Bob K.:

>Grainger was indeed quite the racist and anti-semitist.  He went so far
>in his northern-European-o-philism as to eschew the use of Italian tempo
>markings etc.  in his music, using 'louden' for crecendo, and so on.
>He was also apparently quite the strange sexual deviant.  If you are
>interested there are some quotes about why he wished he had a daughter,
>all very disturbing...

I just finished reading the new edition of John Bird's bio Percy Grainger,
published by Oxford Univ.  Press.  I plan to review it, so I'll leave my
comments until then.  In the meantime, Grainger's life - unlike those of
most composers - makes very interesting reading.  Bird does concentrate on
the life, rather than on the works.

Steve Schwartz