Create a List. In some ways, my father had a similar temperament to Kennicott's mother in that his moods could be unpredictable at times, so the author's recounting of his relationship with his mother and about her death hit me a little harder than I had expected. It’s a beautiful and poignant look at how we know music as well as how we truly know a person. Lots of little biographical tidbits about Bach, Gould, and other music histories that keep a nice balance. A strange but brilliant melding of memoir and music education, going deep on a troubled mother-son relationship and the son's attempt to try something that's as difficult (playing Bach's Goldberg Variations on the piano) as coming to terms with grief for the person he struggled his whole life to understand. He lives in Washington, D.C. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. I chose to review “Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning” by Philip Kennicott for two reasons. He spent the next five years trying to learn one of the composer's greatest keyboard masterpieces, the Goldberg Variations. The Bach anecdotes were amusing, but I think maybe a bit digressional at times. I really liked the parts where he was able to be transparent with the reader. By Philip Kennicott. Download to App. As his mother was dying, Philip Kennicott began to listen to the music of Bach obsessively. He is also a two-time Pulitzer finalist (for editorial writing in 2000 and criticism in 2012), a former contributing editor to The New Republic, and a regular contributor to Opera News and Gramophone. Learn more about VAT here. The author is a gifted writer. Download Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning. © 1996-2020, Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. (Perhaps more humor like this might have helped the book, too.) A Pulitzer Prize–winning critic reflects on the meaning and emotional impact of a Bach masterwork. So, you may. A Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of 2020 A Pulitzer Prize–winning critic reflects on the meaning and emotional impact of a Bach masterwork. Wonderfully insightful memoir about the power both music and goal setting have on our experiences. Absolutely loved it, I normally don't read memoirs of people I don't know, but this was a fascinating take that I enjoyed very much! I’ve been in mourning since my husband died in April 2019 and I love baroque music (JS Bach is the master). It uses Kennicott's Sisyphian process of learning Bach's, In many ways this book is quite good; there are moments when the author expresses his grief about losing his mother in ways which are both beautiful and profound. No matter what, children always seem to love abusive parents. *Counterpoint* is an aptly titled book -- Philip Kennicott's memoir weaves together narrative strands, much as a contrapuntal piece of music weaves together melodic strands within a piece. Punk rock legend, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee, award-winning writer, photographer, activist, and all-around Renaissance woman Patti Smith is... As his mother was dying, Philip Kennicott began to listen to the music of Bach obsessively. Not just for classical music nerds but being a bit nerdish won't hurt. The author certainly did. Every student who sweated at the piano keys will relate to the shared experience of failure, fake starts, false expectations, futility, bitterness and will appreciate the sincerity in writing about such a delicate subject as reaching a limit. This is probably not a book for everyone. Philip Kennicott is the chief Art and Architecture Critic of The Washington Post. Kennicott's journey in learning Bach's Goldberg Variations resonated less with me, but was still enjoyable to read. I chose to review “Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning” by Philip Kennicott for two reasons. I’ve been in mourning since my husband died in April 2019 and I love baroque music (JS Bach is the master). The author is a gifted writer. Playing music is a basically a solitary activity that we use to try to find some meaning in life, but in the end we all end up alone and not knowing what of it all is. But Counterpoint can be painful to read because the author’s mother was extremely abusive to him, both emotionally and physically. Sorry, there was a problem saving your cookie preferences. He’s nowhere to be found in the book. WW Norton 224 pages. So, you may ask, which audiences will the book resonate with? Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. There's a problem loading this menu at the moment. Counterpoint is, as stated on the cover, a memoir of Bach and mourning. EPUB. -- I found the writing style a bit dry and clinical. Once she yanked his hair so hard that he fell backwards off of the piano bench onto the floor. It's not that it isn't interesting, but I'm not sure how much I'll be able to take out of it. Definitely an insightful read and one worth reading, Gay Men Write About Their Moms (and Death) – a reading list. His mother certainly was. Feb. 2020. Music intertwines all aspects of life, and the author does a good job of showing how that works. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Counterpoint : A Memoir of Bach and Mourning by Philip Kennicott (2020, Hardcover) at the best online prices at … But of course he had a deeply ambivalent relationship with his mother. A beautiful balance between memoir and music writing. As the Midwestern fall turned into a frigid, icy winter, I listened to Glenn Gould playing Bach’s “Goldberg Variations” and read Philip Kennicott’s Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning.Alternating between listening and reading, I found myself overwhelmed by emotion and flooded with the desire to do something. I listened to this book on audiotape, and wished I could listen to the story on a loop as soundtrack to my life. As his mother was dying, Philip Kennicott began to listen to the music of Bach obsessively. Buy this product and stream 90 days of Amazon Music Unlimited for free. E-mail after purchase. Philip Kennicott, the senior art and architecture Critic of the Washington Post and a former contributing editor for the New Republic, won the Pulitzer Prize for Criticism in 2013. Please try again. In many ways this book is quite good; there are moments when the author expresses his grief about losing his mother in ways which are both beautiful and profound. It’s hard to imagine he doesn’t have a deeply ambivalent relationship to music too. Book Information Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning. Which is a good thing, because there are no answers, only experiences. February 18th 2020 A MEMOIR OF BACH AND MOURNING by Philip Kennicott ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 18, 2020 Pulitzer Prize winner Kennicott, senior art and architecture critic of the Washington Post, makes his book debut with an absorbing meditation on grief. It jumps between the author's life, Bach's life, and musical analysis, the last of which can be difficult to follow for someone who isn't classically trained. Any musician who has ever experienced loss should pick this book up. Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning. We use cookies and similar tools to enhance your shopping experience, to provide our services, understand how customers use our services so we can make improvements, and display ads. It also analyses reviews to verify trustworthiness. And Brahms, and Dvorak, and Shostakovich. The beauty of this memoir is not only in the compassion Kennicott ultimately finds for … I found this memoir sometimes insightful and other times scattered. This turned out to be phenomenally good. I found the book, on the whole, to be insightful, moving, and beautifully written. It jumps between the author's life, Bach's life, and musical analysis, the last of which can be difficult to follow for someone who isn't classically trained. It was the only music that didn’t seem trivial or irrelevant, and it enabled him to both experienc… It was a rare and exceptional pleasure for me to discover that there is another suffering soul with thoughts, feelings and experiences (especially in childhood and early adulthood) that parallel mine. For him, Bach’s music held the elements of both joy and despair, life and its inevitable end. A Pulitzer Prize–winning critic reflects on the meaning and emotional impact of a Bach masterwork. Playing music is a basically a solitary activity t. I listened to this book on audiotape, and wished I could listen to the story on a loop as soundtrack to my life. Music intertwines all aspects of life, and the author does a good job of showing how that works. News, author interviews, critics' picks and more. The many people out there who have had a complicated relationship with their unhappy, complex mother nursing stifled hopes and increasing resentment for her child while they were growing up. I believe the book might have benefited from some musical examples. I found the book, on the whole, to be insightful, moving, and beautifully written. I chose to review “Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning” by Philip Kennicott for two reasons. (You can judge, I'll get over it.) The World in Six Songs: How the Musical Brain Created Human. I'd really only recommend this to mucic nerds but for them it is really a great read. But Counterpoint can be painful to read because the author’s mother was extremely abusive to him, both emotionally and physically. You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition. Evidently she had a deep and powerful connection to music as he does, but she also attacked him in vicious unpredictable ways, at times when he was practicing the piano. As Kennicott recovered from losing his mother he resolved to learn one of Bach’s most … The content about the author's family was so enjoyable and interesting but ultimately only tenuously connected to the rest of the content. The information and commentary on Bach does not add to whatever one can find in a music history book and the part about the family is personal, with maybe a glimpse of mid century suburban America making it engaging and informative. Kennicott creates a most unusual book about Bach and grief (surrounding his mother’s life. Counterpoint NPR coverage of Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning by Philip Kennicott. I was reminded of Jackson Brown's lyrics for "To a Dancer," that go "In the end there is one dance you do alone." Resolve captcha to access download link! I, for starters, root for Beethoven. Read "Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning" by Philip Kennicott available from Rakuten Kobo. At points Kennicott describes both life and music in rather technical terms, at other points he infuses anecdotes and insightful turns of phrase. ): it is a memoir of the author's complicated relationship with his mother, a tracing of his interactions with Johann Sebastian Bach's 'Goldberg Variations,' a set of biographical musings on the life of Bach, and, ultimately, a search for an answer to two questions: What do we mean when we say we 'know' a piece of music? Two parallel threads run through this book, the "Bach" and the "Mother" respectively. Many of his reflections were clearly the extension of a well examined inner life, which draws the reader into much of the same. Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning. I don’t know where the author’s father was during all of this. See, I've just expanded the market for Kennicott's memoir about ten thousand fold, or shall we say one hundred thousand? It was the only music that didn’t seem trivial or irrelevant, and it enabled him to both experience her death and remove himself from it. The Resource Counterpoint : a memoir of Bach and mourning, Philip Kennicott, (electronic resource eBook) Counterpoint: A Memoir of Bach and Mourning ; About; Explore; About. This made me realize that I would like a more in-depth knowledge of classical music, but then didn't quite scratch that itch. “The older we get, the more subtly we must undertake the double exercise of shedding aspects of ourselves so that we have the capacity to develop new ones.”, Patti Smith Talks About Creativity and the Stories that Take Root. Reading this I don’t know if my description can really describe how meaningful and beautifully written this memoir is, but I can not recommend it enough. A memoir of Bach in terms of the author’s efforts to be able to play Bach’s Goldberg Variations, a memoir of mourning in the sense of his grief over the loss of his mother. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of, Published To see what your friends thought of this book. I strongly believe it will resonate with a lot more readers than those who care about Bach. Unable to add item to List. As in, “I love her/ I hate her”. Once she yanked his hair so hard tha. As his mother was dying, Philip Kennicott began to listen to the music of Bach obsessively. Approved third parties also use these tools in connection with our display of ads. And I learned so much. This was not an easy book to read for me, but it was an intimate and beautiful read. Something went wrong. EPUB. I found the power of healing through Phillip Kennicott's comparisons and words. In the now popular genre of grief memoir as woven through a single work of art (usually a work of literature, for example All the Lives we Ever Lived), this one is the best I've read. Ratings: Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars 4.5/5 (3 ratings) Length: 8 hours. In some ways, my father had a similar temperament to Kennicott's mother in that his moods could be unpredictable at times, so the author's recounting of his relationship with his mother and about her death hit me a little harder than I had expected. Kennicott's journey in learning Bach's Goldberg Variations resonated less with me, but was still enjoyable to read. The Bach anecdotes were amusing, but I think maybe a bit digressional at times. The author is not a professional musician but a dedicated amateur who has spent much of his life studying piano or trying to overcome the mental obstacles that kept him from growth. Counterpoint is a thought-provoking and accomplished memoir, meeting Kennicott's own criterion that "every good book or great piece of music carries … He spent the next five years trying to learn one of the composer’s greatest keyboard masterpieces, the. The author is a gifted writer. I don't know if you have to have played Bach in your youth to appreciate it, as one who did play and misses it, his exigeses are wonderful. I was reminded of Jackson Brown's lyrics for "To a Dancer," that go "In the end there is one dance you do alone." 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