Glenn Gould: Cartas escogidas

by Glenn Gould, John Roberts (Editor), Ghyslaine Guertin (Editor)

Interesting and heretofore unknown aspects of the life of great pianist Glenn Gould—from his views on the piano repertoire to his love for Bach—are illuminated in this collection of more than 180 letters. Gould holds dialogues with famous musicians such as Leonard Bernstein and Leopold Stokowski, as well as friends, television and radio professionals, and legions of admirers who wrote to him seeking answers to the enigmas posed by his playing. The musical and personal insights revealed in these conversations take readers on a ride through the sinuous paths of artistic creation.   Aspectos interesantes y hasta ahora desconocidos sobre la vida del gran pianista Glenn Gould—desde sus opiniones sobre el repertorio del piano hasta su amor por Bach—están iluminados en esta colección de más de 180 cartas. Gould dialoga con famosos músicos como Leonard Bernstein y Leopold Stokowski, así como con sus amigos, profesionales de la radio o la televisión y muchos admiradores que le escribieron buscando respuestas a las preguntas formuladas por su piano. Las perspicacias musicales y personales reveladas en estas conversaciones llevan a los lectores de paseo por los sinuosos caminos de la creación artística.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Glenn Herbert Gould was a Canadian pianist who became one of the best-known and most celebrated classical pianists of the 20th century. He was particularly renowned as an interpreter of the keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach. His playing was distinguished by remarkable technical proficiency and capacity to articulate the polyphonic texture of Bach's music.

After his adolescence, Gould rejected most of the standard Romantic piano literature including Liszt, Schumann, and Chopin. Although his recordings were dominated by Bach, Gould's repertoire was diverse, including works by Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn, Brahms, pre-Baroque composers such as Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, and such 20th-century composers as Paul Hindemith, Arnold Schoenberg and Richard Strauss. Gould was well known for various eccentricities, from his unorthodox musical interpretations and mannerisms at the keyboard to aspects of his lifestyle and personal behaviour. He stopped giving concerts at the age of 31 to concentrate on studio recording and other projects. Gould was the first pianist to record any of Liszt's piano transcriptions of Beethoven's symphonies (beginning with the Fifth Symphony, in 1967).

Gould was also known as a writer, composer, conductor, and broadcaster. He was a prolific contributor to musical journals, in which he discussed music theory and outlined his musical philosophy. His career as a composer was less distinguished. His output was minimal and many projects were left unfinished. There is evidence that, had he lived beyond 50, he intended to abandon the piano and devote the remainder of his career to conducting and other projects. As a broadcaster, Gould was prolific. His output ranged from television and radio broadcasts of studio performances to musique concrète radio documentaries about life in the Canadian wilderness.

Reviews

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this, despite the fact that (like Beethoven’s letters) Gould’s letters can be pretty dull and business oriented. You are not going to find many (any?) personal revelations in these letters. What I did find was his voice and vocabulary, which to me said a lot, and I found it oddly comforting. I liked having his voice actively around, even if he was just talking about projects.