Book Review
May. 17th, 2012 06:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariBad Boy of Music
by George Antheil
How could I resist reading the autobiography/memoirs of the composer of Ballet Mecanique, whose early concerts incited such riots that he took to performing with a gun in a shoulder holster? Antheil's book is kind of midway between memoirs and autobiography - it covers his life (up until 1943 or so - the book was published in 1945) as thoroughly as an autobiography, but is more chatty and less linear, like memoirs.
Antheil's narrative style is fairly casual and chatty, which made for a good reading experience. His life was very interesting - he started out as a kind of enfant terrible, living a bohemian expat life in Paris during the 1920s and 30s, writing shockingly avant-garde music. The coming of WWII caused him to return to America, where he attempted to support himself in various ways both musical and non-musical so that he could provide for his family and continue composing. His return to America also heralded his shift to a more neo-romantic and less wild style.
I found the earlier parts of Antheil's book the most interesting. His life in Paris was eventful and creative, and involved some of his most interesting composing. His anecdotes about his personal and artistic escapades of these years were always entertaining, even if I didn't always fully believe his accounts. Once he returned to America, Antheil seemed to flounder and struggle, becoming too caught up in sometimes ill-conceived efforts to establish financial security, and also having a series of creative crises.
by George Antheil
How could I resist reading the autobiography/memoirs of the composer of Ballet Mecanique, whose early concerts incited such riots that he took to performing with a gun in a shoulder holster? Antheil's book is kind of midway between memoirs and autobiography - it covers his life (up until 1943 or so - the book was published in 1945) as thoroughly as an autobiography, but is more chatty and less linear, like memoirs.
Antheil's narrative style is fairly casual and chatty, which made for a good reading experience. His life was very interesting - he started out as a kind of enfant terrible, living a bohemian expat life in Paris during the 1920s and 30s, writing shockingly avant-garde music. The coming of WWII caused him to return to America, where he attempted to support himself in various ways both musical and non-musical so that he could provide for his family and continue composing. His return to America also heralded his shift to a more neo-romantic and less wild style.
I found the earlier parts of Antheil's book the most interesting. His life in Paris was eventful and creative, and involved some of his most interesting composing. His anecdotes about his personal and artistic escapades of these years were always entertaining, even if I didn't always fully believe his accounts. Once he returned to America, Antheil seemed to flounder and struggle, becoming too caught up in sometimes ill-conceived efforts to establish financial security, and also having a series of creative crises.
