Tchaikovsky A Biography – Buch gebraucht kaufen

0593024680

(ISBN-13: 9780593024683)

leichte Gebrauchsspuren

928 g

Hardcover/gebunden

Englisch

Gebundene Ausgabe mit Schutzumschlag : 490 Seiten – Verlag: Random House (1995) - Sprache: Englisch - Größe und/oder Gewicht: 23,6 x 15,2 x 4,6 cm

The life of Tchaikovsky has been shrouded in mystery and myth for more than a century. Thanks to the subterfuge of his family and subsequently the Soviet authorities, the world has been given a rosy portrait of a composer whose life was in truth as poignantly tragic as so much of his music. Now, after three years of research in archives in post-Soviet Russia, Europe and the United States, this biography offers a portrait of an ill-starred genius, whose life and career were as colourful and passionate as his music. In 1893, a week after conducting the first performance of the "Pathetique" symphony, Tchaikovsky was dead at the age of 53. Why would he have drunk a glass of unboiled water (as his family told posterity), knowing that there was a cholera epidemic in St Petersburg? And why does the cholera story not ring true? Could it have been a cover-up for suicide, or even murder? This is the denouement of Anthony Holden's biography. Holden sees the composer's death as the logical climax to his tortured life as a promiscuous homosexual. It is a grim irony, he argues, that the same torments which bequeathed us so much great music also brought Tchaikovsky's life to a premature close.

Written for the layman, this new biography of the world's most popular composer contains previously unrevealed material gathered from Russian files about his probable suicide at the age of 53 after being threatened with the exposure of his homosexuality. of photos.
5.0 von 5 Sternen Biography That Reads Like a Thriller
Many kudos to Mr. Holden for this spectacular effort! This is what biography is to be! A careful reconstruction of a life, with logical extrapolation of missing points and a compelling analysis of historical inconsistencies in this unique figure. I especially appreciated the author's relative absence from the narrative (i.e., he was not telling us constantly how he felt about the facts of the biography). Gratefully, he did not editorialize about the biographies central issue: Tchaikovsky's homosexuality. The issue too often derails serious historical research, either to condemn or to convert to the cause. A sheer delight of a read.

5.0 von 5 Sternen Wonderful story telling
"The notion that one day people will try to probe into the private world of my thoughts and feelings...is very said and unpleasant." So said Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, one of the most famous composers of all time, in 1880. Fortunately for Tchaikovsky fans of today, Anthony Holden has done just that and has done it well. Tchaikovsky: A Biography (Random House, 1996) provides a laymen's view of the turbulent life of the ill-fated composer, approaching both the music and the man equally. Holden's analyses of prominent works do not, as most might fear, rely heavily on knowledge of musical theory, but stem mostly from events that took place in the composer's life at the time a work was written. Commentary on Tchaikovsky's personal life and anecdotal references are written humorously and with the kind of cleverness that comes with true enthusiasm for the subject. Holden uses, as much as possible, direct quotes from those who knew the composer best, working them into the text with a narrative style. The often told of and bizarre relationship that Tchaikovsky had with his long time benefactress Nadezhda von Meck, is also brought to light in great detail. Unlike many biographers, who believe that Meck withdrew financial support upon discovering the composer's homosexuality, Holden contends that Meck's assertions of financial ruin were in fact true, owing to blackmail from her son-in-law!

As with any biography of Tchaikovsky, the most intriguing moments come with the discussions of his homosexuality and his questionable death. Like a detective presenting a scenario, Holden writes the last two days of Tchaikovsky's life with the audience directly watching, "We find Tchaikovsky at the library, looking up a score..." He follows the detailed and highly questionable testimony of Tchaikovsky's brother, Modest, who was with him in the last few days of his death. On the question of death, Holden sides (tentatively) in the recently presented "court of honor" theory, which suggests that a handful of Tchaikovsky's fellow alumni gave him a three-prong ultimatum in censure for his homosexuality. Obsessively in fear of being "outed", Holden believes that the composer chose the last of the options and poisoned himself with arsenic rather than live in disgrace. Given the obvious problems with the testimony of Modest, Holden suggests that the composer's brother knew about the suicide and was covering it up for fear that the "court of honor" might turn on him (Modest was also homosexual)
In all, Anthony Holden's work is not just an excellent example of investigative history, but a wonderfully told story tarnished only by the unfortunate end of its main subject.

24.02.2019

BN0073