Table of Contents

Introduction
Adam
Alfvén
Atterberg
Beethoven
Bizet
Borodin
Brahms
Donizetti
Gounod
Grieg
Handel
Leoncavallo
Mascagni
Massenet
Meyerbeer
Mozart
Puccini
Rangström
Rossini
Schubert
Sibelius
Richard Strauss
Verdi
Wagner
Björling's Remaining Recordings: A Survey of the Best (1920-60)
Evolution and Influence
Notes
Discography
Bibliography
Index

Reviews

I devoured The Björling Sound with unashamed greed and great pleasure.
*F. Paul Driscoll, editor in chief, Opera News*

His passages on Gounod's Faust and Roméo et Juliette are a masterpiece of sensitive analysis.
*NEWSLETTER OF THE SWEDISH JUSSI BJOERLING SOCIETY*

Remarkable new book. . . . Insightful scholarship and freshly evocative writing that will send Bjo'rling's fans back to their favourite recordings and will win the tenor many admirers. ***** [Highest ranking, and book of the month]
*BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE*

[Hastings's] analyses are detailed, well written, and clear. . . . _The Björling Sound: A Recorded Legacy has become a standard work, like The Callas Legacy of John Ardoin.
*OPERA NEDERLAND Full review at http://www.operanederland.nl/Boeken%20Bjoering.htm*

Comparison between recordings and live performances . . . give great insight into the reasons why particular interpretations of the same piece can vary to an enormous degree. . . . Listing the recordings by composer is a stroke of genius and means that the reader can dip in and out without losing any continuity to the progression of Björling's career. . . . Should be devoured by anyone interested in the art of singing. Full review at http://vocalimages.com/?page_id=1097
*VOCALIMAGES Full review at http://vocalimages.com/?page_id=1097*

An impressive documentation of Björling's sound. . . . Lively language gives good flow to the many details in the book.
*KLASSISK MUSIKKMAGASIN*

Uncommonly successful. . . . Hastings is always specific, never resorting to vague poetics in passages of praise to describe work he likes, . . . Enrich[es] his findings by comparison with recordings of the same material from all ages[, e.g., Caruso, Pavarotti, and Alagna].
*GRAMOPHONE*

An exciting read about a beloved artist. . . .For the neophyte, it supplies an education in vocal terminology and history, and an unerring understanding of the voice and how it functions. . . . Compelling.
*OPERA NEWS*

By a long way the best critical discography of anyone I have encountered. . . Eloquent, jargon-free and incisive prose. Many acute remarks about conductors. . . . Illuminating [on Schubert songs]. . . . Truly an education.
*OPERA*