DeepSummary
The podcast episode features a conversation between Nobel Prize-winning author Kazuo Ishiguro and jazz singer Stacey Kent discussing their collaboration on a book of lyrics titled 'The Summer We Crossed Europe in the Rain.' Ishiguro and Kent explain how they met after Ishiguro mentioned Kent's music on a BBC radio show, leading to a friendship and artistic partnership spanning nearly two decades.
Kent and her husband, composer Jim Tomlinson, invited Ishiguro to write original lyrics for their music, as they had just signed with the prestigious Blue Note record label. Ishiguro, who had aspired to be a singer-songwriter before becoming a novelist, welcomed the opportunity to explore his passion for songwriting.
The episode explores the differences between poetry and song lyrics, with Ishiguro aiming to create emotions, situations, and worlds within the constraints of the melody and orchestration. Kent and Ishiguro discuss how they navigate themes of heartbreak and hope, with Kent aiming to find optimism even in the saddest stories.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The episode explores the collaboration between author Kazuo Ishiguro and singer Stacey Kent, resulting in a book of lyrics titled 'The Summer We Crossed Europe in the Rain.'
- Ishiguro and Kent discuss the differences between writing novels and song lyrics, with lyrics needing to complement the melody and orchestration.
- Kent aims to infuse her songs with a sense of hope, even when exploring themes of heartbreak, to connect with her audience.
- Ishiguro admires Kent's ability to convey heartbreak without bitterness, creating songs that are both tragic and uplifting.
- The collaboration began after Ishiguro mentioned Kent's music on a BBC radio show, leading to a friendship and artistic partnership spanning nearly two decades.
- Ishiguro approaches songwriting similarly to his novels, aiming to create emotions, situations, and worlds within a limited space.
- The episode highlights the unique perspectives of an author and a singer working together to create a cohesive artistic work.
- The process of writing song lyrics requires balancing meaning with melody and orchestration, creating a different challenge from poetry.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “She told him, we've noticed that your novels can be quite sad, and this is fine as far as your novels are concerned, but as far as my songs are concerned, there's got to be a little bit of hope, because that's what I need to work with. That's how I reach into the hearts of the people who listen.“ by Kazuo Ishiguro
- “The words are not like poetry. They cannot afford to be self sufficient. It's got to work as a kind of a vehicle for the actual melody and the chords, the orchestration. And so you can't afford to have the meaning, just dominating everything in the lyrics.“ by Kazuo Ishiguro
- “There's anxiety and there's frustration and there's worry and there's sadness all in between the lines in these songs. Like in waiter, a waiter. It sounds perfectly comic at first glance, right? She's singing to the waiter about, please help me through this menu. I can't understand it, but actually it's almost as if the waiter, if he helps her and gives her the right answers on how to order it can make this relationship between this terrified, anxious, neurotic woman and this man who seems so suave and cool sitting in front of her.“ by Stacey Kent
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Episode Information
NPR's Book of the Day
NPR
5/29/24
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