In this delightful collection of anecdotes, Michael Colgrass invites the reader into his private encounters with Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland, Leonard Bernstein, Dizzy Gillespie, and a host of other key figures in American music. Maverick to the core, Colgrass also writes about romancing a Cold War spy in Bucharest, composing a ballet overnight for the Joffrey Ballet, and playing a gig for a stripper that landed him a job in West Side Story. His anecdotes – often humorous and profound – describe a pivotal era in American music that shaped this Pulitzer Prize-winning composer. A “must read” for music lovers.

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