Unheard Of
Memoirs of a Canadian Composer
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Wilfrid Laurier University Press
Published:28th Feb '12
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Canadian composer John Beckwith recounts his early days in Victoria, his studies in Toronto with Alberto Guerrero, his first compositions, and his later studies in Paris with the renowned Nadia Boulanger, of whom he offers a comprehensive personal view. In the memoir's central chapters Beckwith describes his activities as a writer, university teacher, scholar, and administrator. Then, turning to his creative output, he considers his compositions for instrumental music, his four operas, choral music, and music for voice. A final chapter touches on his personal and family life and his travel adventures.
For over sixty years John Beckwith has participated in national musical initiatives in music education, promotion, and publishing. He has worked closely with performing groups such as the Orford Quartet and the Canadian Brass and conductors such as Elmer Iseler and Georg Tintner. A former reviewer for the Toronto Star and a CBC script writer and programmer in the 1950s and '60s, he later produced many articles and books on musical topics. Acting under Robert Gill and Dora Mavor Moore in student days and married for twenty years to actor/director Pamela Terry, he witnessed first-hand the growth of Toronto theatre. He has collaborated with the writers Jay Macpherson, Margaret Atwood, Dennis Lee, and bpNichol, and teamed repeatedly with James Reaney, a close friend. His life story is a slice of Canadian cultural history.
``The focus of Unheard Of is clearly Beckwith's own life and career. He documents both with a keen eye for detail and strong sense of wit. What makes the book truly fascinating is the rich insight Beckwith provides into the musical culture of his time. Beckwith was part of the generation that saw the establishmnet of composition in Canada as a legitimate professional endeavour and the widespread acceptance and appreciation of the arts in Canada. By writing of his own expereinces, Beckwith reveals much about a crucial time in which Canadian music achieved maturity and recognition.... Beckwith is an engaging writer with a gift for narrative. His memoirs are informative and entertaining while also addressing one of the main preoccupations throughout his career, namely, the relative obscurity of Canadian music and the difficulties in bringing it to a wider audience both within Canada and abroad. In summarizing the honours that have been bestowed upon him in recent years, Beckwith allows that the book's title, âunheard of," may be an exaggeration. Still, while it is true that Beckwith has achieved a level of recognition and respect that very few other Canadian composers can claim, the issue of the music remains. As Beckwith notes, âfrom being heard, the pieces, with only a few exceptions, become soon unheard of, and unheard" (p. 303). Beckwith, in his memoirs, asks to be heard. He gives us good reason to listen.'' -- J. Drew Stephen, University of Texas at San Antonio -- Fontes Artis Musicae, 61/1
``With clarity, grace, and wit, Beckwith chronicles the astounding breadth and passion of his life as a composer, performer, writer, historian, journalist, teacher, and administrator. His collaborations, friendships, and tiffs with colleagues; his private life in both sweetness and sorrow; the genesis of his unique musical language: all are recounted with unaffected candour. What remains is his enthusiasm and sense of adventure as one of Canada's musical pioneers.'' -- James Rolfe, composer, past president, Canadian League of Composers
ISBN: 9781554583584
Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 25mm
Weight: 714g
408 pages