Music: The Art of Listening [Paperback]

Jean Ferris (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 26, 1998 | ISBN-10: 069729384X | ISBN-13: 978-0697293848 | Edition: 5th

""Music: The Art of Listening is a practical, concise textbook for the beginning student of music history and appreciation, written in language readily understandable by a student with no previous music experience. Throughout the text, music is presented in its broad cultural and historical context, never as an isolated phenomenon divorced from the world surrounding it. Relationships are drawn between music and the other arts, with which students may have more familiarity, and between the music characteristic of one period and music of the distant past and of modern times."" - from the Preface

Emphasizing practical teaching over theoretical instruction, "Music: The Art of Listening" is written in an engaging and open style enjoyable to professor and student alike. Notation in the fifth edition remains limited for ease-of-use by students who do not read music. This edition offers more detailed listening guides and new timed listening charts to make it even more accessible to students.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

After receiving her MA in Music History and Literature at Arizona State University, Jean Ferris taught Music History and Appreciation at ASU. In addition to her work at the University, she has been involved with the music community by serving as a church choir director, singing with the Phoenix Symphony Chorale, playing the organ, and touring to Japan with her high school handbell choir--apparently the first handbell choir to perform in that country.

Ferris is the author of two books: Music: The Art of Listening and America's Musical Landscape. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill College; 5th edition (June 26, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 069729384X
• ISBN-13: 978-0697293848
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,277,265 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Music, the art of listening, September 26, 2010

By 

Timothy P. Phillips - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Music: The Art of Listening (Book & CD) (Paperback)

The book was one edition old, but it was effective for me to take a class.,

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good, basic guide!, November 2, 2008

By 

A. Haupt "Enchanted Door" (Missouri) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Music: The Art of Listening (Book & CD) (Paperback)

I used this book for a 6 week music course. It had a lot of good, basic information within it, but I did have to do some of my own research for the course. This was definitely a good guide to lead me along through my class; I wasn't disappointed. If I had attended a semester long course, I probably wouldn't have been as pleased with it.

3.0 out of 5 stars Unnecessarily Difficult to Read, November 15, 2011

By 

SJC History Teacher (Bangalore, India) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Music: The Art of Listening (Paperback)

My daughter is using this book for a high school class, and it is unneccessarily difficult to read. Example (from page 279) "The first musician labeled an Impressionist--although he detested the term--showed his affinity for the new French style by replacing musical statement with suggestion in a kind of aural realization of the painters' ideals."

Really! As an English teacher, I do feel that this book could have been written in a much clearer, simpler style and still conveyed its great wealth of information without making the reader work so hard.

That said, the book does give a good overview of the elements and history of western art music, and the examples provided on the CDs are appropriate and helpful. I like the format of the descriptions of each listening example, which guides the student through each piece of music.

Perhaps this book is more appropriate for mature adult readers rather than for high school students. I know that I have enjoyed reading it. Perhaps the later editions of this book are more readable.