While Spring and Summer Sang: Thomas Beecham and the Music of Frederick Delius

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Contents: Preface
1907-1919: 'I am sure my music has never been played as well by anyone ...'
1920-1929: 'This Festival has been the time of my life.'
1930-1939: 'The clue, to my mind, lies in Beecham's temperament ...'
1940-1949: 'When there is no longer a Beecham to bring his burning sympathy to Delius's music ...'
1950-1961: 'You know, the old b--- really loves that music!'
Appendices: A critical discography
A Beecham rehearsal of Paris
A selection of Beecham's writings on Delius
Arrangements and orchestrations of Delius's music by Beecham
Bibliography
Indexes.

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Sir Thomas Beecham is often described as having 'championed' the music of Frederick Delius, and this is no exaggeration. From the moment he heard Delius's music as a young man, Beecham was captivated by its strange, romantic beauty, and its hold on him remained firm. During the next 50 years, he promoted Delius's music through a series of unrivalled performances, unearthing early pieces, arranging others and recording most of them, sometimes more than once. Lyndon Jenkins provides the first in-depth study of this extraordinary creative relationship. Starting with the first meeting of the composer and conductor in 1907, Jenkins charts Beecham's gradual introduction of Delius's compositions to British and foreign audiences, the operatic premières and revivals, the Delius festivals that he organized in 1929 and 1946, and the formation of the Delius Trust upon the composer's death in 1934. Also described is Beecham's continuing crusade for Delius's music up to his own death in 1961, which included a model edition of the scores, a biography and an internationally celebrated recorded legacy. The book includes a critical discography. Lyndon Jenkins provides a vivid account of an achievement that remains without parallel in the history of British music.

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