This collection of writings by Gunther Schuller--the first composer to be awarded the Elise L. Stoeger Composer's Chair of the Chamber Society of Lincoln Center--provides a marvelous introduction to the man and his extraordinary range of musical experience, taste, and learning. In Part I, "Jazz and the Third Stream," Schuller offers his reflections on jazz, insightful pieces on such figures as Duke Ellington, Cecil Taylor, and Sonny Rollins, and several essays on "the third stream," the genre where jazz and classical music intersect. Part II, "Music Performance and Contemporary Music," includes articles on the art of conducting, the future of opera, the question of a new classicism, and Schuller's own thoughts on his controversial opera The Visitation. The final section, "Music Aesthetics and Education," presents Schuller's reflections on such matters as form, structure, and symbol in music; the need for broadening the audience for quality music; and his vision of the ideal conservatory and the total musician.
Author(s): Gunther Schuller
Edition: Trade
Year: 1989
Language: English
Pages: 336
Contents......Page 12
I. JAZZ AND THE THIRD STREAM......Page 14
1. Jazz......Page 16
2. The Future of Form in Jazz......Page 31
3. What Makes Jazz Jazz?......Page 39
4. James Reese Europe......Page 50
5. The Orchestrator's Challenge......Page 55
6. Happy Feet: A Tribute to Paul Whiteman......Page 57
7. Ellington in the Pantheon......Page 60
8. Ellington vis-à-vis the Swing Era......Page 64
9. The Case for Ellington's Music as Living Repertory......Page 73
10. Cecil Taylor: Two Early Recordings......Page 78
11. Ornette Coleman......Page 89
12. Ornette Coleman's Compositions......Page 93
13. Sonny Rollins and the Challenge of Thematic Improvisation......Page 99
14. Lee Konitz......Page 111
15. The Divine Sarah......Page 115
16. Gil Evans......Page 122
17. Alec Wilder......Page 124
18. Third Stream......Page 127
19. Third Stream Revisited......Page 132
20. The Avant-Garde and Third Stream......Page 134
II. MUSIC PERFORMANCE AND CONTEMPORARY MUSIC......Page 148
21. Composing for Orchestra......Page 150
22. American Performance and New Music......Page 167
23. Conducting Revisited......Page 175
24. The Future of Opera......Page 181
25. Toward a New Classicism?......Page 187
26. The State of American Orchestras......Page 197
27. Program Notes—Various......Page 207
28. Still More Program Notes—on Others......Page 214
29. Concerning My Opera The Visitation......Page 242
III. MUSIC AESTHETICS AND EDUCATION......Page 248
30. The Compleat Musician in the Complete Conservatory......Page 250
31. Qualitative Evaluation in the Arts......Page 260
32. The State of Our Art......Page 271
33. Form, Content, and Symbol......Page 285
34. Form and Aesthetics in Twentieth-Century Music......Page 300
B......Page 318
C......Page 319
E......Page 320
H......Page 321
L......Page 322
M......Page 323
P......Page 324
S......Page 325
T......Page 326
X......Page 327
Z......Page 328
