Malcolm B. Brown

Good if you need to get acquainted with JS Bach

Revisado: 12-22-22

The review title pretty much says it all. If you know little about Bach and are curious about him, this book is a good first step. However if you want something deeper, look elsewhere. This production narrates the broader points of Bach's life and play excerpts from his works. That is both the strength and weakness of the production. Portions of the works are played and called masterpieces, but it doesn't go any deeper than that. Why, I found myself asking, is this piece a masterpiece? There is no musical analysis, nor does it comparatively situate these work excerpts in the broader history of western music... leaving the impression that the authors feel that JS Bach was a genius (and what does that term really mean?); ergo: all his frequently performed works must therefore be masterpieces.
So.. this production is good as far as it goes; whether it works for you depends on what you are looking for.

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A good listen

Revisado: 10-03-22

Important counter-balance to the focus on the land war aspects of the American civil war. A bit narrowly focused on the civil war; some background on the American navy prior to 1860 (e.g., why no admirals prior to the civil war?) and some discussion of the fate of the innovations of the civil war navies after 1865 (e.g., torpedoes and ironclads) would have been welcome added dimensions.

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Terrific -- and an important question for Audible

Revisado: 06-06-22

What an enjoyable and informative book, superbly narrated to boot. Looking forward to an update in the coming years.

For Audible: in the acknowledgements, Dettmer thanks his illustrator. Is there no way we audio "readers" can get the illustrations?

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Great personal account of Nietzsche's life

Revisado: 01-06-19

A good choice for anyone wishing to get a strong sense of Nietzsche as a person. Good account of all the awful things his sister did after he went insane. Narration was overall good but Mr. Smith needs some real coaching on his German pronunciation.

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Continue your quest

Revisado: 09-18-13

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Contains relatively little biographical detail.

How could the performance have been better?

Audio recordings seem to be of low quality, as if you are listening to them through a pillow.

Any additional comments?

I have enjoyed most of my previous Audible purchases but would advise prospective buyers to steer clear of this title. The text provides only very cursory information about Haydn's life. It plays long passages from recordings (of low-ish quality) without always telling you which work it is (this accounts for at least 50% of the length). There is no musical analysis, so there's no inside look on how Haydn was innovative; instead all you are told is things like Haydn is the father of the string quartet, that his music was passionate, etc.

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