Music Quickens Time
by Daniel Barenboim
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Book Summary Information
Author: Daniel BarenboimEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-11-17
ISBN: 1844672875
Number of pages: 184
Publisher: Verso
Book Reviews of Music Quickens Time
Book Review: A meandering stream of consciousness
Summary: 2 Stars
After seeing an interview with Barenboim on "Charlie Rose" I rushed to purchase this book, with the hope that the author succinctly wove the fibers of music through life and the world, deftly illustrating connections which ultimately prove the value of music not only aesthetically but also pragmatically.
I was disappointed. From the first paragraphs Barenboim laid out the problematic issues the rest of the book would include. Chapter titles are at best not specific and at worst misleading and confusing. The weaving of music into society looks more like a philosophical view of music, (somewhat) supported by the great thinkers of the past, followed by the briefest of mention tying the issue to the modern world. It appears that the topic of weaving together music and the world was given to the author after the book was written, forcing Barenboim to angerly insert paragraphs at whim. Also, when discussing Spinoza, of whom the author claims to be a huge far, he proposes furthering the philosophers' ideas into intelligence and other matters. The way in which Barenboim writes this section is trite and makes me think of Dr. Phil adding his two-cents to William James or James Dobson to Martin Luther.
The central chapter of this book, "The Orchestra," includes an account of DB's work with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, a group of Israeli and Palestinian musicians which meet to perform works of Western classical music together, even in dangerous parts of the world. This section is heart felt and effectively written, leading the reader to understand how passionate DB is about his revolutionary undertaking.
Soon after, though, the real book ends and part begins, entitled "Variations." This is simply a collection of essays, interviews, and reflections on music and life. While there are interesting yet far from original ideas presented in this collection of previously released material, to end the book in this way leads me to believe his page quota had not been met and rather than expand the ideas of relating music to culture, life, and the world we live in, which he easily could have done, Barenboim opted to simply republish, republish, republish.
While writing a scholarly volume on the real-world importance of music is a noble and I think quite needed addition to our shelves, Barenboim comes up short in "Music Quickens Time." Organization of material into subtitled sections, expanded ideas on the correlation between music and culture, and a stronger grasp of the scientific and philosophical issues presented could have made this work more effective and enjoyable to read. The way it reads now, DB's book more appropriately should be entitled "Reading this makes time stand still."
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