The Fifth String

John Philip SousaProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.7

Word count: 125K words
Chapters: 13

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971, and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. The Fifth String by John Philip Sousa. Author: Sousa, John Philip, 1854-1932. Language: English. Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature. Release Date: Apr 1, 1996

Editor's review

The Fifth String is the only novel by march composer John Philip Sousa. It is short and centers on a legendary violin capable of producing perfect music, with a clear romantic and allegorical flavor. Its appeal lies not in a complex plot but in how a musician uses words to express his understanding of art, genius, and cost—the passages about performance and strings carry the distinctive touch of a working musician. As a novel, its structure is rather simple and its characterization fairly one-dimensional, and its literary reputation has never been high; precisely for that reason it works as light reading that reveals another side of Sousa, and as casual reading for anyone drawn to music-themed fiction. The Gutenberg electronic edition makes for quick reading.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in musicians writing outside their field
General readers who enjoy short allegorical fiction about music
Those studying Sousa's life who want to know his literary work
English learners who need light English reading practice

Not a good fit for

Serious fiction readers seeking complex plots and deep characterization
Readers expecting a factual account of Sousa's own musical career
Readers not interested in allegorical or symbolic narrative

Reading tips

Read it as a short novel in one sitting; the allegorical atmosphere comes through better than in piecemeal reading.
Pay attention to the descriptions of performance and strings, and read them against Sousa's identity as a composer.
After finishing, look briefly into Sousa's life to see how the novel's view of art echoes his own experience.
English learners can read a Chinese summary first, then the original, to ease the burden of comprehension.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Isn't Sousa a march composer? Is this novel worth reading?

Its value lies mainly in showing how Sousa, as a musician, understood art, not in novelistic technique. If you are interested in how a musician imagines the cost of "perfect performance," it is worth reading; if you want only a gripping story, you may find it flat.

Is it long? How long does it take to finish?

It is a short novel, usually taking only a few hours to read through. It suits an afternoon or a few evenings and requires no long-term commitment.

Does it involve music theory? Can I read it without knowing music?

The musical content is mainly perceptual and symbolic and does not depend on systematic music theory. Readers without musical knowledge can follow the story; they may simply feel some performance descriptions less deeply than those with musical experience.

Comments

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About the author

John Philip Sousa Author · American · 1854–1932

John Philip Sousa (1854–1932) was an American composer and conductor, known as the "March King." Born in Washington, D.C., he served as conductor of the United States Marine Band from 1880 to 1892, then formed Sousa's Band in 1892 and toured with it worldwide. His best-known works include "The Stars and Stripes Forever" and "The Liberty Bell," and he invented the sousaphone. Beyond marches, he also wrote prose, including the novel The Fifth String and the autobiography Marching Along. The library holds three of his works, including The Experiences of a Bandmaster and The Fifth String. His writing draws on his experience of military music and band life, combining a musician's firsthand knowledge with accessible storytelling, and offers insight into American band culture from the late nineteenth to the early twentieth century.