Richard Strauss

by Matthew Boyden

Richard Strauss's 85 years of life spanned a revolution in Germany - from 1864 when the nation did not exist to 1949. A nationalist but also a humanist, he believed in culture as `moral exoneration' and chose to remain in Nazi Germany and serve the Third Reich. Matthew Boyden examines for the first time Strauss's behaviour under Nazism, and assesses the incongruity of a seemingly crude character and the unfailing beauty and articulation of his music. A product of his age, an astounding talent and a man adept at concealing himself, Strauss only properly revealed his nature during the last twenty years of his life, when the pressures became both unbearable and unavoidable. This is the first detailed study of that nature.

Genres: Music

Hardcover

First published May 13, 1999

Reviews

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

Boyden is writing to contextualize the entrenched anti-semitism and the ethnic exceptionalism pervasive throughout the German speaking lands before Richard Strauss was born, and that lasted through and culminated with the Third Reich. All of this frames a detailed biography of Richard Strauss, both his artistic and personal life. Readers should be familiar with or willing to stop and listen to Strauss's musical works, which is easily the best homework a book has ever given.

Familiarity with Classical music will enrich this text, as Boyden packs a great deal into 400 pages, so detailing the evolution of Germanic classical music isn't possible. This book makes very clear the overwhelming anti-semitism of the eras, foreshadowing the 1930s and 40s.

Boyden has done a wonderful job of presenting Strauss as a deeply complex person who exhibits a privileged upbringing, a level of musical genius rarely seen, a banal personality obsessed with his finances, and dry wit that made me actually laugh out loud. It is clear the author loves Strauss's music, but he holds no quarter criticizing the man for his faults.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good treatment of the facts of Strauss's life, although it would have been nice to give a little more background information about the various works; the book seems to assume that the reader is already familiar with the plots of the operas and the programs of the tone poems. The prose is awkward at times, and there are a few noticeable factual errors.