Classical Music in America: A History Book

â??A splendid read, at once disturbing and illuminating.â?â??Gramophone â??An opinionated, stimulating account of how classical music failed to establish fruitful roots in America,â? Classical Music in America chronicles â??a cultural attitude that has produced many fine artists and striking momentsâ??but no institutional or intellectual support to sustain themâ? (Kirkus Reviews, starred review). â??An admirable, scholarly volumeâ? (Times Literary Supplement), this â??formidable book ... shows how American classical music became a â??performance culture,â?? an ersatz-European showplace for celebrity virtuosos, rather than a native-born genreâ? (The New Yorker). â??As a comprehensive, convincing analysis of the contemporary dilemmaâ? of reconciling European heritage with American vision â??and a riveting portrait of the century and a half of events and personalities which brought it about, Mr Horowitzâ??s account would be hard to beatâ? (The Economist). â??Anyone seeking to understand why American classical music has come to so dead an endâ??and wondering how it might yet escape a final descent into cultural irrelevanceâ??should read Classical Music in America with close attentionâ? (Commentary).