Author Description

The name of Pablo Casals strikes a magic response in the minds of lovers of serious music all over the world, for Casals' distinguished reputation both as an outstanding conductor and as a virtuoso performer upon the 'cello is second to none. For years tourists, musicians and students of all ages have flocked from all countries to the small town of Prades in the southwestern corner of France, just across the border from Casals' native Spain from which he has voluntarily exiled himself, to hear this man of genius conduct perhaps the greatest of the world's festivals of music. One of the most pleasing aspects of Casals' greatness is his unflagging devotion to the world of music. His opinions and analyzes of music and the men who made it are as discriminating and exacting as his own performances. This book, neither biography nor autobiography, is a series of recorded discussions in which J. Ma. Corredor, Casals' life-long friend, has drawn the master out so that in his own words we have a wonderful wealth of recollections and opinions impossible to obtain in any other way. Open this book anywhere, run your eye over the page until you have found a name you recognize, and then read the fascinating discussion which follows: here is the voice of a true genius speaking his mind on an amazing variety of subjects. In these pages you will find memories of his Catalan childhood, the awakening of the musical spirit, the years of student apprenticeship, travels, concerts, friends, the life of a conductor, chapters on music of yesterday and today, on the technique of interpretation, why Casals imposed exile upon himself, the Prades festivals and how they came about, and finally, Casals at work today. Nearly all of the great names of music and many related fields appear for discussion: Ravel, Faure, Kreisler, Granados, Bach, Beethoven, Schumann, Joachim, Molnar, Bruno Walter, Mozart, Busoni, Richard Strauss, Stravinsky, and many others. At the end of the book there is a section of