A study of the life and works of Erik Chisholm, one of the most influential figures in twentieth-century Scottish music.
Erik Chisholm was the pre-eminent composer and musician in Scottish classical music in the first half of the twentieth century. As Sir Charles Mackerras put it, ‘Chisholm was a musician of rare capabilities. He was a pianist and organist, a conductor, a composer, a lecturer on music, an entrepreneur and administrator, and to all these he brought a unique blend of originality, flair and energy.’ As well as his life in Glasgow, Chisholm travelled to the Far East, notably Singapore, for the Entertainments and National Service Association during the Second World War, and subsequently became Professor of Music at the University of Cape Town, where he greatly developed the study and performance of music. He conducted numerous first British performances, including Berlioz’s
The Trojans in 1935 and Bartok’s
Bluebeard’s Castle in 1957. Accounts of the visits to Glasgow by such composers as Bartók, Casella, Hindemith et al are being presented here.
Erik Chisholm. Scottish Modernist will be of general interest to scholars and students of twentieth-century music. In particular, those interested in the development of music, opera and ballet in Scotland, Scottish literature and cultural history will find this book of much value. It will also be of interest to those studying the music of Bartók, Sorabji, Hindemith, Walton, Bax, Casella, and Shostakovich whom Chisholm knew personally and brought to Scotland.
Tabela de Conteúdo
Foreword by Sir Charles Mackerras
Glasgow, Kailyard or Coal Yard?
The Active Society – Bringing the Heroes of Modernism to Glasgow
Chisholm’s Scottish Inheritance
Interlude: The Love of Sorabji
A Trojan Horse in Glasgow – Berlioz, Mozart and Gluck
The Ballet and the Baton as Weapons of War
Centrepiece: Pictures from Dante and Night Song of the Bards – A Journey fr om West to East
From Italy to India and Singapore
Under Table Mountain
On Tour in the USA and Europe
Soviet Ambassador – Chisholm Behind the Iron Curtain
Interlude: The Love of Janacek
Chasing a Restless Muse – The Heart’s Betrayal
Envoi
Appendix I: The Active Society for the Propagation of Contemporary Music
Appendix II: Patrick Macdonald Sources for Chisholm’s Piano Works
Select Bibliography
Discography
Selected Compositions