After a very self-important modern cat named Ludwig discovers from an old book that he strongly resembles Ludwig van Beethoven's cat, he begins to suspect that he has become possessed by the spirit of the long-dead composer.

Could he really be a direct descendant of Beethoven's cat? Wiggie, short for Ludwig, is as astonished as the rest of the Carter family when he discovers a picture of the famous composer together with his cat Ludwig. The resemblance between the cat and Wiggie himself is amazing. Is Ludwig his ancestor? Or could it be that he is the reincarnation of Ludwig? Since Beethoven was very close to his cat he begins to haunt Wiggie in his dreams. But what is it he wants him to do? Does he want Wiggie to record an unfinished composition? Does he want him to rid the house of rock music? And is Wiggies sudden longing for fish somehow related to the fact that Beethoven always fed his cat fish? Poor Wiggie not only loses sleep, he also loses weight since he refuses to eat the cat food he normally loves. Josh, the Carters' other cat and Winston, their bulldog, are no help during these haunted times. Wiggie's increasingly irrational behavior result in the Carters taking him to the Vet Clinic. And if that isn't bad enough, the veterinarian tells them there is nothing he can do. What Wiggie needs is an animal psychiatrist! A very funny story about an eccentric cat and the warm, true-to-life family whose home he disrupts.

In early 19th-century Austria the Archduke Rudolph occupied multiple roles: a noble Hapsburg by birth, a Cardinal-Archbishop by career, and a dedicated musician by avocation. A talented pianist and composer, Archduke Rudolph enjoyed the unique privilege of being Beethoven's only composition student, and in the two decades of studying with him produced a sizable and well-crafted body of music for piano, chamber ensemble, and voice. Many of the Archduke's autograph manuscripts were corrected in detail by Beethoven, giving us fascinating insights into Beethoven's thinking on the structure and syntax of music. This comprehensive book surveys Archduke Rudolph's life and career in music, which also encompasses his significant role as music patron and collector. It is based on a study of primary sources, principally the autograph manuscripts of his compositions and sketches, and most importantly, Beethoven's own autographs-including sketches, corrections on the Rudolph manuscripts, and a four-measure theme composed expressly for Rudolph's use-produced here, in facsimile, for the first time. Other primary sources examined include the Archduke's correspondence with Beethoven and members of the Imperial household, the catalogues of Rudolph's music collection, and documents related to his ecclesiastical career. The thematic catalogue of Archduke Rudolph's music lists all of his finished and unfinished works in chronological order, as well as sketches, copies, and transcriptions. Fifty illustrations and 190 musical examples are also provided.

Luddy, short for Ludwig van Beethoven, is a pure white, blue-eyed cat. And like his famous namesake, he is deaf. Aimed at children in grades three to six, Luddy teaches kids that his deafness is genetic. He tells about his adventures with his adopted family, takes us with him on a Stay-cation, and introduces his foster-brother, Billy Bingo, a cat with problems to whom Luddy gives unconditional love. Finally, Luddy introduces us to some very good friends who are special needs animals. Kids can learn a lot from Luddy! This is the author’s first children’s book and the first of a series. In subsequent books, Luddy talks about cursive writing, Braille and ASL, plus teaches a little Latin. (A dead language? Luddy doesn't think so.) Luddy loves to travel, and you may find Luddy has visited the city where you live.

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Essays by the noted authority on nineteenth-century music, the topics ranging from Beethoven and Schubert to comic opera to Scriabin and Janácek. In Beethoven's Century: Essays on Composers and Themes, world-renowned musicologist Hugh Macdonald draws together many of his richest essays on music from Beethoven's time into the early twentieth century. The essays are here revised and updated, and some are printed in English for the first time. Beethoven's Century addresses perennial questions of what music meant to the composer and his audiences, how it was intended to be played, andhow today's audiences can usefully approach it. Opening with a revealing analysis of Beethoven's not always generous regard for his listeners, the essays probe aspects of Schubert's musical personality, the brief friendshipbetween Berlioz and Schumann, Liszt's abilities as a conductor, and Viennese views of Wagner as expressed by Hugo Wolf. Essays on comic opera and trends in French opera libretti in the late nineteenth century reflect the author's long-standing sympathy for French music, and strikingly eccentric personalities in the world of music, such as Paganini, Alkan, Skryabin, and Janácek, are brought to life. Beethoven's Century concludes with a wrylook at some startling developments in early twentieth-century music that have often been overlooked. Hugh Macdonald has taught music at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, and Glasgow, and since 1987 has been Avis H. Blewett Distinguished Professor of Music at Washington University, St. Louis. He has written books on Skryabin and Berlioz, and is a regular pre-concert speaker for the Boston and St. Louis Symphony Orchestras.

"I am avalanche since I am big and white and knock things over and go whoooosh a lot and cover a lot of ground with much roaring and gusto and wheeling and spinning. By definition: a mountain getting its rocks off." (Ivan Gabriel Rehorek aka Avalanche)The Beat and Romantic traditions live on in the poetry of Ivan Rehorek (aka Avalanche), a veteran performer whose saxophone accompanied throaty-voiced delivery quickly galvanized Adelaide South Australia's poetryscene. Genuinely engaging, Avalanche quickly found a position on the committee of Adelaide's poetry establishment - Friendly Street - co-editing that year'santhology, his "cats" series of poems being especial favourites of both the city's poetry establishment and the burgeoning underground scene.In quick time he assembled his first book of verse, edited by veteran poet Dr. Graham Rowlands. Not content with the mainstream, "Avalanche" continued toperform on the underground circuit, contributing the cover art to transgender author Teri-Louise Kelly's ARTS-SA sponsored spoken word CD 'Love in Words andFeet'. For his debut work, A Rare and Vacant Hour, Rehorek assembled a collection of popular performance pieces and never before seen works assembled during his years as a beat club performer.