EVERYBODY'S GUIDE TO MUSIC

by William Hugh Miller ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 26, 1961

Music"", says this teacher of music, ""is not all social and does not have to be useful."" In the hope of winning new friends for serious music, however, Professor Miller has constructed a very useful study plan by means of which the ordinary person may learn how to derive more pleasure than ever from his listening experiences. Having separated heteronomous (descriptive or ""program"") music from autonomous (absolute, pure) music, he takes the position that ""the programmatic...is no shortcut to a real aesthetic experience"" He sets up conditions under which the neophyte will come to accept autonomous music for its musical values alone, without seeking extramusical qualities. Taking advantage of the modern accessibility of phonograph recordings, the entire book is designed to be used with specific recorded examples. Only in a classroom situation would every one of the many examples be likely to be available, but even the person with limited resources stands to profit greatly from Miller's explicit discussions of musical elements. The sections on dance forms, compositional form and analysis, and the makeup of the orchestra are carefully done. Opera lovers may object that no book on music appreciation is complete without some detailed consideration of that medium, but Everybody's Guide to Music is otherwise quite substantially encyclopedic. It should attract wide attention in music education circles, especially in the increasingly popular adult education field.

Pub Date: May 26, 1961

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Chilton

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1961

Categories: NONFICTION