Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) was the first great opera composer and is often hailed as the creator of modern music. His genius was often likened to that of Mozart, Wagner, and Verdi, but in many of
Jean Sibelius was not only Finland's greatest composer, he was one of the most distinctive and appealing musical voices in the first half of the 20th century, especially renowned for his characterful
Beethoven's works for solo piano - the sonatas, variations, and bagatelles - and the five concertos for piano and orchestra stand at the heart of the repertory. Beethoven's Piano Music: A Listener's
Along with Beethoven's sonatas and the purely idiomatic works for piano of Chopin and Debussy, the solo keyboard music of Johann Sebastian Bach represents the heart of the pianist's repertory; in the
The fall of the Soviet empire has not diminished the popularity of Dmitri Shostakovich's great symphonies and concertos one bit, despite the fact that most literature on him neglects any substantive
Since Gustav Mahler was rediscovered in the early 1960s, his symphonies have become arguably the most popular works in the modern orchestral repertoire. Mahler's Symphonies: An Owner's Manual is the
This book is for anyone who enjoys any of the lively arts of opera, drama, film, literature, or popular song and who wants to find out what is really going on in the symphonies of Mozart, the string
The latest release in this value rich book/CD series brings us the great German composer who bridged the classical and romantic eras. In Beethoven's Symphonies - A Guided Tour, readers are treated to
Includes full-length CD from the Bach Collegium Japan. J.S. Bach - A Listener's Guide to His Choral Music introduces the general listener to a genre of music that is mistakenly supposed to be "diffic
Composer, bon vivant, pianist, teacher, superstar showman, raconteur, writer, entrepreneur, ladies' man, philanthropist, and priest, Franz Liszt is widely viewed today not only as a great composer, b
Leonard Bernstein's fame as a conductor and general cultural phenomenon has overshadowed his genius as a composer, despite the fact that at least some of his orchestral music has entered the standard
No composer has ever achieved the amazing progression that Haydn has. He invented the string quartet as we know it today, became "the Father of the Symphony," and founded the greatest school in the h
This guide aims to unlock the world of Richard Wagner and his works, his monumental achievements, and, ultimately, the great emotional power inherent in his art. Decoding Wagner presents a straightfo
(Unlocking the Masters). Ludwig van Beethoven's chamber works are some of his most revered compositions. Victor Lederer guides the serious nonprofessional listener through this oeuvre in his new book
