Michael Musgrave Livres

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) was a multifaceted figure, excelling as a composer, pianist, conductor, editor, scholar, collector, and friend to many notable individuals. In this enlightening work, eminent Brahms scholar Michael Musgrave offers a comprehensive account of the composer's private and professional lives. Utilizing a wealth of documentary materials, Musgrave illuminates Brahms's character, his perspective as a composer, and his relationships with contemporaries like Robert and Clara Schumann. The narrative explores his roles as a pianist and conductor, his scholarly interests, social life, and travels, as well as the critical reception of his music over time. The book extensively quotes Brahms's own words and those of his contemporaries, drawing from letters, reminiscences, early biographies, and critiques to provide a rich source of information about the composer. Musgrave contextualizes these materials, identifies sources in detail, and includes a glossary of key individuals, along with notes on recent research. This engaging biographical work, complemented by a gallery of illustrations, will resonate with both general music lovers and scholars interested in Brahms.

The German Requiem is Brahms's largest work, making Brahms an international name and prompting comparisons between him and Bach and Beethoven. It has found new critical support recently, as an original and progressive work, and this detailed study examines its history, controversial past, and textual and musical structure.

Michael Musgrave presents a new focus on Schumann as a practical working musician, building a career and interacting with the professional world. The study emphasizes the value of Schumann's often neglected later works and sees his total achievement as central to emerging musical culture.

Michael Musgrave presents a contemporary view of Brahms 150 years after his birth, seeing him not simply as the "conservative" figure so often stressed in the past, but as one who creatively reinterpreted a wider range of historical elements than any composer of his time. Brahms absorbed his studies directly into his music making and composition and in so doing helped to evolve not merely a personal language which was regarded as progressive and sometimes difficult by a range of contemporaries and successors, but also helped to establish an ethos of historical reference which anticipates the twentieth century. The Music of Brahms concentrates on the music, with Brahms's life discussed briefly in the introduction. The works are considered in four phases according to genre, with an emphasis on connection and on the development and elaboration of a unified language. The list of works includes recent discoveries and a calendar outlines the pattern of his musical life, including relevant information concerning performances.

The Crystal Palace, despite its original design limitations, became a pivotal venue for public music in the UK from 1854, hosting orchestral concerts and choral festivals that set new standards for musical performance. This book meticulously reconstructs its musical history, covering British musical life from the Victorian era to just before World War II. Illustrated and featuring detailed catalogues of performers and repertoire, it appeals to students, scholars, and general music enthusiasts interested in this vibrant period of cultural history.

George Grove's influential contributions to music extend beyond performance, encompassing his roles as an engineer, biblical scholar, and educationalist. As the founder of the renowned Dictionary of Music and Musicians and the first director of the Royal College of Music, he significantly shaped London's cultural landscape between 1850 and 1900. This book explores his diverse activities and the qualities that enabled him to impact the music world profoundly, highlighting his legacy in music education and scholarship.

This Companion gives a comprehensive view of the German composer Johannes Brahms (1833–97). Twelve specially-commissioned chapters by leading scholars and musicians provide systematic coverage of the composer's life and works. Their essays represent recent research and reflect changing attitudes towards a composer whose public image has long been out-of-date. The first part of the book contains three chapters on Brahms's early life in Hamburg and on the middle and later years in Vienna. The central section considers the musical works in all genres, while the last part of the book offers personal accounts and responses from a conductor (Roger Norrington), a composer (Hugh Wood), and an editor of Brahms's original manuscripts (Robert Pascall). The volume as a whole is an important addition to Brahms scholarship and provides indispensable information for all students and enthusiasts of Brahms's music.