Quintet

Quintet presents compelling portraits of five artists known and loved by aficionados of classical music: the cellist Yo-Yo Ma, the conductor Jeffrey Tate, the violinist Josef Gingold, the pianist Richard Goode, and the opera singer Birgit Nilsson. This gracefully written book offers a deeply personal look at the lives of these immensely talented and hard-working performers. The essays grew out of conversations the musicians had with the late David Blum, who was himself distinguished both as a conductor and as an author of books and articles on musical subjects. Certain to delight music enthusiasts, Quintet is a perfect holiday gift.

"The late conductor-turned-journalist Blum was one of the most articulate of all contemporary writers on music. These extended portraits of five musical luminaries—Yo Yo Ma, Jeffrey Tate, Josef Gingold, Richard Goode, and Birgit Nilsson—first appeared in the New Yorker and the New York Times and are all remarkable documents about remarkable people. The first chapter on Ma provides readers with a fascinating glimpse of the cellist. Blum's pieces rely on conversations with his subjects and extensive interviews with their relatives, friends, and associates. His own personality is unobtrusive, yet his keen musical intelligence runs like a thread throughout." —Library Journal

As an internationally known conductor and writer, David Blum leaves an extraordinary legacy of recordings, books, and articles.

In 1961, Blum founded the "Esterhazy Orchestra" in New York, with Pablo Casals acting as honorary president. Dedicated to the music of Haydn, the orchestra gave ground-breaking tours throughout the US and Canada. But it is the recordings of Haydn symphonies that permanently preserve the rare collaboration between Blum and his outstanding musicians.