Shortlisted for the Guardian First Book Award A sweeping musical history that goes from the salons of pre-war Vienna to Velvet Underground shows in the sixties.

There are concise biographical profiles of more than 200 composers and informative summaries of the major compositions in all genres, from chamber works to operatic epics. Topics such as the influence of jazz, notation, conducting, the madrigal, and why Stradivarius made such great violins are covered fully in feature boxes.

This guide provides an insight into what makes classical music sound the way it does, by discussing musical eras, scores, instruments and other important background information. It contains tips on how to discover music readers will enjoy most and advice on building a classical music library.

In this remarkable study, now an established classic which has remained in print since its first publication in 1971, Charles Rosen surveys the language of the music of the classical period. He concentrates on the three major figures of the time - Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven - because 'it is in terms of their achievements that the musical vernacular can best be defined'. He follows the ...

Presents 700-year history of classical music and the world as we know it.

Uncovers the world of classical music, exposing a musical demi-monde where alcohol and drugs are ubiquitous, where musicians perform high on hungover, and where it's standard to trade sex for work. The author has been a professional oboe player for over twenty-five years.

Written for a general audience rather than for experts, these essays invite readers to expand their appreciation of how music works.

Gould's writing on music was often as provocative as his performances as a brilliant pianist. This selection of essays includes pieces on major composers which challenge virtually every tenet of accepted taste and opinion. Other subjects include concert-giving, recording, and Barbra Streisand.

While the Beethoven string quartets are to chamber music what the plays of Shakespeare are to drama, even seasoned concertgoers can welcome guidance with these personal and sometimes enigmatic works. This collection offers Beethoven lovers notes on the listening experience of each quartet and a range of general perspectives.

With the composer's consent, the manuscript was smuggled out of Soviet Russia - but Shostakovich, fearing reprisals, stipulated that the book should not appear until after his death. Ever since its publication in 1979 it has been the subject of controversy, some suggesting that Volkov invented parts of it, but most affirming that it revealed a profoundly ambivalent Shostakovich which the world ...

This biography (first published in 2000 to mark the 250th anniversary of J.S. Bach's death) presents a picture of the composer that demonstrates the intimate connection between Bach's life and his music, showing how the composer's superb inventiveness pervaded his career as a musician, composer, performer, scholar, and teacher.

This study presents the facts and reconstructs the story of the last year of Mozart's life. The composition of such works as the Requiem and The Magic Flute is discussed in detail, and light is thrown on Mozart's relations with the freemasons, with Salieri, Sussmayr, and others.

Best single-volume guide to composers now on the market.

A powerful love story from the author of the international bestseller A SUITABLE BOY

This is the second volume of de La Grange's monumental study of the life and music of Gustav Mahler. Thirty years of research and a vast array of documentary material are here co-ordinated. It also discusses many popular works he wrote in this period: the Fourth and Fifth Symphonies, and the Wunderhorn-, Ruckert-, and Kindertotenleider.

For anyone who is aching to discover classical music, this comprehensive and accessible book is the ideal teacher.