Recent American Art Song: A Guide

(Paperback)

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Description

Recent American Art Song: A Guide is a reference source devoted to songs with English texts by American composers, written for solo voice and piano. The book focuses exclusively on art song since 1980, a substantial period largely ignored by scholars. This is the first study to examine this repertory in detail, and many of the songs and composers are discussed in print for the first time.

Keith E. Clifton has examined approximately 1000 songs by nearly 200 composers. Many songs employ musical idioms well beyond traditional classical styles, including references to jazz, musical theater, rap, and rock & roll, and several songs blur the boundaries between recital and stage works. Organized alphabetically by composer, entries contain complete biographical and bibliographical information, with major works and links to print resources and composer websites when available. In addition, Clifton provides detailed information on the vocal range, musical style, and appropriate voice type for individual songs. The book concludes with a full discography and bibliography, as well as indexes listing the works by poet, song cycle, title, voice type, and level of difficulty.

Reviews

Much needed to call attention to what has been written and how to find it. This volume will be useful in all colleges and universities where voice is taught and art song encouraged....Recommended. Two-star review. * Choice Reviews *
Recent American Art Song fills a void in repertoire resources. Every university library should own this volume, and teachers who wish to explore new repertoire will find this a useful and reasonably priced addition to their studios. * Journal of Singing *
Everything represented here was composed in the last quarter-century, and it is high time this segment of the repertoire receive its official due. Most useful for choosing new pieces are the indices of songs by voice type and by difficulty. One can only hope that future editions will follow Clifton's lead. * Notes: Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association *
Recent American Art Song: A Guide is a well-researched directory of U.S. songwriters and their music since 1980....The author is a world authority on the topic. * American Reference Books Annual *

Author Bio

Keith E. Clifton is associate professor of musicology at Central Michigan University.