The first (1981) edition of Anatomy of the Orchestra, Norman Del Mar's renowned treatise and study of orchestral practice, sold out within a year of its publication. Del Mar (1919-1994), a distinguished conductor and musicologist, was recognised as one of the greatest authorities on the orchestra in his lifetime. Written not only for fellow conductors, players, students, and professional musicians, Anatomy of the Orchestra is also for everyone interested in the performance of orchestral music. 'It's tremendous fun just reading from cover to cover... The chapter on horns doesn't fail to embrace water-emptying, or the perils of seating them in front of percussion - vibrations shoot up backward-turned bells and shiver the players' lips; and who needs be any longer at a loss for a term for any type of snare drum in any of four languages?' Tempo

The final book in Norman Del Mar's `Conducting...' series. This study of a collection of shorter orchestral pieces by composers whose output would not make a whole book is full of expert advice and broad-minded appreciation of a wide range of music. Easily readable by conducting student or music-lover, it is equally an invaluable handbook for the expert. Once again, the book has been edited and seen through the press by Jonathan Del Mar, son of the late Norman Del Mar.

The difficulties of interpreting Elgar are interestingly explained by a conductor of legendary knowledge and understanding. For the students of conducting this book is nothing short of invaluable.

The difficulties of interpreting Berlioz are interestingly explained by a conductor of legendary knowledge and understanding. For the students of conducting this book is nothing short of invaluable, being a guide to technique as well as to the confusions arising from Berlioz's imaginative orchestration.

Following on from his reflections on conducting the nine Beethoven symphonies, Del Mar now gives his views on the remainder of Beethoven's orchestral output. He offers analyses of the music's structure, pointing out key events in the score, and gives advice on how to achieve the desired effect. Drawing on a lifetime's experience of conducting, these reflections are an essential starting-point for young conducters.

Before his death in 1994, Norman Del Mar was acknowledged as one of the world's foremost authorities on the orchestra. "Anatomy of the Orchestra" is written not only for fellow conductors, players, students, and professional musicians, but also for everyone interested in the performance of orchestral music.

This is an essential guide for students of the nine Beethoven symphonies and a starting-point for young conductors. Drawing on his lifelong experience of conducting these works, Del Mar offers an analysis of the music's structure, pointing out key events in the score and offering advice on how to achieve the desired effect. He also compares variant readings in the different editions and further traces the development of Beethoven's style and that of the symphony over the 24 years of their composition.

Hermann Scherchan was a distinguished German conductor, described by Norman Del Mar as a `great doyen conductor of contemporary music'.

With two volumes of reflections on conducting the orchestral music of Beethoven already published, Norman Del Mar now embarks on the wider repertoire, beginning with Brahms, whose output forms the backbone of serious music study and concert programmes. Del Mar's own interpretations of Brahms have been hailed as sincere and thoughtful, and it is these attributes, together with Del Mar's strong sense of the music's architecture, which will be of value to interpreters. Del Mar writes on the four Symphonies, the Concertos, the Haydn Variations, and the Overtures and Serenades, offering descriptions of conducting styles and thoughts on orchestral bowing and rehearsal psychology. The book concludes by examining the background and text of a major choral work, this time the German Requiem.