         
The Life and Music of Brian Boydell
A new book on The Life and Music of Brian Boydell is an essential companion for scholars of the work of this important Irish composer as well as for those generally interested in twentieth-century Irish music. Edited by Gareth Cox, Axel Klein and Michael Taylor it was compiled as a festschrift in celebration of his work, life and contribution to the musical world. Brian Boydell (1917-2000) was Ireland’s leading twentieth-century composer and musicologist, primarily remembered for being a pioneer of musical modernism in Ireland during the 1940s and 1950s. His creative output equals his admirable academic achievements. He composed extensively while directing the Dublin Orchestral Players (1942-47) and the Dowland Consort (1958-70) and was Professor of Singing at the Royal Irish Academy of Music (1944-52) and Professor of Music at Trinity College Dublin (1962-82). He pioneered orchestral visits to schools and from the mid-1940s, presented broadcasts on Radio (Telefís) Éireann in music appreciation on a wide range of subjects covering familiar classics to contemporary Irish music. As a musicologist, Boydell recovered the musical history of Dublin in the eighteenth century from obscurity. In doing so, he revealed a wealth of information, including details of individual performers, concert life, the absence of serious opera, the presence of visiting or resident performers and the development of the music trade. This impressively thorough book contains a comprehensive list of Boydell’s compositions, a bibliography and discography, as well as an interview with Boydell conducted before the performance of his final orchestral work, Masai Mara, in 1989. ‘Brian Boydell’s life story is so rich and so multi-faceted that he stands out as one of the most fascinating and remarkable Irishmen of the twentieth century.’ The Life and Music of Brian Boydell, ed. Gareth Cox, Axel Klein and Michael Taylor. Irish Academic Press, November 2003.
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45.00 / US$49.50.
