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Gyorgy Kurtag: The Sayings of Peter Bornemisza, Op. 7, A 'Concerto' for Soprano and Piano.

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Gyorgy Kurtag: The Sayings of Peter Bornemisza, Op. 7, A 'Concerto' for Soprano and Piano. By Rachel Beckles Willson. (Landmarks in Music Since 1950.) Aldershot, Hampshire: Ashgate, 2003. [vii, 192 p. ISBN 0754608093. $69.95.] Index, bibliography, appendices, photographs, illustrations, charts, music examples, compact disc.

Described in the preface by series editor Wyndham Thomas as a "specialist book on [an] individual work composed since the end of the Second World War," (p. xiii) this is a concisely written tome on a single composition by a single composer. In this case the composition in question is Gyorgy Kurtag's The Sayings of Peter Bornemisza, Op. 7, a work begun in 1963 when the composer was 37 years old and completed by 1968.

Rachel Beckles Willson's impressive command of the Hungarian language and invaluable first-hand experience provide readers with a true insider's perspective of a remarkable composer and, apparently, a watershed composition. However, for those unfamiliar with Kurtag, his cultural milieu, and the Hungarian historical landscape in general, vital points of reference are lacking. For example, we must read twelve pages into the first chapter to learn of Kurtag's relationship with Gyorgy Ligeti, a more familiar figure to Western readers. Perhaps mention of compositions from some of Kurtag's contemporaries could have been mentioned for the sake of comparison, at least to provide...

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