When it comes to how societies commemorate their own distant dreams and catastrophes, we often think of books, archives, or memorials carved from stone. But in Time’s Echo, Jeremy Eichler makes a revelatory case for the power of music as culture’s memory, an art form uniquely capable of carrying forward meaning from the past.

Eichler shows how four towering composers – Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg, Benjamin Britten and Dmitri Shostakovich – lived through the era of the Second World War and the Holocaust and later transformed their experiences into deeply moving works of music, scores that carry forward the echoes of lost time. A lyrical narrative full of insight and compassion, this book deepens how we think about the legacies of war, the presence of the past, and the profound possibilities of art in our lives today.

‘Wonderful . . . This is a book of discovery that speaks of music as a life force, that urges us to live our lives through music. ‘
COSEY FANNI TUTTI

‘A marvellous book that opens our ears to sonic worlds that will enrich and delight us, whoever and wherever we are.’
IAN McMILLAN

‘A clear-eyed, utterly fascinating exploration of outsiders in classical music. Molleson’s excellent book challenges and enlightens.’
SINÉAD GLEESON

This is the impassioned and exhilarating story of the composers who dared to challenge the conventional world of classical music in the twentieth century.

Traversing the globe from Ethiopia and the Philippines to Mexico, Jerusalem, Russia and beyond, journalist, critic and BBC Radio 3 broadcaster Kate Molleson tells the stories of ten figures who altered the course of musical history, only to be sidelined and denied recognition during an era that systemically favoured certain sounds – and people – over others.

A celebration of radical creativity rooted in ideas of protest, gender, race, ecology and resistance, Sound Within Sound is an energetic reappraisal of twentieth-century classical music that opens up the world far beyond its established centres, challenges stereotypical portrayals of the genre and shatters its traditional canon.

‘Sound Within Sound is absolutely inspiring. Everyone who loves music should own this book.’
CHARLOTTE HIGGINS

‘Introduces us to thrilling dreamers from the last century who believed that music could fundamentally – and disruptively – recalibrate our lives . . . Molleson’s enthusiastic style and eye for character and place give them life.’
JUDE ROGERS, OBSERVER

‘The vividness and passion of Molleson’s portraits of these ten extraordinarily gifted, exasperating, headstrong individuals is wonderfully engaging.’
DAILY TELEGRAPH

Rachmaninoff left Petrograd in the throes of the Russian Revolution in 1917. He was 44 years old, at the peak of his powers as composer-conductor-performer, moving in elite Tsarist circles and running the family estate, his refuge and solace. He had already written the music which, today, has made him one of the most popular composers of all time: the second and third Piano Concertos and two symphonies. Reeling from the trauma of a life in upheaval, he wrote almost no music and quickly had to reinvent himself as a fêted virtuoso pianist, building up untold wealth and meeting the stars, from Walt Disney and Charlie Chaplin to his Russian contemporaries and polar opposites, Prokofiev and Stravinsky. Still, the melancholy of leaving his homeland never lifted.

Using a wide range of sources, including important newly translated texts, Maddocks’ immensely readable book conjures impressions of this enigmatic figure, his friends and the world he encountered. It explores his life as an emigré artist and how he clung to an Old Russia which no longer existed. That forging of past and present meets in his Symphonic Dances (1940), his last composition, written on Long Island shortly before his death in Beverly Hills, surrounded by a close-knit circle of Russian exiles.

‘A virtuosic memoir . . . elegant, frank and well-structured, that entirely resists cliche . . . readable for both diehard classical music fans and complete newcomers alike . . . A rare feat.’ – The Guardian

A uniquely illuminating memoir of the making of a musician, in which renowned pianist Jeremy Denk explores what he learned from his teachers about classical music: its forms, its power, its meaning – and what it can teach us about ourselves.

In this searching and funny memoir, based on his popular New Yorker article, renowned pianist Jeremy Denk traces an implausible journey. Life is difficult enough as a precocious, temperamental, and insufferable six-year-old piano prodigy in New Jersey. But then a family meltdown forces a move to New Mexico, far from classical music’s nerve centers, and he has to please a new taskmaster while navigating cacti, and the perils of junior high school. Escaping from New Mexico at last, he meets a bewildering cast of college music teachers, ranging from boring to profound, and experiences a series of humiliations and triumphs, to find his way as one of the world’s greatest living pianists, a MacArthur ‘Genius,’ and a frequent performer at Carnegie Hall.

There are few writers working today who are willing to eloquently explore both the joys and miseries of artistic practice. Hours of daily repetition, mystifying early advice, pressure from parents and teachers who drove him on – an ongoing battle of talent against two enemies: boredom and insecurity. As we meet various teachers, with cruel and kind streaks, Denk composes a fraught love letter to the act of teaching. He brings you behind the scenes, to look at what motivates both student and teacher, locked in a complicated and psychologically perilous relationship.

In Every Good Boy Does Fine, Denk explores how classical music is relevant to ‘real life,’ despite its distance in time. He dives into pieces and composers that have shaped him – Bach, Mozart, Schubert, and Brahms, among others – and gives unusual lessons on melody, harmony, and rhythm. Why and how do these fundamental elements have such a visceral effect on us? He tries to sum up many of the lessons he has received, to repay the debt of all his amazing teachers; to remind us that music is our creation, and that we need to keep asking questions about its purpose.

‘Denk . . . has written a book that shows what it’s like to be a pianist, but also what it’s like to be Jeremy Denk. As if that were not enough, it is also about the elements of music, and beyond that an account of the ways in which music and life mirror each other. It is a book like none other’ – Simon Callow, The New York Review of Books

‘Wonderful . . . This is a book of discovery that speaks of music as a life force, that urges us to live our lives through music. ‘
COSEY FANNI TUTTI

‘A marvellous book that opens our ears to sonic worlds that will enrich and delight us, whoever and wherever we are.’
IAN McMILLAN

‘A clear-eyed, utterly fascinating exploration of outsiders in classical music. Molleson’s excellent book challenges and enlightens.’
SINÉAD GLEESON

This is the impassioned and exhilarating story of the composers who dared to challenge the conventional world of classical music in the twentieth century.

Traversing the globe from Ethiopia and the Philippines to Mexico, Jerusalem, Russia and beyond, journalist, critic and BBC Radio 3 broadcaster Kate Molleson tells the stories of ten figures who altered the course of musical history, only to be sidelined and denied recognition during an era that systemically favoured certain sounds – and people – over others.

A celebration of radical creativity rooted in ideas of protest, gender, race, ecology and resistance, Sound Within Sound is an energetic reappraisal of twentieth-century classical music that opens up the world far beyond its established centres, challenges stereotypical portrayals of the genre and shatters its traditional canon.

‘Sound Within Sound is absolutely inspiring. Everyone who loves music should own this book.’
CHARLOTTE HIGGINS

‘Introduces us to thrilling dreamers from the last century who believed that music could fundamentally – and disruptively – recalibrate our lives . . . Molleson’s enthusiastic style and eye for character and place give them life.’
JUDE ROGERS, OBSERVER

‘The vividness and passion of Molleson’s portraits of these ten extraordinarily gifted, exasperating, headstrong individuals is wonderfully engaging.’
DAILY TELEGRAPH

‘A virtuosic memoir . . . elegant, frank and well-structured, that entirely resists cliche . . . The concert pianist’s account of striving for musical mastery sits alongside a stirring coming of age narrative . . . readable for both diehard classical music fans and complete newcomers alike . . . A rare feat.’ – The Guardian

‘Jeremy Denk’s writing is as engaged and probing as his playing. Every Good Boy Does Fine hits the spot – a scintillating account of his way into music’ – Ian Bostridge

A uniquely illuminating memoir of the making of a musician, in which renowned pianist Jeremy Denk explores what he learned from his teachers about classical music: its forms, its power, its meaning – and what it can teach us about ourselves.

In this searching and funny memoir, based on his popular New Yorker article, renowned pianist Jeremy Denk traces an implausible journey. Life is difficult enough as a precocious, temperamental, and insufferable six-year-old piano prodigy in New Jersey. But then a family meltdown forces a move to New Mexico, far from classical music’s nerve centers, and he has to please a new taskmaster while navigating cacti, and the perils of junior high school. Escaping from New Mexico at last, he meets a bewildering cast of college music teachers, ranging from boring to profound, and experiences a series of humiliations and triumphs, to find his way as one of the world’s greatest living pianists, a MacArthur ‘Genius,’ and a frequent performer at Carnegie Hall.

There are few writers working today who are willing to eloquently explore both the joys and miseries of artistic practice. Hours of daily repetition, mystifying early advice, pressure from parents and teachers who drove him on – an ongoing battle of talent against two enemies: boredom and insecurity. As we meet various teachers, with cruel and kind streaks, Denk composes a fraught love letter to the act of teaching. He brings you behind the scenes, to look at what motivates both student and teacher, locked in a complicated and psychologically perilous relationship.

In Every Good Boy Does Fine, Denk explores how classical music is relevant to ‘real life,’ despite its distance in time. He dives into pieces and composers that have shaped him – Bach, Mozart, Schubert, and Brahms, among others – and gives unusual lessons on melody, harmony, and rhythm. Why and how do these fundamental elements have such a visceral effect on us? He tries to sum up many of the lessons he has received, to repay the debt of all his amazing teachers; to remind us that music is our creation, and that we need to keep asking questions about its purpose.

‘Denk . . . has written a book that shows what it’s like to be a pianist, but also what it’s like to be Jeremy Denk. As if that were not enough, it is also about the elements of music, and beyond that an account of the ways in which music and life mirror each other. It is a book like none other . . . Denk weaves invisible threads connecting life and art into something very close to musical form.’ Simon Callow, The New York Review of Books

‘Clemmie’s recommendations have broadened my mind, sharpened my imagination, tugged on my heartstrings and given me a song for every mood. Read this book and let yourself float away for a moment or two. What a gift.’ Emma Gannon, bestselling author and host of the Ctrl Alt Delete podcast

ANOTHER YEAR OF WONDER IS A CAREFULLY CURATED COLLECTION OF CLASSICAL MUSIC OFFERING ONE PIECE TO LISTEN TO EVERY DAY OF THE YEAR.

WITH A FOREWORD BY ELIZABETH DAY

In this follow-up to her much-loved Year of Wonder, award-winning broadcaster, journalist and violinist Clemency Burton-Hill continues her mission to demystify and open up the world of classical music to everyone, offering up one extraordinary piece of music to listen to every day of the year.

‘There is no algorithm to this book: it is a thoughtfully curated selection given from one human to another. It is not a history book, or a formal ‘guide to classical music’. It is simply from my heart to yours. I have chosen pieces I love, or think historically interesting, or which have some resonance for me personally or in the world. But what matters is what you think; how they make you feel as you listen. I hope that you will fall in love with most of them, or at least be fascinated by their historical context, or find them curious in other ways, because then you are already in a relationship with classical music. This is your book, as much it is mine.’

Another Year of Wonder shows that, whoever you are and wherever you come from, classical music can be a soundtrack for your everyday life and a reminder that finding a space to sit and listen to a piece of music every day can be a singular gift.

‘Joan Koenig is on a wonderful mission to enrich children’s lives through music’ DR GUY DEUTSCHER

A pioneering music educator reveals how parents and caregivers can harness the power of music and use it to supercharge early childhood development.

Since opening her famed Parisian conservatory over three decades ago, Joan Koenig has led a global movement to improve children’s lives and minds with the transformative power of music. With a curriculum and philosophy drawn from cutting-edge science, L’Ecole Koenig has educated and empowered even the youngest students.

From baby Max, whose coordination and communication grow as he wiggles and coos along to targeted songs and dance; to five-year-old Sara, who nourishes her empathy, creativity, and memory, while practising music from other cultures. In The Musical Child, Koenig shares stories from her classrooms, along with tips about how to use the latest research during these critical years, when children are most sensitive to musical exposure-and most receptive to its benefits.

A gift for parents, caregivers, musicians, and educators, The Musical Child reveals the multiple ways music can help children thrive-and how, in the 21st century, its practice is more vital than ever.

Filled with at-home activities and musical games
Recordings and tutorials available instantly with scannable QR codes