The life and music of John Field, 1782-1837 : creator of the nocturne / Patrick Piggott.

Author/creator Piggott, Patrick
Format Book
Publication InfoBerkeley : University of California Press, 1973.
Descriptionxvi, 287 pages : illustrations, portraits, plates, music, facsimiles ; 26 cm
Subjects
Field, John, 1782-1837.

Contents A child prodigy in Dublin -- In London with Clementi -- Arrival in Russia -- Lionised by St. Petersburg society -- Moscow and marriage -- A liaison in St. Petersburg -- Moscow: the unproductive years, 1823-31 -- The return to London -- A season in Paris -- A concert tour ends in disaster -- Death in Moscow -- Field as pianist and teacher -- Nocturnes -- Concertos -- Works for piano with string quartet -- Sonatas -- Works in variation form -- Works in rondo form -- Pieces for four hands -- Miscellaneous pieces -- Appendices. Zwei Gesane ; Subscribers to the cost of Field's tombstone.
Abstract Apart from the fact that John Field invented the nocturne, very little has been known about the composer and his strange and colorful life. Although is compositions were once widely popular, they are now neglected and misunderstood and even his beautiful nocturnes are seldom played. The author makes the first important reassessment of the composer's life and music, following Field's career from his childhood as an infant prodigy in Dublin and then as Clementi's pupil in London, through his brilliantly successfully years as the favorite of St. Petersburg and Moscow society, the vicissitudes of his love life, his final appearance in London and Paris, his unhappy years of wandering through Europe, to his eventual return to Moscow where he died in 1837. The nature of Field's greatness as a pianist is extensively discussed and the accounts of his teaching and playing methods are based on the numerous and detailed impressions of the composer's pupils and friends. All Field's known compositions are fully considered, including several works recently discovered by the author. Together with the many illustrations and music examples, this is a brilliant study of a composer whose music is at last put into perspective.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 271-275) and index.
LCCN 72097741
ISBN0520024125

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Closed Stacks - Ask at Circulation Desk ML410.F445 P5 1973B ✔ Available Place Hold