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sai-national.org • Summer 2024 23 QUARTET: HOW FOUR WOMEN CHANGED THE MUSICAL WORLD By Leah Broad Faber & Faber, 2023 In Quartet, Leah Broad recalls the lives of four British women composers, the majority of whom are unfamiliar to most of us. The one composer who has remained in the public consciousness is Ethel Smyth (1858-1944), whose legacy is partially informed by her work as a suffragette. The other three, Rebecca Clarke (1886-1979), Dorothy Howell (1898-1982), and Doreen Carwithen (1922-2003), were celebrated during their lifetimes, but have unfortunately not left a lasting imprint. Quartet is generally structured chronologically, beginning with an account of the early life and musical education of Ethel Smyth. Eventually, Rebecca Clarke is introduced and her progression to success as a professional violist and composer is described. Later, Dorothy Howell and her beginnings as a concert pianist and forays into composition are revealed. Finally, the reader meets Doreen Carwithen, who initially thrived as a composer of film music, but eventually sublimated her own career to promote and support that of her tutor and, later, husband, composer William Alwyn. Broad chooses not to provide a discrete study of each composer, but instead deals with all of them simultaneously, providing an expansive view of how their lives intersected and responded to what was happening in the world around them. This might not be every reader's favorite organizational method, particularly because Broad chooses to identify individuals primarily by first name, leading to some confusion, but it makes sense for the kind of narrative she has chosen to present. Personal relationships with both family members and lovers are dealt with in detail, as in the cases of each woman, these had a profound effect on their musical lives. Descriptions of the composers' works are not over-burdened with detailed musical analysis, but are summarized effectively, making the book accessible to a more general audience. Broad also illuminates how the music of each composer was received. Initially lauded during their lifetimes, Smyth, Clarke, and Howell were even featured on a BBC radio broadcast devoted to women composers, and were the only women to be mentioned in a 1925 British guide to contemporary composers. However, they all, with the exception of Smyth, disappeared from concert programs after their deaths. With the 21 st century interest in reviving the music of women composers, the four discussed here are regaining attention, and Leah Broad's research encourages this. That Broad devotes more pages to Smyth is understandable, given her large compositional output and the continuing influence found in her well-documented life. However, even though knowledge about the other three women is not as complete, Broad makes a good start toward rectifying that and restoring their place in musical history. Anyone who wants to discover more about talented but neglected composers will be enlightened upon finishing this book! SAMUEL BARBER: HIS LIFE & LEGACY By Howard Pollack University of Illinois Press, 2023 S amuel Barber (1910-1981) was one of the most significant American composers of the 20 th century. Much lauded, he was the winner of two Pulitzer Prizes, the Rome Prize, and several other awards for his compositions. His work has also become a standard in the American musical canon. A new biography by Howard Pollack offers not only an account of Barber's life, but an in-depth look at his musical compositions. Pollack's book is the product of careful and thorough scholarship. He primarily adopts a chronological approach, interspersing chapters about Barber's life with chapters devoted to individual compositions. He begins the book by describing the composer's early musical education and performances. By the age of 10, Barber was already active as an accompanist and performer on the piano, and studied in the preparatory division of Philadelphia's Curtis Institute the last two years he was in high school. After high school, he continued his studies at Curtis until he was 23, triple majoring in composition, piano, and voice. Pollack continues his recounting of Barber's experiences and achievements through the different phases of his life. He alternates chapters focusing on Barber's career and work with ones that deal more with his personal relationships, including his long- term partnership with Gian Carlo Menotti and friendship with Mary Curtis Bok Zimbalist, his life-long supporter, whose financial sponsorship enabled many of his accomplishments. The book also contains chapters that delve into musical analysis of many of Barber's major works, including his Adagio for Strings, Knoxville: Summer of 1915, his violin, cello, and piano concertos, and his opera Antony and Cleopatra. These are analyzed in the context of the currents in American musical culture in general, as well as in Barber's life, and Pollack does an excellent job of evaluating how Barber's music was viewed by the public and what led him to the position he now occupies as one of this country's most significant composers. At almost 700 pages, Samuel Barber: His Life and Legacy is not a quick read, but those who make it to the end are rewarded by Pollack's impeccable research and documentation, and come away with a true understanding of an important figure in American music. Kathi Bower Peterson is a graduate of Indiana University, where she majored in music history and oboe, and was a member of Iota Epsilon chapter. She also has an MM (in musicology) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MLIS from San Jose State University. She has been the librarian at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in La Jolla, California since 1997 and currently serves as the treasurer of the San Diego County Alumnae Chapter, as well as the Coordinator of Scholarships for SAI Philanthropies, Inc. Reviews

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