Product Description

Of all the great composers, none has been so dogged by myth and misunderstanding as Schubert. In this major new biography, Brian Newbould lays to rest the stereotype of the composer as a pudgy, lovelorn Bohemian scribbling tunes on the back of menus. Instead he paints a vivid and compelling portrait of a man who was compulsively dedicated to his art, a composer so prolific that he produced roughly one thousand works in an eighteen-year period.

Examining afresh the enigmas surrounding Schubert's religious outlook, his loves, his sexuality, his illness and death, Newbould offers a celebration of a unique genius, an idiosyncratic composer of an astonishing body of powerful, enduring music.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1062109 in Books
• Published on: 1999-04-12
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 465 pages

Amazon.com Review
Brian Newbould brings together the biographical data of Schubert's life with the music that he composed. The book is both readable and informative, the work of a professor of music at the University of Hull in Britain whose biographical data describes him as a composer, conductor, pianist, and lecturer. Newbould has been so bold as to finish the Unfinished Symphony and other of Schubert's uncompleted works, and he has a deep understanding of the man and his music.

From Library Journal
Among what will certainly be a flood of monographs on the life and works of Franz Schubert during this bicentennial year of his birth, this contribution is a significant event. Newbould (music, Univ. of Hull) has long been at the forefront of Schubert scholarship, having published a previous work on the composer in England and completed several of the composer's unfinished works. The subtitle of this volume tells it all: Newbould's interest is primarily in the music itself. The text is peppered throughout with musical examples, yet the analysis is in a readable, jargon-free prose that will engage scholars and nonscholars equally. Biography is not ignored, however. Newbould presents a thorough, cautious accounting of Schubert's life, dealing sensitively and soberly with such controversial issues as the composer's self-destructive behavior and his ambivalent sexuality. Highly recommended for all libraries.?Larry A. Lipkis, Moravian Coll., Bethlehem, Pa.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
For the bicentenary of Schubert's birth, Newbould delves deeply into his music, of which there are some 1,000 complete pieces and fragments. Just mentioning the important details of Schubert's life--born to a schoolteacher, attended the Stadtkonvikt for his musical training, involved in a circle of poets and artists, forwent marriage because of meager earning power, and contracted syphilis (see McKay's Franz Schubert for more)--Newbould writes primarily about Schubert the innovative, creative, speedy composer for voice, small ensembles, piano, and orchestras. Schubert's legacy of music is rich, and one can only surmise what would have come from his pen had he lived twice as long. His music is a bridge between the classicism of Mozart, Haydn, and Beethoven and the romanticism of Liszt and Brahms. Newbould presents an analysis of most of the major works, showing how Schubert matured during his 18 years of composing and helping listener and performer understand and increase their pleasure in the music. Alan Hirsch

Customer Reviews

The music, not the man
While this is an interesting book about Schubert, it discusses the music much more than the man. You get little feeling for Schubert as a person, and little understanding of his everyday life from this book. On the other hand, Newbould spends a lot of time talking about the music. But his discussions are little more than what you get in liner notes of a CD, and require that you be familiar with the music in question (or have the time to take out all your Schubert CDs and listen to everything he discusses).

I'm a big fan of Schubert's works, and hoped, in this book, to get a better understanding of who he was, why he wrote his music, what he wanted to "say" through his music, but all of that is lacking. The biographical chapters - about half the book - are short, say little more than what music Schubert composed and when, and are fully of "maybes" and "possiblys". It's almost as though this were a bio of Shakespeare (about whom little is known). I don't know if there's a dearth of information about Schubert - Newbould doesn't say so - but reading this book one can get that feeling.

Since there are no other books about Schubert that say much more, this is probably worthwhile, if you can read scores (to grasp the musical examples). But I'd say there's a need for a _real_ bio of Schubert.

Good Schubert...
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Newbould's reading of Schubert's life and art is about the best book currently available. Combine with John Reed's out of print Schubert.
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