Customer Reviews

Classical Music for Dummies

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I picked this book up because I was looking for a CD-book combo that would give me some good tips on the art of listening. This did that and much more. The book is extremely comprehensive and systematic in its coverage of classical music. The authors provide a lot of information simply and efficiently so that within a few pages, the reader is no longer such a dummy. This book goes beyond an academic explanation of the subject to being a real "how to" - how to listen, how to prepare, how to behave at a concert, how to get good tickets on the cheap... No stone is left unturned. The only drawback is that in an effort to dumb down the book, they inject corny jokes into almost every sentence. In small doses this is OK but, depending on your tastes in reading material, THIS GETS VERY ANNOYING after a few pages! Despite this drawback I pressed on because the content under the jokes was too good to miss.

In the school of the "--For Dummies" introductions to basically every topic in life, David Pogue is the class clown. I became acquainted with his breezy style in the "Macs for Dummies" series. Here he leaves the dry world of computers for the even drier world of classical music and succeeds in making it accessible and fun. Along with Scott Speck, he tackles topics like the entire history of music in 80 pages, how to upgrade your seat in a live concert for free, and why the shoes of brass players tend to stick to the stage. I highly recommend this book to anyone who feels there's more to classical music than the movie "Amadeus". The tone in "Classical Music for Dummies" is refreshingly irreverent. They even have a little "snob alert" icon to prepare you for the blusters of philharmonic poseurs. Be warned though that the constant stream of one-liners in the book tend to miss as often as hit. One other word of warning: forget the video portion of the attached CD-ROM. It's worthless and actually corrupted some of my computer files. Just listen to the CD through your stereo and follow along in Chapter 5 of the book. After reading the book and listening to the CD I'm fired up to broaden my classical music CD collection and attend more live symphonies - upgrading my seat for free, of course.

I've always loved all kinds of music but never really listened to or understood what's going on with classical music. This book was incredible. Just playing the CD that comes with the book and reading the section that walks you through each piece of music opened up a whole new world of music appreciation. With each piece they present possible interpretations of what the composer was actually trying to do/say. This combined with an explanation of the musical forms that they used make you realize that it's not just a random collection of musical phrases. There's very interesting things going on there! There's also a great history section covering all of the big names of classical music and there are plenty of musical recommendations to listen to throughout the book. This is just a great education in music (I've been a musician for 20 years and I still learned something!)

Many avenues of culture are closed deliberately to people by insiders who use the jargon of the trade with sophistication and snobbery to raise themselves above the poor unknowing multitudes who have not a clue what is being said.

Here, authors do a credible and entertaining aid of unpacking the wonderful world of classical music. As one internet classical station puts it, "Classical music without the attitude."

Here, although they do make light of it, it aids the uninformed what is at the heart of things classical. From different periods, to how to attend a concert, to beginning a CD collection, to understanding some theory, this is just excellent entrance.

Especially fascinating are the peeks into this world, e.g. the audition of the flute players, divorced and their trials at securing a major symphony chair.

The interactive materials with CD make their points well, and aid many in enjoying more fully this delightful world.

My music education, having been neglected, is in better shape after I read this book. The appendices direct the reader where to start buying good classical music, the names of the various works, and their difficulty.

The authors do an amazing job of condensing 2000 years of classical music into one slim book.

The attached CD is very helpful. Chapter 5 explains the eight selections on the CD. There is a represenative sample of the best composers on it.

The authors try a little too hard to be funny. They seem to feel they have to end every paragraph with a one liner. I ignored this annoying trait because the rest of the book is so informative.

I plan to start my classical music collection soon.

I've always liked listening to Classical Music but didn't know my Brahms from my Bach. I decided recently to try and learn more about this music. There are plenty of books that are hard to read and technical and then there's this book. This is a great crash course in classical music. Learn what all those Allegro con moto things mean. How many movements are there in a symphony, in a concerto?
The book contains a ton of short light biographies on composers along with nice recommendations. Besides that, the book comes with a CD with nine selections of classical music that are broken down moment by moment in the book. It was sheer joy learning how sophisticated and structured the music is. How themes are introduced and worked, how some works tell stories or represent storms, tranquil seasons or the struggles of heros!
If you know almost nothing about classical music and want a great introduction, this is the book. I read it cover to cover in a week and now I can't stay out of the library, I'm too busy listening to classical music with a much greater appreciation!!

You have to be careful with the Dummies series. Some authors use humor with discretion, others, as in this case, lard on so much humor that it gets in the way of learning and turns what should be a pleasure into an ordeal of extracting the useful information from the attempt at clever wise-cracks, puns and general satire.

Yes, there is information here if you are willing to work to get it, but a good 50% of the text is gratuitous laughs. There are other books, such as "The Classical Music Experience" by Jacobson, that treat the reader as someone intelligent who seeks to know rather than to be entertained.

The best advice is to go to the library and look in the music appreciation section. You'll find many superior alternatives to this book.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. For instance, the authors were very successful in describing the history of classical music in 80 pages. That section is organized by composer, giving the reader a 2-3 page description of the life, work, and unique contributions of the major composers (e.g., Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, etc.) and a 1 page description of the less influential composers (e.g., Mahler, Sibelius, etc.) After reading that section of the book, I found that I'm familiar with 80-90% of the composers whose work is played on classical radio in our area (WNYC New York).

The book also contains a CD which has some very well known pieces (e.g., excerpts from Beethoven's Fifth Symphony) and some less well known pieces. I thought the read-along descriptions of these pieces in the book were very well done and quite helpful in developing a good "ear" for classical music.

The book could have been improved in at least one area. I thought the shameless hawking of the publisher's other related book "Opera For Dummies" was excessive - it seemed like every other page had some quip about why the reader should buy the other book. I kept asking myself, "Why did I pay $20-25 for this book and then have to endure commercials for other books on every other page????" Hopefully, this can be addressed in the next edition of the book.

In general, this book is a great way for laypeople to improve their knowledge in this fascinating area quickly so that they can begin enjoying classical music to a greater extent.

If you like to have fun when you learn, this book is a home run. I studied a little music in college and this book covers all the essentials very well. Better yet, it does so with humor. This book is really fun! I am using this book to get my 12 and 14 year old sons to develop some appreciation of classical music. We read it together and listen to the cuts on the accompanying CD. The book clearly explains the different periods in music, e.g. baroque, classical, romatic, etc. With great humor, it introduces the reader to the great composers. Furthermore it makes musical forms and styles understandable such as "sonata form" in the symphonies and concertos of the classical period. if you want your kids to appreciate music, this is your best chance at successfully introducing them to it. You will really learn about music with this book and have a hoot doing it. I highly recommend this book.

Classical Music for Dummies is a wonderful introduction to the world of classical music.

The authors have taken a subject that is often regarded by the non-enthusiast as hopelessly highbrow and made it approachable and fun.

I found the brief history of classical music informative and entertaining, and the frequent integrated references to the CD (included with the book) set this volume apart from many others on the subject.

But it's not all history. The authors also describe how various instruments produce sound. They take us back stage and give us insight into how an audition for a major orchestra works. And they provide the best intro to basic music theory that I've come across. No prior knowledge is assumed.

Highly recommended.