The author, Barbara Kendall-Davies, was born in Birmingham and first studied Costume design at the Birmingham College of Art. In 1961 she won a place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama to study singing. Here she met Baritone Christopher Davies and they married in 1963. Subsequently, their professional careers ran in parallel. Barbara’s writing career began in 1995 with a monograph of the French 19th century signer, Pauline Viardot Garcia and led to a two-volume biography of the singer. In 2019 her novels, Truth Will Find a Way and Worlds Within Worlds, were published by Austin Macauley. The first volume of a joint autobiographical trilogy was published as Love and Music in 2020 and On with the Show in 2021. More than Music completes the trilogy.
The year is 1934 and Albert, a singer, meets Dorothy, a pianist, because another pianist has broken his thumb. As children they had grown up during the First World War and had known the Depression, but they were young and life was full of music. They married in 1936 and their daughter, Barbara, was born in 1937. Life looked good but Albert was an Army reservist and was called up at the outbreak of the Second World War. His letters to Dorothy from France form the basis of this book. Fortunately, he survived Dunkirk and was posted to Stars in Battledress, entertaining the troops for the duration of the war.
The book shows the privations on the Home Front and the morale of the British people despite the dangers and hardships of war. Life was no easier after the war, but with the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and the New Look, colour came back into everyone's life. The Festival of Britain in 1951 was the icing on the cake. And with the National Health Service being created and new homes being built, the dark days were past and life could only get better.
Most thinking people pause at times to wonder what life is all about. Where do we come from and where do we go after we shuffle off this mortal coil? Of course, no one has all the answers so we become seekers of truth. Meditation is a good starting point in order to calm the mind and open up channels into deeper areas of being. If we are serious, we should pray for wisdom, then inner and outer teachers appear and our journey on an uncharted ocean begins. Nothing is given on a plate, but little by little, small pieces of the jigsaw begin to fit; however, as one question is answered, a dozen more pop up. It is an exciting process and if we persevere, we learn about subjects that are not on the curriculum of any earthly university but are aspects of the ageless wisdom. Take your courage in your hands and enjoy the journey through Worlds Within Worlds.
On with the Show follows on from the first volume of Love and Music, a joint autobiography of singers Christopher Davies and Barbara Kendall.
In 1965, Barbara graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and joined Chris in the musical profession. They had gotten married in 1963 and this is the interesting story of how they coped with what was bound to be a demanding way of life.
This is a joint autobiography of two singers whose lives have run in parallel from 1961 until the present day. It is based on the couple's letters and diaries. They met at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 1961 and married in 1963. Love and Music - Volume One illustrates the training, dedication and grit that preparing for a life in the musical theatre entails. It also shows the enjoyment that such a life brings not only to the audience but to the performers themselves. As they say: "It's a great life if you don't weaken, but if you can't stand the heat in the kitchen, get out!!!"
Set in Mayfair, West London, Truth Will Find a Way finds a group of friends whose private lives are as unconventional as those of the Bloomsbury Set. The group’s lynchpin, Lady Monica Montford, runs the Gayton Art Gallery, a central meeting place for the friends when they visit the capital. The interweaving of their personal relationships is as complex as a game of chess; will they all remain on good terms?
This is the third part of a joint autobiographical trilogy based on the letters and diaries of two professional singers Christopher Davies and Barbara Kendall-Davies. It also relates to their young son, Giles and his blossoming career as a singer.
There is a good deal of music, of course but also many unexpected and divergent paths as well, including a major Hollywood movie.
I’m thrilled to have my book, World Within Worlds, featured by the Jersey Evening Post on 16th April 2021. The article contains details about my book and the thought-process behind it.
It was a pleasure talking to BBC Radio Jersey about my experience and my book. The interview lasted for ten minutes and forty seconds and I was given enough room to narrate how I experienced my spirit ........
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