Author Description

This valuable guide, a review of the British new music scene for the 1986-7 season, is both a complement to and an extension of its predecessor, New Music 87, in which emphasis was on the variety and diversity of contemporary British composition. This time the spotlight is on performance: there are interviews with singers Jane Manning and Josephine Nendick and with conductors Andrew Parrott and Esa-Pekka Solonen. A retrospective look at the work of The Fires of London by the group's pianist Stephen Pruslin is followed by a survey of the season's activities of many British-based new music ensembles.In addition there are major studies of the music of Elisabeth Lutyens and Judith Weir and a collection of hitherto unpublished pieces for solo viola, all, except one by Luytens, specially written for this volume. New Music 88 features extensive listings of major concert series and first performances of new works from Britain and abroad, as well as challenging articles on the wider issues at stake in contemporary music.An overview at once comprehensive and stimulating, this book is essential reading for all those interested in the music of today.