Serge Moreux

There is an immense literature on Bartok, and it would be presumptuous of me to claim to have read more than a small amount of it. Even so, that is a lot, and after sixty-plus years of listening to Bartok, and fifty-plus of serious reading about him, I offer the following experiential summary. There are four books available in English which, if read, will give all but the most fanatical Bartok fan all the written informationn needed. This fine little books is one, and I will perhaps come back some other time to list the other three. More to the point, still the best way to meet Bartok is sonically -- so do it. That said, this book will be tremendously useful in placing Bartok's accomplishment in the context of the life of his times.… (meer)