No comments about Two-Part Inventions: Schirmer Performance Editions Series (Hal Leonard Piano Library).

2 comments about Classical Form: A Theory of Formal Functions for the Instrumental Music of Haydn, Mozart, and Beethoven.

1. This book is an in-depth outline of the four major forms of the classical era: Sonata, Rondo, Minuet/trio, and concerto. Before it covers them, however, covers the parts that make them, i.e. subordinate theme. Each of these small parts takes up about thirty pages, where the author covers tonal regions, structure, dynamics, etc. This book is a must for the music theory student/professional, or the composer.



2. Caplin's book is, on the whole, an excellent revival of the Formlehre (study of form) tradition. His methodology of examining "formal functions" (i.e. how a particular musical module functions in the context of a full piece, rather than just labelling it) is incredibly revealing, and therefore his explanations of the various classical theme types (period, sentence, and small ternary) are likely the best you'll see in any study. The one caveat that I should express about this book is its reliance on the Riemannian and Schoenbergian traditions of harmonic theory: that's not necessarily a drawback, but to Americans who are used to the Schenkerian and roman numeral traditions of harmonic theory it can take a little getting used to (well worth the effort though).

No comments about The Development of Western Music: An Anthology, Volume I: From Ancient Times through the Baroque Era.

2 comments about If It Ain't Baroque: More Music History As It Ought To Be Taught.

1. David Barber wrote Bach beethoven and the Boys some years ago. Since then he has added When the Fat Lady sings and even more recently If it Ain't BAroque.

   While the first book metioned deals with Music History as a history of personae, here composers in the newer book he covers the same territory from another angle of view. This Music history is compiled from Genres. It was hardly evitable to tell some tales he had told again and all in all it is funny and instructive. Only for readers knowing the former two books some jokes were rubbed out already.




2. I was unfamiliar with Barber's works and from the title expected the book to accompany my Mus 312 class on Baroque Music History and focus completely on that. (whoops) The book's real goal is a comical approach to music history in its entirety. None the less, I still read the book and enjoyed it immensely. I wish I would have had this (and now Barber's other books which I also highly recommend) for my Mus 100 class (Introduction to Music Masterpieces). Barber's books take the information a textbook offer in an easygoing and funny way. Had my professor assigned all of Barber's Music History books together instead of a normal textbook for an Introduction to Music History, I would have left with the same knowledge a textbook offers but having enjoyed many more laughs along the way. Informative yet funny, how can you lose with that?

3 comments about The Development of Western Music: A History.Third Edition.

1. I recently bought this book and found it to be outstanding. Ihave read quite a few music books including library references(although not text books - which this is) and found this book to be quite readable yet scholarly and comprehensive. There are many insets devoted to major composers, virtually no significant composer is omitted and there are many maps showing the cultural settings of the varius music periods. There are couple page summaries at the end of chapters. Unlike some books you're half way through by the time you get to Beethoven. I was glad that there is extensive coverage to medieval and renaissance music. The latin liturgy is well explained. The book shows well the place of music history in the general history of the west - in fact I got some new insights about western history. Lastly it is reasonably price for a college text. END



2. I recently bought this book and found it to be outstanding. Ihave read quite a few music books including library references(although not text books - which this is) and found this book to be quite readable yet scholarly and comprehensive. There are many insets devoted to major composers, virtually no significant composer is omitted and there are many maps showing the cultural settings of the varius music periods. There are couple page summaries at the end of chapters. Unlike some books you're half way through by the time you get to Beethoven. I was glad that there is extensive coverage to medieval and renaissance music. The latin liturgy is well explained. The book shows well the place of music history in the general history of the west - in fact I got some new insights about western history. Lastly it is reasonably price for a college text.



3. Ironically, during my undergraduate years I thought this book contained a little too much information. While the format was appealing, I relied on my professor's concise notes... However, now that I am in graduate school and am forced to read 'Soundings' by Watkins I am thanking my lucky stars for Stolba's 'Development of Western Music.' This book is a life saver! It's to the point, comprehensive, yet concise. This book shows me the difference between scholarly writing and someone that just likes to hear himself talk... The index and table of contents make this book a very handy reference.

3 comments about Baroque Music, Style and Performance: A Handbook.

1. I bought this as a text to a class on Baroque Performance Practice. Along with brilliant lectures from my Professor Dr. Timothy Howard, this book was exactly what it took to bring a rounded, informed, and accurate base on which to interpret my Baroque repetoire. Highly recommend, the beginning and end of Baroque interpretation.



2. I bought this book through the Early Music Shop of New England before I knew about Amazon. It is a very good source of information on Baroque music performance. Chapter 6 (Accidentals) and 8 (Specific Ornaments) are particularly helpful to me in interpreting ornamentation/embellishment in flute music written during the Baroque period (1600 - 1750). This includes trills, mordents, appoggiatura and grace notes.
   
   As he did in his earlier book, The Interpretation of Early Music, Robert Donington quotes the baroque composers themselves on various styles of play and interpretation which gives the reader a pretty good idea of how these composers intended their music to be interpreted and performed.
   
   Baroque ornamentation might be likened to baroque architecture, the latter being noted for its fluidity, dynamic nature, leaving an impression of expansion beyond boundaries and demonstrating an aspect of a multiplicity of phenomena in constant flux in a perpetual process of being -- a spirit of freedom -- an organic sense of wholeness. One might intuit this aspect while playing or listening.



3. This is a good source to get anyone started on their way performing in a "period" manner. The only drawback is more recent research and advances in style make large portions of this book seem dated and even quaint.

2 comments about An Outline History of Western Music.

1. Concise, but inclusive. Would make a valuable text for undergrad Music History or for general graduate study.



2. This is a great source to have! It is easy to read and covers everything all the major music history text books cover. Overall it is a faster, eaiser, and more interesting read than other texts. World history is also linked with music history to help the reader understand what actually happened. I strongly suggest this book for Graduate students reviewing for comprehensive exams!

3 comments about Norton Recorded Anthology of Western Music, Fifth Edition, Volume 2: Classic to Twentieth Century (6 CDs).

1. These CDs are great, i can appreciate them more however, through my music class.



2. The CDs in this set are not packaged in standard jewelboxes nor even in cheap sleeves, but are mounted directly atop a printed surface. As a result, when I purchased the set from my school bookstore, I found that several of the CDs had dried flecks of ink on the data side that made it impossible to play or rip certain tracks. Beware.



3. Excellent product..one of the standard anthologies available for studying Music History.
   
   One caveat, if you're using Hanning's Concise Grout as a companion text, be sure to match the correct edition of the anthology + recordings to the correct edition of the text.

3 comments about Norton Recorded Anthology of Western Music, Fifth Edition, Volume 1: Ancient to Baroque (6 CDs).

1. If you're a music student at almost any major school (I just finished my undergraduate at Indiana University, for example) you'll most likely need to take a course that uses these CD's as part of its history survey. For that purpose, this set is an excellent collection. These, with their companion Norton Anthology of Western Music, and in conjunction with Grout/Palisca's History of Western Music, make for a thorough survey of the roots and history of Western music. Both the History and the Anthology use these CD's, and make constant references to them. (At least, up until 1750, after which you'll need the second volume)

   Having said that, however, i'm afraid that these CD's are limited to their intended purpose. Obviously, there would be absolutely no way to have a comprehensive collection of music and text be affordable to an average college student. As it is, the Grout, Norton, and CD's total about $200 total. However, for that cost they provide an extremely good survey of Western music. A student can follow historical developments through the music, and learn an enormous amount from these CD's. They provide a fairly good cross-section of different styles of major composers, and even a few examples of lesser known composers. One is far less likely to criticize the music of the twentieth century, for example, if one finds that Gesualdo (of the late 16th century) was writing music that was MUCH stranger than anything before the turn of the twentieth century.

   For someone outside of the music school (who will most likely be required to buy these anyway), these are also an excellent (and comparatively affordable) way to survey the mainstream and less-mainstream trends in Western music. The recordings are all relatively high-quality, often using historical instruments and interpretations (something important to a student of musical history) and providing a good introduction to classical music.

   For that reason, then, i recommend these to the casual listener as a good introduction to Western music. If you seek a "greatest hits" album, these are not that; go buy those Time-Life things they advertise on television. This is rather a serious collection of music from as many different styles as allowable while still maintaining some depth. The only thing that keeps the fifth star empty is the lack (by necessity, though i must admit) of a more wide-ranging selection of music. Despite that, they are still an excellent buy. The casual listener of classical music should find these to be a valuable introduction to the well known, and also the more obscure realms of early music.




2. I received these cds well on time, and upon discovering they were the wrong cd set the return also took place quickly.



3. The CDs in this set are not packaged in standard jewelboxes nor even in cheap sleeves, but are mounted directly atop a printed surface. As a result, when I purchased the set from my school bookstore, I found that several of the CDs had dried flecks of ink on the data side that made it impossible to play or rip certain tracks. Beware.

5 comments about Norton Anthology of Western Music: Volume 1: Ancient to Baroque.

1. This is the first volume of the Norton Anthology of Western Music Third Edition). It covers Music of the Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque periods, while the second volume deals with Music from the Classical, Romantic Contemporary and Modern Periods. The book offers a selection of scores (86 in total) from several composers and it spans over a period of more than two millennia (earliest score from 408 B.C., latest from 1752 A.D.). The scores that are included are representative of most composers that made an impact through these two millennia (at least according to the editors): Leonin, Perotin, Machaut, Landini, Dunstable, Duffay, Ockeghem, Des Prez, Willaert, Gesualdo, Monteverdi, Dowland, Byrd, Palestrina, Luis de Victoria, Orlando di Lasso, Caccini, Peri, Gabrielli, Schutz, Froberger, Frescobaldi, Scarlati, Purcell, Buxtehude, Lully, Couperin, Corelli, Vivaldi, Rameau, J.S. Bach and G. F. Handel. In this volume, 60 eponymous composers (and several anonymous) are included. The only noticeable absence on a first reading of the index is perhaps that of Boccherini. However, given the restrictions of space that are inherent to any written medium, the Anthology still manages to remain quite comprehensive. On the other hand, very few, if any, comments or analyses of the scores are offered for each of the pieces (always following the music). Pieces that involve vocals (i.e. excerpts from operas, cantatas, masses) are supplemented with an English translation, besides the original text. The scores themselves are 'full' scores and not piano reductions. Naturally, this causes some scores that involve richer orchestration (i.e. the excerpt from Bach's B Minor Mass "Et expecto resurrectionem") to be printed in small fonts, which in turn may take its toll in the readability of the music. However, since most pieces of the period involve smaller orchestras, the problem is not as much of a deal as it is with volume two. Additionally, if one always remembers the restrictions of space that accompany any written medium, it is clear that it is a decision to be made- it's either small fonts or fewer scores.

   Two notes of warning: first, the book, much like volume two, is not accompanied by any music. It contains simply the printed scores. A good choice for supplementing the two volume set, is Hannig's Concise History of Western Music with its 4 CD set. Although the CD set does not contain all music of the two volumes, it does contain a good portion of it and has a user friendly, easy to understand cross-reference system with the two volumes. Second note of warning: as any anthology, this one, too, is merely a representative sample. It is not a 'Greatest Hits' collection-for example you won't find Pachelbel's "Canon in D", Vivaldi's "Four Seasons", Bach's Brandemberg Concertos or his Passions or Handel's "Messiah" in it. Only one complete score of a larger scale piece is included, that of Bach's cantata "Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme" (BWV 140). Otherwise, the anthology consists of excerpts of larger pieces (whole movements or introductions for example), and shorter complete pieces (i.e. Bach's Praeludium et Fuga in A minor, BWV 543), that from the editors perspective present a more or less complete landscape of Music up to where Vol. 2 picks up from (Late Baroque/Early Classical). Naturally, omissions are inevitable, especially when one looks for balance. The four stars (and not five) are mainly because of the choice of scores at some points, at the choice (or omission) of composers at others, and, mainly, for the lack of more comprehensive commentaries and analyses of the pieces.




2. As is typical with surveys of music written before 1800, this volume devotes way too little time and space to a period of music history spanning almost 2000 years, and yet volume two deovtes roughly the same amount of space to two hundred years of music history (ca. 1800-present). One gets the impression that a series of relatively inconsequential composers filled in the blanks until Bach and Handel, and that's grossly unfair not only to the composers of those works (and the works themselves), but also to those who wish to learn something about music written before Mozart, Beethoven, Verdi and Puccini.
   
   If you're looking to learn something about music written before 1800, stay away from these kinds of surveys and point yourself in the direction of books focused more on particular subject areas -- for example, James Anthony's book on French Baroque music and Gary Tomlinson's book "Monteverdi and the End of the Renaissance" provide lucid breakdowns for those new to these genres, as well as those who already have some background in the subject matter.
   
   There are a few books that are even more general than those I mentioned above but that still provide a clear outline of music from paricular eras. For example, Richard Hoppin's "Medieval Music" and the accompanying "Anthology of Medieval Music" is a fine place to begin a study of this period. Alan Atlas' "Renaissance Music: Music in Western Europe, 1400-1600", and Howard Mayer Brown's "Music in the Renaissance" (2nd Edition) are excellent surveys of the music of that period. For Baroque music, Claude Palisca's "Baroque Music" (3rd Edition) is a good primer, as is Manfred F. Bukofzer's "Music in the Baroque Era, from Monteverdi to Bach." Also advised is reading primary sources, since they often give the reader an idea of the intentions of the composers and are a great aid in understanding the motives behind historically-informed performances of this repetoire. For this, look to Oliver Strunk's "Source Readings in Music History: The Baroque Era."
   
   (By the way, all of these books can be found on Amazon.com)



3. It was a textbook required for a class. It's a very scholarly book and if you have an interest in ancient-baroque music this has very good examples of that music.



4. This book was sent out the day after I bought it, and was in the stated condition. Excellent service, would buy from this seller again.



5. These anthologies are mostly used in music history courses to my knowledge and so I don't believe it's fair to say that this book fails to offer enough excerpts in this genre, or in this country, or during such and such years. I used this book during my first semester of music history at the undergraduate level (focusing on the second volume the next semester) and there simply isn't enough time to cover everything that ever happened during this period.
   
   The anthology strives to give textbook examples of certain genres, forms, etc. and even ones that don't follow such rules that I HOPE are explained by an instructor. The reason they do that is so students don't leave the class thinking every piece fall neatly into rules. It's only big schools (who more than likely have a graduate program like I'm in) that can afford to offer classes that can focus on narrower time periods. It was only until I was in grad school that I could take a semester class that just focused on the Baroque; Just 150 years were studied in one semester and even then things were left out. For a comprehensive reference for music history, this is a great anthology.