Anna Beer is a cultural historian, and the author of biographies of Milton and Lady Bess Raleigh. She is a Visiting Fellow at the University of Oxford. She lives in Oxford, England.
‘Beer’s writing is lucid, engaging and exuberant, strongly evoking
the cultures and atmospheres that surrounded her subjects…the book
in general is terrifically enjoyable and accessible, and leaves one
hankering for a second volume.’
*Sunday Times*
‘A meticulously researched, engrossing read, vividly bringing its
eight subjects to life. It should appeal not only to music
connoisseurs but to anyone interested in social and cultural
history – and women’s place in it.’
*Financial Times*
‘Such traits, as Beer laments, are still with us…All the more
important, then, for excellent books like this one to remind us of
what we are all missing’.
*Catholic Herald*
'Offers vivid, colourful context on a situation that is echoed back
through the centuries…Readable and wide-ranging, Beer's deft
sketches are an elegant introduction to their subjects'.
*Spectator*
'Never less than highly readable'.
*Classical Music*
‘Rewarding…insightful…Beer conveys the sexism and lifelong
frustrations some immensely gifted creative artists
encountered.’
*New York Times*
'Beer's meticulously researched book is a vital step in the battle
to overturn that ultimate injustice'.
*Observer*
'Beer has an eye for detail, and gives us a vivid sense of the
stratagems these gifted, determined women had to employ'.
*Sunday Telegraph*
'In this riveting book Anna Beer wades through centuries of
prejudice from the fear of women composing at all…to the persistent
unwillingness to perform, discuss or distribute their music'.
*BBC Music Magazine*
''[A] stimulating and engaging book, written with passionate
enthusiasm and a light touch'.
*Literary Review*
‘I am constantly in search of books that explore the lives of women
who have been dismissed or overlooked by history, and this is what
makes Anna Beer's latest book a total godsend. Sounds and Sweet
Airs is an intoxicating historical examination of the way
gender has shaped what we consider to be canonical... Beer’s
impassioned overview delves into the hopes, motivations, and
struggles each woman faced as she attempted to pursue her vocation
while coping with the “boys club” mentality of their respective
music communities.’ Lenny Letter’s Lit Thursday
*Lenny Letter’s Lit Thursday*
‘Books could be written about composers denied a place in the
classical canon because of ethnicity or class or religion, but that
doesn’t negate the truth and importance of Sounds and Sweet
Airs’.
*Gramophone*
‘Beer’s snapshot lives of women composers are savvy, sympathetic...
[an] essential and insightful study of a woman’s unsung place in
the closed world of classical music.’
*Wall Street Journal*
‘An engaging read and…contains a powerful and timely message’.
*History Today*
‘This is a truly inspiring and fascinating book... Female
composers today no longer need to feel there is anything to
stop them creating music and forging a career as a composer –
if there is still any doubt, then just read Sounds and Sweet
Airs.’
*Debbie Wiseman MBE – Classic FM’s Composer in Residence*
‘A rich, revealing study of the lives of eight outstanding female
composers...Long overdue, this book includes a list of recommended
listening for each composer, a glossary of musical terms, and
suggestions for further reading.This important work furthers
cultural understanding of the history of female composers.’
*CHOICE magazine*
‘A fascinating and refreshing rescue of a few well-chosen exemplars
from the worthy but dull hands of musicologists... Thrilling.’
*Natalie Wheen, former presenter on BBC Radio and Classic FM*
‘Both feminist analyst and fluent biographer, Beer makes engrossing
and cogent cases for her subjects. She concludes that the proof of
their art lies in the hearing and recommends recent
recordings.’
*Booklist*
‘This book is a delight. Eight striking composers are reinstated in
musical history, thanks to Anna Beer’s energetic research and
lively writing.’
*Nicola LeFanu, composer and Professor Emeritus, University of
York*
‘A fascinating glimpse into the world of the women whose music we
should know and be hearing in the canon.’
*Charlotte Bray, winner of the Lili Boulanger Memorial Prize 2014
and composer of At the Speed of Stillness*
‘Elegantly written, Sounds and Sweet Airs offers compelling
evidence of the prejudices against women composers’ aspirations
across the centuries.’
*Rhian Samuel, Composer and Professor Emeritus, City University
London*
‘An important book... groundbreaking and entertaining... This book
should be required reading not just for those interested in
cultural history, but for anyone wishing to understand the
perception of women in the modern era.’
*Professor Steven Parissien – Director, Compton Verney*
‘Anna Beer’s eloquent and passionately argued narrative builds on
the most up-to-date scholarship and makes an irresistible case for
listening again to the work of women who were among the most
admired musicians of their age. Much more than simply an attempt to
balance the historical record, Sounds and Sweet Airs is essential
reading for anyone who wants to understand music’s power and the
politics of gender and sexuality that promoted, shaped and silenced
women’s compositional careers from the Renaissance to the twentieth
century.’
*Professor Daniel Grimley, Merton College, Oxford*
‘Absorbing ... [Beer] writes with rich detail and sympathetic
insight about [these women's] ambitious, adventurous battles to
overcome barriers to creativity.’
*Publishers Weekly*
‘Serious students of music and women's history will want to add
this title to their required reading lists.’
*Library Journal*
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