No Minor Chords: My Days in Hollywood

Rating:
Summary: Ah the good ol' days.
Review: I purchased this book as a young classically-trained composer who is interested in writing music for film (or, more precisely, collaborating with filmmakers), hoping to gain some insights into Andre Previn's early career and why he chose not to continue on that path after about a decade.

The book consists of many charming anecdotes about the long-gone era of the big Hollywood studios, where most of the cast and crew were under long-term contract. Many luminaries of that day are charmingly profiled, from Fred Astaire to Busby Berkeley to Billy Wilder, to prominent musicians like Heifetz, Max Steiner, Bernard Hermann and others. Several tales in the book relate
instances of Previn working with ignorant or unprofessional
superiors/leading-ladies/producers/etc. and dealing with their egos, mostly in a gently submissive manner.

Previn also takes time to talk about his days as a jazz musician, which he remembers with great fondness.

In the final chapter, Previn mentions his main reasons for leaving Hollywood. Somewhere between winning four Oscars and contributing to nearly fifty films, he no longer felt challenged. "Since leaving Hollywood, I have had the healthy and sobering experience of constantly working with music that is invariably better than any performance of it can be." He also tells a great story about visiting Jeffrey Katzenberg about a proposed "Fantasia" sequel.

Virtually nothing in this book is of any great "technical" use to budding film-composers or conductors. However, the social anectodes are many and make for a pleasant read.

Rating:
Summary: Witty and engrossing
Review: In this autobiography, Andre Previn takes you on a candid and entertaining journey through his years working as composer, arranger, conductor and accompanist in the undoubted film capital of the world, Hollywood.

It is fascinating and funny all at once. The American film institution has always been admired and criticised, and Previn details some of the high and low points of being a part of it: the fact that musicians in Hollywood are a long-suffering breed at the hands of actors, producers and directors who haven't got a clue about music; the accounts of film personnel as seen at work and away from the glamour that publicly accompanies them; stories of wildly extravagant experiences that make up the off-hours and nightlife of the Hollywood populace. Previn also has plenty of musical experiences to relate: studying with Pierre Monteaux (conductor of the premiere of "The Rite of Spring"), playing Stravinsky's piano music and receiving the composer's comment afterwards, rubbing shoulders with other members of the Screen Composers Guild including William Walton, playing snooker with Schoenberg and consulting Shostakovich (via an interpreter) for information about his string quartets. We learn some remarkable things about a bygone era in cinema history, as well as a few home truths about living and working in Hollywood's incomparable atmosphere. All in all, it is a very amusing tale.

Previn reveals himself to be a great storyteller: his tone of writing is friendly and hands-on, and fans of Bill Bryson may recognise in Previn the same kind of bemused wit. For musicians, this is certainly an enjoyable account. For the casual reader, this is a good way to spend a few hours at home, on the train or in the air. My copy is much-thumbed, I can tell you...

Rating:
Summary: this deserves a reprint
Review: This is a most enjoyable book written for all readers-although the more you know about music, the harder you'll laugh. It recalls Previn's youthful days among the musicians in Hollywood, which includes a telling view of the movies' relationship with music. Previn himself is such a proficient musician-classical, jazz, he can write or play in any style-that his point of view is rounded, grounded, and surrounded by crazy ironies.

This isn't a long book or a hard read, making it all the more fun. It would be a fantastic gift item-if it were in print!