Béla Bartók

The definitive account of the life and music of Hungarys greatest twentieth-century composer

This deeply researched biography of Béla Bartók (18811945) provides a more comprehensive view of the innovative Hungarian musician than ever before. David Cooper traces Bartóks international career as an ardent ethno-musicologist and composer, teacher, and pianist, while also providing a detailed discussion of most of his works. Further, the author explores how Europes political and cultural tumult affected Bartóks work, travel, and reluctant emigration to the safety of America in his final years.
 
Cooper illuminates Bartóks personal life and relationships, while also expanding what is known about the influence of other musiciansRichard Strauss, Zoltán Kodály, and Yehudi Menuhin, among many others. The author also looks closely at some of the composers actions and behaviors which may have been manifestations of Asperger syndrome. The book, in short, is a consummate biography of an internationally admired musician. See more