Great Masters: Stravinsky His Life and Music

by Robert Greenberg

Course Lecture Titles 1. Introduction and There’s No Place Like Home 2. From Student to Professional 3. The Rite of Spring 4. The War Years (WWI) 5. Neoclassicism 6. Maturity 7. A Citizen of the World 8. The New Stravinsky

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Biography, History, Audiobook

Audio Cassette

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Robert M. Greenberg is an American composer, pianist and musicologist. He has composed more than 50 works for a variety of instruments and voices, and has recorded a number of lecture series on music history and music appreciation for The Teaching Company.

Greenberg earned a B.A. in music, magna cum laude, from Princeton University and received a Ph.D. in music composition from the University of California, Berkeley. He has served on the faculties of UC Berkeley, Californiz State University, East Bay, and the San Franciso Conservatory of Music, where he was chairman of the Department of Music History and Literature as well as Director of the Adult Extension Division. Dr. Greenberg is currently Music Historian-in-residence with San Francisco Performances.

Reviews

[Jonathan O'Neill · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️

[Mack · Rating 5 out of 5]

These musical biographies, so to speak because we get parts of the great composers’ lives and samples of their music, are all extremely well done by Robert Greenberg. He’s the liveliest, funniest, and best of all the Great Courses professors.

[Illiterate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Greenberg highlights Stravinsky’s use of Russian and Baroque traditions in his flight from romanticism into conceptual art.

[Farouk Adil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Book.

[Soha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew very little about Igor Stravinsky. I think the only piece of his music I had heard was bits of.The Rite of Spring. I have listened to and enjoyed many other of Dr. Greenberg’s lectures, including his studies of Mozart, Verdi, Tchaikovsky, Bach amd Beethoven, so I decided to give this one a listen.

I was astounded by Stravinsky’s incredible diversity of musical expression, something Dr. Greenberg pointed out in his first lecture.

Some of them baffled or put me on edge, even with Dr, Greenberg explaining what Stravinsky was trying to do, but I did like many of them. I enjoyed the abstractness of Stravinsky’s consideration of music as a matter of order, and his enjoyment of smacking the listener in the ear by not proceeding where the listener expected to go.

I have never taken a class on music and cannot read or play it, but I’ve always enjoyed it and Dr. Greenberg’s lectures have made me enjoy it more.

[Don Heiman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Teaching Company’s “Great Masters: Stravinsky his Life and Music” course lectures by Robert Greenberg was released in 2000. The course has 8 lectures that profile Stravinsky’s major compositions based on his Russian heritage, neoclassical perspectives, and spiritual values. Greenberg’s lectures focus on Stravinsky’s life events; and the lectures highlight how Stravinsky revolutionized musical composition and dominated musical innovation during the first half of the 20th century. Greenberg’s insights and teaching techniques are exceptional. After finishing the course, I followed Greenberg’s advise and purchased a full collection of Stravinsky’s music. (P)

[Jared Gillins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This joins Greenberg's Liszt series as the best of his Great Masters composer biography courses. Just one more to listen to: Great Masters: Shostakovich His Life & Music

[Howell Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a tale of a great musician! A lot more than i ever knew about Stravinsky. Greenberg is concise and covers s lot of territory. He is a joy to listen to. History, musicology and some theory, a good storytelling.

[Nina Braden · Rating 4 out of 5]

V, 2000

[Eli Pollack · Rating 4 out of 5]

How could you not like anything Greenberg does?

[David Biagini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enlightening and entertaining. I learned quite a bit from this book.

[Zi Gua · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic narratives! I am new to Stravinsky but Robert explained excellently.

[Yotam BM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Turns out I like Stravinsky's music even more than I thought! Quite a list of stuff to listen to now.

[Jb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greenberg does not disappoint. Made me want to discover 20th century music deeply.

[Bill Glover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Professor Greenberg points out a number of times in his lectures that the music he is telling you about is attainable these days with almost no effort or expenditure. He invites you to enrich your existence by attaining it and enjoying it fully. That extends to almost all information these days. You can read, hear, absorb almost anything at the local library. Can you afford to not know about the life and times of the great Maestro, Igor Stravinsky?
At 80, fellow got to drunk at a White house dinner and had to leave. Bored by Kennedy?!? Went home to play records. Loved cowboy movies. Hung out with Aldous Huxley. And bothered folks with his music until the last. Did his own thing. Infinitely cool guy.

[Hank Pharis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two of Stravinsky's compositions are on my all time favorites list. However I have never known that much about his life or the rest of his music. Therefore I enjoyed learning more about him and his music. Greenberg again did a good job.

(I’m stingy with stars. For me 2 stars means a good book.
3 = Very good; 4 = Outstanding; 5 = All time favorites.)

[Tamminh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating biography and music, as told by a great story-teller.