Dear friends and colleagues,
I rarely go online to the Association to recommend a new book by a standard trade publisher, but I am in the midst of reading a book that I think may be of interest to your library users. The book is entitled: WORKING WITH BERNSTEIN. The author is Jack Gottlieb (Amadeus Press, 2010) ISBN 10: 1574671863 ISBN 13: 978-1574671865 I have known Jack Gottlieb for nearly 40 years. For decades before and after (with a brief hiatus in the early 1970s), he was associated with Leonard Bernstein. Often referred to as Bernstein's "assistant," he was, as one learns in reading, a whole lot more. It is a highly personal memoir of his professional association with one of the giants of Classical Music in the last half of the 20th century. Early on in my relationship with Jack Gottlieb, I intuited that asking the slightest question about Bernstein would annoy, even anger him, for he was always protective and respectful of LB's privacy and that of his family. (That said, if he volunteered a bit of information in the course of a conversation, one was smart not to dwell upon it.) This reticence is over. Gottlieb unabashedly goes into fascinating detail about the Maestro, his quirks and foibles, his colleagues, friends, etc. But it is hardly a "tell-all" pot-boiler, for there is nothing seamy, seedy, or sordid in his reportage. Referring to diaries Gottlieb kept at the time, one gets a portrait that is respectful and not fawning. The photographs from Jack Gottlieb's own personal archive are a fascinating record of the whirlwind that seemed to accompany Bernstein wherever he went or did. The style might strike some as too colloquial, but with Gottlieb, what one sees (or reads), one gets. He is inordinately fond of word play (a habit only attenuated by Bernstein, who was a master of the "bon mot"), so be forewarned. Only today I spoke to Jack Gottlieb to congratulate him on the book. He asked me quietly if I had read his chapter on the end of Bernstein's life. I had not, for I am only about 100 pages into the book. But I recall so well how devastated he was when Bernstein died nearly 20 years ago, that I can only imagine how difficult it was for him to write this chapter while at the same time composing his emotions. While the title says it all, i.e., Jack Gottlieb's working relationship with the Maestro, Working with Bernstein provides especially important biographical details that counter the sensationalist rubbish that litter the field and detract from Bernstein's genius. [] Reply [] Forward --- Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) =========================================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: hasaf...@osu.edu SUBscribing, SIGNOFF commands send to: Listproc @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu Questions, problems, complaints, compliments;-) send to: galron.1 @ osu.edu Ha-Safran Archives: Current: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html History: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/history.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
