PAL Topic Guides

Oxford's highly successful listener's guides - The Symphony, The Concerto, and Choral Masterworks - have been widely praised for their blend of captivating biography, crystal clear musical analysis, and delightful humor. Now James Keller follows these greatly admired volumes with ChamberMusic. Approaching the tradition of chamber music with knowledge and passion, Keller here serves as the often opinionated, always genial guide to 192 essential works by 56 composers, providing illuminating essays on what makes each piece distinctive and admirable. Keller spans the history of thisintimate genre of music, from key works of the Baroque through the emotionally stirring "golden age" of the Classical and Romantic composers, to modern masterpieces rich in political, psychological, and sometimes comical overtones. For each piece, from Bach through to contemporary figures likeGeorge Crumb and Steve Reich, the author includes an astute musical analysis that casual music lovers can easily appreciate yet that more experienced listeners will find enriching. Keller shares the colorful, often surprising stories behind the compositions while revealing the delights of an artform once described by Goethe as the musical equivalent of "thoughtful people conversing."

Chamber Music: A Research and Information Guide is a reference tool for anyone interested in chamber music. It is not a history or an encyclopedia but a guide to where to find answers to questions about chamber music. The third edition adds nearly 600 new entries to cover new research since publication of the previous edition in 2002. Most of the literature is books, articles in journals and magazines, dissertations and theses, and essays or chapters in Festschriften, treatises, and biographies. In addition to the core literature obscure citations are also included when they are the only studies in a particular field. In addition to being printed, this volume is also for the first time available online. The online environment allows for information to be updated as new research is introduced. This database of information is a "live" resource, fully searchable, and with active links. Users will have unlimited access, annual revisions will be made and a limited number of pages can be downloaded for printing.

"Few joys equal the pleasure of playing music on the instrument you love, a joy that can be enhanced by joining fellow musicians in a piece of chamber music. Despite the extraordinary growth of interest in chamber music, there has not been a single book or even a combination of books to help a chamber musician or program planner determine what music, if any, exists for a given combination of instruments. This unique book fills that gap." "Authors Victor Rangel-Ribeiro and Robert Markel, both musicians themselves, have gathered over 8,000 listings of pieces for three to 20 musicians. Culled from over 100 catalogues of music publishers worldwide plus other sources, Chamber Music covers the last 500 years of music. It includes not only a complete listing of the standard chamber music repertoire but thousands of other, lesser-known pieces written for an array of instrumental combinations - including the voice. More than 5,000 listings are for 20th-century music." "Chamber Music is divided into three sections for easy access to information. The first contains music composed up to the time of Haydn and Mozart; the second, music from Beethoven to the present. Each listing contains the composer's name and dates, the title of the piece, the opus or catalogue number, if any, the year composed or published, if known, the key, if any, the duration of the piece, if specified by the composer or publisher, the instrumentation of the piece - including indications for voices and unusual instruments - and finally the name of the publisher. Comments, where appropriate, show when instrumental substitutions can be made, when the composer has not specified particular instruments, what unusual instruments are required, when a conductor might be needed, or any other relevant information of interest to the player. The third section, the "Master Quick-Reference Index," lists a number of instrumental combinations and directs the reader to composers who have written for those particular ensembles." "Comprehensive and easy to use, for the amateur or professional musician or anyone with an interest in the subject, Chamber Music is sure to enhance any music lover's reference shelf."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

"Not only worhtwhile but so beautifully written and so informative that it should be in every chamber music lover's library." — Los Angeles Times. Authoritative, beautifully written guide presents 231 of the most frequently performed pieces of chamber music by 55 composers. For each, the author gives a brief biography, followed by discussions of the individual compositions — both their historical and musical contexts and their salient features, including formal organization, content, and any extramusical associations. "No lover of chamber music should be without this Guide." — John Barkham Reviews. Preface. Glossary.

20th-Century Chamber Music features an introduction giving a chronological overview of 20th-century chamber music and the major composers in the style, setting in context the following chapters that cover a wide selection of chamber works grouped thematically, including program music; vocal chamber music; works for new ensembles; the modern sonata; and contemporary string quartets. Composers covered range from Schoenberg and Bartók to Toru Takemitsu and George Crumb. The book is ideal for a course focussing on the history of chamber music or a unit in a 20th-century music on the chamber works of the era. Plus, students and scholars will find it an excellent resource summarizing current research.