Composers at Work

"Composers at Work justly deserves to be called remarkable, not only because its deductive and intellectual achievements are so very great, but also because it opens a field of research that will be unknown to many readers.... Thanks to Owens's painstaking and brilliant evaluation of the evidence, we possess a clearer understanding of the processes by which [Renaissance] composers built their pieces, section by section and layer by layer.... As a study of technical procedure, [this book] is a triumph, and it must be required reading for anyone with an interest in Renaissance polyphony.... The book is beautifully produced. In order to cope with the large number of photographic reproductions, it is printed throughout on glossy paper, and as a result the quality of reproduction is consistently high. Music examples are provided, and the book's tables and bibliography will be useful to all who work on the nature and history of autograph music manuscripts.... Already the tally of composers' autographs is growing, precisely as Owens knew it would. But her book will not suffer because of this. Only an autograph of unusual and exceptional kind is likely ever to pose a serious challenge to Owens's now classic image of the Renaissance composer at work."--John Milsom, Notes