Author(s): various

NZ Non Fiction

The publication of "A Life Set To Music" provides an occasion to salute the success of Edwin Carr's career, which stretches from his prize-winning Mardi Gras Overture, written at the age of twenty-three, through his Akarana tone poem for orchestra, first performed in 2000, to even newer works. As one of New Zealand's more cosmopolitan composers he is still accepting commissions from overseas, notably from France. He offers a direct style with its feet on the ground -a music that reaches all. He represents a rare phenomenon, since he can compose for the twenty-first century without losing touch with the long heritage of music. His strong background as pianist, conductor and teacher are a guarantee of his practical no-nonsense approach to composition. The life of a free-lance composer is not necessarily easy, and in this book Edwin Carr has attempted to reveal the flavours of such a life. It forms both a warning and an encouragement.