Choice Magazine (a major library review magazine): "After an introductory section on the history of the piano, particularly as reflected in and influenced by works of the major composers for the instrument, this interesting and informative book describes various compositional "schools," from Austro-German, French, and Italian through English, American, Russian, Spanish, Japanese, and others. This section constitutes a brief course in music history beginning with the Renaissance. ... The body of the work consists of historical and stylistic sketches of 17 composers, with brief remarks about several works of each, and lists of selected works, ending with a complete work or movement. These sketches are exceptionally well written, assuming an intelligent reader, and convey a great deal of information concisely.... this book contains much well-organized and useful material. For libraries serving serious amateur pianists, high school upward. ****************** Booklist (The book review magazine of the American Library Association): This authoritative volume will make a solid addition to the public library music collection. After offering a brief opening chapter on the evolution of the piano as instrument and the changing styles of technique, author Pat Hammond provides opinionated but well-reasoned analyses of the works of the major piano composers, with focus on the Baroque era (Bach and Handel), the Classical age (Haydn, Mozart Beethoven), Romanticism (Schubert, Chopin Liszt, and others), Impressionism (Debussy) and Modernism (Bartok). This book's unique feature is its inclusion of musical examples of each composer's work, which are meant to be played as one reads along. Pertinent biographical material is also featured for the great masters. Appendixes include a suggested twentieth-century piano repertoire and a bibliography. Piano music - Bibliography ******************* Clavier Magazine "Compiled and annotated by Patricia Fallows-Hammond. Suitable as a reference source, this handbook supplies concise biographical and stylistic sketches of composers and annotation of selected compositions. ... Fallows-Hammond has a knack for setting and maintaining an appropriate level of sophistication. Writing in a crisp, direct style, she steers the student toward complicated subjects and gives them a palpable hold on them. To explain the concept of the concerto grosso, for example, she explains that, "In Handel's time, Concerto Crosso meant a small group of instruments playing in contrast to a larger body of strings." Her synopsis of the development of sonata form is equally apt....Commentary on the composers is well-researched and written at a uniform level of detail that will make it useful to a wide audience....Fallows-Hammond does a good job of compiling accurate information on the composers she has chosen. If the contents of the book serve your purposes, you will find this handbook a handy reference source. " **************** The American Organist "The author has created a self-instruction course which gives information about the evolution of the piano and changing styles in piano technique, and then discusses topics with emphasis on special composers: ..... Piano students seeking background information will profit from this book. Recommended for public libraries." ******************** Keyboard Magazine "Patricia Fallow-Hammond's 302 page study embraces the proposition that historical context is an important, and frequently neglected, element in building an understanding of classical repertoire. .... she has assembled a fairly basic catalogue of keyboard works, arranged chronologically by composer, and preceded each list with a short biography relating milestones from each composer's life. ....... Her decision to further enlighten the reader with short samples of their handiwork is a happy extra addition. Her efficiency at summarizing and packaging that line is what makes her debut in print a success."

As a companion to "The Wind Ensemble Sourcebook and Biographical Guide," this catalog provides a comprehensive listing of wind ensemble works from 1650 to the present. These two volumes will be completed with a third, "The Wind Ensemble Thematic Catalog 1700-1900." Representing more than 20 years of research through libraries, monasteries, and castles, the authors used primary sources when possible rather than relying on secondary sources. The authors collected a vast array of information from public and private international collections.

This catalog is an exhaustive guide to international wind ensemble collections. The authors have been careful to match up various versions of the same work, and, for the first time, arrangements--an important and large part of the repertoire--are dealt with in a systematic fashion. Unique in its extensive documentation and reliance on primary sources, "The Wind Ensemble Catalog" is an important research tool for scholars and musicians.

Exploring the parallel development of the brass band movement and religious fervor in late 19th-century America, this work includes illustrations from original materials as well as scores for 22 works. While the choral tradition has remained strong in churches, in this earlier period both choral and instrumental forms were equally popular. This study begins with solo cornet parts, used by men like George Ives to lead the singing at revival meetings, and ends with an extensive band arrangement of Pleyel's Hymn. Extensive historical notes, old-time illustrations, and sacred music make this a most interesting and useful reference book. An enormous amount of music was written and arranged for the popular brasswinds at the time, some of which was sacred music for the church. Changing taste and secularism resulted in the loss of the entire body of written and arranged sacred music for brass, once as cherished in church performance as the choral tradition is today. For scholars and performers interested in the variety of music produced in the United States during the 19th century.

"Brave New Bass is the most extensive collection ever gathered of interviews and music lessons by contemporary electric and acoustic bass masters. Detailing top players' careers, musical technique, and equipment, the book appeals to bassists of any style as a way to deepen their knowledge of their instrument and its history, and gain tips for playing and sounding better. Other instrumentalists and music fans will enjoy the detailed look at this ever-more-influential instrument and its stars and behind-the-scenes practitioners. Covering 34 players in styles ranging from pop and rock to world music and experimental jazz, the book includes profiles of Marcus Miller, Anthony Jackson, John Patitucci, Victor Wooten, Steve Bailey, and Will Lee.

A recorder method for children. This method is designed to be used by people who know nothing or very little about music and cannot read notation.

The Black Horn: The Story of Classical French Hornist Robert Lee Watt tells the story of the first African American French Hornist hired by a major symphony in these United States. Today, the number of African Americans who hold chairs in major American symphony orchestras are few and far between, and Watt is the first in many years to write about this uniquely exhilarating and at times painful experience. The Black Horn chronicles the upbringing of a young boy first fascinated by the sound of the French horn. Watt walks readers through the many obstacles presented by the racial climate in the United States both on and off stage in his efforts learn and eventually master an instrument little considered in the African American community, with even the author s own father, who played trumpet, seeking to dissuade the young classical musician in the making. Opposition from within the community--a middle instrument suited only for thin-lipped white boys, Watt s father once chided and from without, Watt document his struggles as a student at an all-white major music conservatory as well as his first job in a major symphony orchestra after his conservatory canceled his scholarship. Watt subsequently chronicles his triumphs and travails as a musician, sometimes alone when confronting the realities of race in America and the world of classical music. This work will surely interest any working classical musician and student, particularly those of color, seeking to grasp firsthand the sometimes troubled history of being the only black horn. "

Musical performance on brass instruments has blossomed in the 20th century because of technical improvements in horn making, a vastly increased literature, and an astonishing number of outstanding players. Louis Armstrong, Tommy Dorsey, and Doc Severinsen have become household names, and classical musicians such as Maurice Andre, Christian Lindberg, and Barry Tuckwell have pursued distinguished careers as soloists. Twentieth-Century Brass Soloists analyzes and celebrates nearly one hundred brass soloists who have performed and been recorded widely, and whose genius, technique, and style have combined to produce unforgettable moments in music.

Mozart wrote some of the greatest serenades for wind ensemble. He was not alone in writing works for wind sextet, octet, or larger ensembles-Over 12,000 works for wind harmony by over 2,200 composers are extant. Describing this new genre, Wind Harmony, which is far larger and more influential than ever recognized, this sourcebook includes biographical details, discusses many of the works, and presents country surveys. There is also a survey of the way wind instruments developed at the critical time, and of performance practices. Companion volumes, the ^IWind Ensemble Catalog^R and the ^IWind Ensemble Thematic Catalog 1700-1900^R, are cross-referenced. Mozart wrote some of the greatest serenades for wind ensemble. He was not alone in writing works for wind sextet, octet, or larger ensembles-over 12,000 works for wind harmony by over 2,200 composers are extant. Describing this new genre, Wind Harmony, which is far larger and more influential than ever recognized, this sourcebook includes biographical details, discusses many of the works, and presents country surveys. There is also a survey of the way wind instruments developed at the critical time, and of performance practices. Companion volumes, the ^IWind Ensemble Catalog^R and the ^IWind Ensemble Thematic Catalog 1700-1900^R, are cross-referenced. The authors identify what must be the major part of surviving wind harmony music. There is far more material than previously recognized, and its character is far more varied than is usually thought. In this work, the music is placed in context: why it was written, where it was played, and how it influenced other genres. The authors have collected new material, corrected previous mistakes, and filled in missing material. Public and private libraries have been scoured and monasteries searched throughout greater Europe. The sourcebook will be helpful for scholars and students, librarians, players, and music sellers.

The preponderance of early Black composers wrote choral music and even the most outstanding among them did not compose works for woodwinds. However, the later half of the twentieth century has witnessed a rise in compositions for woodwinds, both for solo and chamber ensembles by relatively unknown Black composers. This pioneering volume will become the standard source of information on nineteenth and twentieth century Black composers from three continents as well as their woodwind compositions. It contains the most current and complete biographical data on 90 African composers, Afro-American composers, Afro-Latin composers, and Afro-European composers, including their education and professional experience and information on their continuing musical influence. A distinctive feature is the separate, easy-to-use woodwind music index of both published and unpublished works for solo and chamber ensembles that groups the music by medium and numbers into 27 categories that contain some 430 works. Exact instrumentation, dedication or commission, premiere performance, and publisher are also found here. A list of abbreviations, key to publishers, collections, and manuscripts, and a discography of 38 recordings of woodwind works by 26 of the included composers complete the volume.

This first bibliography of woodwind music by Black composers is an excellent reference work for Black composers, for the woodwind repertoire, and for American music in general. It will be highly useful in college-level courses such as "Survey of Afro-American Music and Woodwind Literature" as well as to woodwind players, ensemble directors, and scholars.

For three decades, Anthony Braxton has been alternately celebrated, dismissed, and attacked for his musical innovations. His ambitious efforts to reconcile and personalize the historically divergent and often conflicting worldviews and principles of African-American (jazz), American Experimental (post-Ives), and Western European (post-serial) traditions have attracted both loyal supporters and passionate critics. Mike Heffley has followed Braxton's widely varied music from its beginning, and in 1988 began a professional musical relationship with him. His "biography" of Braxton's music is just that--a look at the music as if it were a living entity, with a traceable ancestry, a describable place in the world, and a history full of drama, intrigue, and passion. The music scholar will find here all the information necessary to understand the contents, contexts, and concepts of Braxton's music, and to further that understanding. The general reader will find the human and trans-human qualities that make the music so compelling to its makers and lovers.

A comprehensive study of jazz great Charlie Parker, including details of record dates, more than 200 musical illustrations, and biographical material arranged chronologically and linked with Parker's recordings. The "Bird Stories" are all here, from Parker's Kansas City roots to his untimely death, as well as the seminal journal article on Parker's music, "Ornithology" that appeared in the Journal of Jazz Studies.

This unique discography of 78 RPM recordings extensively profiles solo and group horn performers, including chamber ensemble and orchestra recordings. This work provides, in addition to detailed data about individual recordings, invaluable commentary on actual selected 78 RPM recordings. Some of the recordings are no longer available in reissue and are therefore not easily accessible to the general public. Biographical information contributes to the wealth of researched information this discography provides. This discography of 78 RPM horn recordings fills a gap in bibliographic literature concerning horn recordings. A valuable reference to hornists, musicians, and discographers, the exhaustive, descriptive detail consists of data collected from numerous sources. Both well-known and obscure artists are researched.

The American Wind Symphony Editions comprises the more than 150 works commissioned by Robert Austin Boudreau for the American Waterways Wind Orchestra and published by the C. F. Peters Corporation. They are here presented for the first time in a complete catalog with detailed descriptive data, biographical information on the composers or arrangers, and score facsimiles. The published music represents about half of the over 300 works commissioned by the orchestra since 1957 in the largest such project in wind instrument history. Presented in this catalog are the published works of 83 composers from 28 countries, including such notables as Alan Hovhaness, Toshiro Mayuzumi, Krzysztof Penderecki, Ned Rorem, and Heitor Villa-Lobos. Genres include original concert and chamber music, incidental and occasional music, and theatrical and pop pieces, as well as arrangements of past masters. The compositional characteristics of each work are described, and data on number of performers, date of composition, duration, score accessibility, composer nationality and dates, and itemized instrumentation is listed. The catalog further provides appendixes classifying the music by composer nationality, duration of works, type of soloist, number of performers, programming category, and other fields. A selective discography is included, as are indexes of works by composer and title. Background history on the wind orchestra and music publisher is also provided.

for Oboe and Piano John Rutter creates a peaceful and contemplative atmosphere in this new arrangement of the traditional German carol, Lo, how a Rose e'er blooming.

The first edition of Albert R. Rice's The Baroque Clarinet is widely considered the authoritative text on the European clarinet during the first half of the eighteenth century. Since its publication in 1992, its conclusions have influenced the approaches of musicologists, instrument historians, and clarinet performers. Twenty-eight years later, Rice has updated his renowned study in a second edition, with new chapters on chalumeau and clarinet music, insights on newly found instruments and additional material on the Baroque clarinet in society. Expanding the volume to include the chalumeau, close cousin and predecessor to the clarinet, Rice draws on nearly three decades of new research on the instrument's origins and music. Discoveries include two recently found chalumeaux in a private collection, one by Johann Heinrich Eichentopf of Leipzig, and attributions based on historical evidence for three more chalumeaux. Rice furthers the discussion to recently uncovered early instruments and historical scores, which shed light on the clarinet's evolution. Most essentially, Rice highlights the chalumeau's substantial late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth century repertory, comprising over 330 works by 66 composers, and includes a more expansive list of surviving Baroque clarinet works, organized by date, composer, and tonality/range. The Baroque Clarinet and Chalumeau provides a long-awaited follow-up to Rice's groundbreaking volume, drawing from a variety of sources-including German, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Flemish, Czech, and Catalan research-to bring this new information to an English-speaking audience. With his dedication to scholarly accuracy, Rice brings the Baroque clarinet into sharper focus than ever before.

This comprehensive study treats the wind works of Anton Bruckner as a complete genre and uses them to illustrate how the composer evolved in style throughout his career. A major nineteenth-century composer, organist, and church musician, Bruckner's compositional style changed dramatically in the early 1860s, dividing his career into two distinct parts. During his early career he immersed himself in the study of traditional musical principles including form, harmony, counterpoint, and orchestration. The second phase of his career, in which he composed the symphonies upon which much of his current reputation rests, was marked by his experimental approaches to harmony and tonality. Many of his early compositions exhibit landmarks of his later style. The wind instrument pieces incorporate the best aspects of both of Bruckner's styles and reflect the progress of his professional life.

Organized chronologically, the music is studied and classified within set time periods. Each wind work of a particular period is reviewed according to the historical circumstances contributing to its creation, its specific musical content, and its success as a musical work in relation to wind music and specifically to Bruckner's development. The analyses of Bruckner's compositions are enhanced by musical examples throughout the text.