Nocturnes: and the Fascination of Night Music | Susan Tomes

An enchanting history of the music that calms our frantic minds, from the nocturnes of Field and Chopin to Brian Eno's Evening Star and Max Richter's Sleep.

In an insomniac age, ambient and sleep music have become increasingly popular
-but our association of music with the night is by no means new. Lullabies may be the oldest form of music, and are instantly recognisable across peoples and cultures. Why does the night hold such musical fascination for us, and what forms do its sounds take?

Susan Tomes explores the story of the nocturne, and the music of night-time in the classical tradition. From John Field's pioneering, lyrical nocturnes composed in the haunting atmosphere of St Petersburg's midnight sun, to Chopin's emotionally complex mastery of the form, composers and musicians have endlessly produced music about the night, in which the piano plays a central part.

Tomes offers us a rich cultural history : of this delicate, wistful, mind-quietening genre, which has gone on to inspire not just musicians. but generations of artists and writers.

Size: 223 x 145 x 35mm

Pages: 368

Publisher: Yale University Press