Two rhapsodies in the melodramatic gypsy mode by the great Romanian violinist and composer. The better-known "Rhapsody No. 1" is tuneful and wild; "Rhapsody No. 2" is quieter, darker, more sentimental.

Viennese composer Julius Bürger (also named Burger (1897-1995)) intersected with many important figures of 20th century western classical music. Despite success in some of the world's leading opera and broadcasting houses, Burger's true path as a composer was forever altered by the National Socialism. Burger studied with Franz Schreker in Vienna and Berlin. On Bruno Walter's recommendation, Burger later joined Artur Bodanzky as assistant at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. In 1929 he became Otto Klemperer's assistant at Berlin's Kroll Opera, returning to Vienna after Hitler's appointment as Chancellor in 1933. En route to Vienna from London in 1938, Burger and his wife foresaw what lay in store for Austria and detrained in Paris, abandoning their luggage. In 1939 Burger relocated to America and in 1949 he rejoined the staff at the Metropolitan Opera, starting a close working friendship with Dimitri Mitropoulos. His mother and four of his brothers were murdered in the Holocaust. A fifth brother's fate is still unknown.

These lively, informative essays, all related to music, are as accessible as a chatty bedside reader. A central theme is listener response, and the techniques and structures that mold it. The story starts with sound waves, the ear, and the brain. Did song come before speech? Was it a factor in evolution? Some think singing helps complete the wiring of that organic work-in-progress, the infant brain. Check out the frequency doubling that built our familiar scale. Learn where the word 'organizing' came from. Follow development of the instruments as they achieved volume, accurate intonation, range, and consistent timbre. There is criticism, but little disparagement. Any willing audience deserves respect. Musical examples come from Tin Pan Alley as often as the opera. Whether at a jazz club or the concert hall, the writer cannot hide his impatience with artists seeking to educate or intimidate. Music can be recreation or vocation. Does your instrument match your personality or some physical attribute? We instantly distinguish a bell, a piano, and a guitar; why not a clarinet, flute, or violin? What does the conductor do? A Language of Emotion embraces such matters. The relatively imprecise science of Psychology examines music working its magic. We all have favorites. Is it hype and marketing and peer influence, or do our choices make personal statements? Music, politics, religion, and social forces are twisted threads in the fabric of civilization. Nothing reflects the spirit of an era better than the works of its most creative individuals. In most cases, they blend smoothly in sequence. Monteverdi, Beethoven, and Stravinsky, to name just three, clearly got ahead of the curve and helped define the world around them.

Covers sixty of the world's most celebrated composers, from Bach, Mozart and Beethoven to Tchaikovsky, Gershwin and Bernstein. It weaves five hundred years of history and music into a rich tapestry of sound and story.

INDEPENDENT BOOKS OF THE YEAR This completely new edition of the Penguin Guide reviews the 1000 best classical albums issued and reissued over the past five decades, many of which dominate the catalogue because of their sheer excellence, irrespective of recording dates. More comprehensive than ever before, it indicates key recordings on CD, DVD and enhanced SACD, including those in surround sound. If you want the finest available version of any major classical album you will find it listed and assessed in these pages. Ranging from long-established albums to the newest releases, the latest edition represents the cream of the international repertoire and has all the information you need to select the finest classical music available.

This book is a rediscovery and examination of the thinking of Vasile Băncilă, a philosopher forbidden by the totalitarian regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu. The philosopher Lucian Blaga saw Băncilă as a threat to the spirit of the highest Romanian culture. It is estimated that Băncilă’s work extends to 32 volumes, 17 of which have been published so far. With such a significant opus, Vasile Băncilă is, indisputably, a key figure in contemporary Romanian culture, particularly in the sphere of philosophy. The book has eleven chapters and is divided into two parts. The first part deals with the hermeneutics of the author’s youthful works. His reflections on the purpose of philosophy for life are important, about the role of this discipline in the education of adolescents and students, the relationship between irony and education, his thoughts of one of the greatest Romanian poets, Mihai Eminescu, and the philosophy of Descartes and of Schopenhauer. In the second part, the book looks at Băncilă’s aim of structuring a possible system of philosophy; more precisely, an ethnic-spiritualist metaphysics which, when it was elaborated, contradicted the official ideology of the totalitarian regime. Finally, the book covers the philosopher’s work, analysing step-by-step the relation between the part and the whole (pars pro toto), as well as between existence and metaphysics, and the philosopher’s conclusions about Romanian existence.