Ludwig Van Beethoven: Bicentennial Edition 1770-1970 C/3/1/11

Fine unread condition oversized (folio, 12 1/2 inches tall) and heavy textured faux leather maroon boards with a color illustrated 3 1/2 inch by 3 1/2 inch color illustrated front cover pastedown, gold front cover lettering, and gold spine lettering. Includes List of Contributors; Preface; Notes; Transcriptions of Beethoven's Autographs; Selected Bibliography; Index of Names; Index of Illustrations; List of Beethoven's Compositions and Discography. Profusely illustrated with both black-and-white photographs, color photographs, black-and-white drawings, color drawings and color paintings. "From Beethoven's own time down to the present, his life and work have provided material for many diverse interpretations, ranging from sober scholarly accounts to fictional representations in poetry, novels and films. Real knowledge of the man and his music, however, must be based on firsthand evidence, which is available in the form of numerous surviving documents: his own letters and memoranda, his original music manuscripts and sketches, his conversation books, the reports of his contemporaries, and the comments made by music critics of his time. All these sources have been used to provide, in the present book, a factual and authoritative introduction to each major field of Beethoven's creative activity: the Symphonies and other orchestral works, the chamber and piano music, the Masses, the music for the stage and the songs. All the contributors to this book are musicologists closely connected with the Beethoven-Archiv, and this has assured the necessary uniformity of approach, even though each of the contributors expressed himself in his own way. All quotations have been translated from the original documents or, where these no longer exist, from early copies or printed versions. Even in translation the original phrasing has the special fascination of immediacy; still more important is textual accuracy, and in quoting extracts from the composer's letters the opportunity has been taken to correct for the first time certain misreadings, which have persisted in all printed editions up to this time. In selecting the illustrations, the aim has been to create the appropriate atmosphere for each chapter. The plates have been reproduced in large size in order to bring out all the details visible in the original paintings and drawings. As a result, however, the number of illustrations had to be restricted and, from more than one thousand available, only the most important were chosen. Some of the illustrations included her have hitherto remained unknown. This book has been written for all those who admire Beethoven. The music lover will find a great deal of information, the musicologist may well come across some facts of which he had not been aware. The text has no footnotes or references to literature; the sources of all quotations are given in full at the end of the book and the page numbers in the notes refer to the German editions cited in the bibliography. The indexes, compiled by Hans-Werner Kuthen, will enable the reader to find references to particual persons, works and illustrations." - excerpt from the Preface by Joseph Schmidt-Gorg and Hans Schmidt, Bonn, August 1969.