American Pioneers: Ives to Cage and Beyond

by Alan Rich

This is the first book to concentrate on the rebellious trend within American music at the turn of the twentieth century. American Pioneers examines Charles Ives, Henry Cowell, John Cage, Carl Ruggles, Edgard Var?se, Harry Patch, Colin McPhee and Lou Harrison, focusing on the peculiarly American quality of their artistic motivation. The pioneering flair of these composers was an act of defiance: Americans throwing off the shackles of European...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0714847690
• ISBN13: 9780714847696
• Release Date: April 2008
• Publisher: Phaidon Press
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.2" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

Insight into four musical maverics

While not a definitive work on any of the composers featured here, this book quickly gets you where you need to be to get a handle on what makes these musical whackos tick. Good blend of biographical data, quotes, photos and graphics. If you don't want to spend a lot of time flipping pages checking out those who've pushed the musical envelope in the past century, this is a worthwhile read.