Beethoven's middle-period quartets, Opp. 59, 74 and 95, are pieces that engage deeply with the aesthetic ideas of their time. In the first full contextual study of these works, Nancy November celebrates their uniqueness, exploring their reception history and early performance. In detailed analyses, she explores ways in which the quartets have both reflected and shaped the very idea of chamber music and offers a new historical understanding of the works' physical, visual, social and ideological aspects. In the process, November provides a fresh critique of three key paradigms in current Beethoven studies: the focus on his late period; the emphasis on 'heroic' style in discussions of the middle period; and the idea of string quartets as 'pure', 'autonomous' artworks, cut off from social moorings. Importantly, this study shows that the quartets encompass a new lyric and theatrical impetus, which is an essential part of their unique, explorative character.

Best known for his unique musical style and blindingly fast hybrid picking technique, English guitarist Albert Lee is often referred to within the music industry as the "guitar player's guitar player," renowned for his work across several genres of music and for the respect that he has garnered from other industry giants. This comprehensive biography tells the entire story of Lee's long career and personal experiences, beginning with his upbringing in south London and his early experimentations with skiffle music (the British equivalent of American rockabilly). It covers Lee's career in Chris Farlowe's Thunderbirds and the British rock and country group Heads, Hands, and Feet, his move to the United States in the 1970s and his subsequent work with Eric Clapton, the Crickets, Emmylou Harris and the Hot Band, the Everly Brothers, and, more recently, with Bill Wyman and with Hogan's Heroes. Lee's career is set against the background of changes in popular music and shows how he, as a British artist with nomadic Romany roots, has influenced traditionally "American" musical genres. The work includes 66 photographs, many from Lee's personal collection, two appendices, and an extensive bibliography.

11 songs, including: Skin O' My Teeth * Symphony Of Destruction * Sweating Bullets * Countdown To Extinction * and more.

This dynamic collection brings together 12 of Gershwin's iconic songs arranged for solo classical guitar by the late John Duarte. Suitable for classical guitar players from intermediate to advanced level, this unmissable compilation is complete with a unique foreword containing insights from the acclaimed guitarist himself. Including online audio of each piece available to download.

This book of violin pieces provides a wide variety of style, color, and character, including the most noteworthy compositions in musical history, all carefully revised and edited. While the student will find the contents of this book invaluable for recreation and practice, the virtuoso will recognize this set of selections as indispensable to his library. Includes piano accompaniment. Suitable for intermediate level players (grade 4-5).

(Reference). Veteran musician and educator Mick Goodrick presents practical information for guitarists who want to improve their playing technique and style and simply become better musicians. Rather than a step-by-step method book, the information is presented in a general essay format, discussing ways that the various techniques covered may be applied by the advancing guitarist to enhance his/her own style of playing, some of the areas discussed include: basic fingerboard mechanics * modes, scales and chords * contemporary harmony * harmonica and overtone influences * being self-critical * improvising short pieces * different playing situations.

(Book). The Jazz Guitar Handbook is a step-by-step guide to jazz guitar playing. It takes you from the basics through to advanced harmony and soloing concepts, and teaches you the music theory a jazz guitarist needs to know. Along the way it covers a wide range of styles, including jazzy blues, swing, bebop, modal, jazz-funk, Gypsy, and more. The handbook features over 120 exercises in notation and tab and includes a 96-track CD of examples, play-alongs, and backing tracks. It also presents the history of the jazz guitar and its great players. Easy to use and useful for players at various levels, this volume is a must-have reference for players looking to expand their jazz skillset.

Few now remember that the guitar was popular in England during the age of Queen Elizabeth and Shakespeare, and yet it was played everywhere from the royal court to the common tavern. This groundbreaking book, the first entirely devoted to the renaissance guitar in England, deploys new literary and archival material, together with depictions in contemporary art, to explore the social and musical world of the four-course guitar among courtiers, government servants and gentlemen. Christopher Page reconstructs the trade in imported guitars coming to the wharves of London, and pieces together the printed tutor for the instrument (probably of 1569) which ranks as the only method book for the guitar to survive from the sixteenth century. Two chapters discuss the remains of music for the instrument in tablature, both the instrumental repertoire and the traditions of accompanied song, which must often be assembled from scattered fragments of information.

23 transcriptions from Grammy-winning bassist and session player extraordinare Marcus Miller, including: Big Time * Could It Be You * Ethiopia * Forevermore * Funny * Maputo * Nikki's Groove * Tutu * What Is Hip * and more.

The Unorthodox Guitar: A Guide to Alternative Performance Practice is a comprehensive resource for experimentally minded guitarists and composers wishing to write for or perform on the instrument in new ways. The book focuses primarily on unconventional approaches to guitar performance, which include alternative tunings, extended techniques, instrumental preparations, electronic augmentations, and issues related to performing and recording with a computer. Embracing all guitar types-nylon, steel-string acoustic, and electric-techniques and examples are culled from a broad range of musical genres, including blues, contemporary classical, country, folk, jazz, rock, and non-Western idioms. While the writing offers a treasure trove of possibilities for experimental improvisation, it is oriented towards formal composition, and to that end details the controllable dimensions of the techniques and preparations at hand, along with strategies that might be adopted to notate them. Conventional guitar amplifiers, effect pedals, and pedalboards are examined, along with a discussion of analog signal chains, rig design, and best practices for the preservation of tone. In addition, possibilities afforded by the addition of a computer to the guitar rig are explored, including signal processing, sensor augmentation, and score following. The writing is paired with a companion website that contains an abundance of audio, video, and software materials to supplement the ideas presented. This information is intended to serve as a guide, reference, and source of inspiration for those wishing to compose and/or perform on the instrument in innovative ways.

Titles: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star Variations (Shinichi Suzuki) * French Folk Song (Folk Song) * Lightly Row (Folk Song) * Song of the Wind (Folk Song) * Go Tell Aunt Rhody (Folk Song) * O Come, Little Children (Folk Song) * May Song (Folk Song) * Long, Long Ago (T.H. Bayly) * Allegro (Shinichi Suzuki) * Perpetual Motion (Shinichi Suzuki) * Allegretto (Shinichi Suzuki) * Andantino (Shinichi Suzuki) * Bohemian Folk Song (Folk Song) * Etude (Shinichi Suzuki) * Minuet No. 1, Minuet III from Suite in G Minor for Klavier, BWV 822 (J.S. Bach) * Minuet No. 2, BWV Anh. 116 (J.S. Bach) * Minuet No. 3, Anh. II 114/Anh. II 183 (J.S. Bach) * The Happy Farmer from Album for the Young, Op. 68, No. 10 (R. Schumann) * Gavotte (F.J. Gossec) * Practice Suggestions (Doris Preucil). The Book/CD kits contain the same book as is sold separately. The CD in each kit only contains the music in the book it is packaged with. The CD that contains both volumes 1 and 2 is still available and has not been changed

Violins: Local Meanings, Globalized Sounds examines the violin as an object of meaning in a variety of cultural and historical contexts, and as a vehicle for introducing anthropological issues. Each chapter highlights concepts as taught in lower-level anthropology courses, and includes teaching and learning tools. Chapters range from a memoir-like social biography of a single instrument to explorations of violins in relation to technology, labor, the environment, migration, globalization, childhood, cultural understandings of talent and virtuosity, and prestige.

(Bass Instruction). As the original bassist for the seminal death metal band Cannibal Corpse, author Alex Webster offers invaluable insight into the realm of metal bass guitar. This exclusive book/CD pack provides detailed, hands-on training, featuring vital bass guitar techniques and concepts. Extreme Metal Bass further demonstrates how these techniques can be applied in real-life situations within the context of a song. No matter what brand of metal you subscribe to from classic metal to modern metal and beyond Extreme Metal Bass will supply the bass skills you crave. Extreme Metal Bass also includes an enhanced audio CD with demonstration and play-along tracks of all the examples in the book, plus play-along MIDI drum files for optimum practicing.

Written for the cellist looking for an approach that demystifies cello playing, Cello, Bow and You is an innovative text in the field of string pedagogy written by a 40+ year veteran of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra and certified teacher of the Alexander Technique. Author Evangeline Benedetti has a unique voice and approach, and invites cellists of all levels to explore, make discoveries and organically internalize technique. Benedetti's approach compliments the work that students do with their teachers by encouraging them to be more aware of themselves and responsive to internal and external guidance. The book is organized as its playful title implies. In the Cello and Bow sections, Benedetti explores the natural physical and mechanical properties of the instrument and bow, the laws of movement, the influence of gravity, and the dynamic interaction between them. The "You," or the one who plays, is explored from the point of view of the player's musical conception, anatomy, and principles of movement based on the Alexander Technique and bio-mechanics. Cello, Bow and You allows students and professionals access to Benedetti's vast performance and teaching experience. She has pioneered an approach to playing that is a synthesis of the cellist's musical thought, the knowledge of the dynamic properties of the instrument and bow, and the ability to move effectively according to the mechanics of the human body. The synergy of these elements leads to physically healthy playing and frees players to be musically expressive. Written in engaging, informal prose, the book is a must-read for cellists and cello teachers - beginning, intermediate, or professional.