Books Recommendations
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New Music Book Publications - 4th January 2022
4th Jan 2022
A biography of Shostakovich; a companion to Steven Spielberg's film of Bernstein's West Side Story; a guide to Rossini's The Barber of Seville; studies on the music of Clara Schumann and Thomas Adès; a collection of essays on Joseph Joachim; a history of British musical theatre; the lyrics of Paul McCartney from 1956 to the present day; biographies of Harry Styles, Led Zeppelin, and Will Smith; and an analysis of Maria Callas's 1954 album of operatic arias.
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Presto Music Awards 2021 - Book Winners
10th Dec 2021
We are very pleased to announce the winning book publications for the annual Presto Music Awards! We have chosen five of the most outstanding publications from the past twelve months. Find out the winners here.
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New Music Book Publications - 1st November 2021
1st Nov 2021
Suggestions of pieces to help soothe the soul; a paperback edition of a biography of Mozart; a documentation of violins that survived the concentration camps of the Second World War; a guide to the career of Clara Schumann; games and ideas for musical play with pre-school children; and two books on Bruce Springsteen, one of them written in collaboration with former US President, Barack Obama.
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New Music Book Publications - 11th October 2021
11th Oct 2021
A companion to Bach's Cello Suites by cellist, Steven Isserlis; a paperback edition of a biography of Schumann; an exploration of the religious, political and cultural contexts surrounding the life and music of Franz Liszt; a collection of musical puzzles and games from Classic FM; the history of Fazioli grand pianos; a discussion of the musical and cultural identities of Russian composers abroad; and a guide for teachers on the world of musical theatre.
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New Music Book Publications - 27th September 2021
27th Sep 2021
A paperback edition of Alex Ross's best-selling book on Wagnerism; reflections on music from twenty-six contributors in a variety of artistic, scientific, and political fields; an analysis of works depicting the soundscapes of American places; a new approach to music teaching from Paul Harris; a theory of the power of musical motives; reflections on the music of Milton Babbitt; and a dissection of the music and lyrics of Bob Dylan.
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New Music Book Publications - 13th September 2021
13th Sep 2021
Texts and translations of the complete Lieder of Hugo Wolf; an introduction to Sibelius and his cultural environment; an analysis of Beethoven's String Quartet in C sharp minor, Op. 131; an examination of recently-discovered fragments of medieval polyphony in Dorset; an exploration of opera in postwar Venice; and a guide to music copyright in the digital age.
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New Music Book Publications - 30th August 2021
30th Aug 2021
An analysis of Charles Ives's Concord Sonata; essays exploring the relationship between music and romanticism; a history of music for children; an examination of the reception of Bartók's music in fascist Italy; paperback editions of books on Brahms, Schoenberg, singing in Renaissance Italy, and self-referential elements in late medieval music; a handbook of contemporary ballet; a discussion of African music in Brazil; and a guide for teachers on instilling wellness in musicians.
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New Music Book Publications - 16th August 2021
16th Aug 2021
Paperback editions of books on Brahms and Chopin; an encyclopedia of the life and works of Stravinsky; the history of Erard pianos; an examination of the origins of the coloratura soprano in nineteenth-century opera; ideas for making music with very young children; strategies for using cognitive science to optimise practice and performance; and a collection of essays discussing the professional challenges facing ethnomusicologists.
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New Music Book Publications - 2nd August 2021
2nd Aug 2021
A history of the piano as explored through the lens of 100 pieces; a guide to the music of Hector Berlioz; an examination of the film music of John Williams; an exploration of the role of music in the ancient Greek and Roman worlds; a look at how differing performance venues have helped to shape the history of jazz; and a memoir of the singer Amy Winehouse by her childhood friend.
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New Music Book Publications - 5th July 2021
5th Jul 2021
Books on composers including Benjamin Britten and Ernest Moeran; a re-evaluation of how to write music history; an exploration of the importance of operettas in early twentieth-century Viennese life; analyses of musicals including Spamalot and The Music Man; and collections of essays on the drum kit and music in video games.
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New Music Book Publications - 21st June 2021
21st Jun 2021
Several books on Beethoven including a paperback edition of Laura Tunbridge's award-winning volume focusing on nine pieces from the composer's output; a biography of opera singer, Maria Callas; an examination of the ways in which Ravel's music is often described as magical and illusory; the first comprehensive biography of Ivor Gurney; and a handbook to forging a career as a conductor.
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New Music Book Publications - 7th June 2021
7th Jun 2021
The official guide to the 2021 BBC Proms; a collection of letters to and from Gerald Finzi; a biography of Ravi Shankar; a consideration of the importance of liturgy and music during the reign of Louis XIII; an examination of the role that music played in the writings of E.M. Forster; a subversive history of music from the point of view of social outcasts; ideas on teaching composition in the secondary classroom; and an exploration of the musical history of modern Black Britain.
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New Music Book Publications - 24th May 2021
24th May 2021
A biography of Russian composer, Nikolay Myaskovsky; the memoirs of Austrian conductor, Franz Welser-Möst; an updated edition of Ted Gioia's classic history of jazz; a critical companion to motets of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries; an analysis of the shepherd's melody from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde; an examination of the historical role of the clarinet; and an intrepid tale of the booming sound of the foghorn.
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New Music Book Publications - 3rd May 2021
3rd May 2021
Books on composers including Berg, Fauré, and Gluck; a study of musical polystylism in the final decades of the Soviet Union; an exploration of choral singing in Ancient Greece; an examination of the ways in which Baroque composers notated tempos in their scores before the invention of the metronome; an account of Chinese street music and its impact on the local community; and several books celebrating the eightieth birthday of iconic musician, Bob Dylan.
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New Music Book Publications - 19th April 2021
19th Apr 2021
An examination of the appeal and power of music in times of crisis; an exploration of how the musical press in France affected the notion of a "canon" of works; a discussion of the interaction between music and its listeners in the digital age; a biography of the early life of Bob Dylan; and a collection of iconic covers from the Blue Note label.
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New Music Book Publications - 5th April 2021
5th Apr 2021
Volumes on composers such as Brahms, Charles Ives, and Arthur Sullivan; an analysis of the depictions of musical instruments found on a sumptuous piece of Elizabethan furniture; examinations of Jewish music in Germany after the Second World War and of the effect that jazz had on Europe after World War One; a history of how the human species has listened to music through the ages; and a paperback edition of Philip Clark's biography of Dave Brubeck.
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New Music Book Publications - 22nd March 2021
22nd Mar 2021
A new paperback edition of Roger Scruton's exploration of Wagner's Parsifal; an examination of methods in music research; a social history of folk song in England; an analysis of musical infrastructures; a handbook of algorithmic music; and a discussion of the ways in which French composers channeled their trauma into their music after the First World War.
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New Music Book Publications - 8th March 2021
8th Mar 2021
A psychological analysis of legendary opera singer, Maria Callas; a study of the songs of Fanny Hensel; an exploration of Lutheran themes present in the music of Bach; an examination of ten conductors' annotated scores of Mozart's Jupiter Symphony; a new edition of Nicholas Cook's classic introduction to music; and handbooks on music and philosophy, and community music.
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New Music Book Publications - 22nd February 2021
22nd Feb 2021
An introduction to Western musical notation; a new translation of Richard Wagner's essays on the art of conducting; a biography of blues singer, Bessie Smith; an encyclopedia of historical performance practice; a look behind the scenes at the Ballets Russes; a guide to piano fingering; a study of concert life in nineteenth-century America; an exploration of music in Ancient Greece; and the history of the ballad singer in Georgian and Victorian London.
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New Music Book Publications - 8th February 2021
8th Feb 2021
An examination of how Bizet's Carmen became one of the most popular operas; a companion to Schubert's Winterreise; the effect that Mahler's Eighth Symphony has had since its premiere; the history of London theatre music from Purcell to Handel; an unpacking of the myths surrounding American blues performers; and an illustrated history of musicals.
