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Book Review
Jun. 17th, 2023 08:26 pmWendy Carlos: A Biography
by Amanda Sewell
This biography of electronic music pioneer Wendy Carlos is brief but fascinating. Since Carlos declined to be interviewed for or participate in this biography, Sewell had to piece things together from older interviews both published and unpublished as well as other published writings be Carlos and others. She does an admirable job - her biography is detailed and insightful. I enjoyed some of the more technical information about the synthesizers, processors, and other technology Carlos used to create her music, as well as her creative process. I also liked the attention given to her early music training at Brown and Columbia, as well as her collaboration with Bob Moog on his synthesizers.
Sewell also covers Carlos' experiences as a transgender woman who transitioned in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Sewell covers this pretty respectively and sensitively, often criticizing other writers who have not done the same. She explores how these experiences had a significant effect on Carlos' career and seem to have shaped her approach to the public presentation of herself and her music without making everything all about Carlos' gender. Sewell keeps the music front and center.
by Amanda Sewell
This biography of electronic music pioneer Wendy Carlos is brief but fascinating. Since Carlos declined to be interviewed for or participate in this biography, Sewell had to piece things together from older interviews both published and unpublished as well as other published writings be Carlos and others. She does an admirable job - her biography is detailed and insightful. I enjoyed some of the more technical information about the synthesizers, processors, and other technology Carlos used to create her music, as well as her creative process. I also liked the attention given to her early music training at Brown and Columbia, as well as her collaboration with Bob Moog on his synthesizers.
Sewell also covers Carlos' experiences as a transgender woman who transitioned in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Sewell covers this pretty respectively and sensitively, often criticizing other writers who have not done the same. She explores how these experiences had a significant effect on Carlos' career and seem to have shaped her approach to the public presentation of herself and her music without making everything all about Carlos' gender. Sewell keeps the music front and center.
