On 2004-05-25 Louis N. Gruber, Lexington, SC United States wrote: Johannes Karelsky was a violinist, so the book begins, and he was also a genius. After an all too brief period of notoriety as a child prodigy, Johannes ends up in the napoleonic wars, almost loses his life, and then meets Erasmus. Erasmus is a violin maker of the school of Stradivari, the last of his school. Johannes wants to write the greatest opera of all time. Erasmus wants to make the greatest violin ever made--the black violin. And both of them are strangely haunted by a mysterious womanly voice, the voice of Carla, perhaps the most beautiful voice of all time.
This is a short book, easily read in one or two sittings. It is powerfully written, in a simple, lucid style. It is a fable, a parable, not meant to be taken literally. Like any parable it can be taken on many levels. What does it mean to be a genius? What is the point of striving for perfection? What is the price of greatness? Will either man succeed? And if he does, what will it cost him? You will have to read the book to find out; and after reading it, you may want to read it again.
An absolutely first rate book which will get you to thinking. Is it a work of genius? I dare not say, but, I do recommend it. Highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.. And summed up by saying A Black Parable. Currently The Black Violin: A Novel has an overall rating of 8 over 10.
The Black Violin: A Novel can also be found in the following searches:
Chris Mulhern claimed There were many musical souls adrift on that raft of silence that is Venice. There was the music of Johannes Karelsky.There was the music of Erasmus, the violin maker. And there was the music of war. But of that, the two men never spoke. From the internationally acclaimed author of Snow comes a timeless tale of love and music set against the romantic backdrop of eighteenth-century Venice. In 1797, the violin prodigy Johannes Karelsky arrives in Venice after fighting with Napoleon´s army in the Italian campaign. After the war, he boards with an aged violin maker named Erasmus who created the legendary ´Black Violin,´ which he forbids Johannes to touch because, as he says, ´Once you have tasted it, you will never be the same again.´ Johannes becomes obsessed with the idea of playing this violin as well as finding the woman who saved his life when he was injured in battle. Beautifully written and highly evocative, The Black Violin interweaves Johannes´s quest for love and the history of this mysterious instrument in a narrative that is sure to resonate long after the last page is turned.
Item that are similar to The Black Violin: A Novel can be found at: