An anthology of critical assaults on well-known composers and their works written by the late Nicolas Slonimsky--writer, lexicographer, pianist, composer, conductor, teacher, and in his own words, "legendary...musicologist of manifold endeavors [and] failed wunderkind." It also includes his "Invecticon," an index to the nasty words and phrases found in the book. This is a reprint of the 1953 edition with a new foreword by Peter Schickele who describes the collection as "funny and instructive." c. Book News Inc.

Scathing reviews, whimsical stories, and diverting games fill the pages of this utterly engaging kaleidoscope of skewed tales on the world of Classical music. It dishes out a marvelous feast of tales served up by a master storyteller whose reach extends around the world and to the beginnings of civilization.

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The pianist, composer, conductor and now musical lexicographer recounts in fascinating detail a life that spans the whole of 20th-century music, ranging from his childhood in St. Petersburg through the Russian Revolution to his present career as a musical lexicographer. Illustrated.