Song of the Birds
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| Song of the Birds. Sayings, stories and impressions of Pablo Casals. | |
 First edition cover |
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| Author | Julian Lloyd Webber |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Subject(s) | Essays, Sayings |
| Genre(s) | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Robson Books |
| Publication date | June 1985 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback) |
| Pages | 120 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 086051305X (first edition, hardback) |
Song of the Birds (1985) is a collection of sayings, stories and impressions of Pablo Casals, the great twentieth-century musician and undoubtedly the greatest cellist the world has ever known[citation needed]. He was a legend in his own lifetime, a legend so powerful that when, in protest at Franco's regime, he began a self-imposed exile in the tiny Pyrenean village of Prades just outside Spain, the world's leading musicians refused to allow Casals' genius to remain unheard and flocked to Prades - creating a world-famous festival in the heart of the mountains.[citation needed]
Casals' sayings and witticisms were as legendary as his musical interpretations, and he was revered by the world's great statemen and musicians alike. His amazing career spanned well over half a century: he played before Queen Victoria in 1899, and he was invited by two Presidents of the United States (Theodore Roosevelt in 1904 and John F Kennedy in 1961) to give special performances at the White House.[citation needed]
Yet above all else, Casals was driven by a sustained faith in the innate goodness of mankind. 'I am a man first, an artist second,' he declared[citation needed], and in Song of the birds the renowned cellist Julian Lloyd Webber has collected, as an act of homage, sayings, impressions and stories of the 'little Catalan maestro' which illustrate his indomitable spirit as both artist and man[citation needed].
