Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909) composed some of the most enduring masterpieces in a Spanish style, works that remain favourites with guitarists, pianists, and music lovers the world over. This is the only biography in English of the fascinatingly complex man behind this music, and it presents much valuable new information about his career as a performer and composer. Clark makes a convincing case for a revision of received opinion in a clear, scholarly but readable narrative that is refreshingly untrendy ... Clark's biography has much to recommend it. I particularly enjoyed the depiction of fin-de-siècle European musical life that forms a kind of incidental accompaniment to the main story.