On Thursday the 12th of September Unity Books Wellington was proud to host an event for How to Hear Classical Music by Davinia Caddy, the latest release in Awa Press’ Ginger series.
How to Hear Classical Music came to us with high praise. In the words of Yan Pascal Tortelier, famed composer, violinist and former conductor of the BBC Philharmonic: “I must congratulate Davinia Caddy for talking about classical music in such a lucid, open-minded and entertaining way. To be honest I found her essay quite awakening. It is a clear and sincere account, with witty observations, a wide sociocultural framework, and amusing bits that make for really enjoyable reading.”
Such praise is well earned. Davinia Caddy is a senior lecturer at Auckland University’s school of music. She has also performed as a principal flautist with the UK’s National Youth Orchestra and carried out post-doctoral research at Oxford University, specialising in the music and culture of early 20th Century France.
The breadth of Davinia’s expertise was evident in her talk’s wide-ranging and informative contents. Moving with equal facility and verve from Boethius and Mozart to John Cage and La Monte Young, Davinia situated the history and canonical practice of “Classical Music” in its evolving relation to recording technology, audiences and musicians themselves.
The talk was well received, with Davinia’s signature humour and light touch evident in the laughter which greeted her description of the first time she heard John Cage’s “4:33” and thought she had fallen asleep and missed it. How to Hear Classical Music is rich with such anecdotes, sharing a life of learning about, and loving, classical music. Signed copies were eagerly snapped up, in anticipation of more such stories but a few remain in store for those who missed out on the talk.
Davinia sets the scene
An early arrival keeps his ear out.
The audience were rapt in their attention.
Davinia shares a moment with our opera buff, Jacqui
Readers were eager for signed copies.
Unity Books Wellington would like to thank all those who attended this event, along with Davinia Caddy and Awa Press for producing this excellent new book.
How to Hear Classical Music can be purchased here in our online store
