Books on Classical Music : Recommending / Considering

[Papy Oli]

I remember a similar thread on the "old" forum, and couldn't find it here, so here goes. Please post the classical music related books that you own and would recommend or those that you are considering and would like advice on.

Personally, i am considering either of the following on Mahler :






and this one on general approach to the genre :



Any good please ?

Thanks.

[toledobass]

The Music of Elliott Carter by David Schiff helped my get a grasp on Carters music.  For anyone who has a hard time with this music but feels there is something there for them,  this is a book that unlocked a lot for me.  





Allan

[gmstudio]

The Orchestra - Origins and Transformations...absolutely the best collection I've ever read.

http://www.amazon.com/Orchestra-Collection-Essays-Origins-Transformations/dp/0823083853/ref=sr_1_1/102-7082628-5212909?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180894927&sr=8-1

[Steve]

Much needed topic, good friend 

I've got a couple of Shostakovich reccomendations to lead things off:


A collection of Shostakovich's Memoirs and Letters



Another book on Dimitri

[Mystery]

I'm going to be the traditionalist and say Charles Rosen - The Classical Style, Sonata Forms, and Schoenberg - all riveting reading! ;-)

The Oxford Illustrated History of Opera - good for background detail.

[Papy Oli]

Thanks for the recommendations, Keep'em coming ! 

btw, I haven't bought the 3 i have put in the OP, I am still considering them..any comments very welcome  0:) Thank you

[SonicMan46]

Started a thread on Music Appreciation a few months ago - got to one page at least, but hopefully was to encompass not only books, but also listings of AV offerings, websites, etc. 

[Bogey]

The first half reads like a Dickens' novel.

[Anne]

This book on The Mahler Symphonies is one of the series: Unlocking the Masters.  There are about 12-14 books in this series and a new one comes out every 3-6 months.


http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_/002-8946394-4608867?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Unlocking+the+Masters+Series&Go.x=9&Go.y=11

[Papy Oli]

Started a thread on Music Appreciation a few months ago - got to one page at least, but hopefully was to encompass not only books, but also listings of AV offerings, websites, etc. 

Sonic,
Thanks for linking your thread, looks like i missed it when i initially searched for books here 

The Aroon Copland book mentionned there will seem to be very suitable for me. Added that one to the basket too 

[Choo Choo]

All serious Brucknerians will appreciate Robert Simpson's book:

   

It's particularly interesting for the insight it provides from a composer's perspective, e.g. in terms of the goals which Bruckner sets for himself, and the methods used to attain them (and the degree of success achieved.)

As you would expect, there are copious extracts from the scores but you don't need to be able to read music to get value from the book.

The edition to go for is the 1992 paperback (pictured) as Simpson had revised a lot of it after further study.

[hornteacher]

This book on The Mahler Symphonies is one of the series: Unlocking the Masters.  There are about 12-14 books in this series and a new one comes out every 3-6 months.

It's a great series too.  Big print, organized layout, sample CDs, and interesting reading.

[Bogey]

It's a great series too.  Big print, organized layout, sample CDs, and interesting reading.

This sounds neat....how much do they get into the actual music for someone like me that does not read music or is not that familiar with music theory?

[hornteacher]

This sounds neat....how much do they get into the actual music for someone like me that does not read music or is not that familiar with music theory?

That's why I like the series.  It gets in depth enough to help you listen to the music better but doesn't read like a doctoral thesis.

The Dvorak book and the two on Mozart (one for vocal music, one for instrumental) are especially good.

[Bogey]

That's why I like the series.  It gets in depth enough to help you listen to the music better but doesn't read like a doctoral thesis.

The Dvorak book and the two on Mozart (one for vocal music, one for instrumental) are especially good.

Can you link me to one HT?

[hornteacher]

Can you link me to one HT?

Dvorak

http://www.amazon.com/Dvorak-Romantic-Versatile-Unlocking-Masters/dp/1574671073/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-4456605-3214401?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180955008&sr=1-1


Mozart (instrumental)

http://www.amazon.com/Getting-Most-out-Mozart-Instrumental/dp/1574670964/ref=pd_sim_b_2_img/002-4456605-3214401?ie=UTF8&qid=1180955008&sr=1-1


A great overview book on instrumental compositions throughout the history of music

http://www.amazon.com/Great-Instrumental-Works-Unlocking-Contains/dp/1574671170/ref=pd_sxp_grid_i_2_0/002-4456605-3214401

[val]

Some books I always loved:

Joseph Kerman: Beethoven Quartets and Opera and Drama

Hans Heinz Stuckenschmidt: Schönberg

Andre Boucorechliev: Stravinsky

Piotr Kaminski: Mille et un operas (in French)

Claude Rostand: Brahms

Martin Gregor-Dellin: Richard Wagner

Brigitte Massin: Franz Schubert

Lokspeiser / Halbreich: Claude Debussy

Cobbett's Cyclopedic Survey of Chamber Music (old but remarkable, with an extraordinary article of Vincent d'Indy about Beethoven's chamber music)

[Larry Rinkel]

I remember a similar thread on the "old" forum, and couldn't find it here, so here goes. Please post the classical music related books that you own and would recommend or those that you are considering and would like advice on.

I'm not sure what you're looking for, really. Just any books on classical music? The responses you're getting are as scattershot and miscellaneous as the question. Are you looking for biographies or studies on individual composers; general works on music history and aesthetics; discussions of particular musical periods, genres, or works; books on music theory? And what is your background in classical music, so we know what level of understanding you have in order to pitch our recommendations?

I have about 150-200 books on classical music in my personal library. Many are very good. A few suck. I don't know what to recommend to you without knowing more about you to start with.

[henry]

This is the best book I've read on classical musicians:




And also, for a general overview of the history of western music, this book by one of the most esteemed musicologists, Paul Henry Lang:

[karlhenning]

This is the best book I've read on classical musicians:

Oh, I hope not!

Playing armchair behavioral analyst is quite the fad in biography these days.