Brown Orchestra conductor Paul Phillips’ new book, A Clockwork Counterpoint: The Music and Literature of Anthony Burgess, examines the musical side of Burgess, best known for his book A Clockwork Orange. In addition to publishing about 65 books and hundreds of essays, Burgess was also a composer, producing some 250 works throughout his life, though many are now lost.

“He was a better writer, but still a very good composer,” Phillips said. “Considering how busy he was as a writer and media personality, the amount of composing he achieved is amazing. Add to that the fact that he was almost entirely self-taught in music, his musical accomplishments are almost unbelievable and certainly deserve more attention than they’ve received until now.”

Phillips has conducted some of the compositions, most recently the first staged production of Burgess’s Shakespeare ballet suite Mr W.S. last November in France. The Brown Orchestra will perform the work withouth the ballet on March 4 and 5. The nine-movement work lasts about 35 minutes. Phillips considers it one of Burgess’s finest.