From Britten’s Children to Elgar’s Earnings


Book publisher’s new title lists are a far more accurate reflection of the classical music zeitgeist than social media chatter. Notable titles in Boydell & Brewer’s 2013 list include Richard Wagner’s Women by Eva Rieger, and Elgar’s Earnings by John Drysdale. The latter title is particularly topical as it “investigates whether Elgar's complaints about a lack of money can be justified by the facts”. In a truly accurate reflection of the musical zeitgeist the book’s blurb tells us that author John Drysdale is a musicologist and former investement banker, and that its retail price is $90/£50.

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Comments

Philip Amos said…
People for whom the English title of Eva Rieger's work brings to mind Jane Glover's Mozart's Women and a light musical read over Christmas will be disappointed and, I devoutly hope, a touch upset with Boydell and Brewer. Rieger is a distinguished academic musicologist, and the German title of her book translates along the lines of 'Ever-radiant Love, Death Laughing: Richard Wagner's Image of the Woman in his Music'. A publisher that turns that into 'Wagner's Women' is thinking more about money than Drysdale did when he was an investment banker.
10:12 am
Pliable said…
Perhaps the title of Eva Rieger's book is a victim of our sound bite culture?
10:24 am
Philip Amos said…
Possibly so, Bob, and your suggestion sent my mind to a tangential question: Is it possible to have a sound-bite culture in German? I rather think not.
11:18 am
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