Jan Swafford is an American composer and author. He earned his bachelor of arts magna cum laude from Harvard College and his DMA in composition from the Yale School of Music. His music has been widely played by ensembles, including the symphonies of St. Louis, Indianapolis, and the Dutch Radio. He is the author of biographies of Ives, Brahms, and Beethoven. His many honors include an NEA Composer Grant and the Deems Taylor Award for online writing on music, which he won for his essays in Slate. He is a longtime program writer and preconcert lecturer for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and has written notes and essays for the orchestras of Cleveland, Chicago, San Francisco, Detroit, and Toronto. Among his liner notes for recordings are those for DGG's anniversary release of Beethoven's nine symphonies by the Vienna Philharmonic.
"[A] comprehensive and engaging biography.... With the eye of an
omniscient novelist, Mr. Swafford tells Mozart's story looking both
forward and back, knowing too well how it will end.... When he's
describing music, Mr. Swafford the novelist often becomes Mr.
Swafford the poet, finding the impeccable image or unforgettable
turn of phrase.... [Mozart is a] conversation he so
irresistibly invites us to join." -- Wall Street
Journal"This is an excellent book on Mozart for both
musicians and the general reader. The story is told in a lively,
knowing style, without written-out musical examples but shot
through with unfailingly erudite and impassioned discussion of the
composer's work." -- Washington
Post"Mozart: The Reign of Love, is now the
best single-volume English biography of the greatest composer and
musician who ever lived." -- Merion West"It is a
great pleasure to read about Mozart as a working composer in a
narrative written by a working composer....Jan Swafford, an author
whose music has been performed by the symphonies in St. Louis and
Indianapolis, is our guide into the composing process, aided by a
dexterous use of Mozart's correspondence and a deep knowledge of
how music came about during the 18th century...The result is a
biography that has an immediacy, a wholly thrilling 'you are there'
impact." -- San Francisco Chronicle"The
book goes well beyond setting the historical record straight,
however. It is an utterly comprehensive look at Mozart's life, as
well as an exhaustive reference to his music. Swafford, who has
also written biographies of Beethoven, Charles Ives and Brahms, is
a composer first, and his keen understanding of music is his
greatest strength as a biographer." -- Minneapolis Star
Tribune"In this masterfully written biography, Jan
Swafford not only presents a richly detailed portrait of one of the
greatest classical composers of all time, but debunks many of the
myths surrounding the momentous and all-too-short life of Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart. The author, who is a composer, brings his insight
to bear on his subject." -- Christian Science
Monitor"Composer and biographer Swafford brings expertise
and insight to bear on a comprehensive, animated life of Wolfgang
Amadeus Mozart.... Swafford deftly captures that brilliance in a
challenging narrative that is sure to thrill classical music
fans.... An admiring, authoritative biography." --
Kirkus Reviews"If tackling an 832-page
biography of anybody seems daunting for the general reader,
Swafford makes it almost effortless with Mozart, animating his
genius....and, as a composer himself, offering an astute yet
thoroughly approachable analysis, almost piece by piece, of the
composer's entire canon, lingering fittingly on the composer's
major operas....A virtually indispensable volume for the music
collection."
-- Booklist (starred review)"The copious
detail will appeal to musicologists, while the flowing,
conversational style will draw in general readers who'd like to
learn more about the composer. Heartily recommended to everyone
with an interest in the subject." -- Library
Journal (starred review)"[An] amazing
biography....Orchestrating words and themes as deftly as any of the
composers he so vividly has revealed to date (who will be next, we
wonder?), Swafford transforms a deluge of available information
into imaginative yet fact-based contexts that reveal Mozart's
talent in a down-to-earth and memorably human way." --
Bookreporter.com"Jan Swafford peppers his
biography of a genius with astute critical judgments." --
The Economist"Swafford paints a revelatory
portrait of [Mozart], his music, and his times." -- New
York Journal of Books"Few hearts fail to melt upon
encountering his humane, joyous and ravishingly beautiful music.
The challenge for any biographer is how to articulate where this
elusive magic comes from.... Jan Swafford has met that challenge
head on.... For many [Mozart's] works are dear old friends. You can
come away from this book feeling that he is too." -- The
Times (UK)"There may be no one better to tell the
exuberant story of the life, loves and music of Wolfgang Amadeus
Mozart than composer and author (Beethoven and
Johannes Brahms) Jan Swafford. Musicians may most fully
appreciate Swafford's more detailed descriptions of Mozart's canon
in this dauntingly thick 832-page biography, but nonprofessional
music fans and history lovers of all sorts are likely to be drawn
in by the colorful portrait of an artist famous for both his talent
and lust for pleasure." -- aarp.orgThe author of
biographies of Beethoven, Brahms, and Charles Ives, Swafford is a
fluent writer with a sharp eye for detail.... [He]...capably guides
classical music enthusiasts through Mozart's life from its
miraculous first act to its denouement." -- New
Criterion"Mozart: Reign of Love provides
a new way of looking at the composer, his family and career." --
Toronto Star
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