Sunday, April 8, 2018

Wondrous Strange: the Life and Art of Glenn Gould



I had a couple of hours between rehearsals so I thought I'd grab some lunch at a local restaurant but I must have something to read while I eat.  I forgot my book back home (which is forty minutes away from where I work) so I thought I'd pop over to the local library which usually has some books to sell.  Below is what I left the library with.  How much did they all cost?  At ten cents a book, I came out a dollar poorer.  None of these are brilliant reads but they will be quick ones and I may or may not review any of them but at least they will go toward my book reading goal, which, according to Goodreads I am lagging behind by seventeen books.



 Like the yellow film on my car?  It's pollen season here.




I once tied in a piano competition because I played a Bach Toccato in a manner inspired by one of my heroes, Glenn Gould.  The judge informed me "I don't like Glenn Gould."

I love Glenn Gould.  Here is William Byrd's Sixth Pavan and Galliard played more beautifully than you will every hear it by any other pianist.  When my son graduated from high school, we played this work to his life slide show.  We also played it to my life slide show at Josh's and my wedding.  It is also the ring tone to my son when he calls me. Yes, I really, really love this song.  As played by the master.


Wondrous Strange: The Life and Art of Glenn GouldWondrous Strange: The Life and Art of Glenn Gould by Kevin Bazzana

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This is my first and so far only biography of one of my favorite pianists but I do not know how it could be improved upon.

Kevin Bazzana gives a thorough and balanced account of one of the more controversial concert pianists of the twentieth century.

Bazzana documents his subject in a variety of ways: he gives us a chronology of Gould's life, his development as an artist, his concert years and finally his recording years.

Gould was a child genius and had the good fortune to have indulgent parents with the financial resources to give him everything he required in order to cultivate his unique talents. This included changing his piano every couple years. Gould's quest for a perfect piano was a life long journey for him and he spent scads of money making sure his beloved Steinway was in impeccable working order until it met with a tragic accident (it was dropped in transit and ruined).

There has been speculation whether Gould was autistic or had Asberger's. The author does not offer any conclusion but simply presents Gould as honestly as he can with all of his idiosyncrasies. These included a largely anti-social personality, hypochondria, and many, many rituals and demands that hampered his concert career which he finally abandoned in favor of studio recording.

Love him or hate him Gould was an utterly fascinating individual but that would not matter to the world so much if he was not a truly incredible musician. Watching him sit at his low chair (it was his chair and he would sit only in it, even when the seat deteriorated away and he was sitting on the frame), reaching up to the piano (he felt this physical approach determined the exact sort of sound he wanted to produce).

Gould was fascinated by Arnold Schoenberg and his twelve tone compositions and he was also obsessed with Bach and other Baroque composers. His performances of the Hindemith Sonatas are as wonderful as they are unique. His performance of Bach's Goldberg Variations are legendary (and you can buy them on Amazon for a mere $100.00 - or like me download them from Spotify).

He was interesting to watch, too, as he conducted himself from his chair, as he played and sang. Yes he sang and the record technicians earned their pay trying to filter out Gould's voice on his recordings. They did not always succeed.

This was a great read and I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. If I were to find some complaint it would be that Bazzana tended to jump around on the time line. We would be discussing Gould's final years in the 1980s and then we'd be back in the 1960s.

This is, however, a minor complaint and I am glad I have gotten to know better a personally well-loved pianist.



View all my reviews

10 comments:

Mudpuddle said...

a simply splendid recording... his touch and phrasing continue to amaze me: almost lute-like sometimes... i've never read a bio of GG; actually i didn't know there was one... i'll look for this. I confess, tho, that i don't listen to music all that much. when i was young a asked my mom why she didn't play much(she was a pianist) and she said because it was too painful. it wasn't until i was a lot older that i understood what she meant.. i'm the same way: i just get too wrapped up in it to the elimination of everything else... anyway, lovely recording and excellent post... tx so much...

Brian Joseph said...

Super post Sharon.

I do not know enough about Classical or piano music to really compare Gould to others. But I do know that what I have heard from him sounds fantastic. Anything else that I know about him was from the film Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould, which I do not know if it was accurate or not. It seems like he is someone very much worth knowing about.

Of the books that you acquired I did read How to Read and Why. It was my first Howard Bloom and I thought it was excellent.

Sharon Wilfong said...

Hi Mudpuddle! Isn't it lovely? That's an interesting perspective from your mother. I confess I don't quite understand what she means. I do like silence and spend a lot of time in peace and quiet without the radio or TV, but I also like to listen to music, not just anything and it is never background music, so it has to be when I can focus on it.

I'm glad you enjoyed my post and music. Have a wonderful week.

Sharon Wilfong said...

Hi Brian. I have the film. I watched it and I thought many things were interesting, although I do not know how well the actor captured Gould's personality. He certainly doesn't look anything like him. I was disappointed because I thought I was getting a documentary about Gould with actual footage.

You and other bloggers have commented on Bloom and I have never read him so I thought I would give him a try.

Have a great week!

RTD said...

Three cheers for your book purchase: viva la Bloom,

Sharon Wilfong said...

Thanks, R.T. You mentioned him often enough and now I finally have my own copy. I'll review it after I read it. Have a great week.

Debbie Nolan said...

Sharon - this was so interesting. I love the touch that Gould plays this particular piece. I can see why you love it. The book sounds great as well. Will be looking for this biography at the library. Your stack of books for a $1.00 had to be the best buy. Hope you have a super weekend.

Sharon Wilfong said...

Hi Debbie. I'm lad you enjoyed the piece. It is so beautiful I could listen to it over and over. I hope you find the biography. It is considered to be the best one out there. Have a blessed weekend!

Anonymous said...

I remember commenting on this quite a while ago and the next post, too. Just happened to check and discovered my comments aren't getting through--oh well, nothing new, I guess, in this internet-filled world. Great deal on the book stack!

Sharon Wilfong said...

HI Marcia! Sorry about your comments not getting through. I'll try to check the waiting moderation thingie in my design. I'm not very computer savvy, unfortunately.

I need my husband to check. I wonder how many other comments aren't getting through.

Take care!