The Mozart Myths: A Critical Reassessment
Stafford (philosophy, history of ideas, Huddersfield Polytechnic, England) has written a fascinating, well-documented review of the many popular stories about Mozart, concentrating especially on the circumstances surrounding his death. He analyzes the sources of the stories' information and assesses the credibility of the various witnesses, carefully sorting out truth from misunderstanding, gossip, rumor, and lies. Mozart emerges as a far more complex person than biographers often portray him. While not casual reading, this involved and detailed study of documents, motives, and the convoluted reasoning behind the Mozart myths is required reading for the devoted Mozart fan. For large public and academic music collections.- Timothy J. McGee, Univ. of TorontoCopyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.