On Accents in Movies

In his new book, music writer Joseph Horowitz considers the rise of Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini, whose popularity grew during wartime. Many of Toscanini's contemporaries fell out of favor because of their German heritage.

Artur Schnabel is often considered an intellectual musician, but critic Lloyd Schwartz believes the pianist's skill lies in his emotional sensitivity. The Arabesque label has recently reissued a number of Schnabel's recordings on CD, including a collection of Beethoven concertos.

British novelist Julian Barnes takes great pleasure in quoting bad writing, as well as how words often fail to convey their intended meaning. His new book is called Staring at the Sun.