Ambition drives Sam from a young age, instilling in him a strong work ethic and integrity. However, after being wrongfully imprisoned, his trust in life is shattered, leading him down a criminal path as he seeks to reclaim his future. Despite the challenges, he navigates this dangerous route with resilience, ultimately achieving outcomes that exceed his wildest dreams. The story explores themes of ambition, integrity, and the struggle for redemption in the face of adversity.
This compelling read from the celebrated pianist Roger Woodward offers a fresh take on much-loved musical repertoire and the powerful impact of music on the child artist. His colourful account of controversial adventures, collaborations and witty conversations with contemporary musical pioneers - who themselves were destined to become legends - provides deep personal insight on a wide range of recent and traditional musical masterpieces. The role of the creative artist and the relationship between art and revolution are explored through the seismic changes that transformed Europe in the closing chapters of the twentieth century. From his earliest piano lessons as a five-year-old in post-war Sydney, which were to take him to the great concert halls of Europe and America, Roger Woodward perceptively documents collaborations with the world's most celebrated musicians, conductors and orchestras over a period that has already spanned more than fifty years. His joyous celebration of life describes performances and recordings of Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann, Brahms and Debussy as well as modern masterpieces that touch upon themes of art and revolution, cultural dislocation and the human rights struggle of the seventies and eighties ending with the transformation of Europe, its musical culture and increased public awareness of fin-de-siecle art music. Part memoir, part manifesto, this artist's recollections of music and musicians, pedagogues and critics are at times highly amusing. If, however, the impact of his experiences with Messiaen, Xenakis, Stockhausen, Otte, Barraque, Boulez, Cage, Feldman, Takemitsu, Part, Donatoni and Dillon sometimes created a controversial reputation for Woodward at crucial stages of his creative development, he managed to emerge unscathed as the unsurpassed master of his art
