Igor Stravinsky

Russian composer

Popularly known during his lifetime as "The World's Greatest Living Composer," Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) not only wrote some of the twentieth century's most influential music, he also assumed the role of cultural icon.
This book reveals Igor Stravinsky's two sides - the public persona, preoccupied with his own image and place in history, and the private composer, whose views and beliefs were often purposely suppressed.

Human portrait

Charles M. Joseph draws a richer and more human portrait of Igor Stravinsky than anyone has done before, using an array of unpublished materials and unreleased film trims from the composer's huge archive at the Paul Sacher Institute in Switzerland. Focusing on Igor Stravinsky's place in the culture of the twentieth century, Joseph situates the composer among the giants of his age. He discusses Igor Stravinsky's first American commission, his complicated relationship with his son, his professional relationships with celebrities ranging from T. S. Eliot to Orson Welles, his flirtations with Hollywood and television, and his love-hate attitude toward the critics and the media.

Robert Craft

In a close look at Igor Stravinsky's efforts to mold a public image, Joseph explores the complex dance between the composer and his artistic collaborator, Robert Craft, who orchestrated controversial efforts to protect Igor Stravinsky and edit materials about him, both during the composer's lifetime and after his death. Charles M. Joseph, William R. Kenan Professor of Liberal Arts at Skidmore College, is also the author of Stravinsky and Balanchine: The Journey of Invention, forthcoming from Yale University Press.