’s life and about the steady stream of people that walked in and out of his salons. So many of the greats of the first half of the 19th century were there, not only musicians but also painters, authors, all kinds of cultural personalities. It was a good idea to have a section entitled Personalities with thumbnail biographies.
I can sometimes become fed up with too much information of "whom he met", "where he travelled then" etc when reading biographies, but I must say that this presentation really held me. The reason is at least two-fold: firstly Nicholas’s style of writing has the right light touch, addressing the reader personally. He also finds some humorous twists. Secondly he lets us look straight into the heart and soul of the main characters, especially Chopin himself, by frequently quoting from letters and diaries. Not that this format is novel but it is done skilfully and the effect is heightened through italicizing the quotations.
The target-group for this book is more the general music-lover than the specialist, but I believe even the latter category will find several grains of gold.
The actual life story of Chopin occupies only the first 194 pages. The rest is a very useful appendix, comprising a Music Chronology with all his published compositions and with comments on all but a few minor works. This is very valuable as a reference. There are also lists, with comments, of "Chopin on Film", "Chopin in the Theatre" and "Chopin Plagiarised" to mention some. “Sooner or later, they’re going to steal those melodies", Chopin’s teacher Elsner is quoted as saying in the film A Song to Remember, and the list of stolen tunes includes among other things Minute Waltz "every note of [it] sung by Barbara Streisand". Since a couple of Gigli recordings are also mentioned I would like to add, since I reviewed it recently, his version of the Etude, Op. 10 No 3, while to the list of arrangements of Chopin’s music Julius Jacobsen’s hilarious version of the Minute Waltz for trombone (!) and piano, played on a BIS disc by Christian Lindberg and Roland Pöntinen, should also be added.
A glossary with simple explanations of central terminology adds to the value of the book, especially for the newly converted. Finally there is a very detailed index.
At an asking price of £16.99 this book + CDs would be a valuable addition to any music lover’s music library.
Göran Forsling Musicweb.com
A number of major composer biographies in recent years have shown a depressing trend towards academicism, often leaving the general reader none-the-wiser about the man behind the music. Jeremy Nicholas helps redress the balance in this elegantly written biography. All the important facts regarding Chopin’s life and music are here, yet Nicholas doesn’t shy away from at least postulating answers to the questions what we all want to ask. How did Chopin’s life impact upon his music? What was the creative effect of is love affair with George Sand?
Nicholas also provides a 30-page chronology graced with enlightening notes on all Chopin’s music in the order that it was written, ad a highly entertaining section listing Chopin’s appearances on film and in the theatre, plus various plagiarisms and arrangements. Given that this absorbing tome also comes with a generous 2-CD selection of Chopin’s piano music with in-depth annotations, and the fact that readers can access a dedicated website that features further complete recordings and a timeline, this represents exceptional value for money.
Julian Haylock, Classic FM Magazine.
The biography of Leopold Godowsky
390 pages, including 16 of black and white photographs. The English edition is published by Appian Publications and Recordings.
Press comments:
'As a biography, as a gathering together of every scrap of information, every fascinating anecdote, every detail of his travels, it's immaculate.' Kaleidoscope, BBC Radio 4
'Jeremy Nicholas has produced a biography that brings this very complicated and enigmatic artist to life. Compulsive and enigmatical, yet generous, gracious, naive and in his final years bitterly depressed, Godowsky emerges as a strangely sympathetic figure, one deserving of respect for his determination and artistic conviction.' ARSC Journal
'It is an enthusiast's book...informative and unpretentious. It also contains a foreword by the leading disciple among present day pianists, Jorge Bolet.' Musical Times
'Nicholas's narrative makes for compelling reading. The book...is filled with riches' The Piano Quarterly
'Once again, we are indebted to APR for making us aware of someone most of us have chosen to ignore. The project was obviously a labour of love for Jeremy Nicholas and we must be grateful for his scholarshoip and persistance in bringing it to fruition.' ARSC Journal
THE BOOK HAS ALSO BEEN TRANSLATED INTO GERMAN. WE ARE ACTIVELY SEEKING A PUBLISHER FOR THIS.
Ludwig Madlener (translator) is a lecturer in Classics and a musicologist with a specialist knowledge of the piano. He has one of the most complete collections of Godowsky's piano music in existence and is an acknowledged expert in his own right on the composer. The new German translation Godowsky - The Pianists' Pianist has a fully revised text and includes an updated discography.
Visit The Leopold Godowsky website.
Hodder & Stoughton, 1999, p/back.
Pavilion Books, 1996, h/back, 375pp.
Pavilion Books, 1997 with revisions and updated, p/back.
Press comments:
'Jeremy Nicholas has achieved a remarkable feat of concision without sacrificing an ounce of human interest or readability. If you have room for only one reference book concerned with the composers of classical music, then it seems to me that this Classic FM Guide is the one you should possess.' Humphrey Burton
'Great book, wonderful read.' James Galway
'This book is a fascinating and accessible guide to the wonderful world of classical music, and I am sure that it will provide an informative and illuminating source of insight and joy for everybody from the beginner to the musicologist.' Sir Edward Heath
'I certainly know of no better basic guide to classical music.' Julian Lloyd Webber
A parody of Hilaire Belloc's 'Cautionary Tales'
Hutchinson, 1984, h/back. Illustrated by Jon Higham
Dragon Books, 1987, p/back.
Companion to the Channel Four TV series
Ebury Press, 1993, 160pp, p/back
Crescent Books, 1994, h/back
Press comments:
'A book which does exactly what it sets out to do and, I think, more into the bargain... as sensible in approach as it is economical in demands upon shelf space. The operas are wisely chosen for their value to beginners... the photographs and other illustrations are delightfully selected and excellently reproduced. In practical effect, the Beginner's Guide could be more important than all the opera encyclopaedias in the world' John Steane in Gramophone
'Elegantly designed and imaginatively illustrated... Nicholas writes lucidly and with enthusiasm... the research seems scrupulous, and the book can be safely recommended to anyone in search of operatic guidance.' Ian Brunskill in Opera
'The great advantage of Nicholas's book is that it covers the basic ground in easy-to-read language and at a price that makes it attractive.' Richard Fawkes in Opera Now
'The book is a good first step for those who want to know more about opera without having to delve into the more learned, and perhaps, intimidating tomes. It is a very useful guide to those who want to listen to more opera or are thinking of going to see one, perhaps for the first time.' Classical Music
'...not only a good read, it should also prove a mine of information from which even the seasoned opera goers will derive benefit.' Belfast Telegraph
'Nicholas makes accessible and amusing a subject that previously seemed highbrow and serious ... it offers everything you need to turn you from an opera duff to an opera buff.' Bournemouth Evening Echo
'The author manages
to strike just the right note between entertainment and information, avoiding
the trap of talking down to an audience which might not know as much about music
as the opera buff but is in serious pursuit of education... it deserves to do
well.' Gloucester Echo
Little Brown, 1995, h/back. Illustrated by John Higham
A collection of brief Victorian articles on such fascinating subjects as 'The advantages of greasing soldiers' feet', 'Executions everywhere', 'Curious names of American newspapers', 'Language of the parasol', 'The flapping of a fly's wing' and advice on 'The best day on which to cut your toe-nails' . Essential loo-side reading.