Ari Goldman hasn t played in twenty-five years, but he s decided to give the cello one last chance. First he secures a seat in his eleven-year-old son s youth orchestra, and then he s ready for the big time: the Late Starters Orchestra of New York City a bona fide amateur string orchestra for beginning or recently returning adult players.
Former New York Times reporter Ari L. Goldman is the author of three previous books, including the bestseller The Search for God at Harvard. He teaches at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
There are a lot of situations in this book and I guess it would make a great book for a book club to discuss. The not so discussable part is the history of the cello. It was interesting to read though a bit detailed at points. But for a total cello stranger it did give a nice idea about the instrument and why it is often an neglected one.
There is the story of Ari and what music means to him and how that changes after his voice breaks. How he picks up the instrument at 22 to get back into music and what it means. This did make me wonder why he ever stopped though there are some explanations given in the story. Him picking up the instrument now feels a bit like a midlife crisis to me but it did make for an entertaining story especially with all the research information about picking up an instrument at later age and so. I do like the idea he wanted to improve something he enjoyed when he was younger and lost overtime. It works kind of motivational too.
I loved the interaction between Ari and his son and how the music brought them together. Still at times I felt overwhelmed with all the various stories going on that I failed to really connect to the story.
The Late Starters Orchestra
Author: Ari L. Goldman
Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Pages: 304
Format: eGalley
ISBN-10: 156512992X
ISBN-13: 9781565129924
Algonquin: various formats
2 reacties
Write reactiesI was wondering how someone not in music would feel about this one. It's hard for me to gauge, you know? (Obviously I connected with it right away LOL) Enjoyed hearing your thoughts!
ReplyThink this would be interesting reading for me. Maybe I will have the same feelings as the character. I played piano and started with b-flat clarinet and I use to play in concerts and in a orchestra and I just stopped after I started working. I don't really have a good excuse. One day I may decide to play piano again and I hope it won't be during a midlife crisis!
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