avg_rating: 3.82
name: Jessica Duchen
about: Jessica was born in London. After studying at Cambridge, she worked as an editor in music magazines before going freelance. She was a music critic for The Independent for 12 years and contributes to The Sunday Times, the i, BBC Music Magazine and The JC, among others.Her latest novel 'Immortal' tells the (probably) true story behind Beethoven's famous 'Immortal Beloved' letter, exploring a tragic secret that was long concealed. "A revelation" (Daniel Hope, president of the Beethoven-Haus, Bonn).'Ghost Variations' is based on the bizarre discovery of the suppressed Schumann Violin Concerto in the 1930s, with the great violinist Jelly d'Arányi as its heroine. "A thrilling read" (John Suchet, The Daily Mail). Earlier novels focus on tensions a Jessica was born in London. After studying at Cambridge, she worked as an editor in music magazines before going freelance. She was a music critic for The Independent for 12 years and contributes to The Sunday Times, the i, BBC Music Magazine and The JC, among others.Her latest novel 'Immortal' tells the (probably) true story behind Beethoven's famous 'Immortal Beloved' letter, exploring a tragic secret that was long concealed. "A revelation" (Daniel Hope, president of the Beethoven-Haus, Bonn).'Ghost Variations' is based on the bizarre discovery of the suppressed Schumann Violin Concerto in the 1930s, with the great violinist Jelly d'Arányi as its heroine. "A thrilling read" (John Suchet, The Daily Mail). Earlier novels focus on tensions and cross-currents between family generations, including the story of a child prodigy pianist ('Alicia's Gift') and the long-term effects of displacement and cultural clashes ('Hungarian Dances'). 'Odette' is a magical-realist contemporary take on 'Swan Lake'.Jessica works extensively as librettist for the composer Roxanna Panufnik, creating with her works including 'Silver Birch' for Garsington, which was shortlisted for an International Opera Award. Among other pieces are 'Ever Us' for the Berlin Radio Choir, 'Across the Line of Dreams' for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Chorus with conductors Marin Alsop and Valentina Peleggi, and a new opera planned for 2022. More librettos include two youth operas based on Oscar Wilde stories: 'The Happy Princess' with composer Paul Fincham and 'The Selfish Giant' with John Barber.Jessica has given pre-concert talks at major UK venues including the Wigmore Hall, the Southbank Centre and Symphony Hall Birmingham, and often narrates concert versions of her novels. Her play A Walk through the End of Time, introducing Messiaen's Quartet for the End of Time, has been performed at festivals around the UK, France and Australia. She has also written biographies of the composers Gabriel Fauré and Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Jessica lives in London with her violinist husband and two cats. She enjoys hiking, cooking and playing the piano. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/jessicawords... ...more