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The Gift of Music: Great Composers and Their Influence
by Jane Stuart Smith Betty CarlsonOne of the finest achievements of Western culture is its brilliant heritage of classical music. A Gift of Music looks at the lives of the greatest composers who have given us this heritage, and especially at how their music was shaped by their beliefs. The result is a remarkable and inspiring book, showing the importance of Christian faith for many composers, and the effect of this upon their music. But it also shows how the lack of faith has brought profound change in the meaning and form of contemporary music. Thus A Gift of Music seeks to open up a whole new world of music—to encourage listening to the finest compositions with new understanding and pleasure, and to stretch our ears and imaginations. It is a book which will be greatly appreciated by those who already love classical music, and by others who want to explore this delightful world for the first time.
A Gift of Hope: The Tony Melendez Story
by Tony Melendez Mel WhiteFrom the Publisher: The inspiring story of a young thalidomide victim and talented musician who has gained international recognition. Wonderful reading for anyone--especially those facing seemingly insurmountable difficulties. ... This is a beautifully, and positively, written autobiography. Melendez neither downplays his and his family's struggles resulting from his lack of arms, nor does he whine about them. Writing about his father, "Still, he knew that only in America would he find the kind of medical treatment I needed, so he put his own dreams aside and began to dream for me. He was young, strong, and determined to provide for each of us-but especially, I believe, for me. Imagine his growing frustration as he tried to support us on the minimum wage jobs that he could find. And there was no extra time or money to train in another field. [In Nicaragua, he was educated and accomplished in the fields of agriculture and animal husbandry.] Instead, he found himself in a huge pool of cheap labor as more and more unskilled young people migrated to America."
A Gift for Sophie
by Gilles VigneaultWinner of:Parents' Choice Recommended Award In this touching, poetic story set by the seaside, Old Man Tom teaches Sophie and Emilio the importance of seeing the world through their hearts. Presenting children with profound messages about friendship and gifts as well as old age and continuity, the book and accompanying CD offers a heartwarming perspective for the whole family. In addition to a production of the narrated story, the CD includes nine songs ranging from "A Friend That I Like" and "It's in the Nature of Things" to "I Have a Nest Full" and "The Old Man's House."
Giants of Jazz (Revised and Updated)
by Studs Terkel Milly Hawk DanielReissued with the original illustrations and discography, Giants of Jazz offers a unique glimpse into the lives of America's jazz greats. Told with masterful detail, the selected portraits weave together the stories of the individual jazz musicians' lives with the history of the jazz era, and jazz music's evolution from the speakeasies of New York to the concert halls of the world's greatest cities. Details include Joe Oliver's favorite meal, Fats Waller's 1932 rendezvous in Paris with eminent organist Marcel Dupre, Dizzy Gillespie's trip as a child to the pawnshop to buy his first horn, and the origin of Billie Holiday's nickname. Other artists featured include Count Basie, Bix Beiderbecke, Benny Goodman, Woody Herman, and Bessie Smith.
Giant Steps: Bebop and the Creators of Modern Jazz, 1945-65 (Scene Ser.)
by Kenny MathiesonGiant Steps examines the most important figures in the creation of modern jazz, detailing the emergence of bebop through the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Fats Navarro, Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk. Using this as its starting point, Giant Steps subsequently delves into the developments of jazz composition, modal jazz and free jazz. The music of each of these great masters is examined in detail and will provide both a fine introduction for the large audience newly attracted to the music but unsure of their direction through it, as well as an entertaining and informative read for those with a more substantial background.
Giacomo Puccini and His World
by Arman Schwartz Emanuele SeniciGiacomo Puccini (1858-1924) is the world's most frequently performed operatic composer, yet he is only beginning to receive serious scholarly attention. In Giacomo Puccini and His World, an international roster of music specialists, several writing on Puccini for the first time, offers a variety of new critical perspectives on the composer and his works. Containing discussions of all of Puccini's operas from Manon Lescaut (1893) to Turandot (1926), this volume aims to move beyond clichés of the composer as a Romantic epigone and to resituate him at the heart of early twentieth-century musical modernity. This collection's essays explore Puccini's engagement with spoken theater and operetta, and with new technologies like photography and cinema. Other essays consider the philosophical problems raised by "realist" opera, discuss the composer's place in a variety of cosmopolitan formations, and reevaluate Puccini's orientalism and his complex interactions with the Italian fascist state. A rich array of primary source material, including previously unpublished letters and documents, provides vital information on Puccini's interactions with singers, conductors, and stage directors, and on the early reception of the verismo movement. Excerpts from Fausto Torrefranca's notorious Giacomo Puccini and International Opera, perhaps the most vicious diatribe ever directed against the composer, appear here in English for the first time. The contributors are Micaela Baranello, Leon Botstein, Alessandra Campana, Delia Casadei, Ben Earle, Elaine Fitz Gibbon, Walter Frisch, Michele Girardi, Arthur Groos, Steven Huebner, Ellen Lockhart, Christopher Morris, Arman Schwartz, Emanuele Senici, and Alexandra Wilson.
Giacomo Puccini: A Guide to Research (Routledge Music Bibliographies #Vol. 48)
by Linda B. FairtileFirst Published in 1999. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
Giacomo Puccini
by Conrad WilsonGiacomo Puccini (1858--1924), composer of such popular operas as La Bohème and Madame Butterfly, is most renowned for his gift as a melodist. With his final opera, Turandot, Puccini composed the last Italian work in the genre to hold a firm place in the international repertoire. The author draws attention to the felicity, daring and extraordinary colouring of his music, countering the view held during Puccini's lifetime that he was a retrogressive who aimed to shock. Puccini is shown to have been a new force in musical drama, and yet a man who remained insecure about his creative powers. Conrad Wilson's book is a polemical, passionate and rational attempt to set the man from Lucca among the immortal greats.
Giacomo Meyerbeer and Music Drama in Nineteenth-Century Paris (Variorum Collected Studies #805)
by Mark EveristNineteenth-century Paris attracted foreign musicians like a magnet. The city boasted a range of theatres and of genres represented there, a wealth of libretti and source material for them, vocal, orchestral and choral resources, to say nothing of the set designs, scenery and costumes. All this contributed to an artistic environment that had musicians from Italian- and German-speaking states beating a path to the doors of the Académie Royale de Musique, Opéra-Comique, Théâtre Italien, Théâtre Royal de l'Odéon and Théâtre de la Renaissance. This book both tracks specific aspects of this culture, and examines stage music in Paris through the lens of one of its most important figures: Giacomo Meyerbeer. The early part of the book, which is organised chronologically, examines the institutional background to music drama in Paris in the nineteenth century, and introduces two of Meyerbeer's Italian operas that were of importance for his career in Paris. Meyerbeer's acculturation to Parisian theatrical mores is then examined, especially his moves from the Odéon and Opéra-Comique to the opera house where he eventually made his greatest impact - the Académie Royale de Musique; the shift from Opéra-Comique is then counterpointed by an examination of how an indigenous Parisian composer, Fromental Halévy, made exactly the same leap at more or less the same time. The book continues with the fates of other composers in Paris: Weber, Donizetti, Bellini and Wagner, but concludes with the final Parisian successes that Meyerbeer lived to see - his two opéras comiques.
Ghosts of Country Music: Tales of Haunted Honkytonks and Legendary Spectres
by Matthew Swayne<p>Strum a Spooky Banjo, Tip that Ten-Gallon Hat, and Meet Country Music’s Greatest Ghosts. <p>Jam out to this impressive compilation of haunted hot spots, creepy curses, and celebrity spirits of country and western music. Presenting the paranormal legacy behind one of America’s oldest and most popular genres, Ghosts of Country Music takes a captivating, in-depth look at legendary musicians and the places where they perform . . . even after death. <p>Experience true stories of larger-than-life stars—including Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, and Johnny Cash—haunting their favorite homes and stages. Step inside the Music City Center, the Apollo Civic Theatre, Bobby Mackey’s Music World, and other iconic venues where ghosts love to roam. Explore the numerous recording studios, record shops, and radio stations that attract paranormal activity. This fascinating book will thrill you with much more than just a catchy tune.</p>
The Ghost Sonata
by Jennifer AllisonGilda Joyce?s best friend, Wendy Choy, is chosen to participate in a piano competition in Oxford, England, so of course super-sleuth Gilda finds a way to go too. Once there, the grueling practice schedule takes a backseat to strange and spooky occurrences. There are foreboding tarot cards that keep appearing to the participants and ominous numbers etched in frosty windowpanes. But even more chilling are Wendy?s ghostly nightmares of a young boy?and the haunting melody she can?t shake out of her mind. Could there be a sinister connection to the piano competition? Gilda has a genuine haunting on her hands, and solving this one will take every ounce of psychic intuition she?s got! .
Ghost of a Chance: A Memoir
by Peter Duchin Charles Michener“The story of [Peter] Duchin’s life has an elegiac aura of glamour and tragedy that might have come directly from the imagination of F. Scott Fitzgerald.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer “This book brings back marvelous memories of a very special time.”—Frank Sinatra Called “a living compendium of a hundred years of social history” by The New York Times Book Review, Peter Duchin has lived through tremendous highs and dismal lows. Orphaned by his glamorous parents, the Newport debutante Marjorie Oelrichs and the famous bandleader Eddy Duchin, he was raised in the privileged, old-money world of Averell Harriman, the diplomat and former governor of New York. He grew up to be one of America’s preeminent bandleaders, effortlessly entertaining and charming partygoers at thousands of society galas, from the White House to Truman Capote’s Black and White Ball. In Ghost of a Chance, he looks back on a life that another man may not have survived. And as he relates the frank, often surprising recollections of the many friends and famous figures who made up the strange family of his youth, Duchin chronicles the changing face of social life in America. Praise for Ghost of a Chance “A tale told with wit and charm . . . It is a sprightly, engaging, and at times hilarious look back at a life spent in music, show business, and what used to be called society.”—The Boston Globe“A bittersweet gem of a book.”—The Philadelphia Inquirer“Peter Duchin’s glamorous story is about absent fathers, surrogate mothers, and dwelling on the edges of money and power in a tuxedoed world.”—Gay Talese“A great read.”—Frank Sinatra
The Ghetto Swinger: A Berlin Jazz-Legend Remembers
by John Howard Michael H. Kater Coco Schumann Michaela Haas Max Christian Graeff"From his early enthusiasm for American jazz in Berlin cabarets to his membership of Terezin's celebrated Ghetto Swngers and surviving Auschwitz through his music, to post-war appearances with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, jazz remains a constant in a remarkable life story."- Ron Simpson, The Jazz RagSchumann's memoir offers an intimate look at the redemptive and sustaining power of music.
Getting Signed: Record Contracts, Musicians, and Power in Society
by David ArditiRecord contracts have been the goal of aspiring musicians, but are they still important in the era of SoundCloud? Musicians in the United States still seem to think so, flocking to auditions for The Voice and Idol brands or paying to perform at record label showcases in the hopes of landing a deal. The belief that signing a record contract will almost infallibly lead to some measure of success— the “ideology of getting signed,” as Arditi defines it—is alive and well. Though streaming, social media, and viral content have turned the recording industry upside down in one sense, the record contract and its mythos still persist. Getting Signed provides a critical analysis of musicians’ contract aspirations as a cultural phenomenon that reproduces modes of power and economic exploitation, no matter how radical the route to contract. Working at the intersection of Marxist sociology, cultural sociology, critical theory, and media studies, Arditi unfolds how the ideology of getting signed penetrated an industry, created a mythos of guaranteed success, and persists in an era when power is being redefined in the light of digital technologies.
Getting Good at Being You: Learning to Love Who God Made You to Be
by Lauren AlainaWith a little bit of country, a whole lot of faith, and a healthy dose of sass, award-winning singer-songwriter Lauren Alaina's debut book, Getting Good at Being You, invites you to take the road less traveled as you step right up to who God calls you to be.After years in the spotlight on American Idol and Dancing with the Stars, country music star Lauren Alaina has learned a thing or two about fighting self-doubt and feeling at home in her own skin. In Getting Good at Being You, Lauren shares stories about everything from lost loves to getting a nose ring to battling an eating disorder to grieving a loved one&’s death. Each story leads to practical tips, take-it-on-the-road strategies, and encouragement for your own personal and spiritual growth.In this book, you will be inspired to:speak to yourself with kindness and compassionchase the dreams that light your spirit on firecultivate rich relationships with family and friendsidentify self-sabotaging beliefs and behaviorsoffer forgiveness for yourself and othersThroughout the book, you will find:behind-the-scenes photos from Lauren's career in country music.lists, tips, and strategies to boost your self-confidence.prompts to help you dream big and run toward who you are.This beautiful book is a perfect gift forwomen who celebrate other womenbirthday celebrations or career promotionshigh school and college graduationsfans who want to know more about country music stardomEach of us deserves head-over-heels, can't-get-enough, shout-it-from-the-mountaintops self-love. By the final page of Getting Good at Being You, that's just the kind of confidence you'll have. As Lauren discovered, maybe life is getting good after all.
Getcha Rocks Off: Sex & Excess. Bust-Ups & Binges. Life & Death on the Rock ‘N' Roll Road
by Mick WallHanging out with rock stars, trying to steal their chicks, or throwing up over their guitars after launching into the hospitality a little too enthusiastically, Mick Wall spent much of the 1980s sprawled in limos and five-star hotels with the biggest rock bands in the world, including Led Zeppelin, Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Mötley Crüe, Thin Lizzy, Deep Purple, Alice Cooper, Van Halen, Motörhead and more. He was Kerrang! magazine's star writer and the presenter of Monsters of Rock, his own weekly show on Sky TV, and the decade passed in a blur of hard drugs, hot women, and some of the heaviest people your mother definitely would not like. Depicting a world where vague concepts like 'the future' are disdained in favour of nights that last a week and weeks that last forever, Getcha Rocks Off is a rock apocalypse Cider With Roadies, and a more frank and disturbing Apathy for the Devil. It is the kind of book you need to put on your leather jacket to read, open that bottle of Jack and reach for the Charlie. And let the good times roll...
Getcha Rocks Off: Sex & Excess. Bust-Ups & Binges. Life & Death on the Rock ‘N’ Roll Road
by Mick Wall'Packed with war stories from a golden age of rock, and insights into the stars that made that music' CLASSIC ROCK MAGAZINE'On reading Getcha Rocks Off you realise just how drastically things have changed in the rock industry but books like this perfectly evoke what they were like. Good times...' RECORD COLLECTORHanging out with rock stars, trying to steal their chicks, or throwing up over their guitars after launching into the hospitality a little too enthusiastically, Mick Wall spent much of the 1980s sprawled in limos and five-star hotels with the biggest rock bands in the world, including Led Zeppelin, Guns N' Roses, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Mötley Crüe, Thin Lizzy, Deep Purple, Alice Cooper, Van Halen, Motörhead and more. He was Kerrang! magazine's star writer and the presenter of Monsters of Rock, his own weekly show on Sky TV, and the decade passed in a blur of hard drugs, hot women, and some of the heaviest people your mother definitely would not like. Depicting a world where vague concepts like 'the future' are disdained in favour of nights that last a week and weeks that last forever, Getcha Rocks Off is a rock apocalypse Cider With Roadies, and a more frank and disturbing Apathy for the Devil. It is the kind of book you need to put on your leather jacket to read, open that bottle of Jack and reach for the Charlie. And let the good times roll...
Get Your Ass in the Water and Swim Like Me: African-American Narrative Poetry from the Oral Tradition, Includes CD
by Bruce JacksonFirst published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
Get Up, Stand Up
by Bob Marley Cedella MarleyBob Marley's music has inspired millions of listeners around the world with messages of peace, love, and truth. This third picture book adaptation of one of his beloved songs has a timely message for children: To counter injustice, lift others up with kindness and courage. As a young girl goes on with her day in school, she comes across several instances of teasing and intimidation. But with loving action and some help from her friends, she's able to make things right for herself and others. With exuberant pictures by John Jay Cabuay accompanying Marley's iconic lyrics, Get Up, Stand Up is a vibrant testament to the power we all have to make a difference.
Get Started In Songwriting: Teach Yourself
by Sam InglisThis book is an essential companion for any aspiring songwriter, and is ideal for those with no formal musical education. Covering every genre of popular contemporary music, from rock and pop to musical theatre and country/western, it tracks everything from what harnessing your creative potential to finding a hook and selling, performing and promoting your songs. It also offers some material for those at a slightly more advanced level who'd like to understand things such as chords and sequencing. With straightforward notation, this accessible guide from a professional songwriter will prove indispensable for creating and peforming your own songs. NOT GOT MUCH TIME? One, five and ten-minute introductions to key principles to get you started. AUTHOR INSIGHTS Lots of instant help with common problems and quick tips for success, based on the authors' many years of experience. TEST YOURSELF Tests in the book and online to keep track of your progress. EXTEND YOUR KNOWLEDGE Extra online articles at www.teachyourself.com to give you a richer understanding of songwriting. FIVE THINGS TO REMEMBER Quick refreshers to help you remember the key facts. TRY THIS Innovative exercises illustrate what you've learnt and how to use it.
Get Over It (Fab Life #6)
by Nikki CarterThe bigger the dreams, the bigger the drama. . . With major industry success and a year of college under her belt, Sunday Tolliver is ready to take her singer-songwriter talents to the next level. But new opportunities also mean totally unexpected drama. Her flirtationship with hot video star DeShawn is turning into much more--but the unfinished business between her and ex-boyfriend Sam won't go away. An explosive campus hazing scandal puts her friends up against a powerful sorority--and Sunday's skills on the line. And reluctantly helping her jealous cousin Dreya save her record deal is a major diva face-off that could end both their careers. Now Sunday will have to take mad risks and trust everything she's learned to stay true to her fab life--and herself. "This series is poised to 'blow up'. " --Kirkus "Plenty of reality show-type drama. " --RT Book Reviews on Doing My Own Thing
Get in the Van
by Henry RollinsAs a member of the seminal punk band Black Flag, Henry Rollins kept detailed tour diaries that form the basis of Get in the Van. Rollins's observations range from the wry to the raucous in this blistering account of a six-year career with the band - a time marked by crazed fans, vicious cops, near-starvation, substance abuse, and mind numbing all-night drives. Rollins decided to revise this edition by adding a wealth of new photographs, a new foreword, and an afterword to include some "where-are-they-now" information on the people featured in the book. This new edition includes 40 previously unpublished black-and-white photographs from Rollins's private collection and show flyers by artist Raymond Pettibon. Called "a soul-frying experience not to be undertaken by lightweights" by Wired magazine, Get in the Van perfectly embodies what one critic called the "secular gospel" of one of punk and post-punk's most respected and controversial figures.
Get Happy
by Mary AmatoIn this poignant, realistic, contemporary YA by a state master list star, perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen and Gayle Forman, a young songwriter builds a substitute family with her friends in place of the broken family she grew up with.Minerva has been raised by her single mother after her father left them both. On her 17th birthday, she is shocked to discover that he has been trying to keep in touch, but her mother has been sabotaging his attempts. Furious at her mom, she begins to investigate her dad, a famous marine biologist, only to discover that he has a new family, including a beloved, and perfect, stepdaughter--a girl Minerva already knows and despises. As she makes her way, trying to build her performing and songwriting career, her jealousy takes over and threatens to derail her life completely. It is only through the efforts of her best friend, Fin, and the introduction of Hayes, a new young man in her life, that she is able to see clearly who she is and who makes up her family. You may visit Mary Amato at either www.maryamato.com or www.thrumsociety.com, or follow her on Twitter @MaryAmato.
The Gershwins and Me: A Personal History in Twelve Songs
by Michael FeinsteinFrom celebrated entertainer Michael Feinstein comes a beautifully illustrated account of the lives and legacies of the Gershwins--told through stories of twelve of their greatest songs.The "Ambassador of the Great American Songbook" Michael Feinstein was just twenty years old when he got the chance of a lifetime: a job with his hero, Ira Gershwin. During their six-year partnership, the two became close friends. Feinstein blossomed under Gershwin's mentorship and Gershwin was reinvigorated by the younger man's zeal for his and his brother George's legacy. Now, in The Gershwins and Me, the only book of its kind, Michael Feinstein shares unforgettable stories and reminiscences from the music that defined American popular song, along with rare Gershwin memorabilia he's collected through the years. From "Strike Up the Band" to "Love Is Here to Stay," each of the twelve chapters highlights one of the Gershwins' classic songs, exploring the brothers' lives, illuminating what the music meant to them, and telling the stories of how their iconic tunes came to life. Throughout the star-studded narrative, Feinstein unfolds the moving chronicle of his own life with the Gershwins, describing his vision for their enduring presence today. No other writer could give us such an authoritative inside perspective on these titans of American culture. A timeless classic and the definitive account of the Gershwins and their legacy, The Gershwins and Me will having you humming with every turn of the page.
The Gershwins and Me
by Michael FeinsteinFrom celebrated entertainer Michael Feinstein comes a beautifully illustrated account of the lives and legacies of the Gershwins--told through stories of twelve of their greatest songs. In addition to a CD, this special edition has a slip cover and comes with removable sheet music.The "Ambassador of the Great American Songbook" Michael Feinstein was just twenty years old when he got the chance of a lifetime: a job with his hero, Ira Gershwin. During their six-year partnership, the two became close friends. Feinstein blossomed under Gershwin's mentorship and Gershwin was reinvigorated by the younger man's zeal for his and his brother George's legacy. Now, in The Gershwins and Me, the only book of its kind, Michael Feinstein shares unforgettable stories and reminiscences from the music that defined American popular song, along with rare Gershwin memorabilia he's collected through the years. From "Strike Up the Band" to "Love Is Here to Stay," each of the twelve chapters highlights one of the Gershwins' classic songs, exploring the brothers' lives, illuminating what the music meant to them, and telling the stories of how their iconic tunes came to life. Throughout the star-studded narrative, Feinstein unfolds the moving chronicle of his own life with the Gershwins, describing his vision for their enduring presence today. No other writer could give us such an authoritative inside perspective on these titans of American culture--and no other writer could include such a soulful collection of music as the accompanying CD packed with Feinstein's original recordings of the twelve songs. A timeless classic and the definitive account of the Gershwins and their legacy, The Gershwins and Me will having you humming with every turn of the page.