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[Signed] Grand Obsession: A Piano Odyssey by Knize, Perri (Hardcover)

Larry-BOS
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US $34.65
Approximately£27.44
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Condition:
Very Good
“Signed Fine Hardcover and Dust Jacket Pages are showing light edge tanning or maybe a result of the ”... Read moreAbout condition
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Located in: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
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eBay item number:156202191574

Item specifics

Condition
Very Good
A book that has been read and does not look new, but is in excellent condition. No obvious damage to the book cover, with the dust jacket (if applicable) included for hard covers. No missing or damaged pages, no creases or tears, no underlining or highlighting of text, and no writing in the margins. Some identifying marks on the inside cover, but this is minimal. Very little wear and tear. See the seller’s listing for full details and description of any imperfections. See all condition definitionsopens in a new window or tab
Seller notes
“Signed Fine Hardcover and Dust Jacket Pages are showing light edge tanning or maybe a result of ...
Cookery Topic
N/A
Modification Description
See Photo
Signed By
Perri Knize
Signed
Yes
Narrative Type
Nonfiction
Age Level
Adults
City
N/A
Inscribed
Yes
Intended Audience
Young Adults, Adults
Modified Item
Yes
Regional Cuisine
N/A
Type
Chronicle
Special Attributes
Signed
Personalized
Yes
Region
N/A
Country
N/A
Features
1st Edition, Dust Jacket
Country/Region of Manufacture
United States
Subjects
Art & Culture
ISBN
9780743276382
Book Title
Grand Obsession : a Piano Odyssey
Publisher
Scribner
Item Length
9 in
Publication Year
2008
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Item Height
9.1 in
Author
Perri Knize
Genre
Biography & Autobiography, Music
Topic
Composers & Musicians, General, Musical Instruments / Piano & Keyboard, Musical Instruments / General
Item Weight
19.2 Oz
Item Width
6 in
Number of Pages
384 Pages

About this product

Product Information

"A fascinating, lyrical memoir about one woman's obsessive search for the perfect piano-and about finding and pursuing passion at any age" How can a particular piano be so seductive that someone would turn her life upside down to answer its call? How does music change human consciousness and transport us to rapture? What makes it beautiful? In this elegantly written and heartfelt account, Perri Knize explores these questions with a music lover's ardor, a poet's inspiration, and a reporter's thirst for knowledge. The daughter of a professional musician, Knize was raised in a home saturated in classical music, but years have passed since she last played the instrument that mesmerized her most: the piano. Surprised by a sudden, belated realization that she is meant to devote her life to the instrument, she finds a teacher and soon decides to buy a piano of her own. What begins as a search for a modestly priced upright leads Knize through dozens of piano stores all over the country, and eventually ends in a New York City showroom where she falls madly in love with the sound of a rare and pricey German grand. "At the touch of the keys, I am swept away by powerful waves of sound," Knize writes. "The middle section is smoky and mysterious, as if rising from the larynx of a great contralto. The treble is bell-like and sparkling, full of color, a shimmering northern lights. A soul seems to reside in the belly of this piano, and it reaches out to touch mine, igniting a spark of desire that quickly catches fire." The seduction is complete. But the piano far exceeds Knize's budget. After a long and painful dalliance, she refinances her house to purchase the instrument that hastransfixed her. The dealer ships it to her home in Montana, and she counts the days until its arrival. When at last she sits down to play, almost delirious with anticipation, the magical sound is gone and the tone is dead and dull. Devastated, she calls in one piano technician after another to "fix" it, but no one can. So begins the author's epic quest to restore her piano to its rightful sound, and to understand its elusive power. This journey leads her into an international subculture of piano aficionados -- concert artists, passionate amateurs, dealers, technicians, composers, and builders -- intriguing characters all, whose lives have also been transformed by the spell of a piano. Along the way she plays hundreds of pianos, new and vintage, rare and common, always listening for the bewitching tone she once heard from her own grand, a sound she cannot forget. In New York, she visits the high-strung technician who prepared her piano for the showroom, and learns how a wire tightened just so, or an artfully softened hammer can transform an unremarkable instrument into one that touches listeners to their core. In Germany, she watches the workers who built her piano shape wood, iron, wool, and steel into musical instruments, and learns why each has its own unique voice. In Austria, she hikes the Alps to learn how trees are selected to build pianos, and how they are grown and harvested. With each step of her journey, Knize draws ever-closer to uncovering the reason her piano's sound vanished, how to get it back, and the deeper secret of how music leads us to a direct experience of the nature of reality. Beautifully composed, passionately performed, "Grand Obsession" is itself amusical masterpiece.

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Scribner
ISBN-10
0743276388
ISBN-13
9780743276382
eBay Product ID (ePID)
57224989

Product Key Features

Book Title
Grand Obsession : a Piano Odyssey
Number of Pages
384 Pages
Language
English
Publication Year
2008
Topic
Composers & Musicians, General, Musical Instruments / Piano & Keyboard, Musical Instruments / General
Genre
Biography & Autobiography, Music
Author
Perri Knize
Format
Hardcover

Dimensions

Item Height
9.1 in
Item Weight
19.2 Oz
Item Length
9 in
Item Width
6 in

Additional Product Features

Reviews
"Reading this book, you want to go out...and learn the piano, or at least visit a shop and stroke one."--The New York Times Book Review, "[Written] in a wonderfully evocative, lushly romantic style...music lovers will resonate to...[Knize's]...pursuit of a gorgeous sound."--Publishers Weekly, "Knize has crafted a poetic tribute to the piano...Warmly recommended for all collections."--Library Journal, "I was hooked from the first page....this book travels beyond the sphere of mere music."--The Buffalo News, "For me,Grand Obsessionwas intimately powerful: It changed the way I look at the world."--The Missoula Independent
Lccn
2007-048098
Target Audience
Trade
Lc Classification Number
Ml417.K675

Item description from the seller

Larry-BOS

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  • by nicowgml
    07 Nov, 2017

    Very nice book to read

    If you are a piano enthusiast, read this book. I liked very much the way the author described her odyssey when looking for the right sound. And how it got restored to its original quality.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-ownedSold by: silver-arch-books

  • by dreamcatchers40
    06 Mar, 2008

    Grand Obsession by Perri Knize (2008)

    This is an awesome and very riveting book. If you play piano, like piano music, or even just have an interest in pianos, I believe you will enjoy this book immensely. Piano technicians as well as players will relate to the story and find it easy to read and hard to put down!

  • by ntjsthb2012
    12 Jan, 2015

    The price was right; and I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

    This book was recommended to me by a piano tuner; and as a pianist I was totally pleased with it. It explained many things about how the environment affects a piano and about terms such as voicing and the tuning process.

  • by 7fjr04wpqcu@deleted
    03 Apr, 2008

    Grand Obsession

    Piano lovers everywhere rejoice. A fine story of one pianist's obsessive quest for her concept of a perfect piano.

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