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Indivisible by Four: A String Quartet in Pursuit of Harmony | 
 enlarge | Author: Arnold Steinhardt
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Category: Book
List Price: $16.00
Buy New: $6.23
You Save: $9.77 (61%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  23 reviews
Sales Rank: 134590
Media: Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.3 x 0.8
ISBN: 0374527008
Dewey Decimal Number: 785
EAN: 9780374527006
ASIN: 0374527008
Publication Date: June 15, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new item.
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Amazon.com Review
Chamber-music lovers will rejoice in this story of the formation, nurturing, and maturing of the Guarneri String Quartet. First violinist Arnold Steinhardt has written a delightful memoir that radiates the love of music and sense of mutual respect and affection that have kept the Guarneri's players together since the ensemble was founded in 1964. How a famous, extremely busy musician learned to write so well is a mystery, but Steinhardt's style is as engaging and captivating as his playing. After sketching his own and his colleagues' pre-quartet careers, he describes how they choose and rehearse their repertoire and how they resolve their inevitable disagreements--and he even throws light on the inexplicable magic that happens in performance. Steinhardt recounts the pleasures and hardships of traveling and the group's partnership with illustrious guests (notably pianist Artur Rubinstein); he tells musical and personal anecdotes, wryly poking fun at himself and others, but never saying a malicious or derogatory word about anyone. Most remarkably, his discussions of a score are illuminating without becoming too technical. Steinhardt describes the emotional impact of music with a strikingly felicitous, often poetic touch, yet his characterizations resonate with his own experience and avoid the overblown or extravagant. Though it helps to know the music he feels so strongly about, this is a book anyone can enjoy. --Edith Eisler
Product Description
The Guarneri Quartet is fabled for its unique longevity and high-spirited virtuosity. Here is its story from the inside--a story filled with drama, humor, danger, compassion, and, of course, glorious music.
A player who studies and performs the exalted string-quartet repertoire has opted for a very special life. Arnold Steinhardt, tracing his own development as a student, orchestra player, and budding young soloist, gives a touching account of how he and his intrepid colleagues were converted to chamber music despite the daunting odds against success. And he reveals, as no one has before, the intensely difficult process by which--on the battlefield of daily three-hour rehearsals--four individualists master and then overcome the confining demands of ensemble playing.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 18 more reviews...
A sweet walk through hallowed halls. November 13, 2008
Steinhart is a first-rate fiddler and, as it turns out, a first-rate writer. Who knew? I attended the same music school so it was a fun reminiscence for me to read about the hallowed halls of the Curtis Inst. and some fellow students. You don't have to be a musician to like this book, but you probably ought to be a chamber music lover to appreciate what these fellows do and what they go through to do it. Arnold writes about it all so engagingly. It's an easy and delightful read that all music lovers will enjoy, perhaps especially those who are not professional musicians but who love the gifts musicians give them. I had hoped to be mentioned. I was not. But then, I am somewhat younger and considerably less successful as a musician. Still, I loved the book. And for those who only adore music, it is fun to get inside the profession if only for a little while.
Lovely August 1, 2008
This is a simply lovely book. I was a music student at Yale a few years before the author studied at Curtis, and his book invokes that time for me as if it were yesterday. I think anyone would enjoy it greatly even beyond the music, for it shows how four highly talented, strongly opinionated, dynamic men could blend into a coherent group - in their case, to make music, but law partners (I changed careers) could learn a lot from their example. A wonderful book.
A joy to read June 8, 2008
This book was a joy to read. Not only is Arnold Steinhardt a superb violinist, he's also a very good writer. No doubt it helps to appreciate this book if you're a fan of the Guarneri Quartet and a lover of the string quartet literature, but I found Steinhardt so charming, and the story so compelling, I imagine the book might have a broader appeal. It's a story of a kid pursuing a dream, then the kid and the dream both maturing while a love of chamber music develops, which then requires the dream of solo stardom to give way to a lifelong collaboration with three others. The three others, of course, share his passion for chamber music, and particularly for that ineffable, almost perfect form they choose to make their life's work together. They start out exploring and experimenting, with hardly a penny. They grope their way towards playing as an ensemble, gradually become established, and then come the constant touring, recording, families. They learn how to stay together by creating boundaries, and they stay together for over four decades (although the original cellist retired before the rest, this book was written before his retirement).
We meet a lot of famous musicians, and there are many interesting and sometimes humorous anecdotes, but the most interesting parts of the book have to do with the music and its making. Steinhardt mentions the cavatina from Beethoven's Op. 130 more than any other piece or movement - clearly it's had a special place in his life. I saw the Guarneri a few months ago, during their final season, and it was bittersweet. They played Beethoven's Op. 74 and his Op. 130 with the Op. 133 Grosse Fuge as the final movement. It was magnificent. I prefer their late Beethoven to anyone else's. Mr. Steinhardt looked liked he'd aged considerably in only a year or so. I'll miss them. I'm grateful to have this book along with their recordings now that they're retiring.
A Good Read for Any Musician March 10, 2007
I would recommend this book for any musician, especially a member of an ensemble. This book gives a good insight of the personal dynamics between the members and why they have been successful and together for so many years.
Great read January 14, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Fantastic read for any instrumentalist, especially if youve played in any type of small ensemble.Highly recommended.
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