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ne ~ A Book Review

This new. 736-page an-

thology, just published by
Reader’s Digest in. Mon-
treal, presents 48 great
adventures in the Canadian

‘ experience; encompasses a

time that began some 1,000
-years ago (when the. Norse

attempted to settle in North

America) and extends to the
2oth century. ne book is an

accounting of human at-
to cope - with
Canada’s vast, rugged,
often cruel environment,
and with often conflicting
hopes and ambitions.

Included in Great
Canadian Adventures are
tales o of explorers,
colonizers and pioneers,
Indian chieftains, soldiers,
seafarers, spies, saints,

liticians and statesmen, -

awmen and criminals,
financiers and remote
captains of industry.

This volume reintroduces
some Canadian writers
whose works have been

undeservedly. neglected for
“many years — hidden away

in archives or on the

ON EVENING AT SYMPHONY

Pianist Alexis Weissen-
berg joins Seiji Ozawa and

the Boston Symphony Or-.
‘ghestra:- in an Evening at.
Symphony that ranges from .

Schoenberg to. Chopin. ‘The
Sunday;
November 28 at 8 p.m, on

Public TV 9 (rebroadcast |

Saturday, December 4 at 4
p.m.). Pe
‘Ozawa starts the evening

with Arnold Schoenberg's

‘Theme and Variations for-
Orchestra’’.. Although he
rimarily is known for his
invention of.the twelve-tone
sca Schoenberg. oc-
casionally -had. urges. to
return to the tonal language
e

‘ he-had abandoned in
early 1900’s. The work
. presented on this program is

an example of one of these
“tonal urges’. .
The piece was undertaken

~ at the request of the.

publishers G. Schirmer Inc.,
‘who wanted a composition
to add to the repertory of
American Wind bands.
Schoenberg delighted in the.
challenge, and wrote his
“Variations for Windband”
in 1943, making a version for.
symphony orchestra at the.
same time. The orchestral
version had -a catastrophic
premiere by the - Boston
Symphony Orchestra in 1944
— at least according to the
critics of ‘the- day. The
current performance marks
the: first time the Boston
Symphony has tackled the.
work.since the first critic
butchered it. oo.
Schoenberg was used: to
such: criticism, to writers
who termed his works “an

excruciating novelty,” ‘‘an-

absurdity’, and ‘‘very

horrible’’.

“THE UTMOST IN DRY CLEANING. 7

LEATHERS

In keeping with our
high standard . of.

‘quality we send our |

suedes to the people —

who are: experts: in.

this field.

/Bring all. your
problems for fe

In response,. -.
Schoenberg was. arrogant,

"6559 |g

“restricted”? shelves of
libraries. It also contains

works by such famous
authors and. historians as

Francis Parkman, Stephen.

Leacock,. Archibald Mac-

Mechan, -W.0O.. Mitchell, .
‘Bruce Hutchison, Pierre

Berton and Farley Mowat.

To help put the reader
visually ‘on the scene” of
each great adventure, the
volume features. over 150
specially commissioned
illustrations, historic prints
and maps. Artists. have

based much of their work on.
prints from museums and

archives across Canada.

claiming that “the stupidity.

of these poor men is un-
surpassed. and approached
only by their arrogance and

_ignorance.”. He alternated.

between feeling that “‘in ten

‘years every. talented.
composer will: be. writing.
this way and realizing .‘‘T
cannot

understood and I
am content to make do with

respect.” To increase this
self-respect, Schoenberg
and his followers created.
‘the Society for’ Private

Performances, ‘in: Vienna,
from which critics were

‘banned.

Chopin also felt misun-
derstood and unappreciated

-in his lifetime. Extremely

reversed with the outside

world, he cultivated inac-

readability, Digest editors

‘amended. some of the

original . texts. —i by
rearranging and ‘abridging
the material, and by
modifying the syntax,
punctuation, . phraseology
and spelling. Each story is
as historically accurate as

‘the best -contemporary

research can make it. —-
_ The book is divided into
seven. ‘sections: The
Frontier; Exploration and

‘Discovery; Wooden Ships
and Iron Men; War and.
Warriors; Fortune Seekers;
Law and Order; and. the:

Human Spirit. _

‘Soloist Alexis Weissenberg

his: twentieth. birthday. This:
%° Minor. ‘concerto: was.

‘played by Chopin in the.1830° .
concert which first exposed. -
“his talent to the s¢rutiny of -
‘the public and professional
.-erities. Reaction.
or as’ Chopin
wrote: ‘No one hissed, and 1.
had to bow four times.” —

cessibility to an almost’
egree: Chopin’s

morbid
self-image was not high: “I
know I have never been of
any use to. anyone —.and

indeed: not much: use to™

myself.” - |

" Serisitive’ and -emotional,.

he did ‘attract the ‘attention
‘and concern of various high-.
“Warsaw:

born. ladies,
beauties, and novelist
George Sand. He suffered,

‘he languished, he coughed

and Turgenev has said that
half a hundred-countesses in
Europe claimed to have held
the dying Chopin in their
arms. 7

His piano Concerto No.. 1,.

performed. by . soloist
Weissenberg, was one of two
concerti written just before

ENTERTAINMENT, THE HERALD, Wed.. Nov. 24,1976, \

entures”

‘For. greater clarity and:

ore ed Le we ‘ ae
Fl ks ee TT ee
; cM ee

“To publish such an an-:
thology Digest editors and
researchers read hundreds .

of books and stories. There © :

were months of weighing
and comparing, checking
and rechecking all the facts
for authenticity, before the

-final contents were chosen..

The result is a vital, exciting

anorama of Canadian |

istory.

Not only a source of.en--.-

‘tertainment,
Canadian Adventures is also

Great

a. valuable reference work =

‘that adds new meaning to.

cuirent school courses and. |

projects,“

~

favorable,

‘Evening at Symphony is a

production’ of WGBH-Boston

and the:Boston Symphony. .

3 Production |
funding was provided. by —

- Raytheon Company, the.
Corporation for Public*.

Broadcasting, and public.

television stations. The.

‘series’ “presentation on.

KCTS-9 is paid for in part by

‘Orchestra.

-Members of Nine.

was”

rig