Scrapblog: a Writer from the South-West: Book-Lists; when you can't read you can list

Saturday, August 19, 2006

Book-Lists; when you can't read you can list

How I long to read. I see the lists of bedtime reading on others' lists; the books read again again and again; the book being read NOW; the book discussions of your ubiqitous Reading-Groups. Is it only me? why can't I find time to read? Why can't I stay awake at night? Why can't I find a spare hour, fifteen minutes even? Why can't I split into multiple identities - or start a Second Life? And in that virtual existence begin a virtual Reading-Group - then there'd be no excuse. Books - notably new fiction are gathering on shelves, coffee-tables, window-sills, every spare surface - from book-shops, free offers in book-clubs, charity shops, e-bay auctions, Amazon UK.

Anyway as I can't seem to escape into the childhood-mode or guilty pleasure of the reading haven I'm going to start a list here of books-I-long-to-read - perhaps on that never never day when I'm on that desert island with no pen, or computer to write and research texts-of-the-past on - which others will possibly never never read. I'll also use wonderful blogs such as
dovegreyreaderscribbles and The Book Bar to keep informed!

And a not-yet-read book to start with .... The Emperor's Children, by Claire Messud Or ....
The Ice Queen, by Alice Hoffman, in which the narrator's Grandmother seems to have a similar problem:

"Our house was littered with books - in the kitchen, under the beds, stuck between the couch pillows - far too many for her to ever finish. I thought if my grandmother kept up her interests she wouldn't die; she'd have to stay around to finish the books she was so fond of"

And no, I haven't read The Ice Queen but just absorbed one or two Visual-Bites from the book featured in newbooks.

2 comments:

dovegreyreader7:31 pm
Another Devon blog, how lovely to find a kindred spirit here in the South West!
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dovegreyreader7:32 pm
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I stumbled over your blog when googling Lady Rachel Fane, as I do from time to time, having been interested in this amazing woman for the past 25 years when, like you, I found her in Tawstock Church. Sporadically I have gathered information about her, including visits to both Kent and Northampton archives, always intending one day to write her story, but as is the way of these things, never getting around to it. But anyway - as a fellow Devonian woman writer, I just wanted to say hello and to say how much I am enjoying your blog - and when your book is published I will be in the queue to buy a copy.

Jo Field

Research subjects

Maude Valerie White

Maude Valerie White was during her lifetime one of the country's foremost female composers - and was especially renowned for her many songs (Groves called her song (words by Shelley) 'My Soul is an Enchanted Boat' "one of the best in the language"). White is more or less forgotten now except for one or two recent performances: Felicity Lott has for instance performed several of her songs, including So We'll go No More a Roving on this CD. White was born in France but apparently lived in Torquay at some time during her life and began her musical training there. She evidently had a remarkable life and career and gave an account of it in her book Memories and Friends; see this review of memories of a cheerful musician in a contemporary New York Times gives an account of her book.

Caroline Orger-Reinagle

Caroline Orger-Reinagle died in Tiverton in 1892. As yet I have found no more information about her time in Devon except that she probably lived at 15 Twyford Place (and was a member of the Shelley Society in 1887/8). Born in London in 1817 the pianist-composer spent much of her life in Oxford with her husband, the organist and teacher Alexander Reinagle. Works written under her married name appear not to have survived: these included a cello sonata and 2 piano quartets. However some music composed under her maiden name, Caroline Orger, was published: a piano sonata in A, opus 6 (1850?); some songs - including 3 settings of Adelaide Procter and 4 of Robert Browning; her Tarentella for piano appears to have been her most popular work. You can find here bits of info re some of these works and her treatise on piano playing.

Harriet Abrams

Harriet Abrams (1758-1821), singer and composer. From 1781 for ten years, she was a leading London soloist and appeared amongst others, in the Concerts of Ancient Music. Several of her sisters also sang; one of them, Theodosia, sang with Harriet and they became well-known as a duo (see a print of them performing here) I don't know when she moved to Devon but she died at her home The Braddons, in South Hill, Torquay, in November 1849 and was buried at St Saviour, Tormoham, Devon on 8 November. that year. As yet I haven't found out about her compositions.

The writer Theodosia Garrow, the daughter of Theodosia Abrams also lived at The Braddons, with her parents.

Info. on Abrams is from the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

Thelma Reiss

The cellist Thelma Reiss was born in Plymouth, in 1906. She made her debut with the pianist Joan Black at the Wigmore Hall in 1930. and was then invited to play Elgar Cello concerto at a Promenade Concert. She followed an international career and was at the time acclaimed as one of the foremost women cellists, performing with Myra Hess and broadcasting with the BBC. During the war she played at factories and hospitals. Playing a repertoire from Back to Debussy she was apparently known for her stylish and brilliant playing; but this was enhanced by her projection of a wonderful warm rapport and this endeared her to her audiences. She was forced to retire in 1955 because of a debilitating illness.

(information from Oxford Music Online)

Helen Glatz

Helen Glatz (1908-64) wrote an account of her life and career which was published in The Contemporary Music Review, in 1994. Having been a "penniless refugee" in Hungary during the second world war, she escaped to England with her husband just after the end of the war. Ending up in Devon at Dartington the composer, understandably, found she was now in "absolute heaven on earth". Whilst living and teaching at Dartington Glatz had commissions for many compositions of all kinds. One of these was The Dartington Cycle a work which she set to poetry about Dartington's history, written by Anne Born.

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Saturday, August 19, 2006

Book-Lists; when you can't read you can list

2 comments: