Book review: Hey kids! The Composer is Dead

By PIERRE RUHE

Lemony Snicket's "The Composer is Dead" (HarperCollins, $17.99) is a witty children's picture book that introduces youngsters to the sections of the orchestra and provides hilarity for adults who know backstage politics. 

The composer, we learn at the start, is dead. The Inspector is called in the next morning to catch the murderer. He starts his questioning. "The Violins answered first, of course. The violin section is divided into First Violins, who have the trickier parts to play, and the Second Violins, who are more fun at parties." 

Ready to interrogate the woodwinds, he almost forgets the violas. "'Everyone forgets about us,' said the Violas, bitterly. 'We play the notes in the chords that nobody cares about. We play crucial countermelodies nobody hears. We often have to stay late after performances and stack up all of the chairs. We spent last night feeling sorry for ourselves, as usual.'"

And so on, touching on the foibles and inside-jokes that orchestral musicians make about themselves, till -- spoiler alert -- someone is rustling at the podium. "A strange noise caught the Inspector's ear. 'Of course,' he said. "the Conductor! You've been murdering composers for years! In fact, wherever there's a conductor, you're sure to find a dead composer!'

"Dead composers litter the musical world, and it's all because of one man...and one little stick. Arrest him at once!" The orchestra sections come to their boss' defense, leading to the short book's true purpose: to entice kids to attend concerts. Carson Ellis' drawings have that combination of earnestness and innocence seen in olde-timey photographs. The book comes with a CD of Mr. Snicket narrating the story, accompanied by an eclectic, clever score by San Francisco-based composer Nathaniel Stookey, an update of Britten's "Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra." There's also a version without narration; my kids and I listened to it once and weren't moved to listen a second time -- while the book itself has become an in-demand favorite.   

Comments

[Darren Nelsen]

Ha ha. This is great!