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Topic: History of Music- Books  (Read 1578 times)

Offline jehangircama

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History of Music- Books
on: June 27, 2008, 06:41:41 PM
Does anyone know of some good music history books? which are the ones normally studied if one is doing a course in music? i'm looking for books which give a general overview as well as some that concentrate on particular periods- classical, baroque, romantic etc. Also, has anyone read Edwin Fischer's book on the 32 Beethoven piano sonatas? Is a copy available?
Thanks
JC
You either do or do not. There is no try- Yoda

Life is like a piano, what you get out of it depends on how you play it

Offline richard black

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Re: History of Music- Books
Reply #1 on: June 28, 2008, 04:32:36 PM
'Western Music: an introduction' by Ronald Stevenson. It's clearly the best because -

1. He's a pianist  8)
2. He's unusually broad-minded and has a happy knack of picking up stuff that other people don't in such books.
3. He's a friend of mine, so obviously I'm completely unbiased.

Sadly it's out of print. But, joking apart, it is a good read and worth picking up if a library or cheap second-hand copy comes your way.
Instrumentalists are all wannabe singers. Discuss.

Offline rachfan

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Re: History of Music- Books
Reply #2 on: July 02, 2008, 02:52:31 AM
Donald J. Grout's "A History of Western Music", revised 2005, has been a mainstay in university musicology courses for decades.  Forney & Machlis' "The Enjoyment of Music" (revised 2007), covers all periods and styles too, but not nearly in the same depth as Grout.  It is aimed more at general music appreciation, that is to say it's more of a survey overview, but still presents sufficient detail to be quite informative.     
Interpreting music means exploring the promise of the potential of possibilities.

Offline jehangircama

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Re: History of Music- Books
Reply #3 on: July 03, 2008, 07:48:40 AM
Thanks. Are they easily available?
You either do or do not. There is no try- Yoda

Life is like a piano, what you get out of it depends on how you play it

Offline rachfan

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Re: History of Music- Books
Reply #4 on: July 07, 2008, 02:05:32 PM
Yes, you can obtain them at www.amazon.com.
Interpreting music means exploring the promise of the potential of possibilities.

Offline minor9th

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Re: History of Music- Books
Reply #5 on: July 07, 2008, 05:04:56 PM
Yes, you can obtain them at www.amazon.com.

I ordered Stevenson's book a few days ago...looking forward to it!
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