Book Review
Jul. 31st, 2004 07:19 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Life of Richard Strauss
by Bryan Gilliam
This book was the only assigned reading for the graduate history seminar on Strauss I took in the fall of 2002. Dr. Bell taught the class, and it was great. But I was in the thick of writing my master's thesis (a four-movement piece for orchestra) at the time. And time was something I utterly lacked. so I made the conscious decision to skip the reading, because I realized I would do as well and get as much out of the class whether I did it or not. But I did promise myself that I would read the book later when I had more time. And I finally did get around to it, nearly two years later.
The book isn't very long or analytical. It's a straightforward biography of Strauss' life and work. Since I'd taken the seminar, I already knew most of the material Gilliam presents, so it was more of a review than anything else. Still, I did find this book well worth the reading. It's the perfect length, depth, and tone for learning more about a composer, and it's not at all technical. If anyone wants to learn more about the guy who wrote the music made famous by "2001: A Space Odyssey", I'd be more than happy to lend this book out.
by Bryan Gilliam
This book was the only assigned reading for the graduate history seminar on Strauss I took in the fall of 2002. Dr. Bell taught the class, and it was great. But I was in the thick of writing my master's thesis (a four-movement piece for orchestra) at the time. And time was something I utterly lacked. so I made the conscious decision to skip the reading, because I realized I would do as well and get as much out of the class whether I did it or not. But I did promise myself that I would read the book later when I had more time. And I finally did get around to it, nearly two years later.
The book isn't very long or analytical. It's a straightforward biography of Strauss' life and work. Since I'd taken the seminar, I already knew most of the material Gilliam presents, so it was more of a review than anything else. Still, I did find this book well worth the reading. It's the perfect length, depth, and tone for learning more about a composer, and it's not at all technical. If anyone wants to learn more about the guy who wrote the music made famous by "2001: A Space Odyssey", I'd be more than happy to lend this book out.
