The Symphony: A Listener's Guide

About this book

From the agile beauty of Mozarts "Jupiter" and the fierce power of Beethovens Fifth to the celebration of heroism in Shostakovichs "Leningrad " the symphony has long held a prime place in the Western musical pantheon. Now in The Symphony renowned teacher and critic Michael Steinberg offers music lovers a monumental guide to this most celebrated of musical forms with perceptive commentaries on some 118 works by 36 major composers. Enriched by biographical detail historical background musical examples and many finely nuanced observations this volume is a treasury of insight and information. Readers will find illuminating discussion of the complete symphonies of Beethoven Schumann Brahms Elgar Sibelius and Mahler as well as of the most loved symphonic works of Schubert Bruckner Dvorak Tchaikovsky Vaughan Williams Prokofiev and others. We learn for example how to listen more sharply for Haydns humor to Mozarts singular combination of pathos with grace and to the evolution of Beethovens musical ideas in his epoch-making nine symphones. The range and variety of composers are remarkable--Schumanns musical poetry Tchaikovskys melodic genius Mendelssohns patrician elegance Mahlers wild and beautiful innovations Bruckners mighty cathedrals in tone the brooding mysteries of Sibelius Stravinskys fascinating engagements with the past and Aaron Coplands ebullient American athleticism--and all are illuminated by Steinbergs deft inviting and intensely personal essays. The book boasts generous coverage of American composers with sections on Howard Hanson Walter Piston Roger Sessions Aaron Copland William Schuman and John Harbison. Steinberg gives us such a vivid portrait of each composers personality that we get the most immediate sense of how the work is a direct expression of the person from whose soul and brain it has sprung. Tracing the ways in which composers have dealt with the extraordinary musical challenges that have engaged them throughout the centuries Steinberg takes us through the revolutions of expression sound and form that have shaped the symphonys remarkable history. Whether beginners or veterans music lovers will listen to the symphony with enlivened interest and deeper understanding with Steinbergs masterful guide in hand.