Enamored with the Cello

Author: [UK] Hilary Doupree / Pierce Doupree
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-08-01
Features: This is a book about music, growth, and family. Jacqueline Doupree (1945–1987), a towering figure in 20th-century music, will always have her entry in any comprehensive biographical dictionary: a British cellist who showed extraordinary talent at the age of five. She began her career at 16, and the gap between her talent and her age left everyone in awe. In 1973, she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and was forced to leave the stage, passing away in her prime. Flowers and misfortune both descended upon this once ordinary family at the same time. This person born for music not only couldn’t escape her own personal shadows but also hurt her closest family members: her reliance turned into hostility toward her mother, her cruelty toward her brother, and even an "illicit love" with her sister-in-law, depriving her sister of the simple happiness she deserved. For Hillary and her brother, the pain is too deep to be expressed—it’s more than just a sigh. It wasn’t until more than a decade had passed, and time had created the perfect distance from the past, that they gathered the courage to break free from the nightmare and write this co-authored biography. Those who have had the privilege of witnessing the tragedy and sorrow behind the beautiful scenes of her life may prefer to take away a little of the joy they derive from art, and instead let the world have one more lovable person and her family.