Angelic Music, Corey Mead
Angelic Music, Corey Mead
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Angelic Music
The Story of Benjamin Franklin's Glass Armonica

Author: Corey Mead

Narrator: Paul Boehmer

Unabridged: 4 hr 21 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 10/18/2016


Synopsis

Benjamin Franklin is renowned for his landmark inventions, including bifocals, the Franklin stove, and the lightning rod. Yet his own favorite invention is unknown to the general public. The glass armonica, the first musical instrument invented by an American, was constructed of stacked glass bowls and played by rubbing one's fingers on the rims. It was so popular in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries that Mozart, Beethoven, Handel, and Strauss composed for it.

In Angelic Music, Corey Mead describes how Franklin's instrument fell out of popular favor, partly due to claims that its haunting sounds could drive musicians out of their minds. Some players fell ill, complaining of nervousness, muscle spasms, and cramps. Audiences were susceptible; a child died during a performance in Germany. Some thought its ethereal tones summoned spirits or had magical powers. It was banned in some places. Yet in recent years, the armonica has enjoyed a revival. Composers are writing pieces for it in genres ranging from chamber music and opera to electronic and pop music. Now Mead brings this instrument back to the public eye, telling the compelling, fascinating story of its origins.

About Corey Mead

Corey Mead is an assistant professor of English at Baruch College, City University of New York. He is the author of Angelic Music: The Story of Benjamin Franklin's Glass Armonica and War Play: Video Games and the Future of Armed Conflict. His work has appeared in Time, Salon, the Daily Beast, and numerous literary journals.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Thomas

Ah, good old Ben Franklin, interesting topic, off the beaten trail. Glass music rules!......more

Goodreads review by Dave

Picked up this little gem at a local Philly library. Moves quickly but offers the reader a clear portrait of Franklin’s favorite invention. My only qualm was that there wasn’t more emphasis on the so called “health issues” associated with the glass armonica. While we are shown who played it, the cha......more