Music in art : through the ages / Tom Phillips.

Author/creator Phillips, Tom
Format Book
Publication InfoMunich ; New York, NY : Prestel, ©1997.
Description128 pages : color illustrations ; 29 cm
Subjects
Music in art.
Musical instruments in art.
Musical instruments--Pictorial works.

Contents Fifty encounters between art and music from the Cyclades to Endenich. The bard and his ancient gods -- The dark myths of music -- Music for a watchmaker -- Music invents a patron saint -- Model sisters of the piano -- The body of the instrument -- Schubert with variations -- A muse between muses -- How to paint a symphony -- The talented Linleys -- Buried sounds of China -- Portrait of a heroine -- The vanity in the case -- Eight hands/four stands -- A marriage of music and art -- A search for the true lyre -- A bankrupt of substance -- The rapturous tambourine -- Music and movement -- The Wagnerites of Provence -- Signs of musical life -- Genius paints genius -- A string struck long ago -- The Ring & the comic book -- The quest for a painted voice -- The geometer of the dance -- Early illuminated stars -- A musician prepares -- Music's hidden lessons -- The bassoon's moment of glory -- The anatomy of the violin -- The body language of inspiration -- Music without instruments -- Two kinds of realism -- Music to soothe or seduce -- Graphics of degeneracy -- The mind's construction -- The devil's best tunes -- One more string to his bow -- Music from another room -- Apotheosis of the concert grand -- Playing in difficult times -- Practise makes perfect -- The instruments of joy -- Venus and her musicians -- The psychopathology of instruments -- Music en famille -- The rest is silence -- Listening to Beethoven -- The sound in my life.
Abstract Art loves music: from the tombs of Ancient Egypt to the late 20th century, painting and sculpture have played their variations on musical themes. The author examines masterpieces from the history of the visual arts that have been inspired by music. In a series of colourful images we meet the music makers--the men and women who, in the act of playing and listening to music, have provided rich subject matter for artists throughout the centuries. The long affair between these arts had its passionate moments. The orchestral angels of the Renaissance and the seraphic choristers of the Baroque yield to the domestic music making of the masters of the Dutch interior. The pastoral concerts of Venetian and French artists of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries give way to the Impressionists and the still lifes and soloists of Cubism. Finally, the musical abstractions of Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky lead to the often ironic or iconoclastic references to music in the experimental art of the end of this century. The author seeks out these colourful meetings between the sister arts and spins an intriguing web of anecdote and interpretation to link them through the ages. As an artist, he understands how pictures are made and as a writer he can convey this understanding with humour and clarity. Since he is also a composer in his own right his insights have the added value of musical authenticity as well as artistic authority. Each of the fifty short essays focuses on a particular work of art or contrasts two or more approaches to a similar theme. A diverse range of artists is featured, including Rembrandt, Leonardo, Veronese, Titian, Caravaggio, Renoir, Van Gogh, Matisse and Picasso. We are introduced to composers who are painters, and painters who are accomplished musicians, and learn how their thoughts can often provide the key to understanding musical and artistic styles.
General noteMuch of the present work has been adapted from a series of articles appearing initially in the BBC music magazine.
General noteIncludes index.
LCCN 98186539
ISBN3791318640 (alk. paper)

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Music Stacks ML85 .P45 1997 ✔ Available Place Hold