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The Sound of Pictures Talking to Kinky In Defence of
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Some of Andrew Ford's books are no longer available in bookshops. Contact Andrew directly to purchase a copy of Speaking in Tongues - the Songs of Van Morrison (2005) at the price of AUD 25 + postage. Try Whistling This - writings about music
Andrew Ford's new collection of writings about music is published on 1st August by Black Inc. In Try Whistling This, Ford traces the concept of dirty dancing back to the 16th century, marvels at the weirdness of Percy Grainger and consider the decision of Wilhelm Furtwängler to keep conducting under the Nazis. He explores the intersection of words and music, the bugbear of Australian musical identity, and the fundamental importance, in music and in life, of listening. There are essays based on Ford's acclaimed radio series Music and Fashion, as well as illuminating examinations of music-makers from Mozart to Messiaen, Elgar to Brett Dean, Cole Porter to Sondheim, Bob Dylan to Randy Newman.
> Buy Try Whistling This online from Readings (Melbourne) Reviews of Try Whistling This This is a superb collection of essays of opinion across a broad spectrum of musical expression by our finest commentator. Anthony Linden Jones, Music Forum I was entirely delighted by Andrew Fords Try Whistling This: writings about music. Ford is the most literate of composers; the most musical of writers. He demonstrates a seemingly endless knowledge of his field, while writing brilliant, entertaining criticism. David McCooey, 'Books of the Year', Australian Book Review Should we think of Mahler's all-embracing symphonies as 'operas without the action'? Was Bob Dylan really 'the best-read and most literary popular song writer of the past 50 years'? Is improvisation something you can practise and get better at? One of the most attractive things about Try Whistling This is that Andrew Ford – who would, incidentally, answer 'yes' to each of those questions – is constantly spinning out new ideas, asking us to see familiar things with fresh eyes, prompting us to think again about settled opinions. And then to go back to the music and listen more intently. Attractive too is his depth of knowledge and the breadth of his musical sympathies in this collection about music and the people who make it. There's no condescension in Try Whistling This, and no suggestion that one type of music is less worthy of serious consideration than another. Music is for him an oceanic expanse, where even the pools and inlets are refreshed by tides of fashion and currents of innovation. He is as comfortable (and adept at) discussing the austere appeal of plainsong as the supple melodic lines of Hoagy Carmichael . . . The scope of his coverage shows just how much music is a seemingly endless field for adventures, nourished by old traditions and enlivened by new sources of inspiration. He asks us to take the time to listen to new compositions, as well as to things we think we already know. With new music, he says, 'originality should always be the point'. Perhaps we will even find something we can whistle. Peter Fuller, Canberra Times Ford says he doubts he is, in fact, a proper critic at all, though he is certain he knows what one does. 'The critic must ask what it is the composer and-or performer aiming for, and then whether on its own terms the music has succeeded,' he writes in an engaging introduction. The point is, it's not the critic's job to tell us whether to like a particular piece; it's to say whether it's any good, and why (or why not). In Try Whistling This he sets up an even broader sweep than this remit would suggest, however, first throwing at the reader a longform essay called 'Music and Fashion', refigured from a six-part radio series he presented with the same title. It's a grand stroll through the past few centuries that asks, from many different angles, a deceptively simple question: why do we like the things we like? Stephen Fitzpatrick, The Australian Ford writes from the frontline of music; he is composer first and a writer second. He can’t help but be caught up in the drama of creation and can empathise with Mahler, for example, who could compose only during his summer break, or Walton who sometimes found it difficult to compose at all. Where other critics might take a helicopter view, or affect objectivity, Ford has both the luxury to write about what he likes and the inclination to occasionally play favourites, but utterly without dogma. A transplanted Briton, Ford lavishes particular care on Elgar, Vaughan Williams and others – and he’ll probably send you rushing to investigate some of the non-astrological music of Gustav Holst (that is, his entire output minus The Planets suite). Australian music receives Ford’s generous and sympathetic advocacy, too, in appreciations of Richard Meale, Brett Dean and others. Naturally, Bob Dylan is here, as well as Stephen Sondheim, presented with equal wonder and affection. Spend 15 minutes chatting with Ford (or reading one of his books) and you soon sense that there is no bottom and no sides to his knowledge. There are plenty of smart people around, but the miraculous thing about Ford’s manner is that he makes you feel smarter too. Robert Murray, Melbourne Review The strength of the pieces collected here lies in their approachability, making even rarefied music easier to understand, and providing pointers for adding depth to the listening experience. It's a 'bedside reader' for the musically curious, uplifted by Ford's celebratory spirit and eclectic range. James Koehne, Adelaide Advertiser Ford is well studied yet very accessible. Classical music dominates this tome, with considerable focus on Australia composers, but Ford does tackle Dylan, Randy Newman and Cole Porter. Most of all he shatters the idea of classical music frozen in time, breezing through centuries and styles with rare perspective. Doug Wallen, Rolling Stone
The Sound of Pictures
The Sound of Pictures: Listening to the Movies, from Hitchcock to High Fidelity looks at the ways directors have used music and other sounds in more than 400 films. How did Alfred Hitchcock use music to plant clues in his films? Why do some 'mix-tape' soundtracks work brilliantly and others fall flat? How do classics from A Clockwork Orange to The Godfather, Cinema Paradiso to High Noon, use music and sound effects to enhance what we see on screen? In addition to Ford's own essays, there are his interviews with five composers Ennio Morricone, Richard Rodney Bennett, Dick Hayman, Lalo Schifrin and Howard Shore) and five directors (Bruce Beresford, Sally Potter, Wim Wenders, Peter Greenaway and Peter Weir). > Read a sample! Praise for The Sound of Pictures Pick of the Week! If you want to be reminded (who does?) of the too-frequent mediocrity of much criticism in this country, read the beautifully written opening essay in this entertaining book about movie soundtracks. Andrew Ford, surely one of this country's most astute music critics (and a composer to boot), writes with such knowledge and authority about film scores, the reader is left gasping at his deep attentiveness to the subtleties involved in the interplay between sound and image. He ranges widely and is as comfortable evaluating Bernard Herrmann's contribution to Hitchcock's movies as he is writing about Thomas Newman's use of marimba and tabla in American Beauty. But this book is much more than just the opening essay. It is structured to include insightful interviews with five composers, including Ennio Morricone and the New York jazz pianist Dick Hyman; six critical essays on topics as diverse as 'Pop Goes the Score' (with an excellent analysis of the role played by the song 'High Noon' in the movie of the same name) and 'Listening for Clues in Hitchcock'; and interviews with directors including Bruce Beresford, Sally Potter, Wim Wenders and Peter Weir. For most moviegoers, the most effective music operates as a subconscious backdrop, so this book's appeal lies in the way it bypasses the images and storylines and brings the soundtrack to the fore. It makes readers think and respond differently to movies and become much more aware of the role played by music, its manipulative power and the importance of song choice. Bruce Elder, Sydney Morning Herald In writing The Sound of Pictures, Ford wanted to 'discuss actual films and not other people's theories about them' and expressed his desire that it should be free of academic obfuscation. Ford has done exactly that, producing an immensely readable book, full of revealing information and interesting anecdotes. The Sound of Pictures will be joyfully read by movie and music fans alike. Peter Crossing, The Canberra Times [T]his extended think-piece on the historical role and range of movie music is one of the best works since Adorno and Hans Eisler's ancient Composing for Films, which has been the standard film school text forever and runs the high art line until you want to scream. Hobart Mercury The Sound of Pictures is a must-read for anyone with an interest in film or music. Terry Oberg, The Courier-Mail Ford's roving curiosity and inclusive prose ensure The Sound of Pictures holds premium interest for all movie enthusiasts, casual and committed. Gerard Elson, Bookseller+Publisher The Sound of Pictures is a consciousness-raising affair that helps the film buff and even the most casual viewer understand how music complements a film. Martin Stevenson, The Examiner Music can be integral to making a film work, but it's the director and the starts who generally get the credit. More power to Ford for showering a little attention on the contribution of screen composers with such well-informed enthusiasm. Alistair Jones, The Australian
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Speaking in Tongues:
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An updated 3rd edition of Illegal Harmonies has been released in May 2011 from Black Inc. "Listen. What do you hear?" The original 10-part radio series that has since its completion been broadcast several times on ABC Classic FM and ABC Radio National: Illegal Harmonies is regarded by many as one of the finest programs produced by ABC Radio in the past decade." Bruce Elder, Sydney Morning Herald
Chris Boyd, Australian Financial Review" Andrew Ford's mastery of that lively, engaging clarity of style which one associates with seasoned radio broadcasters, enables him to perform a service for non-specialists similar to that provided by Paul Davies in connection with the modern revolution in physics. Joe Rich, Australian Book Review You could write a review of this book in four words: Buy it and rejoice. Geoffrey Tozer, 24 Hours Illegal Harmonies is a book very hard to put down. It brims with useful information, very up-to-date, and it is splendidly researched, above all written in a friendly, even chatty, but never condescending manner. The finely honed style of writing is a pleasure in itself. And if reading it makes me want to argue about some of its mission statements, that is totally to its credit. I wish I could hear all the music it mentions ... Fred Blanks, Quadrant It's both highly and deeply illuminating, and is a delight to read since it sounds like Andrew Ford talking: off the cuff, but with a vivacious lucidity that not many professional authors can rival . . . Ford offers a series of 'moments' that remind us of the pristine nature of each musical experience, yet at the same time reveal connections between things superficially disparate. Spotting the links is the heart of intelligence, and I'll hazard that this is the most intelligent book about modern music that, over a long life, has come my way. . . I can't do better than conclude with the words with which Ford ends this bravely brilliant book: We all need to engage with music to some degree or other: with minimalist music, hardly at all; with a composer like Schoenberg, rather a lot. But however good our powers of concentration, however acute our critical faculties, if we want music to be strong enough to help, we must begin by listening, and listening hard. So, listen. Wilfrid Mellers, The Musical Times This book is currently out of print (try AbeBooks.com). > Read a sample from > Buy Illegal harmonies from Readings (Melbourne) |
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Composer to Composer:
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Black Inc., November 2010 
Talking to Kinky and Karlheinz 
ABC Books, September 2005
ABC Books 2005
Erudite, unpretentious, provocative, passionate, succinct, kind, combative and sometimes wildly funny, Ford is the least pompous musical essayist I've encountered. Ranging from Arnold Schoenberg's last years to the vicissitudes of historically informed performance . . . Ford's essays are pitched somewhere between the dinner party anecdote and the post-doctoral lecture.
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