Igor Stravinsky

by Jonathan Cross

Igor Stravinsky was a celebrity composer in an increasingly celebrity-obsessed age. He was a true modern, a man of his time. Born in Russia, Stravinsky spent most of his long life in exile. While he swiftly became a cosmopolitan figure, the exile’s sense of distance, loss and nostalgia left a powerful mark on his work.Stravinsky tells of a colourful life lived against the backdrop of the twentieth century’s wars and revolutions. Stravinsky’s extraordinary music reflected and shaped his own times, and resonates with audiences even today.

Genres: Music

208 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 19, 2016

Reviews

[Elias B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cross doesn't shy away from criticising, analysing and understanding Stravinsky. Understands both the 'unpalatable and incontrovertible truth that he could add anti-Semitism to his repellant character defects that included meanness, cruelty and lying' and the 'beauty' of his music, without ignoring or downplaying the former (like so many critics). A good read!