The most recommended books about composers

Paganini is not one of the composers the author discusses. However, I consider Secret Lives an important book, simply because it “spills the beans” about a number of these giants.

Gioachino Rossini is portrayed with some of his numerous shortcomings (though Paganini’s dalliances achieved far more notoriety). I shall mention a few significant historical facts: (1) he and Paganini were very close friends, (2) Paganini wrote a set of brilliant variations, I Palpiti, based on an aria from Rossini’s opera, Tancredi, and (3) Paganini did indeed conduct the debut of another Rossini opera, Matilde di Shobran.

Secret Lives was also a source I tapped for some of the information I presented about composers (including, most notably, Richard Wagner)  in one of my own novels.

I can’t remember how I found Natasha Solomons. But once I discovered one of her books, I devoured the rest. And although it’s difficult for me to choose favorites (in anything!), this is my favorite of hers… and my year’s favorite.

I’m not old enough to have lived through World War II, nor have I ever lived in a stately house, English or otherwise. Yet the challenges faced by composer Harry Fox-Talbot are universally human, transcending time and nationality.

Love, betrayal, grief, and redemption are masterfully woven through a compelling narrative that remains intimate, even as it spans more than half a century, one that was so compelling and personally relevant that I got through all thirteen hours of James Langton’s expert narration in less than a week! 

Kleiner’s Core Group Theory was an aha moment for me, because it teaches senior leaders how to use their power well. The theory explains how top leaders act on their organisations like a magnet on iron filings: the slightest clue or cue they give ripples out, and is amplified and copied by everyone that follows them. This makes it crucial that leaders are careful about even the smallest behavioral choice they make: their priorities, who they pay attention to, the jokes they make – all of these will be seen as role model behaviors and replicated by those trying to impress. There is no such thing as off-stage for a leader.

Follow the parallel stories of an unforgettable, powerfully real, close-knit tribal culture in the wild mountains of New Guinea, and the deeply dedicated, deeply flawed man who would seek them out with the Gospel of Christ.

The collision of two cultures and two quests brings tragedy—but does not end in tragedy. Encountering this story as a teenager changed me forever and made the gospel a living thing to me. 

Space Is the Place opened so many windows for me into a world of esoteric spirituality fused with mind-blowing musical and theatrical creativity. John Szwed was a member of my PhD dissertation committee, although it was pretty hard to track him down, and he was wrapping up this book as I finished my own. I’d seen Sun Ra at my college and thought of the Arkestra as a kind of spaced-out novelty act, not knowing anything about Ra’s history: his celestial epiphanies; his long immersion in big-band jazz, including his stint with the great Fletcher Henderson; the cadre of stellar musicians he recruited and molded for the Arkestra; his entrepreneurial streak. When I turned to the study of music and spirituality, Szwed’s biography became an indispensable source. Afrofuturism has become a very hot topic in contemporary cultural studies, and there’s no better way into its arcane mysteries than through this… show more.

Don’t let the (original) lengthy subtitle, with its nearly forty-year-old date reference, put you off; this is a deeply original and highly engaging account of the music and philosophy of one of America’s most prolific and consistently creative musicians: composer, improviser, educator and multi-instrumentalist Anthony Braxton. With a double narrative that deftly alternates between lofty discussions of subjects such as metaphysics, mysticism, language, and astrology, and the daily grind of a challenging twelve-date tour of England by a Braxton quartet in the winter of 1985, Forces in Motion cleverly captures much of the complexity, intelligence, ambition and humour of its uncompromising subject. At one point Lock describes Braxton as “an alchemist, a man who opens doors you didn’t know existed”; the same can be said of the book itself. A perfect marriage of musician and writer. 

Having studied cello in Soviet Russia in the 1960s, Elizabeth Wilson used her extensive musical contacts to produce this unique study of Dmitri Shostakovich, one of the most innovative composers of the 20th century. Prompted by Wilson’s queries, family members, friends, fellow musicians, and other artists offered their recollections that might have otherwise been lost. Gathered together these testimonies offer a gripping picture of Shostakovich as an artist and a man. They describe his extraordinary successes and his struggles for survival and dignity during the brutal Stalinist purges and horrors of World War II. One of the most moving testimonies sheds light on the creation and the first performance of Shostakovich’s Symphony No.7 which, in the world of music, became a symbol of resistance to fascism and all forms of totalitarianism anywhere.

Bernard Herrmann is revered as one of the movies' greatest composers.

Imagine starting your Hollywood career with music for Citizen Kane!

He enjoyed a very productive 10-year relationship with director Alfred Hitchcock, which produced such masterpieces as Vertigo, Psycho, and North by Northwest; he also worked with Francois Truffaut on Fahrenheit 451, composed the original Twilight Zone theme, and capped his career with music for Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver.

Yet he could be cantankerous and difficult, antagonizing both friends and colleagues with his temperamental behavior and insistence upon the highest standards of music and drama.

I love the fact that Smith writes as well about the music as he does about the composer, and the reader walks away knowing lots about both.

This book is from a series of books entitled Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Composers, which features many different composers. The books are easy to read and will be enjoyed by both younger readers and older readers alike. The cartoon-style artwork may look silly, but the material is informative. Music education would not be complete without some information on the composers who wrote the music. A great series!

This book is a powerful read for anyone ready to reclaim their creativity and heal their inner wounded child.

Jacob skillfully guides us through exercises that bring us home to ourselves. I include this as recommended reading in my book, and I love that Julia Cameron (another favorite author of The Artists Way fame) provides the foreword.

Full disclosure, this book brought me to healing tears. I’ve read it and listened to it many times and I had the pleasure of meeting Jacob at his Heal and Create Writer’s event along with SARK. 

Another one of his books that you won’t want to miss is Blessed Are the Weird.