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Published by Picador, 2008, softcover, illustrated, index, 495 pages, condition: very good.
This isn't something I say lightly, but pretty much everyone should consider reading Alex Ross' The Rest Is Noise.* Why? Because (a) it makes for a riveting work of political and cultural history, and (b) it provides a layman's entry point into that most venerable of Western art forms, classical music.
I first became acquainted with this book in my late teens. By that time, I'd already immersed myself quite heavily in free jazz, noise, and the like. But classical music especially the 20th century variety had thus far eluded my understanding. Like many otherwise adventurous young listeners, I felt overwhelmed by the plethora of composers, performers and recordings to choose from. And in this regard, avant-jazz was comparatively speaking pretty straightforward: all you needed to do was track yourself down a copy of Interstellar Space or Free Jazz or Spiritual Unity. With composed music, the problem was knowing where the hell you should even start.
Enter The Rest Is Noise. Over the course of fifteen chapters, which trace the development of modern classical from Strauss and Mahler up until the present age, Ross examines the seminal musical works of the 20th century, as well as the social and political contexts that birthed them. It's all terribly fascinating stuff. But history only makes up one side of the coin, and the book concludes with a list of recommended recordings to guide the inexperienced listener through the disorienting terrain of aural source material.
Yet this book doesn't only tell you what to listen to; it also teaches you how to listen. Gifted with an arresting propensity for translating sounds into words, Ross occasionally devotes a few pages to a single piece of music, explaining how a particular snare drum pattern in a Shostakovich symphony, say, might function as a subtle critique of authoritarianism, or how the retrograde rhythms in a Messiaen chamber work serve to hinder the audience's perception of time. And by means of these descriptions, Ross deftly inculcates the art of deep listening, of knowing how to successfully parse a swirling miasma of tones, textures and timbres.
In short, The Rest Is Noise is an effective gateway drug into the wild and mystifying world of 20th century classical music. And so I say, "Bravo, bravo!," as I rise for a standing ovation.
BOOKPLATE, DECALS & NOTES ( IN PENCIL ) BY FAMED SOUTH AFRICAN CURATOR & GALLERIST WARREN SIEBRITS (ON FIRST TWO PAGES)
