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"West Coast" composer Lou Harrison (born 1917) is another in a long line of individualist Americans including (primarily) Charles Ives, but also pioneers such as Henry Cowell and Harry Partch. Born in Oregon, Harrison came East after studying with Cowell and was briefly one of Virgil Thomson's stringers on the New York Herald-Tribune, while also editing some of Ives's music. He returned to the West Coast in the early 1950s, where he settled into a life of teaching and composing.

Harrison's love affair with the various musics of Asia began at this time and coincided with his affinity for dance rhythms in his music. With his longtime companion Bill Colvig, Harrison invented many sounding instruments (influenced by those in the Indonesian gamelan), which he employed in his symphonies and other compositions. Harrison's development of a tuning method (which he calls "just tone" in contradistinction to "mean tone" or "equal temperament") has become central to his compositional practice and receives in-depth discussion.

Miller and Lieberman (a musicologist/performer and an ethnomusicologist/composer, respectively) began this book as an oral history, but it evolved into a thoroughgoing study of the music as well as of the man. After a brief biography, there are a variety of discrete chapters (e.g., on dance, tuning, homosexuality, politics) with a plethora of music examples. Harrison's lifelong interest in typefaces is also addressed, with examples given. The book includes a catalog of his works and a CD of excerpts from his compositions.

In the last 10 years or so, Harrison has enjoyed many more performances of his music, and his position as one of the leading American composers of his generation has been solidified. This affectionate volume--if more for the specialist than for the casual listener--is an appropriate tribute. --Patrick J. Smith Book Description
Lou Harrison, who celebrated his 80th birthday in 1997, has often been cited as one of the America's most original and influential composers. In addition to his prolific musical output, Harrison is also a skilled painter, calligrapher, essayist, critic, poet, and instrument-builder. During his long and varied career, he has explored dance, Asian music, tuning systems, and universal languages, and has actively championed political causes ranging from pacifism to gay rights. As an articulate and outspoken observer of the contemporary musical scene, he is frequently quoted in the media; yet until now no comprehensive study of his life and works has been published. The present book, supported by extensive archival research and nearly 70 interviews, examines the ideas that have shaped Harrison's creative output, as seen through the eyes of the composer and his his associates. A detailed biographical section is followed by individual chapters focusing on Music and Dance, Intonation and Tuning, Instruments, Asian influences, Gamelan, Music and Politics, Music Criticism, and Compositional Processes. In a separate chapter, the authors describe the historical background of the San Francisco gay community, Harrison's literary and musical statements on gay rights, and possible "gay markers" on his musical style.An annotated works-list details over 300 compositions, and an included CD illustrates the text in sound, including several previously unrecorded works. This engaging study of Harrison's life and works will be indispensible to students and scholars of American music and to performing artists and programmers. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Publish or Perish? The Latter, Please.
Heartening to see how the authors's cronies have rallied to the defense of this tiresome and mindless random heaping up of information. Nevertheless:

If it were truly a "scholarly" work, I think the author's would have something reasonably intelligent to say about Harrison's acoustical "theories", which were, in fact, to cut to the chase, wack.

If more of the information heaped up were firsthand, this might at least be of some service to real Harrison scholars (if Harrison scholars we must endure). Instead we have, for example, a passage about Harrison's long-term stay at a mental institution lifted directly from John Cage's "Silence". Better to skip this and read the Cage.

Lou Harrison Alive
With the death this year of composer Lou Harrison, the West coast lost one of the most inventive and seminal figures who have ever graced its soil. Happily, Harrison's music remains, but, while enormously sensuous and attractive, it is also an enormously complex music--borrowing from the finest of avant-garde American traditions as well as from the East. Harrison has rarely been written about with such sensitivity and understanding as one finds in "Lou Harrison: Composing a World" by his friends Leta E. Miller and Fredric Lieberman. The book also contains a wonderful CD-- itself worth the price of the book--which is a kind of chronicle of Harrison's development. "Lou Harrison: Composing a World" is a marvelous introduction to a great American composer whose work is only now beginning to be understood in its true range. The book is simultaneously excellent biography, fine musical criticism (both authors are musicians), and intelligent, shameless promotion for a great artist whose work deserves no less.

Lou Harrison's stature continue to expand
After the release of this volume in Autumn, 1998, I wrote a review that ran in Coast Weekly (see archives, 10/29/98, coastweekly.com) in which I expressed not only admiration toward authors Miller and Lieberman but amazement over the countless other details of Lou's life that I had not previously known. Amazement, because I knew the man for forty years, starting in 1963 when I was a student at San Diego State University and he was touring a program of Chinese music with Richard Dee, a long-time associate. Lou once descibed himself to me as a "glandular optimist," and so he was, in every creative and thoughtful way. His artistic example will continue to influence the music, and other arts in which he excelled, far into the future.

A hard act to follow!
In this book, Leta Miller and Fredric Lieberman have given the music-historical community a much-needed (and to be sure, a greatly appreciated) account of a composer who is essential to American art music of this century.Combining biography, aesthetic studies, music analysis and even newly recorded material in a thoughtful and clear manner, Miller and Lieberman have set a standard that later scholars will no doubt find a challenge to equal.Both worked closely with Harrison, yet their work is not a passive recounting of his words; both are trained scholars of contemporary music, yet their prose avoids all needless jargon for the sake of true communication.It is a book of tremendous importance, and has been and continues to be rightly admired by enthusiasts of American and/or contemporary art music.HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

hackwork
There are other sources of information about Lou Harrison, such as "The Music of Lou Harrsion" by Heidi Von Gunden and "The Lou Harrison Reader". There are much better biographies of much better and more significant twentieth-century composers, such as "Gyorgy Ligeti" by Richard Toop. There are much better biographies of colorful American figures associated with twentieth-century music, such as "Woody Guthrie: A Life" by Joe Klein. In short, I don't think we ought to put up with this piece of clumsy mannered hackwork. (By the way, the chapter on Lou Harrison's sexuality is ridiculous and unnecessary: Take him at his word.) ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Poetry, Drawings, and Original Fonts!
This book is very much in print, and can be ordered from Frog Peak Music at www.frogpeak.org.

It is a moving and impressive collections of poetry in many forms by the great American composer Lou Harrison, who passed away in 2003. In addition to the poems -- many written for famous friends or during trips to other parts of the world -- are Harrison's drawing and sketches. The book is printed in the Pluma font, one of several that Harrison designed during his lifetime. ... Read more

Book Description
Since its original publication, Composing a World by Leta E. Miller and Fredric Lieberman has become the definitive work on the prolific California composer Lou Harrison, often cited as one of America's most original and influential figures. Composing a World presents a compelling and deeply human portrait of an exceptionally beloved pioneer in American music.

This paperback edition is an updated version of the highly acclaimed Lou Harrison: Composing a World. The product of extensive research, as well as seventy-five interviews with the composer and those associated with him over half a century, this new edition features an updated works catalog reflecting compositions completed after 1997, adds a brief description of the circumstances of Harrison's death, and corrects a few minor errors. It also includes an annotated works-list detailing more than 300 compositions and a CD featuring over 74 minutes of illustrative Harrison compositions, including several unique and previously unrecorded works.

Extending beyond simple biography, Composing a World includes chapters on music and dance, intonation and tuning, instrument building, music criticism, political activism, homosexuality, and Harrison's Asian influences, among other topics. This indispensable study of Harrison's life and works--currently out of print--will be welcomed back by performing artists, students, and scholars of American music. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Enjoyable and informative
This is a good book about Lou Harrison that at least touches on almost all aspects of his life and work. I can't say it is a must have but it was enjoyable. ... Read more

Book Description
This digital document is an article from Notes, published by Thomson Gale on June 1, 2007. The length of the article is 1601 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Lou Harrison.(Book review)
Author: Virginia Anderson
Publication: Notes (Magazine/Journal)
Date: June 1, 2007
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 63Issue: 4Page: 854(3)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Book Description
Lou Harrison is a well-known American composer whose many interests include world music, just intonation, gamelan construction, theory, and poetry. A precocious musician, Harrison was an innovator during the 1930s and 1940s with his compositions for dance and percussion and his study of Charles Ives's music. ... Read more

Book Description
This digital document is an article from Notes, published by Music Library Association, Inc. on March 1, 2000. The length of the article is 1512 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Lou Harrison.(Brief Article)(Review) (book review)
Author: David Nicholls
Publication: Notes (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 2000
Publisher: Music Library Association, Inc.
Volume: 56Issue: 3Page: 774

Article Type: Brief Article, Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Book Description
We at Warner Bros. take percussion literature very seriously. We feel every piece in our catalog has something to offer if performed in the right context. It is our intentions with the grading system (elementary, elementary plus, intermediate, intermediate plus and advanced) to help you, the performer and/or educator, to best develop and express your talents as a percussionist. THE DRUMS OF ORPHEUS is a challenging ensemble work for 11 percussionists. It is written by Lou Harrison. Enjoy! ... Read more

Product Description
This series contains several of Lou's percussion ensembles written for advanced percussionists. The instrumentation is diverse, containing conventional and unconventional instruments. Enjoy the works of a true master. ... Read more

Book Description
Part of the Lou Harrison Percussion Ensemble Series. This piece is written for multi-percussion quintet. The level of difficulty is intermediate plus. ... Read more

Book Description
This original ballet was first performed in a concert at the Little Theater in the Fairmont Hotel in San Fransisco in 1942. The essential subject is the battle of our love between our planet, with all that is on it, and the super-big forest killing mythic swaggert Paul Bunyan (The In-Group Destroyer).Johnny Appleseed is the Hero. The eight movements are titled: I.The Trumpets of Heaven; II. Seed; III. Coronation; IV. The Battle with Bunyan; V. Fruition; VI. Meeting with the Ancient Days; VII. Ode; VIII. Whoops for Johnny.Player I:Vibraphone, 6 Lengths of Steel Conduit Pipe, Pipe Claves, Wood Claves.Player II:5 cowbells, 1 pair of sistrums (metal maracas), 1 pair of maracas, wooden box, marimba.Player III: 5 TOM TOMS, BASS DRUM, CLOCK COILS. INSTRUCTIONS ARE INCLUDED IN THE SCORE. ... Read more

Product Description
Sheet music arranged in three-parts with piano accompaniment. ... Read more

Book Description
By Lou Harrison. For four players. Advanced level. ... Read more

Product Description
Magazine Format / 48 Pages / Full Color. Featuring Marvel Comics characters in full page, swimsuit pin-up images by some of comic's top artists. ... Read more