The first collection ever of essays and reviews by the renowned pedagogue, composer, and conductor, providing fresh perspectives on her musical influence and impact. The impact of Nadia Boulanger (1887-1979) on twentieth-century music was vast: as composer, keyboard performer, conductor, impresario, and pedagogue. Her extensive musical networks included figures such as Fauré, Stravinsky, and Poulenc, and her advocacy helped establish the compositions of her sister Lili Boulanger. Few today realize, though, that Boulanger wrote numerous essays and reviews at various times in her career. These offer unparalleled insight into her thinking and illuminate aspects of musical culture in Europe and America from the rare point of view of an internationally prominent female artist. Nadia Boulanger: Thoughts on Music provides a translation and critical edition of selected writings chosen for their quality and interest. The previously published articles and essays have never been reissued since their original appearance; the remaining materials are presented to readers here for the first time. The volume renders all these materials widely available, providing an important new resource for teaching and scholarship on twentieth-century music as well as an engaging collection of musical essays for the general reader.

"Collected interviews and excerpts from her writings document the life, family, and work of the often controversial music teacher who instructed such diverse talents as Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, Virgil Thomson, and Quincy Jones" -- Amazon.com

Pioneers in their fields and two of the best-known women in music in the twentieth century, Nadia and Lili Boulanger have previously been considered in isolation from one another. Yet, as Caroline Potter's new book demonstrates, their careers were closely linked during Lili Boulanger's short life (1893-1918) and there are several intriguing connections between their musical works. This biography also provides the first full analysis of the Boulanger sisters' musical styles, placing them within the context of French musical history. Their lives are also a case study in the issues of gender which surround music making even to the present day. Despite an unusually privileged upbringing, Nadia and Lili Boulanger exemplify the struggle women experienced when attempting to enter the professional music world. Lili became the first woman to win the Prix de Rome in 1913, and Nadia gained second place in 1908. Yet in spite of this initial success, Nadia Boulanger was to give up composing in her thirties and devoted the remainder of her long life to teaching. Her pupils included several of the great composers of the century, including Aaron Copland and Elliott Carter. This book, focusing on their musical careers, is essential reading for anyone interested in French music of the twentieth century.

It was her love of music - especially Stravinsky's music - that drew them together. This book tells the story of the ever-changing nature of Boulanger and Stravinsky's relationship from Boulanger's perspective, tracing their interactions from 1931 to 1971. Throughout, it asks how Boulanger's professional activity during the turbulent twentieth century intersected with her efforts on behalf of Stravinsky and how this facilitated her own influential conversations with the composer about his works while also drawing her into close contact with his family.

With a life that spanned nearly a century, at her death Nadia Boulanger was still director of the American School of Music at Fontainebleau, which she helped found after World War I. Enormously influential, she taught many distinguished performers and composers and helped American music gain worldwide recognition. This first full biography of Boulanger is a rich portrait of an important woman of our time. Photos.

Published for the first time: a rich epistolary dialogue revealing one master teacher's power to shape the cultural canon and one great composer's desire to embed himself within historical narratives.