Roberto Gerhard - (Proceedings of the British Academy) by Monty Adkins & Rachel E Mann (Hardcover)

About the Book

Marking the 125th anniversary of the birth of Roberto Gerhard, this work views the composer's life and oeuvre through the lens of the Spanish Civil War, exile, and cultural translation. Through these different threads, a new and more nuanced understanding of Gerhard and the political and cultural milieu that influenced his work emerges.

Book Synopsis

Gerhard was one of the most visionary composers of the twentieth century drawing together ideas from science, philosophy, and the arts into an oeuvre that encompasses the folk song of his native Catalonia, to serialism and electronic music. The composer lived through some of the most tumultuous times in recent memory including the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War as an exile in England. This edited volume uniquely brings together specialists in Spanish cultural studies, exile, musicology, and analysis to explore how these events and the post-war cultural and political climate shaped Gerhard's life and work.

About the Author

Monty Adkins is a composer, performer, and Professor of Experimental Electronic Music at the University of Huddersfield. He has written and edited books on the relationship between art and music, ambient music, the work of Roberto Gerhard as well as journal articles on the aesthetics of digital music for Organised Sound and the Journal of Music Technology and Education, book chapters on music education, mixed music, and the electronic music of Christopher Fox. Adkins is also active as a composer and sound designer.

Rachel E. Mann is an Assistant Professor of music theory at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and has held appointments at the University of Illinois, University of North Texas, and University at Albany. Her research interests include music theory pedagogy, educational technology, and the music and writings of Roberto Gerhard. She is a reader for the AP Music Theory Exam and Senior Content Developer for the software app Harmonia by Illiac Software, which has received major funding from the National Science Foundation. Her research is published by Ashgate, Cambridge Scholars Press, Routledge, and the Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy.