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Carla Bley

by Amy C. Beal
Univ. of Illinois. (American Composers). Oct. 2011. c.120p. photogs. discog. bibliog. index. ISBN 9780252036361. $55; pap. ISBN 9780252078187. $22. MUSIC
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Beal (music, Univ. of California, Santa Cruz) seeks to give American composer Carla Bley the scholarly attention she deserves. Bley is a prolific composer, bandleader, performer, and activist akin to Charles Mingus. She is an immensely important figure in American music of the latter half of the 20th century, and thorough examination of her impact is lacking in most other major works. Written for a musically educated audience, Beal's book delves into theoretical analyses of Bley's work, especially her jazz opera Escalator Over the Hill. Beal also expertly contextualizes Bley's career within the landscapes of emergent avant-garde, free jazz, and experimental music while also exploring her creative relationships with the legendary Steve Swallow, Charlie Haden, and others.
VERDICT Beal not only captures the essence of Bley's dual identity as a major player in both the classical and the jazz worlds but also makes an essential contribution to scholarship on both American jazz and modern composers. Readers and researchers interested in women composers, American music history, music theory, or jazz from 1950 to the present will find this book invaluable.
Reviewed by Carolyn M. Schwartz, Westfield State Univ. Lib., MA , Jul 01, 2011
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