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Martin Katz, The Complete Collaborator. The Pianist as Partner. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. Cloth, xix, 283 pp., $24.95. ISBN 978-0-19-536795-9. www.oup.com
In the performance of art song, the role of the pianist is critical. In recent years, the term "accompanist"-which implied that the keyboardist was merely along for the ride-has been replaced with "collaborator." Martin Katz, whose illustrious career as a piano partner spans the use of both terms, shares his vast knowledge of the subject in The Complete Collaborator. From the first paragraph of the book, in which Katz muses upon the change in his job title, the author reveals both a knack for clear prose and a keen sense of humor: "I still do what I always did, but now, instead of misspelling accompanist (accompianist or acompianist), people can trip over collaborative' (how many Is and how many b's are mere anyway?)." He begins with a succinct but thought provoking discussion of the art of piano partnering. Ensemble and balance are only the bare bones of the job description. (The author describes the former as "vertical alignment" and declares it to be the legal minimum for the profession.) The collaborative pianist, asserts Katz, is the guardian of the...