'Music resonates through the works of Randolph Stow (1935-2010), with landscape, sounds, and words entwined across his elegant and lyrical output. Just as the author describes Shakespeare as having words for every emotion, so has Stow a song for every situation, with specific pieces of music used to locate fiction in time and place. Here, Richards talks about the sound and music in the works of Randolph Stow. Music in performance has a strong presence in his writings, from domestic gatherings to country music, Christian worship and indigenous rituals.' (Publication abstract)