Igor Stravinsky

Books about Igor Stravinsky and his music

Theodore Stravinsky and Denise Stravinsky Catherine & Igor Stravinsky: A Family Chronicle, 1906-1940 Schirmer Books, 2004; ISBN 0825672902; 160 pages Price indication: $ 19.77

STEPHEN WALSH Stravinsky : A Creative Spring: Russia and France, 1882-1934 Knopf, 1999; ISBN 0679414843; 720 pages Price indication: $ 35.00

Stephen Walsh The Music of Stravinsky (Clarendon Paperbacks) Oxford University Press, 1993; ISBN 0198163754; 328 pages Stravinsky was one of the most original creative musicians of the twentieth century. In a career spanning six decades he composed a glittering sequence of works of astonishing diversity, from the three vividly colorful early Russian ballets, through the sharp wit and purity of his neo-classical scores and the powerful spirituality of works like the Symphony of Psalms and the Mass, to the highly individual application of serialism in the late works. This is a critical survey of Stravinsky's entire output in chronological order written in an accessible style for students, scholars, and all music lovers. Walsh draws on recent literature and the composer's own letters and sketches to provide fresh insights into Stavinsky's works. He argues persuasively that Stravinsky needs to be seen whole, and that the works are more closely connected in style and method than is generally acknowledged. Price indication: $ 45.00

Richard Taruskin Stravinsky and the Russian Traditions: A Biography of the Works Through Mavra University of California Press, 1996; ISBN 0520070992; 1800 pages This book undoes 50 years of mythmaking about Stravinsky's life in music. During his spectacular career, Igor Stravinsky underplayed his Russian past in favor of a European cosmopolitanism. Richard Taruskin has refused to take the composer at his word. In this long-awaited study, he defines Stravinsky's relationship to the musical and artistic traditions of his native land and gives us a dramatically new picture of one of the major figures in the history of music. Taruskin draws directly on newly accessible archives and on a wealth of Russian documents. In Volume One, he sets the historical scene: the St. Petersburg musical press, the arts journals, and the writings of anthropologists, folklorists, philosophers, and poets. Volume Two addresses the masterpieces of Stravinsky's early maturityPetrushka, The Rite of Spring, and Les Noces. Taruskin investigates the composer's collaborations with Diaghilev to illuminate the relationship between folklore and modernity. He elucidates the Silver Age ideal of "neonationalism"the professional appropriation of motifs and style characteristics from folk artand how Stravinsky realized this ideal in his music. Taruskin demonstrates how Stravinsky achieved his modernist technique by combining what was most characteristically Russian in his musical training with stylistic elements abstracted from Russian folklore. The stylistic synthesis thus achieved formed Stravinsky as a composer for life, whatever the aesthetic allegiances he later professed. Written with Taruskin's characteristic mixture of in-depth research and stylistic verve, this book will be mandatory reading for all those seriously interested in the life and work of Stravinsky. Price indication: $ 195.00

Eric Walter White Stravinsky: The Composer and His Works University of California Press, 1985; ISBN 0520039858; 656 pages In the second edition of the definitive account of Igor Stravinsky's life and work, arranged in two separate sections, Eric Walter White revised the whole book, completing the biographical section by taking it up to Stravinsky's death in 1971. To the list of works, the author added some early pieces that have recently come to light, as well as the late compositions, including the Requiem Canticles and The Owl and the Pussycat . Four more of Stravinsky's own writings appear in the Appendices, and there are several important additions to the bibliography. Price indication: $ 26.96

Peter Hill and Julian Rushton Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring (Cambridge Music Handbooks) Cambridge University Press, 2000; ISBN 0521627141; 184 pages The Rite of Spring is Stravinsky's most revolutionary work. This comprehensive guide tells in vivid detail the story of its inception and composition, of the stormy rehearsals that led to the scandalous premiere in 1913, and of Stravinsky's later betrayal of the ballet's first choreographer, Nijinsky. Peter Hill probes beneath the surface of the music to reveal an architectural conception of unsuspected guile and subtlety. He provides a detailed discussion of the work in performance and a hard-hitting conclusion, which poses a radical challenge to the orthodox view of the work. Price indication: $ 21.99

Mike Venezia Igor Stravinsky (Getting to Know the World's Greatest Composers) Children's Press (CT), 1997; ISBN 0516260766; 32 pages Presents a biography of Igor Stravinsky Price indication: $ 6.95

Joseph N. Straus and Ian Bent Stravinsky's Late Music (Cambridge Studies in Music Theory and Analysis) Cambridge University Press, 2001; ISBN 0521802202; 278 pages Price indication: $ 69.25

Michael Oliver Igor Stravinsky (20th-Century Composers) Phaidon Press, 1995; ISBN 0714831581; 240 pages Price indication: $ 24.95

Igor Stravinsky An Autobiography W. W. Norton & Company, 1998; ISBN 0393318567; 192 pages Price indication: $ 11.16

Charles Joseph Stravinsky Inside Out Yale University Press, 2001; ISBN 0300075375; 336 pages Popularly known during his lifetime as "The World's Greatest Living Composer," Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) not only wrote some of the twentieth century's most influential music, he also assumed the role of cultural icon. This book reveals Stravinsky's two sides--the public persona, preoccupied with his own image and place in history, and the private composer, whose views and beliefs were often purposely suppressed. Charles M. Joseph draws a richer and more human portrait of Stravinsky than anyone has done before, using an array of unpublished materials and unreleased film trims from the composer's huge archive at the Paul Sacher Institute in Switzerland. Focusing on Stravinsky's place in the culture of the twentieth century, Joseph situates the composer among the giants of his age. He discusses Stravinsky's first American commission, his complicated relationship with his son, his professional relationships with celebrities ranging from T. S. Eliot to Orson Welles, his flirtations with Hollywood and television, and his love-hate attitude toward the critics and the media. In a close look at Stravinsky's efforts to mold a public image, Joseph explores the complex dance between the composer and his artistic collaborator, Robert Craft, who orchestrated controversial efforts to protect Stravinsky and edit materials about him, both during the composer's lifetime and after his death. Price indication: $ 29.95

Igor Stravinsky and Robert Craft Memories and Commentaries Faber & Faber, 2003; ISBN 0571211631; 320 pages Few would dispute that Igor Stravinsky was the greatest composer of the twentieth century. Conductor and writer Robert Craft was his closest colleague and friend. Together they published five acclaimed collections known as the Conversations series, which sprung from informal talks between the two men. In this newly edited and re-structured one-volume version, Craft brings Stravinsky's reflections on his childhood, his family life, professional associates, and personal relationships into sharper focus and places the major compositions in their cultural milieux. Price indication: $ 10.20

Jonathan Cross The Cambridge Companion to Stravinsky (Cambridge Companions to Music) Cambridge University Press, 2003; ISBN 0521663776; 344 pages Price indication: $ 29.99

Charles M. Joseph Stravinsky and Balanchine: A Journey of Invention Yale University Press, 2002; ISBN 0300087128; 416 pages Igor Stravinsky and George Balanchine, among the most influential artists of the twentieth century, together created the music and movement for many ballet masterpieces. This engrossing book is the first full-length study of one of the greatest artistic collaborations in history. Drawing on extensive new research, Charles M. Joseph discusses the Stravinsky-Balanchine ballets against a rich contextual backdrop. He explores the background and psychology of the two men, the dynamics of their interactions, their personal and professional similarities and differences, and the political and historical circumstances that conditioned their work. He describes the dancers, designers, and sponsors with whom they worked. He explains the two men's approach to the creative process and the genesis of each of the collaborative ballets, demolishing much received wisdom on the subject. And he analyzes selected sections of music and dance, providing examples of Stravinsky's working sketches and other helpful illustrative materials. Engagingly written, the book will be of great interest not only to music and dance historians but also to ballet lovers everywhere. Price indication: $ 37.54

Robert Craft Stravinsky: Chronicle of a Friendship Vanderbilt University Press, 1994; ISBN 0826512585; 608 pages Price indication: $ 39.95

Roland Vernon Introducing Stravinsky (Introducing Composers) Chelsea House Publications, 2000; ISBN 079106042X; 32 pages Price indication: $ 18.95

Andre Boucourechliev Stravinsky Holmes & Meier Publishers, 1988; ISBN 0841911622 Price indication: $ 45.00

Stephen Walsh and Julian Rushton Stravinsky: Oedipus Rex (Cambridge Music Handbooks) Cambridge University Press, 1993; ISBN 0521404312; 130 pages Price indication: $ 60.00

Benjamin Boretz Perspectives on Schoenberg and Stravinsky (The Norton library) W. W. Norton, 1972; ISBN 0393006182; 284 pages Price indication: (used only): from $ 19.50

ROBERT CRAFT STRAVINSKY : SEL COR V.3 (Stravinsky, Igor//Stravinsky, Selected Correspondence) Knopf, 1985; ISBN 0394542207 Price indication: (used only): from $ 8.68

Sheet music, libretti, etc.

Les Noces in Full Score - Dover Publications

Oedipus Rex the Rake's Progress (Opera Guide) - Calder Publications
<DIV>The English National Opera Guides were originally conceived in partnership with the English National Opera and edited by Nicholas John, the ENO's dramaturg, who died tragically in an accident in the Alps. Most of the guides are devoted to a single opera, which is described in detail—with many articles that cover its history and information about the composer and his times. The complete libretto is included in both the original language and in a modern singing translation—except where the opera was written in English. Each has a thematic guide to the most important musical themes in musical notation and each guide is lavishly illustrated. They also contain a bibliography and a discography which is updated at each reprint. The ENO guides are widely regarded as the best series of their kind and excellent value.</DIV>

Petrushka (Dover Miniature Scores) - Dover Publications
Brilliantly orchestrated, filled with Russian folksong as well as new and striking harmonies, this score is one the most popular and acclaimed musical works of the 20th century. General Note. Stage Directions. Instrumentation. All materials in English and French, newly translated for this edition.<br>

Petrushka in Full Score, Original Version - Dover Publications
Definitive original edition of Stravinsksy’s score for the Ballets Russes masterpiece Petrushka. Finest inexpensive edition.<br>

Songs 1906-1920 - Dover Publications

Stravinsky 4 Etudes - Warner Bros Pubns

The Firebird in Full Score (Original 1910 Version) - Dover Publications
Handsome, unabridged, inexpensive edition of modern masterpiece renowned for brilliant orchestration, glowing color, evocative power. Reprinted from authoritative Russian edition. Includes list of characters and instruments, plus new English translation of Table of Contents.<br>

The Firebird: Original 1910 Version (Dover Miniature Scores) - Dover Publications
Commissioned by Serge Diaghilev, the director of the Ballets Russes, this dazzling piece brought overnight success to its composer. Based on a series of Russian fairy tales, Stravinsky’s modern masterpiece is greatly admired for its brilliant orchestration and harmony, and it remains as popular today as at its 1910 premiere.<br>

The Rite of Spring (Dover Miniature Scores) - Dover Publications

The Rite of Spring in Full Score - Dover Publications
<DIV>A reprint of the original full-score edition of the most famous musical work of the 20th century, created as a ballet score for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes.<BR></DIV>

Three Early Ballets: The Firebird/petrushka/the Rite of Spring (Schirmer's Library of Musical Classics) - G. Schirmer
This edition brings together - for the first time - the three early ballets of Igor Stravinsky in versions for solo piano. Intended as both virtuoso performance pieces as well as study aids for musicians, they have been carefully proofread against the orchestral scores to insure that they agree in detail. Pretrushka contains all of the music in the original 1911 version, The Firebird is a transcription of the full-length 1910 ballet and The Rite of Spring is presented in a revised form of the well-known Leyetchkiss transcription.