Leroy Anderson: A Bio-Bibliography

(Hardback)

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Covering the whole of his unique works, this bio-bibliography is an unparalleled resource on the life and music of Leroy Andersoncomposer of over 40 popular orchestral miniatures. In his compositions, Leroy Anderson defied the nature of typical orchestral music. His artful combination of a light, pop sound and masterful orchestration into short musical pieces has captivated audiences for years. Young and old, non-musicians and musicians alike have gravitated toward his sound. However, because of the unique nature of his work, Anderson is often overlooked in the study of American music. For the first time, an entire volume has been dedicated to the life and works of Leroy Anderson. This bio-bibliography provides a comprehensive resource for anyone interested in Anderson's unique brand of American orchestral music. A short biography introduces the reader to background information on the composer himself and on his more famous pieces. This is followed by a complete, categorized listing of Anderson's works, a discography, a bibliography of articles written by and about Anderson, and a list of arrangements of his work by Anderson and others. Ten separate appendices at the end of the work ensure ease of navigation and cross-referencing for the reader.

Reviews

.,."[T]his volume...presents Leroy and his work in its full dimension....It should have a wonderful reception everywhere...."-Frederick Fennell, Professor Emeritus University of Miami School of Music
"I have always admired Leroy Anderson's ability to create light concert music that is impeccably well-crafted at the same time that it leaves listeners humming the melody long after a concert. Anderson is respected by musicians just as he is loved by audiences, and yet so little is known about the man who made such an enormous contribution to 20th-century American Music. This fine book tells the story of this inventive composer's life, while bringing together detailed information of his compositions, arrangements and recordings. Its publication is long overdue."-Keith Lockhart, Conductor Boston Pops and Music Director, Utah Symphony
"The Bio-Bibliography of Leroy Anderson is a unique and immensely entertaining volume for those of us who thought we knew everything about this composer. The generations who experienced the Anderson catalogue as young people will look at this work with great admiration, as it is loaded with surprises on every page. It's very clear that the impact of Mr. Anderson's music, both when it was written and in today's frantic world, is impossible to measure. We gain a greater understanding of his importance to the musical community through this intriguing volume."-Leonard Slatkin, Music Director National Symphony Orchestra
"This valuable volume will help to strengthen the tradition of the music of Leroy Anderson, one of our favorite sons."-Thomas Forrest Kelly, Morton B. Knafel Professor of Music Harvard University
"This bio-bibliography, massive when compared with many others in this series, is extremely well organized, making it easy to find very specific kinds of information. Given that there are few books detailing the life of Leroy Anderson, the biographical chapter is especially valuable, relating a sense of his life, his family, his values, and of course, his path in music."-Music Reference Services Quarterly
[A] magnificent tribute to this outstanding American composer. Not only is it a complete biography, it details in its appendices every aspect of his compositions and arrangements, all in categories with notes, often with his own feelings about the music and how it came to be composed, plus a complete discography.-The Record
This bio-bibliography, massive when compared with many others in this series, is extremely well organized, making it easy to find very specific kinds of information. Given that there are few books detailing the life of Leroy Anderson, the biographical chapter is especially valuable, relating a sense of his life, his family, his values, and of course, his path in music.-Music Reference Services Quarterly
"A magnificent tribute to this outstanding American composer. Not only is it a complete biography, it details in its appendices every aspect of his compositions and arrangements, all in categories with notes, often with his own feelings about the music and how it came to be composed, plus a complete discography."-The Record
"[A] magnificent tribute to this outstanding American composer. Not only is it a complete biography, it details in its appendices every aspect of his compositions and arrangements, all in categories with notes, often with his own feelings about the music and how it came to be composed, plus a complete discography."-The Record

Author Bio

Burgess Speed is a professional educator and musician who has been associated with the Leroy Anderson Estate since 1998. For the past nine years he has taught music privately and in the classroom, and has performed with many notable artists, including legendary clarinetist David Krakauer. Eleanor Anderson is the wife of the late Leroy Anderson and the head of the Anderson family's publishing business, Woodbury Music Company. Steve Metcalf is a journalist and classical music advisor to the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford, CT. For 20 years, he was the staff music critic of the Hartford Courant, and during that time his feature stories, profiles, and reviews appeared regularly in more than 500 newspapers worldwide.