James Rhodes' Playlist


Book Description

A visually stunning introduction to classical music from piano maestro and bestselling author James Rhodes. "Rhodes makes classical music accessible, relatable, and exciting. It is hard not to be swept up - Rhodes writes with such enthusiasm and thoughtfulness that readers will be dying to listen to the Spotify playlist he shares ... Rhodes makes history and music come alive. Surreal, psychedelic collages ... make the book an eye-popping visual experience as well. A dynamic and infectious introduction to classical music." - Kirkus Bach. Mozart. Beethoven. Old guys with curly wigs, right? But trust me: those composers were the original rock stars. Let me introduce you to some of the most breathtaking and magnificent pieces of music ever created. We'll meet the rebels and revolutionaries who wrote them - did you know Beethoven peed into a chamber pot he kept under his piano? - and find out why they're responsible for every track on your phone today. The world of classical music is going to blow your mind. So take some time out to listen to the online playlist I've curated for you as you read. Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Schubert, Rachmaninoff and Ravel: the perfect introduction to classical music. With jaw-dropping artwork and avant-garde design, this visually exquisite celebration of classical music is encased in a stunning slipcase and features a large fold-out poster as well as an accompanying online playlist of the pieces being discussed. It's the perfect gift for older children and adults alike who want to explore classical music, but aren't quite sure where to begin.




Instrumental


Book Description

"An intense, eloquent, and appropriately furious memoir with the transporting beauty of classical music . . . The cumulative effect of the literary concert [Rhodes] gives in these pages is transcendence, both for him and for the reader." --Los Angeles Review of Books “A mesmeric combination of vivid, keen, obsessive precision and raw, urgent energy.” --Zoe Williams, The Guardian James Rhodes's passion for music has been his lifeline--the thread that has held through a life encompassing abuse and turmoil. But whether listening to Rachmaninov on a loop as a traumatized teenager or discovering a Bach adagio while in a hospital ward, he survived his demons by encounters with musical miracles. These--along with a chance encounter with a stranger--inspired him to become the renowned concert pianist he is today. Instrumental is a memoir like no other: unapologetically candid, boldly outspoken, and surprisingly funny--shot through with a mordant wit, even in its darkest moments. A feature film adaptation of Rhodes's incredible story is now in development from Monumental Pictures and BBC Films, following a competitive bidding war involving major U.S. and U.K. companies. An impassioned tribute to the therapeutic powers of music, Instrumental also weaves in fascinating facts about how classical music actually works and about the extraordinary lives of some of the great composers. It explains why and how music has the potential to transform all of our lives.




How to Play the Piano


Book Description

Now you can master Bach’s most beautiful prelude—even if you’ve never sat down at a piano before! Do you have a piano (or keyboard) and forty-five spare minutes every day? Then spend the next six weeks with acclaimed concert pianist James Rhodes. By the end, you’ll be able to perform Bach’s Prelude No. 1 in C major—no prior musical experience required! Rhodes reveals How to Play the Piano step by step—how to read the treble and bass clefs as well as sharp and flat notes, and then how to practice—before teaching the Prelude in easy, bite-size segments. His method is free of tedious drills, and filled with inspiration: “If listening to music is soothing for the soul, then playing music is achieving enlightenment.” Before you know it, not only will you have learned how to play one of Bach’s most beloved masterpieces—you also will have unleashed your creativity, exercising your mind (and fingers) and accomplishing something you never thought possible. Bravo! Includes four instructional videos supported by select e-reader devices.




YEAR OF WONDER: Classical Music for Every Day


Book Description

As featured in the Telegraph and on Radio 4's Today programme. 'A magnificent treasury . . . a fascinating tour de force.' Observer 'Year of Wonder is an absolute treat - the most enlightening way to be guided through the year.' Eddie Redmayne Classical music for everyone - an inspirational piece of music for every day of the year, celebrating composers from the medieval era to the present day, written by award-winning violinist and BBC Radio 3 presenter Clemency Burton-Hill. Have you ever heard a piece of music so beautiful it stops you in your tracks? Or wanted to discover more about classical music but had no idea where to begin? Year of Wonder is a unique celebration of classical music by an author who wants to share its diverse wonders with others and to encourage a love for this genre in all readers, whether complete novices or lifetime enthusiasts. Clemency chooses one piece of music for each day of the year, with a short explanation about the composer to put it into context, and brings the music alive in a modern and playful way, while also extolling the positive mindfulness element of giving yourself some time every day to listen to something uplifting or beautiful. Thoughtfully curated and expertly researched, this is a book of classical music to keep you company: whoever you are, wherever you're from. 'The only requirements for enjoying classical music are open ears and an open mind.' Clemency Burton-Hill Playlists are available on most streaming music platforms including Apple Music.




Down the Rhodes


Book Description

DOWN THE RHODES: THE FENDER RHODES STORY W/BLURAY DVD




The Pink Umbrella


Book Description

Perfect for fans of Amélie, this is a charming story about the power of friendship, love and pink polka dots to turn rainy days into sunny ones and sadness into joy. When it's bright outside, Adele is the heart of her community, greeting everyone who comes into her café with arms wide open. But when it rains, she can't help but stay at home inside, under the covers. Because Adele takes such good care of her friends and customers, one of them decides to take care of her too, and piece by piece leaves her little gifts that help her find the joy in a gray, rainy day. Along with cute-as-a-button illustrations, The Pink Umbrella celebrates thoughtful acts of friendship.




The Snow Fell Three Graves Deep


Book Description

In powerful, vivid verse, the master behind The Watch That Ends the Night recounts one of history’s most harrowing—and chilling—tales of survival. In 1846, a group of emigrants bound for California face a choice: continue on their planned route or take a shortcut into the wilderness. Eighty-nine of them opt for the untested trail, a decision that plunges them into danger and desperation and, finally, the unthinkable. From extraordinary poet and novelist Allan Wolf comes a riveting retelling of the ill-fated journey of the Donner party across the Sierra Nevadas during the winter of 1846–1847. Brilliantly narrated by multiple voices, including world-weary, taunting, and all-knowing Hunger itself, this novel-in-verse examines a notorious chapter in history from various perspectives, among them caravan leaders George Donner and James Reed, Donner’s scholarly wife, two Miwok Indian guides, the Reed children, a sixteen-year-old orphan, and even a pair of oxen. Comprehensive back matter includes an author’s note, select character biographies, statistics, a time line of events, and more. Unprecedented in its detail and sweep, this haunting epic raises stirring questions about moral ambiguity, hope and resilience, and hunger of all kinds.




Rise Sister Rise


Book Description

Rise Sister Rise is a call to arms for our sacred feminine to rise up, tell the truth, and lead. From Rebecca Campbell, a writer, mystic, devotional creative, and visionary who supports hundreds of thousands of people to connect with their soul and weave the sacred back into their everyday life. It is for those who agreed at soul level to be here at this stage in history to lead this global shift that the mystics of all of the ages have predicted: the return of the mother and the rise of the feminine. Rebecca says: Rise for you, rise for me, when you rise first you rise for She. Many of us have spent much of our working lives “making it” in a man’s world, leaning on patriarchal methods of survival in order to succeed, dulling down our intuition, and ignoring the fierce power of the feminine. We have ignored the cycles of the feminine in order to survive in a patriarchal linear system—but now the world has changed. Here Are Some of the Chapters in Rise, Sister Rise: Part I – Rebecca’s Story · The Unbinding · The Wise Women · Work Baby · Shakti Rising · Returning to Avalon · Tools for Your Rising Part II – Birthing A New Age · We Were Made for These Times · Shakti Always Rises · The Holy Grail is Within You Part III – Remembering Our Cyclic Nature · You Are Spirit Earthed · You'll Find Your True Nature in Nature · When Whispers Turn into Shouts Part IV – Unbinding the Wise, Wild Woman · The Suppression of the Female Voice · The Mystic Always Rises · Finding Mary · The Return of the Magdalenes Part V – Redefining Sisterhood · The Reunion · The Ones Who Came Before Us · When Women Circle · Your Constellation of Sisters · Calling in Your Sisters Part VI – Doing the Work · What Is Rising in You? · Rising Feminine Archetypes · New World Rising Birthed by You · Let the Universe Use You · Be a Clear Channel · A Prayer for Times of Remembering · It's Not Your Job to Save the World · Keep on Rising “I’m a super-fan of Rebecca Campbell . . . Rebecca guides her reader to step into their authentic power so that they can live and lead at their highest potential.” —Gabrielle Bernstein, New York Times bestselling author of Miracles Now Rise Sister Rise is a transmission that calls the innate divine feminine wisdom to rise. It is about healing the insecurities, the fears, and the inherited patterns that stop people from trusting the Shakti (power) and wisdom (intuition) that effortlessly flows through them. It's about recognizing all of the ways we have been keeping ourselves contained and restrained in effort to dim to fit into a certain archetype. It’s about co-creating a whole new archetype—someone who does not keep themself small in order to make others feel more comfortable. Full of activations, spiritual tools, calls to action, contemplative questions, rituals, and confrontational exercises, this inspirational book teaches that it is safe to let Shakti rise, safe to trust your intuition, and safe to take leaps of faith—because in healing ourselves we are healing the world. “You have an ancient wisdom within you that is waiting for you to remember, hear, and heed it. These Rise Sister Rise calls to action have been carefully designed to assist you in reclaiming your voice, unbinding your power, unlocking your wisdom, unleashing your true nature, and aligning yourselves with the sacred flow of all of Life.” Rise Sister Rise. Love, Rebecca x




A Life in Music


Book Description

A Life in Music reviews five decades of the rich and uniquely varied musical life of Daniel Barenboim. A child prodigy as a pianist and a virtuoso conductor of symphonies and opera, he has known and worked with many of the most distinguished and exciting musicians of the 20th century, not least his own wife Jacqueline du Pré. With memories of music heard and performed, and thoughtful examinations of global influences and professional inspiration, A Life in Music offers a profound window to the mind of one of the twentieth century’s greatest musicians. In this definitive edition, Barenboim discusses his work in Bayreuth, where he has been the most important artistic influence on the annual Wagner Festival; his involvement with the rebirth of the Berlin State Opera House in post-wall Berlin, and as conductor of two great orchestras in Berlin and Chicago; his thoughts on the state of Israel and his work with young Israeli and Arab musicians in Germany; his worldwide travels, his discovery of young talent and his insights into the changing world of music.




Ghost Boys


Book Description

A heartbreaking and powerful story about a black boy killed by a police officer, drawing connections through history, from award-winning author Jewell Parker Rhodes. Only the living can make the world better. Live and make it better. Twelve-year-old Jerome is shot by a police officer who mistakes his toy gun for a real threat. As a ghost, he observes the devastation that's been unleashed on his family and community in the wake of what they see as an unjust and brutal killing. Soon Jerome meets another ghost: Emmett Till, a boy from a very different time but similar circumstances. Emmett helps Jerome process what has happened, on a journey towards recognizing how historical racism may have led to the events that ended his life. Jerome also meets Sarah, the daughter of the police officer, who grapples with her father's actions. Once again Jewell Parker Rhodes deftly weaves historical and socio-political layers into a gripping and poignant story about how children and families face the complexities of today's world, and how one boy grows to understand American blackness in the aftermath of his own death.