Background
Stevens, Denis William was born on March 2, 1922 in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. Son of William James and Edith Ruby (Driver) Stevens.
(Although a volume on musicology may seem out of place in ...)
Although a volume on musicology may seem out of place in a series of handbooks dealing with musical instruments, Denis Stevens's uniquely practical approach makes this introduction to musical research and scholarship resoundingly appropriate. Stevens provides, in his words, "a highly concentrated, Baedeker-type guide through the thickets and pitfalls of musical scholarship and its practical application (especially in earlier repertory)." Musicology is a science of enormous scope and diversity; this book allows students, performers, and music loves to understand--and to use--its fundamental tools. He begins with a lucid introduction to the vast literature of music: reference works and catalogues, dictionaries and encyclopedias, histories and inventories. In addition, Stevens surveys analytic and biographical works, and sets, facsimiles, and editions. Part II applies the basic concerns of musicology to the works of an increasingly popular (but vexing) era--the middle ages, the Renaissance, and the early Baroque. As an acclaimed conductor of this music, Stevens is superbly suited to explore many of the problems and controversies surrounding its performance. Focusing on the performance of vocal and instrumental works of this era, he demonstrates how to examine editions for possible errors, and how to make informed decisions on such chronic questions as ornamentation, vocal technique, and instrumentation. Musicians and music loves alike can use Stevens's knowing advice e to understanding the problems of accuracy and authenticity that plague the music of all periods. Rich with illustrations and musical examples, Musicology illuminates how fascinating and rewarding the field can be--for those who make music, or for those who are eager to expand their historical and critical knowledge.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0028725409/?tag=2022091-20
(This is the first collection of Claudio Monteverdi's madr...)
This is the first collection of Claudio Monteverdi's madrigal and song texts published in parallel Italian and English versions. Denis Steven's unique anthology ranges across four centuries of verse for music. More than thirty poets, old and new, famous and obscure, are represented here, many for the first time in English. Enthusiasts and scholars of the music and its period will be extremely interested in finding out what the poems Monteverdi set to music really mean. The keys Stevens uses in his translations come from a lifetime's work devoted to Monteverdi and his contemporaries.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0810839342/?tag=2022091-20
( William Blake's innovations in engraving techniques bro...)
William Blake's innovations in engraving techniques brought about his brilliant synthesis of visual and poetic art and signaled the beginning of his famous "Illuminated Books," of which the Songs of Innocence was the first and most popular. Unfortunately, Blake's vision is generally known to the world in amputated form: because of the difficulty and expense of reproducing his original conception, most editions of Blake's work offer only the printed text, with no trace of the visual counterpart so essential to his "System." This new, facsimile edition of the Songs of Innocence reproduces Blake's color plates in a fashion which the artist himself would have approved. The 31 plates — printed on facing pages which are the same size of Blake's own first edition — offer one of the more brightly colored versions of this significant volume, no two copies of which are the same. As a special aid to readers, a typographical reprint of the text of poems follows the plates. Such classic "songs" as "The Lamb" and "The Chimney Sweeper" are now accessible to all in the symbiotic union of poem and picture that is crucial to a total understating of Blake's mind and art.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486227642/?tag=2022091-20
( One of Blake's most inspired creations, "The Tyger" min...)
One of Blake's most inspired creations, "The Tyger" mingles the lyric and mystical in an exquisite union. Now you can experience the beauty of this and other poems the way Blake intended them — with his own hand-colored illustrations giving them visual form. This facsimile edition of one of Blake's celebrated "Illuminated Books" reproduces a collection of calligraphed poems, each enclosed in a masterful full-color illustration. Twenty-six plates reprinted from a rare 1826 etched edition include "London," "A Little Boy Lost," "Holy Thursday," The Voice of the Ancient Bard," and other immortal verse. To enhance reading, the texts of all the poems are transcribed separately, following the plates. Dynamic designs and simplicity of language convey Blake's vision of mankind and his condemnation of a wealthy society insensitive to poverty and unhappiness. Moreover, its universal themes make Songs of Experience just as poignant and profound today. Lovers of literature and fine art will want to add this faithful, inexpensive facsimile of an immortal classic to their libraries.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486246361/?tag=2022091-20
Stevens, Denis William was born on March 2, 1922 in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. Son of William James and Edith Ruby (Driver) Stevens.
Master of Arts, Jesus College, Oxford, 1947. Doctor of Humane Letters, Fairfield University, 1967.
Senior producer Pre-Classical Music, British Broadcasting Corporation, London, 1949-1954. Professor music Columbia, 1964-1974. Visiting professor music Cornell University, 1955, Columbia, 1956, Royal Academy Music, 1960, University California, Berkeley, 1962, Pennsylvania State University, 1962-1964, University California, Santa Barbara, 1974-1975.
Brechemin distinguished professor University Washington, Seattle, 1976, University Michigan, 1977, San Diego State University, 1978. Music critic Museum American, 1989-1992, Museum Times, from 1950, New York Times, 1990-1992. Guest lecturer radio and television, United States and Europe.
President, artistic director Accademia Monteverdiana, since 1961. Secretary Plainsong and Medieval Music Society, 1958-1963. Founder, conductor Ambrosian singers.
Consultant in musicology St. Thomas Church, 5th Ave, New York City, 1985-1988.
(Although a volume on musicology may seem out of place in ...)
( William Blake's innovations in engraving techniques bro...)
(This is the first collection of Claudio Monteverdi's madr...)
( One of Blake's most inspired creations, "The Tyger" min...)
(A practically oriented and concise guide for both the mus...)
(Book by Langland, William)
(Date guesstimated. 40 pages.)
Violinist, Philharmonia Orchestra, London, 1948-1949, producer music division, British Broadcasting Corporation, 1949-1954. Conductor numerous recordings of music of 11th through 19th centuries including Handel's Messiah, Salt Lake City, 1995. Author: The Mulliner Book: A Commentary, 1952, Thomas Tomkins, 1957, Tudor Church Music, 1961, second edition, 1966, Monteverdi: Sacred, Secular and Occasional Music, 1977, Musicology: A Practical Guide, 1980, Musicology in Practice, 1987, The Joy of Ornamentation, 1989, second edition, 1993, Early Music, 1997.Editor: The Mulliner Book, 1951, A History of Song, 1960, Monteverdi Vespers, 1961, Orfeo, 1967, Treasury of English Church Music 1, 1965, Early Tudor Organ Music, 1969, Gabrieli: In Ecclesiis, 1971, Monteverdi Madrigals, 1978, Venetian Ceremonial Music, 1978, Monteverdi: Christmas Vespers, 1979, The Worcester Fragments, 1981. Editor and translator: The Letters of Claudio Monteverdi, 1980, second edition, 1995, Madrigals by Carlo Gesualdo, 1992, Monteverdi: Mass for Four Voices, 1991. Associate editor: History of Music, 1960-1968, Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 1961.Also performer in concerts, United States and Europe, including festival programs in Bath, England, Bordeaux, France, Lisbon, Portugal, Salzburg, Austria, London.
Served with Intelligence Royal Air Force, 1942-1946. Member Worshipful Company Musicians.
Married Sheila Elizabeth Holloway, June 25, 1949 (dissolved). Children: Anthony Vincent, Daphne Elizabeth, Michael David. Married Leocadia Elzbieta Kwasny, November 21, 1975 (divorced 1984).