Author: Stephon Alexander File Type: epub bMusic lovers are at high risk of being inspired by this exploration of the connections between music and physics. —Wall Street Journalb More than fifty years ago, John Coltrane drew the twelve musical notes in a circle and connected them by straight lines, forming a five-pointed star. Inspired by Einstein, Coltrane put physics and geometry at the core of his music. Physicist and jazz musician Stephon Alexander follows suit, using jazz to answer physics most vexing questions about the past and future of the universe. Following the great minds that first drew the links between music and physics-a list including Pythagoras, Kepler, Newton, Einstein, and Rakim-The Jazz of Physics reveals that the ancient poetic idea of the Music of the Spheres, taken seriously, clarifies confounding issues in physics. The Jazz of Physics will fascinate and inspire anyone interested in the mysteries of our universe, music, and life itself.

Author: Gene Phillips File Type: pdf Two-time Academy Award winner Sir David Lean (19081991) was one of the most prominent directors of the twentieth century, responsible for the classics The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), and Doctor Zhivago (1965). British-born Lean asserted himself in Hollywood as a major filmmaker with his epic storytelling and panoramic visions of history, but he started out as a talented film editor and director in Great Britain. As a result, he brought an art-house mentality to blockbuster films. Combining elements of biography and film criticism, Beyond the Epic The Life and Films of David Lean uses screenplays and production histories to assess Leans body of work. Author Gene D. Phillips interviews actors who worked with Lean and directors who knew him, and their comments reveal new details about the directors life and career. Phillips also explores Leans lesser-studied films, such as The Passionate Friends (1949), Hobsons Choice (1954), and Summertime (1955). The result is an in-depth examination of the director in cultural, historical, and cinematic contexts. Leans approach to filmmaking was far different than that of many of his contemporaries. He chose his films carefully and, as a result, directed only sixteen films in a period of more than forty years. Those films, however, have become some of the landmarks of motion-picture history. Lean is best known for his epics, but Phillips also focuses on Leans successful adaptations of famous works of literature, including retellings of plays such as Brief Encounter (1945) and novels such as Great Expectations (1946), Oliver Twist (1948), and A Passage to India (1984). From expansive studies of war and strife to some of literatures greatest high comedies and domestic dramas, Lean imbued all of his films with his unique creative vision. Few directors can match Leans ability to combine narrative sweep and psychological detail, and Phillips goes beyond Leans epics to reveal this unifying characteristic in the directors body of work. Beyond the Epic is a vital assessment of a great directors artistic process and his place in the film industry. **Review For admirers of storytelling on a vast canvas, and of an old master, Phillips study is an overdue pleasure.Hollywood Reporter I found it hard to stop reading. I was impressed that Gene Phillips had spoken to so many of the people in the Lean circle. His enthusiasm for the films comes through strongly.Kevin Brownlow, author of David Lean A Biography Gene Phillips provides the final wordLester Keyser, author of Hollywood in the Seventies An entertaining, in-depth look at Sir Davids life and diverse career. . . . A welcome addition.Library Journal An entertaining, in-depth look at Sir Davids life and diverse career.Library Journal Phillips brings out the person, the immense talent, and the consummate skills of the director.Midwest Book Review [Gives] its subject a thorough treatment.San Antonio Current, Armchair Cinephile Its a step forward... for the legacy of the man who created The Bridge on the River Kwai , A Passage to India , and Lawrence of Arabia , the greatest film ever made.The Week It takes a great author to write about a great film director. In Beyond the Epic The Life and Films of David Lean Gene Phillips matches the excellence and meticulous artistic care Lean brought to the cinema. Utilizing biography, analysis, criticism, historical background, journalistic reporting, and the inner-workings of the moviemake process, Phillips totally captures the total filmmaker. David Lean was a towering genius who demanded emotional and physical perfection as well as the freedom to make his human epics. Gene Phillips is a writer with wisdom, tenacity and the ability to write in the spirit of his subject. Reading Beyond the Epic The Life and Films of David Lean is like watching a David Lean film. Phillips takes us on a journey to a place beyond the formalities of filmmaking into the heart of the artistic process itself and into the soul of a true cinema artist. The result is beyond definitive and approaches the inner secrets of why movies are both magical and life altering.Vincent LoBrutto, author of Stanley Kubrick A Biography and Becoming Film L [Phillips] offers an in-depth examination of prominent filmmaker David Lean.Partners About the Author Gene D. Phillips is a professor of film history and modern literature at Loyola University. He is the author of numerous books, including Creatures of Darkness Raymond Chandler, Detective Fiction, and Film Noir and Godfather The Intimate Francis Ford Coppola.