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Man, is this dude opinionated! I wish I still had it so I could compare notes with him.
What made that the first one, James?
(https://images.efollett.com/books/019/504/0195040414.gif)
This may have been the second one. A fine companion on symphonic journeys.
(http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/19800000/19804954.JPG)
Quote from: Franco on August 21, 2009, 08:26:08 AM
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I've owned that as well. But the books I've listed have all been sold.
The second:
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First and only one at hand
What to Listen for in Music
Aaron Copland
For freshman music history class --
(http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51odyUT5GsL._SS500_.jpg)
... as dry in the inside as the cover on the outside .
Quote from: opus106 on August 21, 2009, 08:35:33 AM
First and only one at hand
What to Listen for in Music
Aaron Copland
I know you meant western classical, Dave, but if I were to generalise the term "classical music," I'd have to include some elementary books on Carnatic music which I used while learning the violin (just for a couple of years). The first one was bought while the other (more like next level) was the one my sister had used for her vocal training. :)
When I was a freshman in college I took a seminar in the Beethoven late quartets, and one of the books we used was J.W.N. Sullivan's Beethoven: His Spiritual Development. Haven't read it since, but it impressed me greatly at the time.
--Bruce
Quote from: James on August 21, 2009, 09:03:18 AM
bruce just curious, when you really 'got into' western art music did you start with the 20th century and work backwards to the older stuff eventually, or was it the other way round?
More the former. When I was growing up, our LP collection had a little bit of everything but was heavy on Rachmaninov and Prokofiev (my mother was very much a fan of Russian composers). But the "big moment" came when I bought Berio's
Sinfonia, the recording with the composer and the New York Philharmonic. I saw it in a record store and thought the cover was really cool (see below), and loved the piece immediately.
The LP came with a small sampler record that had excerpts of pieces by Terry Riley, Nancarrow, Partch, Reich and Lasry-Baschet (two guys who made sculptures that made sounds). I ended up buying all of them. (Reich's
It's Gonna Rain drove my parents crazy. ;D)
--Bruce
NPR's Guide to Classical Music. :)
Quote from: DavidW on August 21, 2009, 09:19:38 AM
NPR's Guide to Classical Music. :)
Yep. Had that one too.
Classical Music, The 50 Greatest Composers and their 1,000 Greatest Works - by Phil Goulding
Wonderful, wonderful intro. I couldn't read it fast enough!! :)
So far I've only read two classical music-related books, both great.
Aaron Copland's What to listen for in music. Beginner-friendly explanations about form, texture, etc. It would be awesome if it were re-released with some kind of CD with examples.
Harold Schonberg's The Lives of the Great Composers. Incredibly interesting, compelling. I couldn't wait for the chapters of my favorite composers.
Quote from: ChamberNut on August 21, 2009, 09:23:15 AM
Classical Music, The 50 Greatest Composers and their 1,000 Greatest Works - by Phil Goulding
Wonderful, wonderful intro. I couldn't read it fast enough!! :)
Still have that one. Not sure if I like it anymore. ;D
Quote from: MN Dave on August 21, 2009, 09:45:30 AM
Still have that one. Not sure if I like it anymore. ;D
You could write your own version! ;D
Not to digress too much from the topic, but I think you have to pay attention to what your ears are telling you, e.g., your fascination with Stockhausen and the other composers you mentioned. It seems perfectly normal to me to start with whatever composers you like, wherever you're comfortable. I've run into a number of people over the years who got into classical music from an unexpected entry point, e.g., by listening to a composer other than Mozart or "the three B's." Another example: a friend whose very first classical loves were Berg, Webern and Schoenberg.
--Bruce
Quote from: James on August 21, 2009, 09:50:07 AM
And the rest is history eh bruce. 8)
I kind-of figured that you tilted more toward 20thC early because your listening preferences seem to be more balanced in that direction, I wonder if the same holds true of others who avidly/primarily listen-buy to 20/21C stuff. I started 20thC too (Stravinsky, Bartok, Webern, Varese, Boulez, Stockhausen etc - stuff that fascinated the hell out of me), I was exposed-to & heard the older stuff first in school as a kid though (music class) but didn't care for any of it (plus had bad experiences as a child trying to learn Mozart on the piano which greatly turned me off, i absolutely abhorred the music, & the teacher).
I was also initially turned on to 20th C. classical music before truly deeply appreciating the earlier eras. This was in part a product of my background, which was not one of traditional classical music studies, e.g. piano lessons. I was self-taught, played mostly by ear, although I could read music from an early age - but when I got to music school, I was definitely not like the rest of the students, and I think coming from rock and jazz, my ears were less "opinionated" concerning what was "Great" (i.e. Bach, Beethoven, Wagner) or even what was (the word that was used then was ) "legitimate music".
I did not even know how to pronounce Richard Wagner, and was quickly made to feel like a fool (although this has nothing to do with my antipathy to his music) - but a feeling which was mitigated by the fact that I did much better in ear-training exercises than my more traditionally trained classmates. ;)
I was way off in to Stockhausen and Coltrane while everyone else was listening to Tristan und Isolde.
This pattern has been a constant ever since, I still don't like ReeKard Vagner, but I have outgrown what was then my own musical provincialism.
Quote from: ChamberNut on August 21, 2009, 09:23:15 AM
Classical Music, The 50 Greatest Composers and their 1,000 Greatest Works - by Phil Goulding
Wonderful, wonderful intro. I couldn't read it fast enough!! :)
That was my first book too. He pissed me off right from the beginning and it was hard to like him afterward. However, he DID turn me on to some new things to listen to, so I guess I'm grateful for that much. :)
8)
An earlier edition of this for a music appreciation class:
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That class and book are what really got me enthused about classical music and provided a firm foundation from which to begin exploring.
Quote from: Franco on August 21, 2009, 08:26:08 AM
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That was my first book on classical music too. My high school library had a copy.
Sarge
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Well, it wasn't my book, it belonged to the public library, but I kept renewing it until I finished it! (Thanks to Brian for technical assistance needed to post the picture! 0:))
Quote from: Sergeant Rock on August 22, 2009, 05:06:40 AM
That was my first book on classical music too. My high school library had a copy.
Sarge
I also discovered Schoenberg's "Lives" early on when I was first seriously exploring CM, and found it very stimulating and informative. However, much later I stumbled onto another "Lives of the Composers" type
volume that struck me as superior to anything I've seen along these lines either before or since -
"The Stream of Music" by Richard Leonard. Just tremenduously well written and witty. I read it every few years always with great enjoyment. Anyone else familiar with this work?
An old hardback version of this:
Quote from: Franco on August 21, 2009, 08:26:08 AM
(http://images.barnesandnoble.com/images/19800000/19804954.JPG)
Just checked it out of the library! :)
Quote from: J on August 22, 2009, 03:39:23 PM
I also discovered Schoenberg's "Lives" early on when I was first seriously exploring CM, and found it very stimulating and informative. However, much later I stumbled onto another "Lives of the Composers" type
volume that struck me as superior to anything I've seen along these lines either before or since -
"The Stream of Music" by Richard Leonard. Just tremenduously well written and witty. I read it every few years always with great enjoyment. Anyone else familiar with this work?
I haven't read this yet, but I'll be looking for it now!
Diletante:
Aaron Copland's What to listen for in music. Beginner-friendly explanations about form, texture, etc. It would be awesome if it were re-released with some kind of CD with examples.
I couldn't agree with you more. As I read the book, I was constantly frustrated because I could not read music or read it fast enough. In my opinion two Cd's are needed to illustrate that book adequately.
Quote from: Anne on August 22, 2009, 05:18:57 PM
[Aaron Copland's What to listen for in music.] It would be awesome if it were re-released with some kind of CD with examples.
Not quite, but close enough. (http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,8157.msg284508.html#msg284508)
I got the Berlioz Bug quite early on, and so these were the first I read, initially from the library, then bought:
(http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/2231/72964958.jpg) (http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/1091/73848222.jpg)
I have yet to read a "general introduction" style book, as I found that reading forums and reviews from many sources removed the need, and also the bias.
Quote from: opus106 on August 22, 2009, 10:58:53 PM
Not quite, but close enough. (http://www.good-music-guide.com/community/index.php/topic,8157.msg284508.html#msg284508)
Looks interesting. What do I need to play those?
Quote from: AnneI couldn't agree with you more. As I read the book, I was constantly frustrated because I could not read music or read it fast enough.
Yes. What I did was transcribe most of the score excerpts into Sibelius. It was very useful.
Glad you found a way to solve the problem. I'll wait for the Cd's to come out if they ever do.
I had a Music Appreciation class in college taught by Paul Siskind (he might currently be the composer-in-residence in Minneapolis?). The book was pretty much a generic "Intro to Music Appreciation..."
I got the Copland book when I wanted to go a little deeper.
Quote from: Diletante on August 23, 2009, 12:01:53 PM
Looks interesting. What do I need to play those?
Any piece of software that lets you stream Real media. For Windows, go to real.com and download and install their media player.