Kokoschka and Music

The Austrian painter Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980) was closely linked to his country s musical tradition, in particular to the Viennese composers Schonberg, Berg, and Webern. His friends included the conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler, and the musicians Richter, Serkin, Menuhin and Casals. In his autobiography, Kokoschka declared that he "had closer relationships with contemporary musicians than with painters or writers". With his masterly painting The Power of Music (1918-20) Kokoschka entered the debate on musical dissonance, tonality and chromatic harmony, evoking a "music of colors". This book focuses on the artists music-inspired works and presents Kokoschka's favourite theme: the effects of music on the human soul. It also includes never-published-before extracts from the countless correspondences between the artist and his musician friends. Text in English and French.Radrizzani, Dominique is the author of 'Kokoschka and Music', published 2008 under ISBN 9788874394142 and ISBN 8874394144.