Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon
LAST BOAT TO YOKOHAMA: THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF BEATE SIROTA GORDON tells a story of both tragedy and grandeur in the twentieth century. It recounts the life and work of Beate Sirota Gordon: the influence of her father, Leo Sirota, one of the greatest pianists of his generation; her secret work ensuring women’s equality while helping to develop the post-WWII Japanese constitution—at the age of 22; her broad influence on hundreds of Western artists such as Robert Wilson, David Byrne and Peter Sellars—who were introduced to leading contemporary Asian music, dance, theater and visual artists through her extraordinary cross-cultural efforts.

The brilliant pianist Leo Sirota, a Ukranian Jew, was forced by early 20th-century war to escape Russia and settle in Austria, where Beate was born. In 1929, he found a welcome home when he emigrated to Japan with his wife and young daughter at the invitation of the Imperial Academy of Music in Tokyo. There, as a professor, he trained many of the country’s musical elite and performed to packed concert halls. Nevertheless, because of his Jewish faith, he spent the last years of World War II in detention, under the harsh watch of the Japanese military police, suffering hunger,
1120251271
Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon
LAST BOAT TO YOKOHAMA: THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF BEATE SIROTA GORDON tells a story of both tragedy and grandeur in the twentieth century. It recounts the life and work of Beate Sirota Gordon: the influence of her father, Leo Sirota, one of the greatest pianists of his generation; her secret work ensuring women’s equality while helping to develop the post-WWII Japanese constitution—at the age of 22; her broad influence on hundreds of Western artists such as Robert Wilson, David Byrne and Peter Sellars—who were introduced to leading contemporary Asian music, dance, theater and visual artists through her extraordinary cross-cultural efforts.

The brilliant pianist Leo Sirota, a Ukranian Jew, was forced by early 20th-century war to escape Russia and settle in Austria, where Beate was born. In 1929, he found a welcome home when he emigrated to Japan with his wife and young daughter at the invitation of the Imperial Academy of Music in Tokyo. There, as a professor, he trained many of the country’s musical elite and performed to packed concert halls. Nevertheless, because of his Jewish faith, he spent the last years of World War II in detention, under the harsh watch of the Japanese military police, suffering hunger,
4.99 In Stock
Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon

Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon

Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon

Last Boat to Yokohama: The Life and Legacy of Beate Sirota Gordon

eBook

$4.99 

Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
WANT A NOOK?  Explore Now

Related collections and offers


Overview

LAST BOAT TO YOKOHAMA: THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF BEATE SIROTA GORDON tells a story of both tragedy and grandeur in the twentieth century. It recounts the life and work of Beate Sirota Gordon: the influence of her father, Leo Sirota, one of the greatest pianists of his generation; her secret work ensuring women’s equality while helping to develop the post-WWII Japanese constitution—at the age of 22; her broad influence on hundreds of Western artists such as Robert Wilson, David Byrne and Peter Sellars—who were introduced to leading contemporary Asian music, dance, theater and visual artists through her extraordinary cross-cultural efforts.

The brilliant pianist Leo Sirota, a Ukranian Jew, was forced by early 20th-century war to escape Russia and settle in Austria, where Beate was born. In 1929, he found a welcome home when he emigrated to Japan with his wife and young daughter at the invitation of the Imperial Academy of Music in Tokyo. There, as a professor, he trained many of the country’s musical elite and performed to packed concert halls. Nevertheless, because of his Jewish faith, he spent the last years of World War II in detention, under the harsh watch of the Japanese military police, suffering hunger,

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781941110195
Publisher: Three Rooms Press
Publication date: 05/12/2015
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 168
File size: 2 MB

About the Author

Nassrine Azimi: Nassrine Azimi is a senior adviser at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research in Hiroshima and co-founder of The Green Legacy Hiroshima Initiative. She co-edited publications on UN peacekeeping and is a frequent contributor the The New York Times. She lives in Hiroshima.
Michel Wasserman: Michel Wasserman is the former director of the Kyoto French Cultural Institute and is currently Professor at the College of International Relations, Ritsumeikan University. He has written extensively on Japanese arts and culture. He lives in Kyoto.

Table of Contents

Foreword Beats Sirota Gordon i

Beate Nassrine Azimi 1

Leo Michel Wasserman 13

Augustine Augustine (Horenstein) Sirota 31

Legacy Part I Article 24 Nassrine Azimi 43

Legacy Part II Theaters of Asia Michel Wasserman 73

An Interview with Beate Sirota Gordon Nassrine Azimi Michel Wasserman 87

A Tribute Nicole Gordon 113

An Elegy Geoffrey Gordon 123

Preface to Post-Conflict Reconstruction Beate Sirota Gordon 127

Selected Segments of the Japanese Constitutions of February 11, 1889 and of November 3, 1946 131

Afterword Sonia Sotomayor 149

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews