Tippett on Music [Paperback]

This major new collection combines essays and articles from Tippett's two earlier books--Moving into AquariusandMusic of the Angelswith a substantial amount of new material to distill the opinions and experiences of one of the century's most celebrated composers. Published to coincide with the composer's 90th birthday, the pieces focus particularly on the work of other twentieth-century composers as well as Tippett's own, from his early successA Child of Our Time, to the recent operaNew Yearand the orchestral pieceThe Rose Lake. Other essays deal with aesthetics, the role of the artist in society, and interpretation and performance, making the book of compelling interest not only to students and scholars, but to performers, conductors, and opera directors as well.

Academics will find a lot of their work already packaged for them here. A newly-written chapter on the later operas typically abounds in information on Tippett's sources and should keep programme-note writers supplied for years. --Financial Times

[Bowen] can be remarkably perceptive....An essential text. --The Musical Times