The Contemporary Guitar traces the extraordinary rise of the instrument in concert music over the past century. Though recognized worldwide as a popular music icon, the all-to-recent time when the guitar was looked down upon as a second-class citizen in the world of "serious" music is finally past, and it can now be found in the scores of the most important composers. The guitar's rightful place in chamber music, orchestral music, or as a solo instrument is now without question, whether in the classic acoustic form or the more recent electric version. While the guitar has stood in the vanguard of musical experimentation, its many new techniques and notations remain a mystery for many composers and players. In The Contemporary Guitar, musician and scholar, John Schneider explains each class of technique and illustrates them with examples. Moreover, because the guitar is easily refretted, it has also become a leading instrument in the exploration of the relatively new musical language of microtonality. In this revised and enlarged edition from the original work of three decades ago, Schneider adds a broad-ranging, entirely new chapter on the instruments, notation and repertoire with insights into the interpretation of historical works through the application of accurate contemporary tunings and temperaments. The guitar's unique timbre-its tone color-is one of the most versatile among modern instruments, both acoustic and electric. Most players who intuitively explore the subtleties of tone color will find outlined in The Contemporary Guitar the specific principles of physics that determine these subtleties which, once mastered, permit guitarists to control more completely the expressive palette of their instrument. Designated the Rational Method of Tone Production by its author, Schneider defines in great detail the timbral characteristics of acoustic and electric instruments from theoretical, physical, and musical viewpoints. Players in search of new repertoire will find an historical survey of the literature, an exhaustive list of new music, and a multitude of techniques for bringing such music to life. The Contemporary Guitar provides audio examples online for those seeking to discover new sounds and includes the notation to perform them.

All 23 episodes from Season 2 of the series about Superman's early life. In 'Vortex', Clark (Tom Welling) rescues Lana (Kristin Kreuk) from the eye of a tornado, and then discovers that the storm has powered up his spaceship and deposited it in an exposed position in a cornfield. In 'Heat', Clark goes into hiding after discovering his new power of heat vision, which can have some rather startling effects. 'Duplicity' sees Pete (Sam Jones) happening upon Clark's spaceship in the cornfield, which forces Clark to reveal his secret to him. In 'Red', Clark is given his high school ring which is supposedly set with ruby, but is actually red meteor rock. The rock has an instant and dramatic effect on him, changing him into a wayward rebel who overspends on the family credit card and picks fights. In 'Nocturne', Lana finds a love poem left for her at her parents' grave by Byron Moore (Sean Faris), an elusive boy with a dark and dangerous secret. 'Lineage' sees a mysterious woman, Rachel Dunlevy (Blair Brown) turning up in Smallville, claiming to be Clark's biological mother. This prompts the Kents to finally reveal to Clark the truth about what happened when they discovered him as a toddler in the cornfield. In 'Ryan', Clark tests his powers to the limit to save Ryan (Ryan James), a telepathic boy who is being used as a test subject at the Summerholt Research Facility by the evil Dr Garner (Martin Cummins). In 'Dichotic', a gifted student, Ian (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) has cloned himself and is dating both Lana and Chloe (Allison Mack) at the same time. Clark tries to warn the girls, but they attribute his interference to jealousy. In 'Skinwalkers', Clark falls into a cave filled with Native American inscriptions that hold the key to his true identity. 'Visage' sees the return of Whitney Fordman (Eric Johnson), which disrupts the relationship betwen Clark and Lana - until his odd behaviour prompts Clark to make a shocking discovery about his true identity. In 'Suspect', Jonathan finds himself framed for murder after being found in possession of a murder weapon. But Clark and Pete mount their own investigation and discover a tangle of motives and possible suspects. 'Insurgence' sees Lex (Michael Rosenbaum) discovering that Lionel has secretly installed an electronic surveillance system in his mansion. In retaliation, Lex hires crooks to install cameras in Lionel's Metropolis office... In 'Rush', a parasitic worm infects Pete and Chloe, turning them into wild adrenaline junkies. In 'Prodigal', Lex tracks down his long-lost brother Lucas (Paul Wasilewski), and brings him home to Smallville in the hope that they can buy Lionel out and unite against him. 'Fever' sees Martha (Annette O'Toole) fall into a coma after breathing in meteor dust. It is then revealed that she is pregnant with Clark's brother or sister. 'Rosetta' features a guest appearance from the original Superman movie actor, Christopher Reeve, who plays Dr Virgil Swann, a brilliant scientist who helps Clark to receive messages from his home planet using the Native American symbols that Clark discovered when he fell into the cave. In 'Visitor', a new student, Cyrus Krupp (Jeremy Lelliot) reveals to Clark that he is an alien. 'Precipice' sees Clark jumping to Lana's defence when she is almost assaulted by a college student. He injures the student, causing him to question the virtue of his powers, and soon finds himself facing a lawsuit that could cost the Kents their farm. In 'Witness', Clark tries to intervene after inadvertently witnessing the theft of a Luthercorp truck, but is dismayed to discover that the thieves are as strong as he is. In 'Accelerate', Lana asks for Clark's advice after being visited by the ghost of her childhood friend, Emily (Jodelle Micah Ferlar). But Clark realises that the little girl is in fact a kryptonite-enhanced clone who is out to get revenge on Lana, and wants her to drown just as she, Emily, did several years before. In 'Calling', Dr Frederick Walden (Rob LaBelle) wakes from his coma to find himself in possession of incredible powers, and sets off on a dangerous mission to kill Clark. In 'Exodus', Clark makes an amazing discovery about his origins when the spaceship announces that it is programmed with memories of his Kryptonian father, Jor-El (Terence Stamp). It asks him to come at sunset to return to his family and friends and fulfil his destiny. But can Clark leave his life in Smallville behind? 'Redux' sees Clark coming to the rescue when a mutant, Chrissy (Maggie Lawson), starts killing young men by sucking their youth out of them to keep herself young, leaving them aged and lifeless.