The Music of Hugh Wood provides the first ever in-depth study of this well-known, yet only briefly documented composer. Over the years, Wood (b. 1932) has produced a sizeable oeuvre that explores the established genres of symphony, concerto, and quartet on the one hand, and songs and choruses on the other. Underpinned by an awareness of recent philosophical, theoretical and analytical concepts, Dr Edward Venn highlights both the technical basis of Wood's music and the expressive force of his work. In doing so, a picture emerges of Wood as an artist of considerable merit and power. The eclectic blend of national and international influences in the music of Hugh Wood combine to create an individual and distinctive musical language all his own. The book provides an overview of Wood's style, focussing on his engagement with modernism and the melodic, rhythmic, harmonic and formal characteristics of his musical language. From here a more detailed consideration of Wood's development as a composer is advanced, in which his technical development is illustrated alongside an exploration of various aspects of musical meaning embodied in his works. In the process, numerous analytical strategies ranging from formalist to narrative structures are utilized, demonstrating the fecundity and expressivity of Wood's music.

A selection of the writings of Hugh Wood - composer, teacher and writer - with eight illustrations by William Scott. Ever since his early days, Hugh Wood has pursued a triple career as composer, teacher and writer: he has added to the repertory of orchestral, chamber and vocal music, he has lectured at the Universities of Glasgow, Liverpool andCambridge, and he has been involved in an endless round of articles, reviews and broadcasts. What these activities have in common is a keen interest in the highways and byways of European culture, a fastidious style, and a determination to scotch pretence wherever it appears. But behind all this lies another concern, an insatiable quest for knowledge of the territory composers stake out for themselves. This selection of writings is in three parts andshows three aspects to the quest. The first addresses his own experience; the second maps out the historical and cultural context for a number of orchestral and chamber works in a set of concert essays; and the third draws together several composer-vignettes from his recent reviews for the Times Literary Supplement. The book marks his seventy-fifth birthday and includes eight works by the British artist, William Scott.

Hans Keller's text and Milein Cosman's vibrant illustrations combine to produce a unique and enlightening book on Stravinsky. Stravinsky the Music-Maker is the third incarnation of a book that has been greeted with superlatives on each previous appearance. Hans Keller and Milein Cosman collaborated down the decades of their married life, Keller'spen analysing music, Cosman's catching its makers at work. Stravinsky was a source of fascination for them both, and their Stravinsky at Rehearsal appeared in 1962, to be expanded, two decades later, as Stravinsky Seen and Heard. Stravinsky the Music-Maker offers the most generous compilation of their work yet: it includes Keller's complete articles on Stravinsky, written between 1954 and 1980, and augments Cosman's celebrated prints and drawings with a number not previously published. The introduction, by the composer Hugh Wood, sites the Keller-Cosman partnership in the framework of the British musical life they enriched. HANS KELLER (1919-85) fled Austria in1938 and became a commanding critical voice in British music journalism and on the BBC from the end of the war until his death. He is the author of numerous books, many illustrated by his wife Milein Cosman, including Criticism (Faber), The Great Haydn String Quartets (Dent), Essays on Music (CUP), Jerusalem Diary, Film Music and Beyond and Music and Psychology (all Plumbago). A critic of insight and integrity throughout his life, he remains a powerful influence to this day.

(Harp). Feelin' groovy? Sylvia Woods' spiffy collection of 40 songs from the 1960s will inspire you to put on your embroidered bell-bottoms and wear some flowers in your hair. Some of the pieces can be played by beginning harp players, but most are at advanced beginner to intermediate levels. Fingerings, lyrics and chord symbols are included. Pieces are in C or sharp keys, and can be played on either lever or pedal harp. About half of the songs do not have any lever changes within the pieces. 96 pages, spiral-bound. Includes TV and movie themes, and music by: Burt Bacharach and Hal David; Bob Dylan; Tony Hatch; Justin Hayward; Mick Jagger and Keith Richards; Gerard Marsden; John Phillips; Nino Rota; John Sebastian; Paul Simon; Jerry Jeff Walker; Brian Wilson; and more. Includes songs made popular by: The Animals; The Association; The Beach Boys; Jimmy Clanton; Petula Clark; Judy Collins; Donovan; Bob Dylan; The Fifth Dimension; Jerry and the Pacemakers; The Lovin' Spoonful; Joni Mitchell; The Moody Blues; The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band; Peter, Paul and Mary; Elvis Presley; The Rolling Stones; Simon and Garfunkel; The Turtles; Dionn Warwick; The Youngbloods; and others. Playable on lever harps and pedal harps.

SCENES FROM COMUS is the new sequence of poems from Britain's most original and ferocious modern prophet, Geoffrey Hill. In the words of Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, Hill remains for me the supreme voice of the last few decades The recent work, telegraphic, angry and unconsoled, at once assertive and self-dispossessing, is extraordinary'

This book teaches the student step by step how to play the harp. Each of the 12 lessons includes instructions, exercises, and folk and classical pieces using the new skills and techniques taught in the lesson. --from publisher description.

Essays and memoirs by and about one of Britain's leading symphonists. A lively collection by contributions from Roger Scruton, Judith Weir, John McCabe, Arnold Whittall, Hugh Wood and many others.