| Description |
xvii, 750 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), portraits (some color) ; 25 cm |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 711-726) and index. |
| Contents |
Part One : A childhood, far away and long ago, 1905-1923. Overture: a ringing of bells. 1. Henry and Isabel -- 2. A Suffolk childhood -- 3. The Great War --- 4. No longer a virgin -- 5. Four horsemen -- Diary: Suffolk, Lincolnshire, Edinburgh -- Part Two : Wanderer, 1923-1934. 6. Royal College of Music -- 7. Macaroni-cheese and stewed rhubarb -- 8. The Beggar's Opera -- 9. To rob the rich, to feed the poor -- Diary : Glasgow, North Yorkshire -- Part three : Songs of Liberty, 1934-1939. 10. Machine gun -- 11. 1935 -- 12. The grim nut of fire -- 13. They shall not pass -- 14. The world turns on its dark side -- Diary : Manchester, London -- Part Four : War, 1939-1945. 15. Pacifist -- 16. Conchie -- 17. Prisoner -- 18. Survivor -- Diary : Suffolk -- Part Five : Peace, 1945-1962. 19. The wonderful truth of Overness -- 20. Off the hook, on the air, in the air -- 21. A continuous high pressure of creation -- 22. Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita -- 23. Equal to all reasonable demands -- 24. Unexpected flowering -- Diary : London -- Part Six : The curtain rises, 1962-1977. 25. A timeless music played in time -- 26. O my America! -- 27. Seven characters in search of an opera -- 28. Freeze and thaw -- Diary : Birmingham -- Part Seven : New Years, Last Songs, 1977-1998. 29. Breath -- 30. Sound -- 31. The lake -- Diary : London -- Epilogue -- Cast list -- List of works by Michael Tippett -- Recordings. |
| Summary |
"The music of the British composer Michael Tippett--including the oratorio A Child of Our Time, five operas, and four symphonies--is among the most visionary of the twentieth century. But little has been written about his extraordinary life. In this long-awaited first biography, Oliver Soden weaves a century-spanning narrative of epic scope and penetrating insight. Soden has discovered troves of unpublished letters and manuscripts, and recorded moving interviews with Tippett's friends and colleagues. He paints a portrait of a powerful intellect and infectious personality : charming, stubborn, and great fun. But he also uncovers the sorrows and secrets that Tippett stowed away beneath his cheerfulness, not least the darker reaches of some tempestuous and often tragic love affairs. Soden's achievement is to have enriched our understanding not only of Tippett but of his times"--From publisher description, book jacket. |
| Subject |
Tippett, Michael, 1905-1998.
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Tippett, Michael, 1905-1998. |
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Composers -- Great Britain -- Biography.
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Composers. |
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Great Britain. |
| Genre/Form |
Biographies.
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Biographies.
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| Other Form: |
ebook version : 9781474606042 |
| ISBN |
1474606024 (hardback) |
|
9781474606028 (hardback) |
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9781474606042 (ebook) |
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